How do I force https connections on my website?

Without HTTPS active, even with an installed certificate, your site will not be correctly secured using SSL/TLS. Therefore, it’s important it is enabled to reap the benefits of having an SSL/TLS certificate.

Why should I force HTTPs on my site?

HTTPS is the secure version of HTTP. Alongside SSL, it helps ensure that privacy and data integrity is maintained across your site.

The importance of both HTTPS and SSL is well documented. Browsers such as Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox will show sites as untrustworthy or dangerous if they are not active.

Interested in learning more about SSL and the different types of certificates?

Force HTTPS with .htaccess

.htaccess is a dot file, these files are hidden by default. To access the file, you will first need to enable viewing of hidden or dot files within the settings area of your chosen panel or FTP software.

1. For example, in cPanel, hidden files are enabled by clicking the settings cog.

cPanel enable hidden files in settings — Enabled .dot files

2. To redirect your website to HTTPS. Enter the following to your .htaccess file.

RewriteEngine On</p>
<p>RewriteCond %{HTTPS} off</p>
<p>RewriteRule ^(.*)$ https://%{HTTP_HOST}%{REQUEST_URI} [L,R=301]

3. After you have added this text to your .htaccess file, save it.

4. You can test if it was successful by entering the site URL in your browser.

Forcing HTTPS in cPanel

1. Firstly, log in to your cPanel control panel, navigating to “SSL/TLS Status” in the Security section.

2. From here, you can select the domain you’d like to install an SSL on.

3. Run AutoSSL sit back and relax whilst it runs. When it completes successfully, the page will update with a success notification. cPanel will then request a certificate from the issuing authority. If successful, it will be visible in AutoSSL.