When Mango first tried to use Let's Encrypt, he overthought it. He expected to obtain and install an SSL Certificate in the traditional way. He couldn't really remember what that was, because he doesn't do it often enough. He would eventually figure it out, just as he had every other year.
He heard Let's Encrypt was great, but its website didn't make it seem like that. He had to install and run scripts on the web server? (Nope. Preinstalled.) The certificates were only valid for 90 days? (That's ok; keep reading.) Why couldn't they just issue certificates like every other issuer? (Because they're better; keep reading.) Did his cPanel server support Let's Encrypt? (Yes!) Probably not, as he couldn't find the user interface for it. (There isn't one. There doesn't need to be.)
Let's Encrypt has done possibly more than any other company in recent memory to improve internet security. Mango discovered this when he found...a Let's Encrypt certificate was already installed on the domain in question. cPanel noticed the old certificate about to expire, and automatically applied for, received, and installed a new certificate before Mango got around to it. If you administer a website on a cPanel server that has AutoSSL enabled, you have a domain-validated SSL certificate. No cost, no strings attached, no catches. The future is here, people.
Want to force users to use SSL? Replace example.com with your domain name and put this in your .htaccess:
RewriteEngine On
RewriteCond %{SERVER_PORT} 80
RewriteRule ^(.*)$ https://example.com/$1 [R,L]
