SSL scaling

["Michael A. Smith" <msmith64 () ZIMBRA NAZ EDU>]

We currently use a vended managed PKI portal that allows us to issue SSL certs to internal customers when they roll out 
a website, but its costs increase almost linearly with the size of our web portfolio. With the way the web is moving, I 
don't think this linear growth is sustainable. What solutions are in place and recommended among small to medium 
institutions for managing SSL certificates? Is a wild card cert the only way to manage this growth?

I confess when I first moved to Higher Ed I was surprised to find that Educause itself doesn't operate in the CA space. 
After it has vetted an institution for a .edu domain, the process for validating that institution's identity is already 
shortcut, is it not?

(I apologize if this is a FAQ. I've been unable to access the listserve.educause.edu site to research the archives for 
some reason.)

Best wishes,
Michael A. Smith
Web & Digital / Academic Technologies Manager
Nazareth College