enable IP forwarding via entrypoint (fixes IPv6 subnet routes)

tailscaled does not reliably enable IPv6 forwarding inside a container
network namespace ('IPv6 forwarding is disabled'), so advertised IPv6
subnet routes silently fail. Add a tiny entrypoint.sh that sets
net.ipv4.ip_forward and net.ipv6.conf.all.forwarding (writable inside a
RouterOS container netns), then exec's tailscaled. Built in the builder
stage so it stays in the single /usr/local/bin COPY layer.

Verified: privileged run flips v6 forwarding 0->1 and exec's tailscaled
with CMD args intact.
This commit is contained in:
2026-06-02 16:01:06 +02:00
parent 1bc10bcb6e
commit c6fdaa1673
3 changed files with 45 additions and 4 deletions
+22 -1
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@@ -157,6 +157,25 @@ RUN mkdir -p /out/usrlocalbin && \
ln -s /usr/local/bin/tailscale.combined /out/usrlocalbin/tailscale && \
ln -s /usr/local/bin/tailscale.combined /out/usrlocalbin/tailscaled
# Entrypoint wrapper: enable IP forwarding inside the container's network
# namespace, then exec tailscaled. tailscaled does NOT reliably enable IPv6
# forwarding itself in a container netns ("IPv6 forwarding is disabled" warning),
# which silently breaks advertised IPv6 subnet routes. The sysctls ARE writable
# from inside a RouterOS container, so we set both here. Written in the builder
# stage so it ships in the same single /usr/local/bin COPY layer (preserves the
# overlayfs single-copy property). `exec` keeps tailscaled as PID 1.
RUN printf '%s\n' \
'#!/bin/sh' \
'# Enable IPv4/IPv6 forwarding (best-effort; sysctls are writable inside' \
'# a RouterOS container netns). Required for advertised subnet routes and' \
'# exit-node functionality.' \
'for f in /proc/sys/net/ipv4/ip_forward /proc/sys/net/ipv6/conf/all/forwarding; do' \
' if [ -w "$f" ]; then echo 1 > "$f" 2>/dev/null || echo "warn: could not write $f"; fi' \
'done' \
'exec /usr/local/bin/tailscaled "$@"' \
> /out/usrlocalbin/entrypoint.sh && \
chmod +x /out/usrlocalbin/entrypoint.sh
# =============================================================================
# Stage 2: Custom minimal busybox
# =============================================================================
@@ -274,7 +293,9 @@ ENV PATH=/usr/local/bin:/usr/sbin:/usr/bin:/sbin:/bin
# -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
VOLUME ["/var/lib/tailscale"]
ENTRYPOINT ["/usr/local/bin/tailscaled"]
# entrypoint.sh enables IP forwarding (incl. IPv6) in the container netns, then
# exec's tailscaled with the CMD flags below as its arguments.
ENTRYPOINT ["/usr/local/bin/entrypoint.sh"]
# Default flags:
# --no-logs-no-support disables logtail uploads (logtail binary code is
+15 -2
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@@ -70,8 +70,21 @@ in a future release stays omitted until deliberately added to the Dockerfile.
saves a real ~195 kB of flash (424 kB → 229 kB), not just transfer size.
The final image is built `FROM scratch` — there is no base distro layer.
It contains only the busybox binary + applet symlinks, the CA bundle, and
the Tailscale binary.
It contains only the busybox binary + applet symlinks, the CA bundle, the
Tailscale binary, and a tiny `entrypoint.sh`.
### Entrypoint: IP forwarding
`ENTRYPOINT` is a small `entrypoint.sh` that enables IPv4 and IPv6 forwarding
(`net.ipv4.ip_forward`, `net.ipv6.conf.all.forwarding`) in the container's
network namespace, then `exec`s `tailscaled` (so the daemon stays PID 1). This
is necessary because `tailscaled` does **not** reliably enable IPv6 forwarding
itself inside a container netns — it logs "IPv6 forwarding is disabled" and
advertised IPv6 subnet routes silently fail. The sysctls are writable from
inside a RouterOS container, so the entrypoint sets them directly; no
host-side or `/container` configuration is required. The script is created in
the builder stage so it ships in the same single `/usr/local/bin` `COPY` layer
(preserving the [single-copy property](#avoiding-overlayfs-layer-duplication)).
### Avoiding overlayfs layer duplication
+8 -1
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@@ -95,7 +95,8 @@ The daemon is now running but **not yet authenticated**.
### 5. Authenticate
> This image runs `tailscaled` directly and does **not** bundle Tailscale's
> This image runs `tailscaled` via a tiny entrypoint (which enables IP
forwarding, then `exec`s the daemon) and does **not** bundle Tailscale's
`containerboot` wrapper, so the `TS_AUTHKEY` environment variable is **not**
read automatically. You authenticate with `tailscale up --authkey=...` after the
container starts.
@@ -119,6 +120,12 @@ The node now appears in your Tailscale admin console. Approve the advertised
routes / exit node there. Because the auth state is written to the persisted
`tailscaled.state`, you only do this once — it survives reboots and updates.
> **IP forwarding** (IPv4 and IPv6) is enabled automatically by the container's
> entrypoint, so advertised subnet routes and exit-node traffic work without any
> extra `sysctl`/`/container` configuration. (IPv6 forwarding in particular is
> not reliably enabled by `tailscaled` itself inside a container network
> namespace, so the entrypoint sets it explicitly.)
### 6. Enable automatic updates
First, edit the `CONFIG` block at the top of `routeros/update-tailscale.rsc` if