Along with the links on your pages, a scan looks at the site it scanned. It reads when the domain is registered until, from the domain registry, and when the security certificate expires, from the certificate the site presents.
| What | When it is flagged | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Your domain registration | Within 60 days of running out | A lapsed domain takes your site and your email down, and anyone can register the name. |
| Your security certificate | Within 21 days of running out | Browsers show visitors a full-page warning once it has expired. |
| How your site serves HTTPS | The secure version doesn’t load, the certificate isn’t trusted, or http:// doesn’t send visitors on to https:// | Visitors on the plain address stay unencrypted, and browsers warn on a bad certificate. A header called HSTS tells browsers to always use https://, and the report suggests it when it is missing. |
Both dates show in the summary of the report. If either is close, it is also worked into the paragraph at the top of the report and the scan-complete email.
Why check your own site as well
Most link checks look outward, at the sites you point to. Two of the most damaging problems are inward: the registration for your own domain runs out, or the security certificate on your site expires. Both are easy to forget because they only come round once a year or less, and both take the whole site down for visitors when they are missed.
Your domain registration
A domain is rented, not owned. If it isn’t renewed, it lapses, your site and your email stop working, and after a grace period anyone can register the name. The report reads the expiry date from the domain registry and warns you before it arrives, so there is time to renew, or to check that auto-renew is on and the card behind it is still valid.
Your security certificate
The certificate is what lets browsers show a padlock and load your site over HTTPS. Most are renewed automatically, which is exactly why a failed renewal goes unnoticed until visitors see a full-page browser warning. The report reads the certificate your site presents and tells you how long it has left.
How your site serves HTTPS
- The secure version doesn’t load. Visitors who follow an https:// link get an error.
- The certificate isn’t trusted. For example it is for a different name, or the chain is incomplete, so browsers warn.
- http:// doesn’t move visitors on to https://. People who type the plain address stay on an unencrypted page.
- No HSTS header. HSTS tells browsers to always use https:// for your site. The report suggests it when it is missing.
What to do when it is flagged
- Domain close to expiry: log in to your registrar, renew it, and turn on auto-renew. Check that the contact email on the registration is one you read.
- Certificate close to expiry: check that automatic renewal is working with your host or certificate provider, and renew it by hand if not.
- HTTPS problem: ask your host or developer to fix the certificate or add the redirect from http:// to https://.
After the fix, run a new scan. The dates are read again each time, so the warning clears once the new expiry is seen.
Questions
Why is no date shown for my domain?
Some domain extensions don’t publish when a registration ends. Where the date isn’t available it is left out rather than guessed.
Does this look at the sites I link to as well?
Yes, separately. Domains you link to are checked for expiry and registration too. See expired domain links.
Can I be warned without running a scan?
Yes. Monitoring checks on a schedule, so you hear about a problem without running a scan yourself.
In your report
Your own domain and certificate are shown on the Your site, example.com card on the Overview tab, and in full in the Your site panel on the Inventory tab. Both come from the same data, collected when the scan runs.
The Your site card
| Number on the card | What it shows |
|---|---|
| Domain expires in | The days left on your domain registration, or “Expired” once the date has passed. Amber at 60 days or fewer and red at 14 days or fewer. A dash when the registry does not publish a date. |
| Certificate expires in | The days left on the security certificate your site presents. Amber at 21 days or fewer and red at 14 days or fewer. A dash when it could not be read. |
| HTTPS | One word: Problem (red) when the secure version does not load or the certificate is not trusted, No redirect (amber) when http:// does not move visitors to https://, Good (green) when only HSTS is missing, and Strong (green) when everything is in place. |
The chip reads Act soon (amber) when the domain or certificate is inside its warning window, or when HTTPS is Problem or No redirect. It reads Worth a look (grey) when only HSTS is missing. If all is well the card is replaced by Your site in the green “Nothing found in” line. On an older report that did not record it, Your site is listed in the “Not recorded for this scan” line instead, and a new scan records it.
The advice joins the fixes in order, for example “Renew your domain (it runs out in 20 days) and switch on auto-renew, then renew your security certificate (it runs out in 12 days), then add an HSTS header so browsers always use https:// for your site”. The See the details button opens the Inventory tab. The button beside it, labelled “How your own site is checked”, opens this page in a new tab.
The domain figure here is read straight from the registry’s expiry date. The grace-period handling used for the domains you link to does not apply, so a passed date reads “Expired”.
The Your site panel on the Inventory tab
| Row | What it shows |
|---|---|
| Domain registration | The date it runs until and the time left, or “Not published by the registry”. |
| Security certificate | The date it runs until and the time left, with a red “Not trusted by browsers” chip if it does not chain to a trusted authority or does not match the host. “Couldn’t be read” if no certificate was read. |
| Served over HTTPS | Yes (green), No (red) or “Not checked”. |
| http:// sends visitors to https:// | Yes (green), No (amber) or “Not checked”. |
| HSTS (browsers always use https://) | On (green), Off (grey) or “Not checked”. |
A last row starting “Next step:” gives the one thing to fix first. If the scan did not record any of this, the panel says so and a new scan fills it in.
How this counts in your LinkSignal
These three checks are rows of your site’s external LinkSignal: your own domain, your security certificate and HTTPS on your site. They count when a domain or certificate has expired or is close to expiring, or when the secure version of the site does not load. A check that was not recorded for a scan costs nothing and is marked as not recorded. See how the score is worked out for the points. LinkSignal is Link Signals’ own metric, worked out only from what this tool finds, and it is not connected to any search engine or third-party score.
See when your own domain and certificate run out.
