Use a wildcard SSL certificate
A wildcard certificate (*.yourdomain.com) secures all subdomains —
blog., shop., app. — with a single certificate, no matter how many you add.
Do you actually need one?
Often not. OrbixPanel’s free Let’s Encrypt issues a certificate per site/subdomain automatically — so for a handful of subdomains you can just request SSL on each and never think about wildcards.
A wildcard is worth it when you:
- Create many subdomains, especially dynamically (e.g. a subdomain per customer).
- Want one certificate to manage instead of dozens.
Install a wildcard on OrbixPanel
The reliable path is to upload a wildcard certificate you obtained for
*.yourdomain.com:
- Get a wildcard certificate from a CA (commercial CAs sell them; Let’s Encrypt issues wildcards only via a DNS-based challenge).
- Install it as a custom certificate — paste the full-chain cert + private key.
Once installed, it secures every subdomain under the domain.
Wildcard vs per-site: quick guide
| Per-site Let’s Encrypt | Wildcard | |
|---|---|---|
| Setup | automatic per subdomain | one cert, upload |
| Renewal | automatic | you renew & re-upload |
| Best for | a few subdomains | many/dynamic subdomains |
Remember renewal
An uploaded wildcard doesn’t auto-renew — track its expiry and re-upload the renewed cert in time. (Per-site Let’s Encrypt handles renewal for you, which is why it’s the default for most setups.)
Running OrbixPanel? Per-site SSL is automatic; upload a wildcard when you need one. OrbixPanel.com → — the free, self-hosted, AI-powered hosting control panel.