This tutorial explains how to generate and configure a free SSL certificate for any website using Let’s Encrypt Certbot with the webroot method.

You can use this same process for any domain by replacing the domain name and project path.

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Example Domain Used in This Tutorial

In this example, we are using:

myeventsnow.jp
www.myeventsnow.jp

Project public path:

/opt/lampp/htdocs/myeventsnow.jp/public

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Step 1: Confirm Website Public Directory

First, check your website public directory.

Example:

ls -la /opt/lampp/htdocs/myeventsnow.jp/public

Make sure this folder exists and your website files are inside it.

For Laravel projects, the correct webroot is usually:

/project-folder/public

Example:

/opt/lampp/htdocs/myeventsnow.jp/public

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Step 2: Generate Free SSL Certificate Using Certbot

Run the following command:

sudo certbot certonly --webroot \
-w /opt/lampp/htdocs/myeventsnow.jp/public \
-d myeventsnow.jp \
-d www.myeventsnow.jp

Explanation of the Command

Command Part	Meaning
certbot certonly	Generates certificate only, without automatically changing Apache config
--webroot	Uses the website folder to verify domain ownership
-w	Website public directory path
-d myeventsnow.jp	Main domain
-d www.myeventsnow.jp	WWW version of domain

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Step 3: SSL Certificate Location

After successful generation, Certbot will show paths like this:

Certificate is saved at: /etc/letsencrypt/live/myeventsnow.jp/fullchain.pem
Key is saved at:         /etc/letsencrypt/live/myeventsnow.jp/privkey.pem

These two files are required in Apache SSL configuration.

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Step 4: Create Apache SSL VirtualHost

Now create or update your Apache SSL configuration file.

Example SSL VirtualHost:

<VirtualHost *:443>
    ServerName myeventsnow.jp
    ServerAlias www.myeventsnow.jp

    DocumentRoot "/opt/lampp/htdocs/myeventsnow.jp/public"

    <Directory "/opt/lampp/htdocs/myeventsnow.jp/public">
        Options Indexes FollowSymLinks
        AllowOverride All
        Require all granted
    </Directory>

    SSLEngine on
    SSLCertificateFile "/etc/letsencrypt/live/myeventsnow.jp/fullchain.pem"
    SSLCertificateKeyFile "/etc/letsencrypt/live/myeventsnow.jp/privkey.pem"

    ErrorLog "/opt/lampp/logs/myeventsnow_ssl_error.log"
    CustomLog "/opt/lampp/logs/myeventsnow_ssl_access.log" combined
</VirtualHost>

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Step 5: Important Correction in Log File Names

In your current config, log files are written as:

ErrorLog "/opt/lampp/logs/amaravatiorbit_ssl_error.log"
CustomLog "/opt/lampp/logs/amaravatiorbit_ssl_access.log" combined

For better clarity, change them to the current website name:

ErrorLog "/opt/lampp/logs/myeventsnow_ssl_error.log"
CustomLog "/opt/lampp/logs/myeventsnow_ssl_access.log" combined

This is not mandatory, but it is recommended so that logs are easy to identify.

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Step 6: Optional HTTP to HTTPS Redirect

You should also create a port 80 VirtualHost to redirect HTTP traffic to HTTPS.

<VirtualHost *:80>
    ServerName myeventsnow.jp
    ServerAlias www.myeventsnow.jp

    DocumentRoot "/opt/lampp/htdocs/myeventsnow.jp/public"

    <Directory "/opt/lampp/htdocs/myeventsnow.jp/public">
        Options Indexes FollowSymLinks
        AllowOverride All
        Require all granted
    </Directory>

    RewriteEngine On
    RewriteCond %{HTTPS} off
    RewriteRule ^ https://%{HTTP_HOST}%{REQUEST_URI} [L,R=301]
</VirtualHost>

This will redirect:

http://myeventsnow.jp

to:

https://myeventsnow.jp

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Step 7: Test Apache Configuration

Before restarting Apache, test the configuration.

For normal Apache:

sudo apachectl configtest

For XAMPP/LAMPP Apache:

sudo /opt/lampp/bin/apachectl configtest

Expected output:

Syntax OK

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Step 8: Restart Apache

For XAMPP/LAMPP:

sudo /opt/lampp/lampp restart

Or only restart Apache:

sudo /opt/lampp/lampp restartapache

For system Apache:

sudo systemctl restart apache2

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Step 9: Check Website

Now open your website:

https://myeventsnow.jp

Also check:

https://www.myeventsnow.jp

The website should open with SSL successfully.

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Step 10: Check Certificate Renewal

Let’s Encrypt SSL certificates are usually valid for around 90 days, so renewal should be configured.

Test renewal with:

sudo certbot renew --dry-run

If the test is successful, automatic renewal should work.

You can also manually renew certificates using:

sudo certbot renew

After renewal, restart Apache:

sudo /opt/lampp/lampp restartapache

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Generic Command for Any Website

Use this format for any domain:

sudo certbot certonly --webroot \
-w /path/to/your/project/public \
-d yourdomain.com \
-d www.yourdomain.com

Example:

sudo certbot certonly --webroot \
-w /opt/lampp/htdocs/example.com/public \
-d example.com \
-d www.example.com

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Generic Apache SSL VirtualHost for Any Website

<VirtualHost *:443>
    ServerName yourdomain.com
    ServerAlias www.yourdomain.com

    DocumentRoot "/path/to/your/project/public"

    <Directory "/path/to/your/project/public">
        Options Indexes FollowSymLinks
        AllowOverride All
        Require all granted
    </Directory>

    SSLEngine on
    SSLCertificateFile "/etc/letsencrypt/live/yourdomain.com/fullchain.pem"
    SSLCertificateKeyFile "/etc/letsencrypt/live/yourdomain.com/privkey.pem"

    ErrorLog "/opt/lampp/logs/yourdomain_ssl_error.log"
    CustomLog "/opt/lampp/logs/yourdomain_ssl_access.log" combined
</VirtualHost>

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Common Errors and Fixes

1. Certbot Shows 500 Error

If Certbot gives a 500 error during verification, check:

tail -f /opt/lampp/logs/error_log

Also check your Laravel log:

tail -f /opt/lampp/htdocs/myeventsnow.jp/storage/logs/laravel.log

Possible reasons:

• Wrong DocumentRoot
• Permission issue
• Laravel error
• .htaccess issue
• Website returning 500 on /.well-known/acme-challenge/

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2. Certificate Path Not Found

Check if certificate files exist:

ls -la /etc/letsencrypt/live/myeventsnow.jp/

If files are missing, Certbot generation was not successful.

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3. Apache Not Starting After SSL Config

Run:

sudo /opt/lampp/bin/apachectl configtest

If any syntax error appears, fix the Apache config file and restart Apache again.

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Final Notes

This method is useful when you want full control over Apache SSL configuration. The certonly --webroot method generates the SSL certificate, and then you manually add the certificate path in the Apache VirtualHost.

For any new website, you only need to change:

Domain name
Project public path
SSL certificate path
Log file names

Example values to replace:

yourdomain.com
/path/to/your/project/public
/etc/letsencrypt/live/yourdomain.com/fullchain.pem
/etc/letsencrypt/live/yourdomain.com/privkey.pem