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Features

This page compares the major features across the Certify The Web product suite and links to the common concept pages shared by multiple products.

Certificate Management & Automation​

Core Certificate Features​

These fundamental certificate management capabilities are available across all products:

  • Automated ACME Certificate Renewals - Automatic renewal with zero-config failure notifications
  • Multi-CA Support - Support for Let's Encrypt, Google Trust Services, ZeroSSL, Actalis, Custom and enterprise CAs
  • Certificate Authority Fallback - Optional automatic fallback to alternative CAs if the primary fails
  • Wildcard Certificate Support - Full support for wildcard domains (*.example.com)
  • IP Certificates - Certificate covering IPv4 or IPv6 addresses
  • Multi-Domain Certificates (SAN) - Single certificate covering multiple domains
  • Certificate Preview - Preview planned changes before requesting certificates
  • Multi-config Validation - Configure multiple mixed domain/ip validation methods for one certificate
  • Certificate Revocation - Manual certificate revocation when needed
  • Configuration Export/Import - Backup and restore certificate configurations

Advanced Certificate Options​

  • Custom Private Key Types - RSA and ECDSA key support with configurable key sizes
  • Preferred Certificate Chains - Specify preferred certificate chains for compatibility
  • Certificate Signing Request (CSR) Control - Optionally use your own CSR, ideal for when the private key is not controlled by you
  • PFX Password Protection - Secure certificate files with passwords
  • Staging Mode Support - Test certificates for development and testing
  • Certificate Comments & Metadata - Organize certificates with custom descriptions

Domain Validation Methods​

DNS Validation (dns-01)​

  • 50+ DNS Provider Integrations - Built-in support for major DNS providers
  • Certify DNS Service - Hosted acme-dns compatible service
  • acme-dns support - Standard CNAME-based delegation
  • Manual DNS Option - Manual TXT record creation when APIs aren't available
  • Custom DNS Scripting - Custom scripts for unsupported DNS providers

HTTP Validation (http-01)​

  • Built-in HTTP Challenge Server - Integrated challenge response server
  • IIS Integration - Automatic HTTP validation via IIS (Windows)
  • Custom HTTP Challenge Handlers - Configurable challenge response methods

Deployment & Integration​

Built-in Deployment Tasks​

Comprehensive deployment options for various platforms and services:

Web Servers & Load Balancers:

Microsoft Services:

  • Microsoft Exchange (IMAP, SMTP, IIS, POP services)
  • Active Directory Federation Services (ADFS)
  • Remote Desktop Services (RDP Gateway, RDP Listener)
  • Routing and Remote Access Service (RAS)
  • IIS Centralized Certificate Store (CCS)

Cloud & Container Platforms:

  • Azure App Service
  • Azure Key Vault
  • HashiCorp Vault (with namespace support)
  • AWS services (via export tasks)

Security & Secrets Management:

  • Local Windows Certificate Store
  • Doppler secrets storage
  • Various secrets vault integrations

Custom Deployment Options​

  • PowerShell Script Execution - Custom PowerShell scripts with parameter passing (cross platform)
  • Bash Script Support - Linux/macOS script execution
  • Webhook Integration - HTTP webhooks with customizable payloads
  • SSH/SFTP Deployment - Remote file deployment over secure connections
  • UNC Share Deployment - Network share certificate distribution (Windows)
  • Service Management - Start/stop/restart services after deployment (Windows)
  • Permission Management - Set certificate key permissions (Windows)

User Interfaces & Management​

Desktop Application (CCM - Windows)​

  • Rich Desktop UI - Full-featured Windows desktop application
  • Real-time Status Monitoring - Live renewal status and progress tracking
  • Certificate Store Integration - Direct Windows certificate store management
  • IIS Management - Visual IIS site and binding management

Web-Based Management (Management Hub)​

  • Cross-Platform Web UI - Browser-based interface for all platforms
  • Multi-User Access - Role-based user management and permissions
  • Centralized Management - Manage certificates across multiple instances
  • API Access - RESTful API for automation and integration

Command Line Interface​

  • Full CLI Support - Complete command-line interface for automation
  • Scripting Integration - PowerShell and bash scripting support
  • Automated Deployment - Unattended installation and configuration
  • Bulk Operations - Mass certificate management operations

Monitoring & Reporting​

Status & Health Monitoring​

  • Real-time Status Dashboard - Live certificate status overview
  • Renewal Failure Detection - Automatic failure notification system
  • Certificate Expiry Monitoring - Proactive expiration warnings
  • Detailed Logging - Comprehensive activity and error logging

Hosted Dashboard Service​

  • Centralized Reporting - Cloud-based certificate monitoring
  • Multi-Server Aggregation - Monitor hundreds of servers from one dashboard
  • Failure Analysis - Detailed failure messages and troubleshooting
  • Email Notifications - Automated renewal failure notifications
  • Historical Reporting - Certificate renewal history and trends

External ACME Client Monitoring​

Hub & Agent Only:

  • Certbot Integration - Monitor existing Certbot renewals
  • acme.sh Support - Track renewals from acme.sh installations
  • win-acme and simple-acme - Monitor Windows ACME client renewals
  • Posh-ACME Integration - PowerShell ACME module monitoring

Infrastructure & Deployment​

Platform Support​

Common Across Products:

  • Windows Server (2016+)
  • Windows Desktop (Windows 10+)

Hub & Agent Only:

  • Linux (Ubuntu, CentOS, RHEL, Debian, Alpine)
  • macOS (Intel & Apple Silicon)
  • Docker containers
  • Kubernetes
  • Red Hat/IBM OpenShift

Data Storage Options​

  • SQLite (Default) - File-based database for single instances
  • Microsoft SQL Server - Enterprise database support (2016+)
  • PostgreSQL - Open-source database support (9.5+)
  • Database Migration Tools - Migrate between database types

Scalability & Performance​

  • Multi-Instance Management - Manage hundreds of certificate instances
  • Distributed Architecture - Scale across multiple servers
  • Background Processing - Non-blocking certificate operations
  • Batch Operations - Efficient bulk certificate management

Security & Compliance​

Security Features​

  • Encrypted Credential Storage - DPAPI encryption for stored credentials (Windows)
  • Role-Based Access Control - Granular user permissions (Hub)
  • API Security - Token-based authentication for scoped API access

Compliance & Standards​

  • ACME Protocol Compliance - Comprehensive RFC 8555 ACME support, plus draft features.
  • Industry Standard Formats - PEM, PFX, PKCS#12 certificate formats

Specialized Features​

STIR/SHAKEN Certificates​

CCM & Hub:

  • Telecommunications Certificate Support - Specialized certificates for telecom providers
  • Authority Token Management - SPC token and CRL handling

Import/Export​

  • Bulk Certificate Management - Import/export certificate configurations
  • Migration Tools - Migrate certificates between instances
  • Backup & Restore - Complete configuration backup capabilities

Product-Specific Features​

Certify Certificate Manager (CCM)​

  • Desktop UI - Windows desktop application and background service

Management Hub​

  • Web-Based Interface - Cross-platform browser access
  • Multi-User Management - Role-based user accounts
  • Instance Management - Control multiple CCM instances
  • Container Support - Docker and Kubernetes deployment
  • Managed DNS Challenges - Centralized DNS challenge handling
  • Managed ACME API Server - Act as ACME server for other clients

Management Agent​

  • Headless Operation - No UI required for Linux/macOS
  • External Client Monitoring - Monitor third-party ACME clients
  • Cross-Platform Service - systemd/launchd service integration

Dashboard Service​

  • Hosted Monitoring - Cloud-based renewal monitoring

Getting Started​

To get started with any of these features:

For specific feature documentation, see the individual guides.