Problem with the website security certificate in Webhelp file

[Ashishtech]

Hi,

I have generated HTML files on Webhelp using Robohelp X5. We have our company website which runs on Linux server. The problem is, after uploading all the HTML files, when I try to open the Help link it gives a certificate error as "There is a problem with this website's secutiy certificate" and gives 2 options as:
1. Click here to close this webpage
2. Continue to this website (Not recommended)
If we select the 2nd option, it opens the Help without problem. I talked with our website administrator, he said that we are using HTTPS, but if we try to use HTTP, it does not give any error, but it also does not load and keep on refreshing endlessly.
As we have generated the Help on Windows machine, maybe when we compile the Help file the script file which is generated may conflict on Linux server.
Is there any solution to this?
Our customers are complaining about this issue as they think continuing to visit the webpage may put them into some virus issue.
Please advice ASAP
Thanks in advance,
Ashish

[Guest]

Hello Ashish,

Welcome to the forum.

Have you tried adding the website to the Trusted Sites settings in your browser. Internet Options\Security\Trusted Sites.
Manually put in the URL and try again.

Hope this helps,

Brian

[Ashishtech]

Thanks Brain for your suggestion, but my question is we can't ask the user to do what you have suggested. Is there any other way we can avoid that page to appear.
My company is asking me to generate the WebHelp on Linux platform, will this solve the issue?
Thanks,
Ashish

[Peter Grainge]

I have never known webhelp prompt for a security certificate. I wonder if that is coming from the way you are calling the help? If you just open the start page of the webhelp, do you get prompted for the certificate?

[Ashishtech]

Yes, as soon as someone click the Help link to open, the first page appears is the certificate page.

[Peter Grainge]

I meant if you just open the help direct. If Windows, via Windows Explorer and running the start page. Whatever the equivalent is in Linux.

In other words, you open the start page yourself, not via a link from the application.

[Catfish_Tales]

Ordinarily, a security certificate warning is generated when using SSL with faulty credentials (expired certificate, certifcate assigned to another host, certificated issued by a non-recognized certificate authority, or non-existent certificate).

Is the protocol "https" rather than "http"? If so, you're using SSL.

Do you intend to use SSL? If so, you need to update your credentials in your HTTPD server configuration. If not, you need to update your HTTPD server configuration to use the HTTP protocol without SSL.

[Ashishtech]

Thanks guys.... so ultimately this means that its nothing to do with the Webhelp files generated on Windows platform and the website using the file is on Linux platform.

If we use HTTP instead of HTTPS, why the page keeps on refreshing, can we have a solution for this.
Ashish

[Catfish_Tales]

There are two possibilities: (a) your company wants to use SSL or (b) your company doesn't want to use SSL.

Without SSL, there are three basic aspects of delivering Web pages: (1) the network, (2) the pages, and (3) the Web server.

1. You received an alert about an invalid certificiate. This would seem to indicate that the network is up and running.

2. You can look at the Web pages in code view to see if code from another source was accidentally copied into the files.

3. You can look at your Web server configuration to see what influence it has on delivery of your pages.

When SSL is added to the above, things become a little more complicated. Browser settings and a certifcate authority become part of the equation.

It is common for browsers to provide alerts or dialog boxes when certificates are invalid. However, alerts or dialog boxes are rarely provided when a certificate is valid.

To receive a certificate, your company provides contact information and a fee to a certificate authority. The certificate might last for 1, 2, or 3 years. When it expires, it is invalid. If the company moves and doesn't update its contact infromation with the certificate authority, the certificate is invalid. If the certificate is assigned to "ssl.yourcompany.com" and your company wants to use it on "secure.yourcompany.com", the certificate is invalid. There are other reasons that a certificate might be invalid. To determine the reason that a certificate is invalid, your company must contact the certificate authority.

If your company previously used a certificate, you might start with the certificate authority. If your company never used a certificate, you might start with the information at the top of this message.

[Ashishtech]

I spoke to my company concern dept who takes care of the website maintanance, I ve been told to revert back to use HTTP instead of using HTTPS. Last question, we were using HTTP before but we switched to HTTPS because when using HTTP, the main page was keep on refreshing and the TOC never got loaded. Is there any solution to this problem? If yes, it would be easy for us to revert back to HTTP.
Thank you,
Ashish

[Catfish_Tales]

The problem might be related to your server configuration. Your Web server can do many things. It can even redirect trafffic based on parameters that your company specifies. It is important to review the Web server's configuration.

The problem might be related to the content of your pages. You can use truecode view in RoboHelp HTML to look for any type of HTML that would cause your pages to refresh.

The problem might be related to spaces or other special characters in file names. This is particularly common on Linux and Unix machines running the Apache server.

The problem might be related to incomplete or incorrect publishing. If some of the files are not reaching the server, then the server cannot server them. Alternately, the latest version of the files might not be reaching the server.

I would look at all of these possibilities.

[ashish_tripathi]

Thanks Gunslinger, we are now switching back to HTTP from HTTPS, I guess there is no solution to this problem except to the certificate. The problem with HTTP was wild characters appearing as question marks and webpage keep on refreshing. I have solved the wild character issue and hope the webpage will not keep on refreshing.
I thank all of you for your kind support and suggestions. Still if someone finds any other solution, please send me mail at ashish.tripathi@fiorano.com
Thanks again,
Ashish