Claude Code + xCloud

Manage SSL and domains with Claude Code on xCloud

Managing SSL and domains with Claude Code means asking Anthropic's terminal agent to read a site's certificate and DNS on xCloud, then install or renew HTTPS after your approval while you stay in the project you are working on.

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

Set up Claude Code All Claude Code guides

YouIssue the free certificate for shop.example.com once DNS resolves. Poll to issuance and curl it.

servers_dns_checkread-only

AgentThe A record points at your Frankfurt server and the Cloudflare proxy is off. The site has no certificate yet. I will install the xCloud (Let's Encrypt) certificate on shop.example.com. Go ahead?

YouYes.

sites_sslCertificates_createneeds approval

AgentAccepted. Status moved from pending to issued, and curl -I https://shop.example.com returns 200. Expiry is in 90 days.

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 Claude Code to Manage SSL and domains on xCloud?

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

1
Add the xCloud MCP server
Run this in your terminal, then type /mcp inside Claude Code, pick xcloud and choose Authenticate. The browser opens on the xCloud approval screen, where you tick the teams and choose Read-only or Full access.
Terminal
```
claude mcp add xcloud --transport http https://app.xcloud.host/mcp
```
2
Install the xCloud skills plugin
Optional but recommended. Inside Claude Code, add the xCloud marketplace, install the plugin and reload. The nine skills teach Claude Code which tool to reach for, how to dry-run and confirm, how to poll a long job and how to diagnose a failed deploy.
Terminal
```
/plugin marketplace add xCloudDev/xcloud-agent-skills
/plugin install xcloud@xcloud-agent-skills
/reload-plugins
```
3
No browser? Use an API key
For a headless or CI machine, create a token with the mcp:invoke scope plus the read abilities for the areas it will use (read:servers and read:sites, with read:billing and read:addons for billing and add-on tools) and the matching write: abilities if it should change things in Settings, Developers, API Tokens and pass it as a header. Keep the single quotes: xCloud tokens contain a pipe character.
Terminal
```
claude mcp add xcloud --transport http https://app.xcloud.host/mcp \
  --header 'Authorization: Bearer YOUR_TOKEN'
```
✓
Check it worked
Then ask Claude Code for the job itself, for example:
Prompt
```
Check SSL on the domain in this repo. Show provider and expiry, nothing else.
```

In practice

How Does SSL and domains Work from Claude Code?

Claude Code is usually open next to the code that names the domain: a CNAME file, a deploy script, an environment file with the production URL. That context shortens the request. Instead of looking up which site you mean, you say renew the certificate for the domain in this repo, and Claude Code reads the domain from the files, resolves the matching site in xCloud and starts with the reads: sites_ssl for the current state, sites_sslCertificates for the list, and ssl-certificates_status for the detail of the one that matters. You get the provider, the status and the expiry date in a few lines, before anything is changed.

DNS is where a terminal agent has an edge. Claude Code can run dig or curl on your own machine while xCloud runs its own lookup through servers_dns_check, so you see two views of the same record and an answer when they disagree. It repeats the xCloud check while a record propagates, reports a Cloudflare proxied record separately instead of calling it broken, and only moves to installation once the domain points at the server. The install itself is a sites_sslCertificates_create call and it stops for your yes, with the site and the provider named. A normal renewal through sites_ssl_renew does nothing until the certificate is within seven days of expiry, so Claude Code tells you that up front and asks before it forces one.

With the xCloud skills plugin installed, the xcloud:ssl skill carries the habits that matter here: it polls the certificate status until issuance settles, because install and renew report success before the certificate exists, and it fetches the HTTPS URL before it says the job is done. When you ask to add or change a domain on an existing site, Claude Code does not invent a workaround. It tells you the dashboard path, Site, then Domain, and gives you the site link xCloud returned.

Claude Code specific: A dig or curl that Claude Code runs on your laptop can answer from a resolver cache that differs from what xCloud sees, so a record you changed minutes ago may look right locally and wrong in xCloud's check, or the other way round. Treat the xCloud servers_dns_check result as the one that decides whether to install, and let Claude Code repeat it rather than trusting a single local lookup.

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 Claude Code 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 Claude Code 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 Claude Code 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

Check SSL on the domain in this repo. Show provider and expiry, nothing else.

Prompt

Is DNS for example.com pointing at the Frankfurt server yet? Compare dig with xCloud's check and tell me if the Cloudflare proxy is on.

Prompt

Issue the free xCloud certificate for shop.example.com once DNS resolves, poll to issuance, then curl the HTTPS URL.

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.

Claude Code and SSL and domains: Frequently Asked Questions

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

Can Claude Code add a domain to a site that already exists on xCloud?

No. It can read the primary domain, the additional domains and the domain update status, but adding, changing or removing a domain on an existing site is a dashboard step under Site, then Domain. Claude Code tells you the path and gives you the site's dashboard link instead of guessing at a call.

Will Claude Code replace a working certificate without asking?

No. Installing, renewing, switching provider and deleting a certificate all stop for your approval, and Claude Code names the site and the provider before it asks. Switching from one provider to another needs an explicit override, so it tells you what is installed now first.

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