Creating SSL Certificate in Nginx Proxy Manager

If you self-hosted and/or have a homelab, you’ll need to expose some services to the Internet. This guide provides step-by-step instructions for creating SSL certificates for your services in Nginx Proxy Manager (NPM). We’ll use Let’s Encrypt as the certificate authority and Cloudflare’s DNS validation method.

Prerequisites

• Nginx Proxy Manager installed and running
• A domain managed through Cloudflare
• Access to your Cloudflare admin dashboard
• DNS records properly set up in Cloudflare

Getting the Cloudflare API Token

First, create an API token that NPM will use to validate your domain ownership. From your Cloudflare dashboard:

1. Navigate to API Tokens in the menu
2. Click Create Token
3. Select Custom Token
4. Configure these settings:
   • Name: “MyHomeLab-ApiToken” (or any descriptive name)
   • Permissions: Zone → DNS → Edit
   • Zone Resources: Your specific domain(s)
5. Create and copy your token

Setting Up the Certificate in NPM

Now let’s create the SSL certificate in Nginx Proxy Manager:

1. Go to your NPM dashboard
2. Navigate to SSL Certificates
3. Click Add SSL Certificate
4. Configure the certificate:

Domain Settings

• Primary domain: example.com
• Wildcard domain: *.example.com

DNS Challenge Configuration

• Check “Use a DNS Challenge”
• DNS Provider: Cloudflare
• API Token: Paste your Cloudflare token
• Propagation Time: 120 seconds

Click Save and NPM will:

• Verify your domain through Cloudflare
• Generate the SSL certificate
• Set up automatic renewal

Security Tips

A few important security notes:

• Limit the API token to only the domains you need
• Keep your API token secure
• Check certificate renewal status periodically
• Review NPM logs for any certificate issues