Discuss Wireguard and port forwarding concerns
Discuss Wireguard and port forwarding concerns
Hello, I'm trying to reach my custom Ubuntu home server from outside my local network using Wireguard. I've secured a static IP from my ISP Metronet, configured port forwarding on the server's IP to port 51820 through the Eero router, and reached out to both Metronet and Eero. They both confirmed they don't manage or support port forwarding and seem confident their setup is correct. After installing the Wireguard app on any device inside or outside my home, the internet connection remains completely unavailable. According to YouGetSignal, the static IP assigned to my network doesn't have port 51820 open. I'm new to networking and would appreciate any guidance or advice. Thank you!
I'm running Wireguard on a WireGuard server. It's set up using wg-easy and works well with a Raspberry Pi setup.
The system is executing the Wireguard server defined within your Docker-compose configuration.
You're welcome. It looks like you followed the setup steps from linuxserver.io and WireGuard documentation. Everything seems to be working as expected based on the listening ports.
Not sure about those steps. I use PiVPN to run a Wireguard server. I understand you should verify a few things to confirm the server can actually get packets. Check the router’s port forwarding settings—ensure port 51820 is open for UDP, not TCP. Many routers set traffic types to TCP by default. If your server has a firewall, double-check that port 51820 remains accessible. In your docker-compose.yaml, confirm port 51820 is listed under ports: section. Once you’re sure of these, a port-checking tool should show if the port is open for UDP. I used a similar site with my server and it confirmed port 51820 is working. Also, if you're connecting from your home network, traffic might loop. Refer to the linuxserver guide for more details.
You might also explore tailscale, which avoids creating holes in your firewall and also doesn’t need a fixed IP address.
I came across Tailscale and found it really straightforward to set up. It's more secure than traditional port forwarding and much simpler to use. No matter your network configuration—double-NAT, DHCP WAN, or anything else—it works seamlessly. I often create site-to-site VPN tunnels in my professional work, but for my home lab, it saves me a lot of hassle.