ChatGPT + xCloud

Manage SSL and domains with ChatGPT on xCloud

Checking SSL and domains with ChatGPT means using a developer-mode app in a chat to read a site's certificate and DNS on xCloud, then confirming any install or renewal that ChatGPT sends to your account.

Skill: xcloud:ssl
Toolsets: ssl-certificates, sites, integrations
Free with every xCloud account

Set up ChatGPT All ChatGPT guides

YouUsing the xcloud app, check the SSL certificate on shop.example.com.

sites_sslread-only

AgentThe certificate is from xCloud (Let's Encrypt), active, and expires in 4 days. A renewal is due now. Do you want me to renew it?

YouYes, renew it.

sites_ssl_renewneeds approval

AgentRenewal accepted. The status moved to issued with a new expiry in 90 days, and the site loads over HTTPS.

Last updated: October 2026. Keep a human in the loop: xCloud stops and asks before anything that creates, deploys, updates, reboots, deletes or buys.

Setup

How Do You Set Up ChatGPT to Manage SSL and domains on xCloud?

Connect ChatGPT once; every job on this account uses the same connection. Then ask in plain words.

1
Turn on developer mode and open Plugins
In ChatGPT on the web, open Settings, Security and login and turn on Developer mode. Then open the Plugins page and select the plus button to create an app. OpenAI lists developer mode for Pro, Plus, Business, Enterprise and Education accounts on the web, but its help center puts full MCP support with write actions in beta on Business, Enterprise and Edu workspaces and gives Pro accounts read and fetch access only, so check your plan before you expect ChatGPT to deploy or update anything. That path is for a personal account. In a Business, Enterprise or Edu workspace the controls sit under Apps instead. On Business only an admin or owner can use Developer mode: they turn it on while creating the app from Workspace settings, Apps, Create, and publish it from Workspace settings, Apps. On Enterprise and Edu an admin or owner can also toggle Developer mode under Settings, Apps, Advanced settings, and a member granted developer access under Permissions and Roles turns it on there too and can create and test the app from their own Settings, Apps, Create, but only an admin or owner can publish it. An ordinary member cannot do this, so ask an admin to publish the xcloud app; then open Settings, Plugins, select xcloud, install it if offered and choose Connect, sign in to xCloud and pick the teams and access level, and only then start at the last step.
URL
```
https://chatgpt.com/plugins
```
2
Create the app with the xCloud MCP URL
Name the app xcloud, paste this as the MCP server URL and choose OAuth for authentication. xCloud supports dynamic client registration, so you do not need to create a client ID. Sign in with xCloud when the browser asks, tick the teams and choose Read-only or Full access.
URL
```
https://app.xcloud.host/mcp
```
3
Install the plugin and use it in a Work chat
Open your personal Plugins page, open xcloud and select the plus button to install it. Back on the ChatGPT homepage, switch the tab at the top from Chat to Work, start a new Work chat, type @ and pick xcloud; a plain Chat tab conversation does not offer the plugin. Then type a request like this one.
Prompt
```
Using the xcloud app, who am I on xCloud and which servers do I have?
```

Check it worked

Then ask ChatGPT for the job itself, for example:

Prompt

Using the xcloud app, check the SSL certificate on shop.example.com and tell me the provider and the expiry date.

In practice

How Does SSL and domains Work from ChatGPT?

ChatGPT is a good place to ask this when you are away from your usual machine, because the work happens in a browser tab. Pick the xcloud plugin with @xcloud in a Work chat, then write the request as a sentence that names the app: using the xcloud app, check the certificate on shop.example.com. ChatGPT calls xCloud from OpenAI's servers, reads sites_ssl and returns the provider, the status and the expiry date in the reply. For several sites it will go through them one at a time and summarise the result, which suits a quick end-of-month expiry sweep.

Developer mode treats read actions and write actions differently, and that lines up with how xCloud handles this job. Reads, such as the certificate state, the domain list and a DNS lookup, run straight away. An install, a renewal or a deletion is a write, so ChatGPT shows you the action before it runs and xCloud holds it for an explicit confirmation as well. Read the card rather than accepting it by reflex: it names the site and the provider, and a forced renewal or a provider switch is something you want to choose on purpose. After approval ChatGPT polls the certificate status and tells you when the certificate has really been issued, not just when xCloud accepted the request.

Because ChatGPT is a conversation and not a workspace, it has no project files to compare against. What it can do is explain. Paste the error your visitors see and ask what it means: a Cloudflare 526 sends it to the certificate, a 522 sends it to the origin's ports 80 and 443. If you ask it to add a domain to an existing site, it says that is a dashboard step, Site, then Domain, gives you the site link xCloud returned, and leaves the change to you.

ChatGPT specific: OpenAI marks developer mode as higher risk because a connected server can read and, with write actions, change your data. Approve Read-only access on the xCloud sign-in screen if you only want answers about certificates, and read each write confirmation before you accept it. The app sits under Drafts in ChatGPT's settings, where you can switch individual tools off and refresh the tool list.

What xCloud does for ssl and domains

xCloud lets the agent read a site's certificate status, domains and DNS, then install or renew a certificate from xCloud (Let's Encrypt), your own files or a connected Cloudflare account. Adding or changing a domain on an existing site stays in the dashboard, and the agent gives you the path.

Find the site and read its SSL. The agent resolves the site by name or domain, then reads its current SSL state and the list of certificates before it changes anything. That shows the provider, the status and the expiry date.
Check the domain and DNS. It reads the site's primary and additional domains and asks xCloud whether the domain's DNS record points at the server. Each check is one lookup, so the agent repeats it while a record propagates. A record behind Cloudflare's proxy is reported separately.
Choose the certificate source. You pick xCloud's free Let's Encrypt certificate, your own certificate, or the team's Cloudflare integration. If the site already uses a different provider, the agent tells you that switching needs an explicit override and asks first.
Install or renew, once you approve. The agent restates the site and the provider, then installs or renews the certificate. A renewal only runs when the certificate is within seven days of expiry unless you ask for a forced renewal. For a WordPress site turning on HTTPS for the first time, it asks whether to run the database search-and-replace.
Poll to issuance and verify. Install and renew report success before issuance completes. The agent polls the certificate status until it settles, then checks the site over HTTPS before it calls the job done.
Hand off domain changes. If you want to add, change or remove a domain on an existing site, the agent gives you the dashboard path (Site > Domain) and the site's dashboard link, because the API only reads domains after creation.

Reference

SSL and domains Settings and Limits on xCloud

The facts ChatGPT works within when it manages SSL and domains. Where a row names the dashboard, that step stays yours to take there.

Setting or limit	What applies
Certificate status	A site's SSL state, its certificate list and one certificate's detail and status are all readable
xCloud certificate	Free Let's Encrypt certificate issued and renewed by xCloud. The domain's DNS should already point at the server before you ask
Custom certificate	You supply the PEM certificate and its private key. The key is a secret and is never returned by a read
Cloudflare certificate	Uses the team's connected Cloudflare account. When the zone is connected, xCloud writes the DNS record and the certificate itself at site creation
Switching provider	Needs an explicit force when another provider is already configured, so the agent asks before it replaces a working certificate
Renewal rule	A renewal does nothing unless the certificate is within seven days of expiry; a forced renewal skips that guard. Renewing needs the site SSL permission on your team role
WordPress first HTTPS	An optional database search-and-replace moves existing http:// URLs to https:// when a WordPress site adopts HTTPS for the first time
DNS check	One lookup per call. A proxied Cloudflare record is flagged, and on a Cloudflare-managed site the proxied record is the finished state, not a fault
Domains (read)	The primary domain, additional domains and the domain update status are readable through the API
Domains (write)	Adding, changing or removing a domain on an existing site is dashboard-only: Site > Domain. A staging site goes live under Site > Domain > Go Live
Deleting a certificate	Available through the API, but it can take a site off HTTPS, so the agent restates the target and waits for your approval
Cloudflare 526 errors	A 526 or a certificate warning is an SSL problem, so the agent reads the certificate first. A 522 is different: it usually means ports 80 and 443 are blocked at the origin

Rules ChatGPT has to follow

Installing, renewing, switching or deleting a certificate stops for your approval, and the agent names the site and the provider before it asks.
A success response means xCloud accepted the work, not that the certificate was issued: the agent polls the status and checks the live HTTPS URL.
The agent never replaces a working certificate with a different provider without telling you, and it never turns off the Cloudflare proxy on a site xCloud manages through Cloudflare.
Changing a domain on an existing site is a dashboard step; the agent gives you the path and the dashboard link xCloud returned, not a made-up workaround.
A custom certificate's private key is a secret: it is never returned by a read and should not be pasted into a shared channel.

Example prompts

What Can You Ask ChatGPT to Do for SSL and domains?

Type these as written and swap in your own repository, site and server names. Reads and routine actions such as backups, cache purges, PageSpeed scans and vulnerability scans run straight away; creating, deploying, updating, rebooting, deleting, buying or starting a broken-link scan stops and asks first.

Prompt

Using the xcloud app, check the SSL certificate on shop.example.com and tell me the provider and the expiry date.

Prompt

Using the xcloud app, is the DNS record for example.com pointing at my server, and is the Cloudflare proxy turned on?

Prompt

Using the xcloud app, renew the certificate on the shop site. Tell me first if it is outside the seven day window and ask before you force it.

Prompt

Check the SSL certificate on shop.example.com and tell me when it expires.

Prompt

Is the DNS A record for example.com pointing at my Frankfurt server yet? Tell me if the Cloudflare proxy is on.

Prompt

Issue a free SSL certificate for example.com once DNS resolves, then confirm the site loads over HTTPS.

Prompt

Renew the certificate on the shop site and tell me the new expiry date.

Prompt

List every domain and additional domain on the shop site and say which is primary.

Prompt

Which of my sites have a certificate that expires in the next 30 days?

Prompt

Use my connected Cloudflare account for the certificate on shop.example.com, and show me what will change first.

Prompt

Visitors get a Cloudflare 526 error on shop.example.com. Check the certificate and tell me what is wrong.

ChatGPT and SSL and domains: Frequently Asked Questions

What people ask before they let ChatGPT manage SSL and domains through xCloud.

Can ChatGPT renew an SSL certificate on my xCloud site?

Yes, with Full access and your confirmation. ChatGPT reads the certificate first, then shows the renewal as a write action and xCloud holds it for an explicit yes. A normal renewal only runs within seven days of expiry, so ChatGPT tells you when it would do nothing.

Why can't ChatGPT add a domain to my existing xCloud site?

Because the API only reads domains after a site exists. ChatGPT can list the primary and additional domains and check DNS, but adding, changing or removing a domain is a dashboard step under Site, then Domain. It gives you the path and the site link.

Can an AI agent add a domain to an existing site?

No. The API reads a site's domains, additional domains and domain update status, but adding, changing or removing a domain on an existing site is a dashboard step under Site > Domain. A domain is chosen when the site is created. The agent can tell you what is currently set and give you the path.

Which certificate options can the agent install?

Three: xCloud's free Let's Encrypt certificate, a custom certificate you supply, and a certificate through your connected Cloudflare account. The agent checks the current state first and asks before it changes anything. Switching a site from one provider to another needs an explicit override.

Why did the agent say a renewal did nothing?

A normal renewal only fires when the certificate is within seven days of expiry. If you need it earlier, ask for a forced renewal and the agent will confirm before it runs. Renewing also needs the site SSL permission on your team role.

Does the agent set up my DNS records?

It reads and checks them rather than writing them. It can tell you whether a domain's record points at your server and whether the Cloudflare proxy is on. DNS and the certificate are written for you only at site creation, when the domain's zone is on a Cloudflare account you connected to xCloud.

What does the agent do about a Cloudflare 526 error?

It treats it as an SSL problem. It reads the site's certificate status and expiry, and fixes it with an installation or renewal after your approval. A 522 is a different fault, usually closed ports 80 and 443 on the origin, so it is checked against the firewall instead.

Other agents