Creating Self Signed Certificate in IIS 7

SSL is a crucial part of securing sites running on IIS 7.0.
It enables encryption of traffic sent to and form the website running on IIS.
It used public key cryptography to create a secure connection. This enforces the rule of any thing encrypted with a public key must be decrypted with a private key and opposite.

We can create a self signed certificate, which is signed by itself rather than a third party trusted authority.
Disadvantage: This means we cant verify that we are connecting to correct server, as any hacker may create a self signed certificate and launch a man-in-the-middle attack.
Its the only reason we do not use a self signed certificate in a public server, where anyone may come and access site.

Self signed certificates can be used on local intranet, development machines, personal sites where we know who the visitors are.

Steps to create a self signed certificate:
1. Open IIS Manager, Go to SERVER CERTIFICATES

2.  In Server Certificates Right Click and Select 'Create Self-Signed Certificate'

3. Enter a friendly name for certificate.

4. Click OK and the certificate will be listed in Server Certificate lists.


We can use this certificate while setting the bindings for application we are working on.