We have introduced a new way for hosting providers using WHMCS to bring ACME SSL subscriptions into their existing customer workflow.
Version 2.0.0-beta of the Realtime Register WHMCS SSL Addon adds support for creating and selling ACME subscription products for supported DigiCert (DV, OV & EV) and Sectigo (DV & OV) certificates, including PerfectSSL, GeoTrust, Thawte and RapidSSL.
This brings product creation, pricing and subscription management into WHMCS, while the certificate lifecycle continues to be handled by an ACME client in your or your customer's environment.
ACME helps automate certificate requests and renewals through a standardised protocol.
With the new beta functionality, hosting providers using WHMCS can connect this technical workflow to the commercial process they already use to offer SSL to customers.
Through the Product Creator, you can configure supported ACME SSL products and determine pricing based on the required number of domains and wildcards.
Customers can then purchase their subscription through WHMCS, add domains and wildcards, and retrieve the credentials required to connect an ACME client such as Certbot.
If their requirements grow, the beta also supports increasing the capacity of an existing subscription.
The new workflow does not move the ACME client itself into WHMCS. Instead, the responsibilities remain separated.
WHMCS manages the product, pricing, subscription and capacity. It also gives the customer access to the credentials required for their ACME client.
The ACME client runs in the service provider's or customer's own environment and handles the supported certificate lifecycle actions.
This allows you to integrate ACME SSL subscriptions into your existing WHMCS sales and provisioning process without changing where the actual certificate automation takes place.
The current version 2.0.0-beta supports eligible DigiCert (DV, OV & EV) and Sectigo (DV & OV) products.
ACME is also available for supported products from PerfectSSL, GeoTrust, Thawte and RapidSSL, as well as additional validation levels where supported by the selected product.
Check out our SSL Certificates page for an overview of all 'Supported brands and validation levels' for ACME.
SSL certificate management is becoming more frequent.
Publicly trusted SSL/TLS certificates currently have a maximum validity of 200 days, with the next reduction to 100 days coming in March 2027.
For hosting providers managing SSL across a growing customer base, this makes scalable certificate lifecycle processes increasingly important.
ACME can reduce the number of manual actions involved in certificate requests and renewals. Connecting ACME subscriptions to WHMCS takes that a step further by bringing product creation, pricing and customer subscription management into an environment many hosting providers already use.
It means the commercial workflow can remain in WHMCS, while certificate automation takes place where it belongs within your infrastructure.
Version 2.0.0-beta is available for partners who want to start testing the new ACME subscription workflow.
Because this is a beta release, we recommend starting in a controlled environment before introducing the workflow more broadly. Test the complete process, including product configuration, subscription creation, domains and wildcards, ACME client connection, certificate issuance and renewal.
If you are unsure how ACME could fit into your current SSL setup or want to explore which automation approach works best for your infrastructure, our team is here to help.
Ready to try it? Explore the WHMCS SSL Addon beta and start testing the new ACME subscription workflow.