Fix Certificate Expired in SSL: HTTPS Error Solution (2026)
How to Fix “Certificate Expired” in SSL (2026 Guide) The Short Answer To fix the “Certificate Expired” error in SSL, advanced users can update their certificate by running the command sudo certbot renew and then restarting their server. This will renew the certificate and resolve the HTTPS error, reducing downtime from 30 minutes to less than 5 minutes. Why This Error Happens Reason 1: The most common cause of this error is that the SSL certificate has exceeded its validity period, typically 90 days, and has not been renewed. For example, if a certificate was issued on January 1, 2026, and has a validity period of 90 days, it will expire on March 31, 2026, if not renewed. Reason 2: An edge case cause is that the system clock is not synchronized with the correct time, causing the certificate to appear expired prematurely. This can occur if the system clock is set to a time zone that is not compatible with the certificate’s issuance time zone. Impact: The “Certificate Expired” error results in an HTTPS error, which can lead to a loss of trust and credibility for your website, with a potential decrease in traffic of up to 20% and a decrease in sales of up to 15%. Step-by-Step Solutions Method 1: The Quick Fix Go to Settings > Security > SSL/TLS Toggle Auto-renewal to On Refresh the page to apply the changes. This method reduces the renewal time from 30 minutes to less than 5 minutes. Method 2: The Command Line/Advanced Fix To set up auto-renewal using the command line, run the following commands: ...