---
title: Enable
description: Enable Total TLS to issue certificates for all subdomains.
image: https://developers.cloudflare.com/core-services-preview.png
---

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# Enable

To enable [Total TLS](https://developers.cloudflare.com/ssl/edge-certificates/additional-options/total-tls/) \- which issues individual certificates for your proxied hostnames - follow these instructions:

* [ Dashboard ](#tab-panel-8236)
* [ API ](#tab-panel-8237)

To enable Total TLS in the dashboard:

1. In the Cloudflare dashboard, go to the **Edge Certificates** page.  
[ Go to **Edge Certificates** ](https://dash.cloudflare.com/?to=/:account/:zone/ssl-tls/edge-certificates)
2. For **Total TLS**, switch the toggle to **On** and - if desired - choose an issuing **Certificate Authority**.

To enable Total TLS with the API, send a [PATCH](https://developers.cloudflare.com/api/resources/acm/subresources/total%5Ftls/methods/create/) request with the `enabled` parameter set to your desired setting (`true` or `false`).

You can also specify a desired certificate authority by adding a value to the `certificate_authority` parameter.

## Aspects to consider

* Total TLS certificates follow the Common Name (CN) restriction of 64 characters ([RFC 5280 ↗](https://www.rfc-editor.org/rfc/rfc5280.html)). If you have a hostname that exceeds this length, you can create an [Advanced Certificate](https://developers.cloudflare.com/ssl/edge-certificates/advanced-certificate-manager/manage-certificates/#create-a-certificate) via API to cover it.

```json
{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/directory/","name":"Directory"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/ssl/","name":"SSL/TLS"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"/ssl/edge-certificates/","name":"Edge certificates"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":4,"item":{"@id":"/ssl/edge-certificates/additional-options/","name":"Additional options"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":5,"item":{"@id":"/ssl/edge-certificates/additional-options/total-tls/","name":"Total TLS"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":6,"item":{"@id":"/ssl/edge-certificates/additional-options/total-tls/enable/","name":"Enable"}}]}
```