SSL_CTX_SET_SSL_VERSION(3ossl)

💖 SSL_CTX_SET_SSL_VERSION 💖

okay bestie, so this one lives in the 3ossl manual (that's the OpenSSL girlies, you know the vibe) and it's all about picking which TLS/SSL method your stuff is gonna speak. choosing your method is literally like picking your outfit for the day and yes it matters 💅

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✨ NAME ✨

SSL_CTX_set_ssl_version, SSL_CTX_get_ssl_method, SSL_set_ssl_method, SSL_get_ssl_method — choose a new TLS/SSL method 🎀

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🌸 SYNOPSIS 🌸

#include <openssl/ssl.h>

int SSL_CTX_set_ssl_version(SSL_CTX *ctx, const SSL_METHOD *method);
const SSL_METHOD *SSL_CTX_get_ssl_method(const SSL_CTX *ctx);

int SSL_set_ssl_method(SSL *s, const SSL_METHOD *method);
const SSL_METHOD *SSL_get_ssl_method(const SSL *ssl);

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🦋 DESCRIPTION 🦋

So SSL_CTX_set_ssl_version() sets a brand new default TLS/SSL method for all the SSL objects that get created from this ctx from now on. And here's the tea 🫖: most of the config that's attached to the SSL_CTX object is retained — with one big exception, and that exception is the configured TLS ciphers, which get reset to the default values. yeah. not great, not terrible, but you should know it.

Also important: SSL objects that were already created from this SSL_CTX with SSL_new(3) are not affected — except when SSL_clear(3) gets called, which is a whole thing described below. no cap.

SSL_CTX_get_ssl_method() just hands you back the SSL_METHOD that was used to construct the SSL_CTX. it's the "what did we build this with again" function 💭

SSL_set_ssl_method() sets a new TLS/SSL method for one particular ssl object. it may be reset, when SSL_clear() is called.

SSL_get_ssl_method() returns a pointer to the TLS/SSL method that's set in ssl. 🫶

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🌈 NOTES 🌈

All the method choices you could possibly pick are described over in SSL_CTX_new(3) — go look there, bestie, that's where the menu is 🍓

Here's the little mechanic that matters: when SSL_clear(3) is called and no session is connected to an SSL object, the method of the SSL object gets reset to whatever method is currently set in the corresponding SSL_CTX object. so it snaps back to the ctx's vibe, fr fr.

⚠️ okay so this is the part where I gotta be real with you: SSL_CTX_set_version() has unusual semantics and no clear use case. like, it's giving "why are you doing this". it would usually be preferable to create a new SSL_CTX object than to try to reuse an existing one in this fashion. its usage is considered deprecated. 💀

And one more: SSL_set_ssl_method() cannot be used to change a non-QUIC SSL object to a QUIC SSL object or vice versa, and it also can't change a QUIC SSL object from one QUIC method to another. so no switching teams mid-game, sorry 😭

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⭐ RETURN VALUES ⭐

For SSL_CTX_set_ssl_version() and SSL_set_ssl_method(), these are the outcomes you might get:

• 0 — the new choice failed, so go check the error stack to find out the reason 🔍
• 1 — the operation succeeded 🎉

SSL_CTX_get_ssl_method() and SSL_get_ssl_method() always return non-NULL pointers. iconic, honestly 👑

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💜 SEE ALSO 💜

SSL_CTX_new(3), SSL_new(3), SSL_clear(3), ssl(7), SSL_set_connect_state(3)

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🎀 HISTORY 🎀

SSL_CTX_set_ssl_version() was deprecated in OpenSSL 3.0. periodt.

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💅 COPYRIGHT 💅

Copyright 2000-2023 The OpenSSL Project Authors. All Rights Reserved.

Licensed under the Apache License 2.0 (the "License"). You may not use this file except in compliance with the License. You can obtain a copy in the file LICENSE in the source distribution or at <https://www.openssl.org/source/license.html>.

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and that's the whole page, bestie!! this was version 3.5.9 (dated 2026-09-29) of the SSL_CTX_SET_SSL_VERSION(3ossl) manual, and yes I read all of it so you don't have to 🫶 go forth and pick your methods wisely, mwah 💖✨🎀