How to Set Up SSL for Your CNAME Without Using Cloudflare - KillerPlayer

June 13, 2025

Here's a clear, step-by-step guide for users who want to use a CNAME with SSL using their own server (via NGINX or Apache) when Cloudflare isn't an option.

Use this guide if you want to use a custom subdomain (like video.mydomain.com) to embed KillerPlayer videos with SSL (https), without using Cloudflare.

Step 1: Add the CNAME Record at Your DNS Provider

Go to your DNS provider and add a CNAME record:

Type: CNAME
Name: video (or whatever subdomain you want)
Value: cname.killerplayer.com

It should point video.mydomain.com to cname.killerplayer.com

It can take a few minutes to a few hours for the DNS to propagate.

Step 2: Set Up a Reverse Proxy (with SSL)

Here are two options depending on your web server:

Option A: Using NGINX

Install NGINX and Certbot (Let’s Encrypt)

sudo apt update
sudo apt install nginx certbot python3-certbot-nginx

Set up NGINX config for video.mydomain.com

Create a config file (e.g. /etc/nginx/sites-available/killerplayer-proxy.conf):

server {
    listen 80;
    server_name video.mydomain.com;

    location / {
        proxy_pass https://killerplayer.com;
        proxy_set_header Host killerplayer.com;
        proxy_ssl_verify off;
    }
}

Enable it and reload NGINX:

sudo ln -s /etc/nginx/sites-available/killerplayer-proxy.conf /etc/nginx/sites-enabled/
sudo nginx -t
sudo systemctl reload nginx

Get SSL for Your Subdomain

sudo certbot --nginx -d video.mydomain.com

Let’s Encrypt will install a free SSL certificate for your subdomain.

Option B: Using Apache

Enable Modules

sudo a2enmod proxy proxy_http ssl headers

Create Virtual Host for video.mydomain.com

In /etc/apache2/sites-available/video.mydomain.com.conf:

<VirtualHost *:80>
    ServerName video.mydomain.com
    Redirect permanent / https://video.mydomain.com/
</VirtualHost>

<VirtualHost *:443>
    ServerName video.mydomain.com

    SSLEngine on
    SSLCertificateFile /etc/letsencrypt/live/video.mydomain.com/fullchain.pem
    SSLCertificateKeyFile /etc/letsencrypt/live/video.mydomain.com/privkey.pem

    ProxyPreserveHost On
    ProxyPass / https://killerplayer.com/
    ProxyPassReverse / https://killerplayer.com/

    Header always set X-Content-Type-Options "nosniff"
</VirtualHost>

Enable the site and restart Apache:

sudo a2ensite video.mydomain.com.conf
sudo systemctl restart apache2

Then get your SSL:

sudo certbot --apache -d video.mydomain.com

Step 3: Add Your Subdomain in KillerPlayer

Go to your KillerPlayer Dashboard → My Videos.
Enter your subdomain (e.g. video.mydomain.com) in the CNAME field.
Save.