Learn How to Renew a Code Signing Certificate

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Code signing certificates, like SSL/TLS and other X.509 digital certificates, expire after one to three years. If you're a developer or part of a large organization managing multiple certificates, you'll quickly realize how challenging it can be to keep up with renewals manually.

Renewing, issuing, and revoking code signing certificates on time takes planning and attention. When you're managing thousands of certificates at scale, it's easy to miss a renewal deadline. One oversight could mean your certificate expires without you even noticing—leaving your software unsigned and potentially untrusted.

So, how do you avoid this risk? And more importantly, how do you renew your code signing certificate?

Here's How to Renew Your Code Signing Certificate

Unluckily, if your code signing certificate has surpassed its expiry date, then you'll be required to go through the mentioned three steps:

Purchase your code signing certificate
Go through the validation process
Code signing certificate installation

Let's look through each step in detail.

1. Purchase Your Code Signing Certificate Again

Renewal is similar to a repurchase. It can help you avoid the vetting process if it's done before its expiry.

On the other hand, if the expiry date surpasses or you wish to go with another CA (Certificate Authority), you'll be required to go through all the steps, including the vetting process, from the very beginning.

2. Go Through the Validation Process

As mentioned above, if you do it before its expiry, then depending upon your chosen CA, you may be asked to skip this validation step entirely. Similarly, some CAs don't ask for every document like they did initially.

However, if the expiry has been surpassed or you choose to go with another CA, you must satisfy this validation step. Depending upon the code signing certificate, the documents you must submit for validation that prove your legitimacy differ.

3. Code Signing Certificate Installation

Once your validation process is completed, which usually takes around one to three business days for an OV & Individual Code Signing certificate and one to five business days for an EV Code Signing certificate, you will receive your certification in an email.

Likewise, it ships your HSM device to your registered business address if it's an EV code signing certificate.

Nonetheless, once you receive your code signing certificate, you must install it. And for that follow the steps as mentioned below:

Go through the email address that you gave during registration. You may have received an installation link for your reissued code signing certificate.

Click on that link and open it in your web browser. It'll allow your certificate to be installed within your login keychain or certificate store, depending upon which operating system you're using, whether it's Windows or Apple. Also, you can export your code signing certificate as a .p12 file for your Mac and .pfx for Windows.