Need to renew your certificate?

We have recently released a new version of our CertWizard software. We believe that you will find this considerably simpler for User certificate renewals than using the browser interface mentioned in the process below. More information and tutorials can be found on the CertWizard page. Please note that Host/Service certificates cannot yet be renewed using this tool.

The procedure in sending a renewal request using your browser to renew your certificate is exactly the same for personal and host certificate. You do not need to revisit your RA operator to renew your certificate. However, your RA Operator will check if you are still eligible for a UK e-Science certificate, and hence your RA Operator may contact you via email.

1. If you want to renew a certificate it must be loaded in your browser.  This means that your private key must be in the browser as well.  If it is not, you must import it prior to proceeding (Go to importing your certificate page to find out how to import certificate back into your browser).
2. Navigate to the CA Web Interface at https://ca.grid-support.ac.uk. (Note: https:// NOT http://)
3. Click Certificates and then Renew a Valid Certificate.
4. Select the certificate that you wish to renew in the dialogue that pops up (Firefox only: enter your Master Password if you are asked. This is a password Firefox uses to protect certificates and passwords stored in your browser).
5. You will see a form asking you for your details. Provide a valid email address and click Continue.
6. You will see then see a confirmation form with the data that you entered. Review the details and then press Continue.
7. Your browser will now want to generate a keypair. Firefox only: enter your Master Password if asked again.
8. You will get a message saying that the request has been successful. Your RA should approve the request shortly, and will then be signed by the CA within one working day (you should receive e-mail when the certificate is ready to be used)
9. Again, you can follow the link that is sent in the email in order to import the certificate into your Internet browser. You can also go to CA Web Interface -> ‘Retrieve New Certificate’ and enter the serial number from your email as your identifier.
10. Now test that your certificate works by CA Web Interface -> ‘Test Certificate’ (ensure that you get “Success” message).
11. You should now consider deleting your old certificate. Go to deleting your old certificate page to find out how.

 You can find printable version of these instructions from the "NGS Certificate Leaflets" section of the NGS Posters and Leaflets page.