Use a real domain at home

Self-host installs can work on a local domain such as:

mos.home

That is the normal default for a local self-host setup.

Local HTTPS is optional. It lets you use a real domain you own for your local MOS URLs without exposing your suite to the public internet.

Why use local HTTPS?

You might want local HTTPS if:

• you prefer real browser-trusted certificates
• you want app URLs such as https://homepage.mos.example.com
• you want a setup that feels closer to a normal web service while staying local

You do not need local HTTPS just to use My Own Suite at home.

What you need

The first supported path uses Cloudflare DNS.

You need:

• a real domain you control
• DNS for that domain managed in Cloudflare
• a scoped Cloudflare API token
• local DNS on your home network that can point your MOS app names to the MOS machine

For examples and docs, use generic domains such as:

mos.example.com

Your real domain is private configuration. It should not be committed to repo files, docs, tests, or examples.

Public DNS records are not required for local apps

Local HTTPS uses DNS challenges to prove you control the domain.

That means Caddy can ask Let’s Encrypt for certificates by creating temporary DNS records in Cloudflare.

It does not mean your home apps need public A or AAAA records pointing to your home network.

In a private LAN setup, your app names can stay local:

homepage.mos.example.com
suite-manager.mos.example.com
home-assistant.mos.example.com

Those names can resolve only inside your home network if that is what you want.

Local DNS still matters

Cloudflare helps prove domain ownership for certificates.

Your home network still needs to know where the app names should go.

In practice, you need a local DNS rule that points the wildcard domain at the MOS machine, for example:

*.mos.example.com -> your MOS machine

This local DNS rule might live in your router, AdGuard Home, Pi-hole, Unbound, OPNsense, Tailscale DNS, or another tool you already use.

MOS does not try to manage all of those systems for you.

What Suite Manager changes

When you apply local HTTPS from Suite Manager, it updates the local MOS stack settings so built-in apps use HTTPS URLs for the chosen base domain.

For example:

https://homepage.mos.example.com
https://suite-manager.mos.example.com/setup

Caddy owns certificate issuance and renewal.

Suite Manager does not renew certificates itself. It only helps apply the stack settings and shows whether local HTTPS is configured.

Changing the domain later

Suite Manager lets self-host installs reconfigure local HTTPS.

Before changing the base domain, make sure local DNS is ready for the new wildcard.

MOS-managed app URLs can follow the new base domain. Explicit links you typed yourself stay unchanged.

That protects manual links from being changed unexpectedly.