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Binreader Gives me an SSL Error

The Binreader newsreader client strictly enforces SSL certificates when authenticating and this can sometimes cause issues authenticating with our server front ends. We use a generic sounding server name in our SSL certificates:  *.sslusenet.com  When your client authenticates with our servers, it can look like a mismatch because you are connecting to secure.news.thecubenet.com or europe.secure.thecubenet.com but the server answers with a SSL cert for the domain sslusenet.com.

All newsreader clients available on the market have a way to manually trust a server or add an exception - that is except Binreader.  The Binreader author does not appear very eager to to assist his customers in this regard.

So, if Binreader is your favorite client and you want to access our servers with a secure SSL connection, there is a simple fix:  Add an entry to your local 'hosts' file on your PC and modify the Binreader server name to connect to that host name.

What's a 'hosts' file?  A hosts file is a file on your computer that your operating system uses as a local DNS (domain name server).  Basically, it is a text file that contains a list of URL's and matching IP addresses.  The contents of the hosts file overrides any other DNS your computer might use.  If you've never edited it before, it probably only has one entry:  "127.0.0.1  localhost"

Here's what you need to do:

1. Start a Windows command prompt or Mac terminal session and issue a PING command to either of our secure servers: secure.news.thecubenet.com or secure.europe.thecubenet.com.  Write down the IP address.
2. Edit your computer's hosts file adding a new line with the IP address you just recorded and a URL that ends with sslusenet.com:  example:  secure.sslusenet.com   (It can be anything you want as long as it ends in "sslusenet.com"
3. Open Binreader and edit your connection to our secure server to use the server name you loaded in the hosts file:  secure.sslusenet.com  or whatever you chose above.  Configure your user ID/password and connection port as normal per our signup e-mail.

You may have to restart Binreader and possibly restart your computer before your operating system picks up the changes in the hosts file.

So, what you have done in steps 1 - 3 is create a new DNS entry available only on your local computer that tells your computer that secure.sslusenet.com is at the IP address of our secure servers.  This tricks Binreader into thinking it is connecting with *.sslusenet.com which is what it was complaining about initially.

Here's a few external links that explain more about the hosts file and how to edit it in your operating system:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hosts_%28file%29
http://helpdeskgeek.com/windows-7/windows-7-hosts-file/
http://osxdaily.com/2012/08/07/edit-hosts-file-mac-os-x/
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/972034

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