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Set up mkcert HTTPS on your PHP web server running on WSL (Windows Subsystem for Linux)

Larry D'Jean Art's photo
Larry D'Jean Art
·

2 min read

To set up mkcert HTTPS on your PHP web server running on WSL (Windows Subsystem for Linux), follow these steps:

🚀 Step-by-Step Guide:

1. Install mkcert on WSL

sudo apt update && sudo apt install -y libnss3-tools
curl -JLO "https://dl.filippo.io/mkcert/latest?for=linux/amd64"
chmod +x mkcert
sudo mv mkcert /usr/local/bin/

Verify installation:

mkcert --version

2. Install Local Certificate Authority (CA)

Run:

mkcert -install

This will install a local CA in your system.

3. Generate SSL Certificates for Your Local Domain

mkcert localhost 127.0.0.1 ::1

This will create:

4. Configure PHP’s Built-in Server to Use HTTPS

If using PHP’s built-in server, start it with:

php -S localhost:443 -t /path/to/your/project --cert=localhost.pem --key=localhost-key.pem

5. Configure Apache or Nginx

If using Apache, modify /etc/apache2/sites-available/default-ssl.conf:

<VirtualHost *:443>
    ServerAdmin webmaster@localhost
    DocumentRoot /var/www/html
    ServerName localhost

    SSLEngine on
    SSLCertificateFile /path/to/localhost.pem
    SSLCertificateKeyFile /path/to/localhost-key.pem

    <Directory /var/www/html>
        AllowOverride All
        Require all granted
    </Directory>
</VirtualHost>

Enable SSL:

sudo a2enmod ssl
sudo a2ensite default-ssl
sudo systemctl restart apache2

6. Add Certificate to Windows Trust Store

To avoid browser warnings, copy the generated certificate to Windows and import it:

mkcert -install
cp "$(mkcert -CAROOT)/rootCA.pem" /mnt/c/Users/YOUR_WINDOWS_USERNAME/Documents/

Then, double-click rootCA.pem in Windows and install it as a Trusted Root Certificate.

🔥 Done! Open your PHP site with https://localhost on WSL. 🚀

Would you like help debugging any issues? 😊

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