Turn a Raspberry Pi into a private DNS server with DoH in 30 minutes — and why it beats Pi-hole
After years of testing various DNS services — both commercial and self-hosted — the author concluded that for true privacy across the entire network, self-hosting is the way to go. Pi-hole is the most popular DNS sinkhole, and for good reason: it blocks ads effectively and is easy to set up. However, it has a significant limitation — it is a DNS forwarder, not a full DNS server. This means it lacks granular controls and stronger privacy features.
Technitium DNS fills that gap. It is free, open-source, and comes with DNS-over-HTTPS, DNS-over-TLS, and DNS-over-QUIC built-in. It also includes a built-in blocklist and allows you to add your own domain for client-facing DoH. One of its standout features is a small algorithm that analyzes different upstream forwarders and automatically selects the fastest one. All of this runs on a single Raspberry Pi and can be configured in about half an hour.
For the hardware, you will need a Raspberry Pi (any model with Ethernet or Wi-Fi), a microSD card of at least 16 GB, a power supply, an optional case, and an SSH client for remote access. The author used a Raspberry Pi 5 with 8 GB of RAM, but any model will work.
The setup process begins with flashing Raspberry Pi OS Lite onto the microSD card. After booting, you install Technitium DNS with a single curl command. Then you open the web interface at the Raspberry Pi's IP address, configure the DNS server, and enable DoH. For DoH, you need a certificate — you can use Let's Encrypt or a self-signed certificate. The article also covers how to enable ad and tracker blocking using the built-in blocklists.
Once configured, Technitium DNS blocks ads on all devices in the network, encrypts DNS queries, and improves privacy. The author notes that this solution is suitable both for beginners and for those looking to upgrade from Pi-hole. It offers more control, better performance, and stronger privacy protections — all from a low-cost, low-power device.
