A Guide to Really Simple SSL WordPress Plugin

It is a plugin that helps users to enable SSL on their website and to configure their site to use the HTTPS protocol. SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) is a protocol that provides security and privacy for online communications by encrypting data sent between a website and a user’s browser. Enabling SSL on a website can help to protect sensitive information such as login credentials and financial data.

The Really Simple SSL plugin is recommended for use on websites that do not have an SSL certificate installed or that need help configuring their site to use HTTPS. The plugin automatically detects the SSL certificate and configures the site to use HTTPS for all URLs, including images and other resources. This can save users the time and effort of manually configuring their site to use SSL.

People are taking advantage of this plugin to make their website more secure, protect their visitors’ data and improve their website’s search engine ranking. Because Google and other search engines are providing a ranking boost for HTTPS-enabled websites, many website owners are using this plugin to take advantage of this boost.

It’s important to note that the plugin is intended for use on sites that have a valid SSL certificate installed, and it is not a replacement for an SSL certificate. If the website doesn’t have a valid SSL certificate it will not work and the website will show security errors.

To integrate the Really Simple SSL plugin with an SSL certificate, you will need to first install and activate the plugin on your WordPress site. Once the plugin is activated, it will automatically detect the SSL certificate and configure your site to use HTTPS for all URLs.

Here are the general steps to install the SSL certificate and integrate the plugin:

1. Obtain an SSL certificate: You can get an SSL certificate from a variety of providers such as Let’s Encrypt, GlobalSign, DigiCert etc.
2. Install the SSL certificate on your server: This will vary depending on your hosting provider, but you will typically need to provide them with the certificate files you received from the certificate provider.
3. Install and activate the Really Simple SSL plugin: You can do this from the WordPress plugin repository by searching for “Really Simple SSL” and clicking “install.”
4. Configure the plugin settings: Once the plugin is installed and activated, it will automatically detect the SSL certificate and configure your site to use HTTPS. You can check the settings to ensure that the plugin is configured correctly.
5. Test your site: After configuring the plugin, check your site to make sure that it is using HTTPS. You can do this by visiting the site in a web browser and looking for the padlock icon in the address bar. You can also check that the site is using SSL by checking the website’s certificate details.

Note that after activating the plugin, you should also check that all the URLs and resources on your site are using HTTPS, as some of them may still be using HTTP.

It’s also important to note that before you install the plugin, it’s a good practice to backup your website and make sure that you have a recent copy of your database.