SSL Certificate Types and Purposes
SSL certificates are used to secure communications between a website, host or server, and end users that are connecting to that server. An SSL certificate confirms the identity of the domain name e.g.www.wisc.edu that is operating the web site, encrypts all information between the server and the visitor and ensures the integrity of the transmitted information.
There are several types of SSL certificates that we can issue using the InCommon certificate service. A brief description of the types of SSL certificates offered, their typical purpose, and limitations follows: Certificate Type Description and Purpose Available Validity Typical Processing Time Single domain (Incommon SSL Certificate)
An SSL
certificate protects a single domain e.g. my.wisc.edu. These are the
"traditional" SSL certificates that have been in use since the
advent of the SSL protocol. 1 or 2 year 1 -2
business days Multiple domain (Incommon Multi-domain SSL certificate)
A multiple
domain certificate allows you protect multiple host names with a single SSL
certificate. These are also known as SAN (Subject Alternative Name)
certificates. Up to 100 domain names can be included in a
multi-domain certificate. However, if applying for a certificate with more than 20 SANs, please contact servercertificates@doit.wisc.edu so that we can assist you in this request. 1 or 2 year 1-2
business days Extended validation single domain (Comodo EV SSL certificate)
An Extended
Validation certificate protects a single domain e.g. my.wisc.edu.
However, the certificate is issued according to a specific set of identity
verification criteria. Certificates issued by a CA under the EV guidelines
are not structurally different from other certificates but are designated
with a CA-specific policy identifier so that EV-aware software (browsers) can
recognize them and display the "green bar". 1 or 2 year
5-10
business days Extended validation multiple domain (Comodo EV multi-domain SSL certificate)
See above, except this certificate can protect multiple domains. 1 or 2 year 5-10
business days Wildcard (Incommon wildcard SSL certificate)
A wildcard
certificate protects a domain and unlimited subdomains of that domain e.g
*.bus.wisc.edu secures my.bus.wisc.edu, www.bus.wisc.edu, etc.
Because of the increased risk of using wildcard certificates, we require an
the requestor agree to certain terms of service and suggest using
multi-domain certificates rather than wildcard certificates when possible. 1 year 2--3 business days UCC Exchange (Incommon Unified Communications Certificate)
A unified
communications certificate allows you to protect multiple host names with a
single SSL certificate. Specifically designed for Microsoft Exchange
and Microsoft Office Communciations Server. Newer versions of Microsoft
products will work with multi-domain certificates. 1 or 2 year 1-2
business days
Period
These certificates are often used on a single servers hosting many web sites
to eliminate the need to use unique ip addresses for each web site e.g.
wisc.edu and www.wisc.edu.
We recommend using these certificates for sites where a user will be entering
login credentials or financial related sites.
Because Comodo has to do additional identity verification for each of these
requests, certificates processing time is significantly increased.
Please plan ahead!