How to setup HTTP Strict Transport Security With Lighttpd Web Server

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HTTP Strict Transport Security (HSTS) is a security feature that forces clients to communicate with a web server only over HTTPS, even if they try to access it via HTTP. This helps protect against man-in-the-middle attacks and other security threats. Here’s how to set up HSTS with the Lighttpd web server:

  1. Enable HTTPS on your Lighttpd server: Before you can use HSTS, you need to have a working HTTPS configuration. You can learn more about setting up HTTPS with Lighttpd in their official documentation.
  2. Edit your Lighttpd configuration file: The configuration file for Lighttpd is typically located at /etc/lighttpd/lighttpd.conf. You can edit this file with a text editor, such as nano.
  3. Add the following line to your configuration file to enable HSTS:
$HTTP["scheme"] == "https" {
header.add("Strict-Transport-Security" => "max-age=31536000; includeSubdomains")
}

The max-age directive sets the number of seconds that the HSTS policy will be in effect. The includeSubdomains directive applies the HSTS policy to all subdomains as well.

  1. Save the changes: Save the changes to the configuration file and close the text editor.
  2. Restart the Lighttpd server: To apply the changes, you’ll need to restart the Lighttpd server. You can do this by running the following command:
sudo service lighttpd restart
  1. Test the HSTS implementation: You can test your HSTS implementation by visiting your website using a browser that supports HSTS and checking if the “Strict-Transport-Security” header is present in the response. You can also use an online HSTS checker to verify the implementation. (https://hummingbirddental.ca)

By following these steps, you should be able to set up HSTS with the Lighttpd web server.

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