# New to Letsencrypt. Some questions

**URL:** <https://community.letsencrypt.org/t/new-to-letsencrypt-some-questions/149146>\
**Category:** Help\
**Created:** [April 6, 2021, 2:13pm UTC](https://community.letsencrypt.org/t/new-to-letsencrypt-some-questions/149146 "2021-04-06T14:13:46Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![HelsiBorlis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/f1d935/32.png) [@HelsiBorlis](https://community.letsencrypt.org/u/HelsiBorlis)\
**Post date:** [April 6, 2021, 2:13pm UTC](https://community.letsencrypt.org/t/new-to-letsencrypt-some-questions/149146/1 "2021-04-06T14:13:46Z")

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Complete newb to using LetsEncrypt. So wanted to get a steer on if I can use it to add certificates to the following I have on my home Network;

Have a couple of PiHoles on 3b boards, an UNraid server - running a PLEX Docker. And probably my modem/Router. [https://nox.tips/](https://nox.tips/)

I’m getting better using CLI - so this would be a good tome to expand on the at area.

Grateful for a steer or crib sheets/instructions.

Thanks.

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**Author:** ![JuergenAuer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/letsencrypt/user_avatar/community.letsencrypt.org/juergenauer/32/26491_2.png) [@JuergenAuer](https://community.letsencrypt.org/u/JuergenAuer)\
**Post date:** [April 6, 2021, 2:16pm UTC](https://community.letsencrypt.org/t/new-to-letsencrypt-some-questions/149146/2 "2021-04-06T14:16:58Z")

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Hi @HelsiBorlis

> [@HelsiBorlis](#):
>
> So wanted to get a steer on if I can use it to add certificates to the following I have on my home Network

may be.

Start with some basics:

> **[Documentation - Let's Encrypt](https://letsencrypt.org/docs/)**
>
> Let's Encrypt is a free, automated, and open certificate authority brought to you by the nonprofit Internet Security Research Group (ISRG).

The first two are minimal. If that's done, may be select a client.

> **[ACME Client Implementations - Let's Encrypt](https://letsencrypt.org/docs/client-options/)**
>
> Last updated: Jul 22, 2023 | See all Documentation Let’s Encrypt uses the ACME protocol to verify that you control a given domain name and to issue you a certificate. To get a Let’s Encrypt certificate, you’ll need to choose a piece...

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**Author:** ![schoen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/letsencrypt/user_avatar/community.letsencrypt.org/schoen/32/79_2.png) [@schoen](https://community.letsencrypt.org/u/schoen)\
**Post date:** [April 7, 2021, 12:05am UTC](https://community.letsencrypt.org/t/new-to-letsencrypt-some-questions/149146/3 "2021-04-07T00:05:00Z")

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Another worthwhile thing to consider here:

Do you have your own domain name? Let's Encrypt currently only issues certificates for publicly-registered domain names.

Are your home network devices ever accessed from devices that you don't own? If not, it might be easier to make your own internal certificate authority.

If you do want to use Let's Encrypt here, you may also want to consider which challenge types are possible for your situation (especially if not all of the devices can receive incoming connection from the public Internet).

> **[Challenge Types - Let's Encrypt - Free SSL/TLS Certificates](https://letsencrypt.org/docs/challenge-types/)**
>
> Last updated: Dec 8, 2020 | See all Documentation When you get a certificate from Let’s Encrypt, our servers validate that you control the domain names in that certificate using “challenges,” as defined by the ACME standard. Most of the time, this...

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**Author:** ![JamesLE](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/letsencrypt/user_avatar/community.letsencrypt.org/jamesle/32/49364_2.png) [@JamesLE](https://community.letsencrypt.org/u/JamesLE)\
**Post date:** [May 3, 2021, 10:26pm UTC](https://community.letsencrypt.org/t/new-to-letsencrypt-some-questions/149146/4 "2021-05-03T22:26:58Z")

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A post was split to a new topic: [How secure is the LetsEncrypt CA architecture?](https://community.letsencrypt.org/t/how-secure-is-the-letsencrypt-ca-architecture/150994)

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**Author:** ![system](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/letsencrypt/original/3X/c/a/ca6c06ea1ea201324bba7048c6841ce60236468d.png) [@system](https://community.letsencrypt.org/u/system)\
**Post date:** [June 2, 2021, 10:27pm UTC](https://community.letsencrypt.org/t/new-to-letsencrypt-some-questions/149146/5 "2021-06-02T22:27:36Z")

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