chore(deps): update quay.io/openbao/openbao docker tag to v2.5.5

Reviewed-on: #27

.woodpecker/pr-build.yaml

@@ -8,10 +8,6 @@
 #
 # Reports pass/fail status back to Gitea, so it shows up as a required check on
 # the PR.
-#
-# Registry credentials are fetched from OpenBao (same AppRole as release.yaml)
-# solely to read and write the build cache image. The build itself is still
-# dry-run (nothing is published as a release image).
 
 # Changes that can't affect the image don't trigger the build: docs and the
 # RouterOS-side script (routeros/**: lives on the router, not in the image).
@@ -33,40 +29,11 @@ when:
       exclude: *non_image_paths
 
 steps:
-  - name: Get registry creds from OpenBao
-    image: quay.io/openbao/openbao:2.5.4
-    environment:
-      VAULT_ADDR: https://openbao.lumpiasty.xyz:8200
-      ROLE_ID:
-        from_secret: renovate_role_id
-      SECRET_ID:
-        from_secret: renovate_secret_id
-    commands:
-      - bao write -field token auth/approle/login
-          role_id=$ROLE_ID
-          secret_id=$SECRET_ID > /woodpecker/.vault_id
-      - export VAULT_TOKEN=$(cat /woodpecker/.vault_id)
-      - 'printf "PLUGIN_USERNAME=%s\n" "$(bao kv get -mount secret -field REGISTRY_USERNAME container-registry)" > /woodpecker/registry.env'
-      - 'printf "PLUGIN_PASSWORD=%s\n" "$(bao kv get -mount secret -field REGISTRY_PASSWORD container-registry)" >> /woodpecker/registry.env'
-
   - name: Build all arches (no push)
     image: woodpeckerci/plugin-docker-buildx:6.1.0
     privileged: true
     settings:
-      registry: gitea.lumpiasty.xyz
-      repo: mikrotik-tailscale
       platforms: linux/amd64,linux/arm64,linux/arm/v7
       dry_run: true
       build_args:
         - OCI_VERSION=ci-${CI_COMMIT_SHA}
-      cache_images:
-        - gitea.lumpiasty.xyz/lumpiasty/mikrotik-tailscale:buildcache
-      env_file: /woodpecker/registry.env
-
-  - name: Invalidate OpenBao token
-    image: quay.io/openbao/openbao:2.5.4
-    environment:
-      VAULT_ADDR: https://openbao.lumpiasty.xyz:8200
-    commands:
-      - export VAULT_TOKEN=$(cat /woodpecker/.vault_id)
-      - bao write -f auth/token/revoke-self

.woodpecker/release-tag.yaml

@@ -29,7 +29,7 @@ when:
 
 steps:
   - name: Get git token from OpenBao
-    image: quay.io/openbao/openbao:2.5.4
+    image: quay.io/openbao/openbao:2.5.5
     environment:
       VAULT_ADDR: https://openbao.lumpiasty.xyz:8200
       ROLE_ID:
@@ -44,7 +44,7 @@ steps:
       - bao kv get -mount secret -field RENOVATE_TOKEN renovate > /woodpecker/git_token
 
   - name: Auto-tag mt.1 on Tailscale bump
-    image: alpine/git:v2.52.0
+    image: alpine/git:v2.54.0
     environment:
       CI_REPO_URL: https://gitea.lumpiasty.xyz/lumpiasty/mikrotik-tailscale.git
     commands:
@@ -72,7 +72,7 @@ steps:
       - git push "https://woodpecker:$GIT_TOKEN@gitea.lumpiasty.xyz/lumpiasty/mikrotik-tailscale.git" "$TAG"
       - echo "Pushed $TAG"
   - name: Invalidate OpenBao token
-    image: quay.io/openbao/openbao:2.5.4
+    image: quay.io/openbao/openbao:2.5.5
     environment:
       VAULT_ADDR: https://openbao.lumpiasty.xyz:8200
     commands:

.woodpecker/release.yaml

@@ -25,7 +25,7 @@ when:
 
 steps:
   - name: Get registry creds from OpenBao
-    image: quay.io/openbao/openbao:2.5.4
+    image: quay.io/openbao/openbao:2.5.5
     environment:
       VAULT_ADDR: https://openbao.lumpiasty.xyz:8200
       ROLE_ID:
@@ -54,12 +54,10 @@ steps:
         - stable
       build_args:
         - OCI_VERSION=${CI_COMMIT_TAG}
-      cache_images:
-        - gitea.lumpiasty.xyz/lumpiasty/mikrotik-tailscale:buildcache
       # Credentials (PLUGIN_USERNAME / PLUGIN_PASSWORD) come from OpenBao.
       env_file: /woodpecker/registry.env
   - name: Invalidate OpenBao token
-    image: quay.io/openbao/openbao:2.5.4
+    image: quay.io/openbao/openbao:2.5.5
     environment:
       VAULT_ADDR: https://openbao.lumpiasty.xyz:8200
     commands:

.woodpecker/renovate.yaml

@@ -30,7 +30,7 @@ skip_clone: true
 
 steps:
   - name: Get renovate token from OpenBao
-    image: quay.io/openbao/openbao:2.5.4
+    image: quay.io/openbao/openbao:2.5.5
     environment:
       VAULT_ADDR: https://openbao.lumpiasty.xyz:8200
       ROLE_ID:
@@ -46,7 +46,7 @@ steps:
       - bao kv get -mount secret -field GITHUB_COM_TOKEN renovate > /woodpecker/github_com_token
   - name: renovate
     # Renovate's built-in "woodpecker" manager tracks this image automatically.
-    image: renovate/renovate:43.220.0
+    image: renovate/renovate:43.227.0
     environment:
       # --- platform / target ---
       RENOVATE_PLATFORM: gitea
@@ -75,7 +75,7 @@ steps:
       - export GITHUB_COM_TOKEN=$(cat /woodpecker/github_com_token)
       - /usr/local/sbin/renovate-entrypoint.sh renovate
   - name: Invalidate OpenBao token
-    image: quay.io/openbao/openbao:2.5.4
+    image: quay.io/openbao/openbao:2.5.5
     environment:
       VAULT_ADDR: https://openbao.lumpiasty.xyz:8200
     commands:

Dockerfile

@@ -32,7 +32,7 @@ FROM --platform=$BUILDPLATFORM tonistiigi/xx:1.9.0@sha256:c64defb9ed5a91eacb37f9
 # =============================================================================
 # Stage 1: Build Tailscale combined binary (cross-compiled, runs natively)
 # =============================================================================
-FROM --platform=$BUILDPLATFORM golang:1.26.4-alpine@sha256:7a3e50096189ad57c9f9f865e7e4aa8585ed1585248513dc5cda498e2f41812c AS builder
+FROM --platform=$BUILDPLATFORM golang:1.26.4-alpine@sha256:f1ddd9fe14fffc091dd98cb4bfa999f32c5fc77d2f2305ea9f0e2595c5437c14 AS builder
 
 # renovate: datasource=github-releases depName=tailscale packageName=tailscale/tailscale versioning=semver
 ARG TAILSCALE_VERSION=v1.98.5
@@ -70,49 +70,6 @@ WORKDIR /src/tailscale
 # disables the filter at runtime for debugging — no rebuild needed.
 COPY patches/stderr_verbosity_filter.go cmd/tailscaled/
 
-# Patch net/tstun/wrap.go: fix panic("unreachable") in invertGSOChecksum for
-# ts_omit_netstack builds.
-#
-# invertGSOChecksum is a gVisor/GSO helper that inverts a transport-layer
-# checksum before/after SNAT when gVisor hands us a segment with a partial
-# checksum (NeedsCsum=true). It is only meaningful when netstack (gVisor) is
-# compiled in (HasNetstack=true).
-#
-# The function correctly guards its body with:
-#   if !buildfeatures.HasNetstack { panic("unreachable") }
-#
-# When built with ts_omit_netstack, HasNetstack is a const false, so that guard
-# evaluates to `if true { panic(...) }` — the function always panics.
-#
-# The problem: invertGSOChecksum is called unconditionally from injectedRead()
-# (twice, around pc.snat()), even for the res.data path where res.packet==nil
-# and gso is a zero-value netstack_GSO (NeedsCsum=false). The HasNetstack
-# guard in the res.packet branch does NOT protect these calls.
-#
-# As a result, any code path that injects an outbound packet via InjectOutbound()
-# — which happens when enabling exit-node use (Tailscale sends TSMP messages
-# and synthesizes packets through the TUN injection path) — hits injectedRead
-# with res.data!=nil, calls invertGSOChecksum, and crashes with:
-#   panic: unreachable
-#   tailscale.com/net/tstun.invertGSOChecksum(...)
-#   tailscale.com/net/tstun.(*Wrapper).injectedRead(...)  wrap.go:1077
-#
-# Fix: replace the `panic("unreachable")` with a `return` in invertGSOChecksum.
-# When HasNetstack=false (ts_omit_netstack), a zero-value netstack_GSO always
-# has NeedsCsum=false, so the function is correctly a no-op anyway. This matches
-# what the function would do if the rest of its body ran: NeedsCsum=false → return.
-#
-# The sed expression targets the function precisely: it matches the three-line
-# sequence that opens invertGSOChecksum's HasNetstack guard, and replaces only
-# the panic line with return. The pattern is stable across minor reformats
-# because it anchors on the literal function comment and the specific panic string.
-#
-# See tailscale/tailscale issue for context (no upstream fix as of v1.98.5):
-# panic happens when using exit-node via a ts_omit_netstack build.
-RUN sed -i \
-    -e '/func invertGSOChecksum/,/^}/ s/\t\tpanic("unreachable")/\t\treturn/' \
-    net/tstun/wrap.go
-
 # Build a minimal combined binary (tailscale CLI + tailscaled daemon in one file).
 #
 # Tag strategy — ALLOWLIST, not blocklist:
@@ -148,6 +105,59 @@ RUN sed -i \
 #                         waiting for completion") WITHOUT printing the auth URL
 #                         or confirming success. Including it makes interactive
 #                         'up' behave normally (blocks, prints login URL).
+#   netstack            — gVisor userspace network stack. Counter-intuitively
+#                         REQUIRED even though the router uses a real kernel TUN
+#                         (NOT --tun=userspace-networking). In v1.98.5 the
+#                         100.100.100.100:53 MagicDNS listener is served ONLY by
+#                         netstack's handleLocalPackets, installed via
+#                         PreFilterPacketOutboundToWireGuardNetstackIntercept.
+#                         The non-netstack "engine" interceptor that the wrap.go
+#                         comments claim handles quad-100 "if netstack is not
+#                         installed" does NOT actually do so on Linux (its body
+#                         only reflects loopback on darwin/ios/plan9, else
+#                         Accept). So with ts_omit_netstack, NOTHING absorbs
+#                         packets to 100.100.100.100: queries fall through to
+#                         WireGuard, no peer owns that IP, and even tailnet-name
+#                         resolution (and 'ping host.tailnet.ts.net') times out.
+#                         The 'dns' tag links the resolver but nothing routes
+#                         packets to it without netstack — the two tags are
+#                         independent (dns has no Dep on netstack). Omitting
+#                         netstack ALSO triggered a panic("unreachable") in
+#                         net/tstun.invertGSOChecksum on the exit-node inject
+#                         path (HasNetstack=const false made the guard always
+#                         panic); enabling netstack makes that guard dead code,
+#                         fixing the crash as a side effect. Cost (arm64, vs a
+#                         netstack-omitted build): ~+0.5 MB extracted on flash
+#                         and ~+2.3 MB resident RAM after UPX decompression —
+#                         measured, acceptable for a 16 MB-flash router.
+#   gro                 — Generic Receive Offload (perf). Depends on netstack;
+#                         pulled in with it. Small, and improves throughput on
+#                         the netstack DNS/inject path.
+#   peerapiserver       — REQUIRED to be a functional exit node. In v1.98.5
+#                         'advertiseexitnode' DECLARES a dependency on
+#                         peerapiserver (featuretags.go Deps, "to run the ExitDNS
+#                         server"), but this build's allowlist works by stripping
+#                         individual ts_omit_ tags and does NOT re-resolve Deps —
+#                         so featuretags --min still emitted ts_omit_peerapiserver
+#                         and our advertiseexitnode opt-in alone left it omitted.
+#                         peerapiserver gates the entire PeerAPI HTTP server,
+#                         including the /dns-query DoH endpoint (peerapi.go,
+#                         guarded by buildfeatures.HasPeerAPIServer). Without it
+#                         initPeerAPIListenerLocked() returns early: the node
+#                         never advertises the PeerAPIDNS service, so exit-node
+#                         CLIENTS' exitNodeCanProxyDNS(thisNode) returns false.
+#                         With no tailnet global nameserver configured, the
+#                         client's resolver then has an empty Routes["."] and
+#                         returns an INSTANT authoritative SERVFAIL locally
+#                         (forwarder.go servfailResponse, aa=1, 0 ms, no I/O) —
+#                         i.e. devices using this router as their exit node could
+#                         not resolve PUBLIC names. Including peerapiserver makes
+#                         the node serve the exit-node DoH DNS proxy, so clients
+#                         get public DNS automatically (the normal exit-node
+#                         behavior) with no tailnet DNS config required.
+#                         peerapiserver has NO Deps and pulls in no large
+#                         subsystems — a small addition. (outboundproxy is NOT
+#                         needed for this and stays omitted.)
 #
 # Everything else remains omitted, including (rationale):
 #   clientupdate  — DELIBERATELY removed. The built-in updater would download
@@ -172,9 +182,11 @@ RUN sed -i \
 #                   which is exactly the flash wear we want to avoid.
 #   logtail       — no persistent log writes to flash; also pass
 #                   --no-logs-no-support at runtime
-#   netstack+gro  — userspace networking; router uses kernel TUN
 #   ssh           — not needed; access via MikroTik SSH + tailscale CLI
 #   all GUI/desktop/cloud/k8s features — irrelevant for a headless router
+#
+# NOTE: netstack/gro are NOT in this omit list — see the opted-in section above
+# for why MagicDNS quad-100 serving structurally requires them in v1.98.5.
 
 RUN mkdir -p /out && \
     ALL_OMIT=$(GOOS= GOARCH= go run ./cmd/featuretags --min --add=osrouter) && \
@@ -191,6 +203,9 @@ RUN mkdir -p /out && \
           -e 's/ts_omit_iptables,\{0,1\}//g' \
           -e 's/ts_omit_unixsocketidentity,\{0,1\}//g' \
           -e 's/ts_omit_ipnbus,\{0,1\}//g' \
+          -e 's/ts_omit_netstack,\{0,1\}//g' \
+          -e 's/ts_omit_gro,\{0,1\}//g' \
+          -e 's/ts_omit_peerapiserver,\{0,1\}//g' \
           -e 's/,$//' \
     ) && \
     echo "Build tags: ${TAGS}" && \
@@ -288,7 +303,7 @@ RUN printf '%s\n' \
 # only for this one lightweight probe step (busybox --help per applet), not
 # for the compile itself. The probe can alternatively be skipped by using
 # a pre-enumerated applet list, but the current approach is simpler.
-FROM --platform=$BUILDPLATFORM alpine:3.24.0@sha256:a2d49ea686c2adfe3c992e47dc3b5e7fa6e6b5055609400dc2acaeb241c829f4 AS busybox
+FROM --platform=$BUILDPLATFORM alpine:3.24.1@sha256:28bd5fe8b56d1bd048e5babf5b10710ebe0bae67db86916198a6eec434943f8b AS busybox
 
 # Copy xx cross-compilation helpers (xx-clang, xx-apk, xx-info, etc.)
 COPY --from=xx / /

docs/DESIGN.md

@@ -15,22 +15,26 @@ Measured flattened rootfs for the arm64 image:
 
 | Component | On-disk size |
 |---|---|
-| `tailscale.combined` (UPX-compressed) | ~2.98 MB |
+| `tailscale.combined` (UPX-compressed) | ~3.47 MB |
 | custom static busybox (UPX, ~100 applets) | ~218 kB |
 | CA certificates | ~213 kB |
-| **Total extracted rootfs** | **~3.4 MB** |
+| **Total extracted rootfs** | **~3.9 MB** |
 
-(The compressed image / transfer tarball is ~3.3–4.3 MB depending on arch.)
+The `tailscale.combined` figure includes `netstack` (gVisor), which adds
+~0.5 MB on disk over a netstack-omitted build — a deliberate inclusion, see
+[Why netstack is required (even with a kernel TUN)](#why-netstack-is-required-even-with-a-kernel-tun).
+
+(The compressed image / transfer tarball is ~3.8–4.3 MB depending on arch.)
 
 | Arch | Image (compressed) |
 |---|---|
-| amd64  | ~4.2 MB |
-| arm64  | ~3.5 MB |
-| arm/v7 | ~3.5 MB |
+| amd64  | ~4.3 MB |
+| arm64  | ~4.0 MB |
+| arm/v7 | ~4.0 MB |
 
-On a deployed RouterOS device the container consumes **~3.7 MiB of flash**
+On a deployed RouterOS device the container consumes **~4.2 MiB of flash**
 (measured by `free-hdd-space` delta). Note that `du` *inside* the container
-reports roughly double that (~7 MB) — that is RouterOS block-allocation
+reports roughly double that (~8 MB) — that is RouterOS block-allocation
 rounding, **not** real usage or duplication; see
 [Avoiding overlayfs layer duplication](#avoiding-overlayfs-layer-duplication)
 for how to measure correctly.
@@ -118,13 +122,13 @@ delta**, not `du`:
 /system/resource/print     # note free-hdd-space before and after adding the container
 ```
 
-The container should consume **~3.7 MiB** of flash (e.g. 94.6 → 90.9 MiB free).
+The container should consume **~4.2 MiB** of flash (e.g. 94.6 → 90.4 MiB free).
 
 Do **not** trust `du` inside the container for this. Busybox `du` reports
-*allocated blocks*, and RouterOS's container store rounds a ~3 MB file up to
-~6 MB of blocks — so `du -sx /` reports ~7 MB even though real flash use is
-~3.7 MB. `ls -la /usr/local/bin` confirms the binary's true content size
-(~3.1 MB) and that it is a single file with two symlinks (no duplication).
+*allocated blocks*, and RouterOS's container store rounds the ~3.5 MB binary up
+to ~7 MB of blocks — so `du -sx /` reports ~8 MB even though real flash use is
+~4.2 MB. `ls -la /usr/local/bin` confirms the binary's true content size
+(~3.5 MB) and that it is a single file with two symlinks (no duplication).
 The image itself carries the binary in exactly one layer (verified at the blob
 level); the inflation is purely the filesystem's block accounting.
 
@@ -149,7 +153,9 @@ that's a separate build, not just a `--platform` change.
 | `advertise-routes` | Expose LAN subnets to the tailnet |
 | `use-exit-node` | Route the router's own traffic via a remote exit node |
 | `accept-routes` | Receive subnet routes from other tailnet nodes |
-| DNS / MagicDNS | Resolve `*.ts.net` names |
+| DNS / MagicDNS | Resolve `*.ts.net` names (resolver + resolv.conf manager). **Note:** serving `100.100.100.100` also requires `netstack` — see [Why netstack is required (even with a kernel TUN)](#why-netstack-is-required-even-with-a-kernel-tun) |
+| `netstack` + `gro` | gVisor userspace stack. Counter-intuitively **required** to serve MagicDNS on `100.100.100.100`, even though the router uses a real kernel TUN — see [Why netstack is required (even with a kernel TUN)](#why-netstack-is-required-even-with-a-kernel-tun) |
+| `peerapiserver` | Serves the PeerAPI, including the `/dns-query` DoH endpoint that lets **exit-node clients resolve public DNS automatically**. A declared dependency of `advertise-exit-node` that the allowlist didn't pull in — see [Why peerapiserver is required for exit-node DNS](#why-peerapiserver-is-required-for-exit-node-dns) |
 | portmapper (NAT-PMP/PCP/UPnP) | Punch through upstream NAT |
 | listenrawdisco | Raw socket disco for better NAT traversal |
 | health | Powers `tailscale status` output |
@@ -166,7 +172,6 @@ that's a separate build, not just a `--platform` change.
 | `cachenetmap` | **Deliberately removed** — see [Why netmap disk-caching is removed](#why-netmap-disk-caching-is-removed) |
 | `logtail` | Would attempt persistent log writes; wear flash. Removing it also removes stderr verbosity filtering — restored by an injected filter, see [Log verbosity filtering](#log-verbosity-filtering) |
 | `netlog` | Network flow logging; separate concern |
-| `netstack` + `gro` | Userspace/gVisor networking; router uses kernel TUN |
 | `ssh` | Access via MikroTik SSH + `tailscale` CLI instead |
 | `linuxdnsfight` | inotify on `/etc/resolv.conf`; no systemd in container |
 | `networkmanager` / `resolved` / `dbus` / `sdnotify` | No systemd stack in container |
@@ -226,6 +231,158 @@ the in-memory resilience (the common case) while eliminating per-netmap flash
 writes. Only `tailscaled.state` (written on auth / key rotation) ever touches
 flash.
 
+### Why netstack is required (even with a kernel TUN)
+
+This is the least obvious inclusion in the build, so it is documented in full.
+
+`netstack` is Tailscale's embedded **gVisor userspace TCP/IP stack**. The
+natural assumption — and what earlier versions of this build acted on — is that
+a router which owns a **real kernel TUN device** (it is *not* run with
+`--tun=userspace-networking`) has no use for a userspace stack, so `netstack`
+(and its dependent `gro`) can be omitted to save space. That assumption is
+**wrong for one specific, important path: MagicDNS.**
+
+**MagicDNS on `100.100.100.100` is served only by netstack.** In Tailscale
+v1.98.5 the in-process listener for the Tailscale service IP
+(`100.100.100.100:53`, UDP) is installed exclusively by netstack's
+`handleLocalPackets`, wired into the TUN wrapper as
+`PreFilterPacketOutboundToWireGuardNetstackIntercept`
+(`wgengine/netstack/netstack.go`). When a packet leaves the host toward
+`100.100.100.100`, this hook absorbs it into the gVisor stack, whose UDP-53
+acceptor runs the MagicDNS resolver.
+
+**The "engine fallback" does not actually exist.** The TUN wrapper consults a
+second hook, `PreFilterPacketOutboundToWireGuardEngineIntercept`, and a comment
+in `net/tstun/wrap.go` claims it "primarily handles quad-100 if netstack is not
+installed." In v1.98.5 that comment is **false on Linux**: the engine
+`handleLocalPackets` (`wgengine/userspace.go`) only reflects loopback on
+darwin/ios/plan9 and otherwise returns `Accept` — it never touches
+`100.100.100.100`. So with `ts_omit_netstack` there is **no** code that absorbs
+quad-100 packets at all.
+
+**`dns` and `netstack` are independent tags.** The `dns` feature (which this
+build opts in) links the resolver and the `/etc/resolv.conf` manager, but it has
+no dependency on `netstack` and does **not** install any quad-100 transport.
+The net result of `dns` on + `netstack` off is a resolver that is correctly
+wired up but that **never receives any packets** — the worst kind of silent
+breakage. Symptoms observed on the device:
+
+- `/etc/resolv.conf` correctly points at `100.100.100.100` (the manager works),
+- but `dig anything @100.100.100.100` from inside the container **times out**
+  ("no servers could be reached"),
+- and even tailnet-internal names fail: `ping host.<tailnet>.ts.net` →
+  `bad address` (a name that needs **no** upstream forwarding still can't
+  resolve, proving the listener itself is dead, not an upstream-resolver issue),
+- while `ping 1.1.1.1` (a raw IP needing no DNS) works fine over the kernel data
+  path — confirming forwarding/exit-node connectivity is unaffected and isolating
+  the fault to DNS serving.
+
+**It also fixed a crash.** Omitting `netstack` set `buildfeatures.HasNetstack`
+to a compile-time `false`, which turned the guard in
+`net/tstun.invertGSOChecksum` (`if !HasNetstack { panic("unreachable") }`) into
+an always-panic. That function is called on the packet-injection path used when
+enabling exit-node mode, producing `panic: unreachable` and a daemon restart
+loop. Enabling `netstack` makes `HasNetstack` a const `true`, so the guard
+becomes dead code and the crash disappears as a side effect — fixed at the root
+cause rather than patched around.
+
+**Cost.** Measured on arm64, a netstack-enabled build versus a netstack-omitted
+one:
+
+| Metric | netstack omitted | netstack enabled | Delta |
+|---|---|---|---|
+| Extracted rootfs (flash) | ~3.42 MB | ~3.91 MB | **+0.49 MB** |
+| `tailscale.combined` on disk (UPX) | ~2.99 MB | ~3.47 MB | +0.48 MB |
+| Resident RAM after UPX decompress | ~12.25 MB | ~14.56 MB | **+2.31 MB** |
+
+The flash cost (~0.5 MB) is negligible on a 16 MB-class device. The RAM cost
+(~2.3 MB resident) is the real consideration on low-memory models, but is
+acceptable given that without it MagicDNS is entirely non-functional. The
+trade is: **half a megabyte of flash to make MagicDNS work at all.** `gro`
+(Generic Receive Offload) depends on `netstack` and is pulled in alongside it;
+it is small and improves throughput on the netstack path.
+
+**Caveat for future Tailscale bumps.** This coupling (quad-100 serving living
+only in netstack) is an upstream implementation detail, not a stable contract.
+If a future release adds a genuine non-netstack quad-100 path — or the daemon
+itself is refactored — re-test whether `netstack` can be dropped again. The
+canary is simple: from inside the container, `dig google.com @100.100.100.100`
+must return answers and `ping <host>.<tailnet>.ts.net` must resolve.
+
+### Why peerapiserver is required for exit-node DNS
+
+This is a second non-obvious DNS inclusion, and it exposes a limitation of the
+allowlist build strategy.
+
+**Symptom.** With `netstack` enabled, MagicDNS worked from the router and from
+LAN hosts, including public names. But a device using this router **as its exit
+node** could not resolve public names: `dig google.com @100.100.100.100` on the
+*client* returned an instant authoritative `SERVFAIL` (`flags: qr aa rd ad`,
+`Query time: 0 msec`, "recursion not available"). Tailnet names and raw-IP
+connectivity (e.g. `ping 1.1.1.1`) through the exit node worked.
+
+**Root cause.** The `SERVFAIL` is generated **on the client**, locally, with no
+network I/O — which is why it is instant and authoritative. The path
+(traced through v1.98.5 source):
+
+1. The client's query for `google.com` reaches its in-process resolver, which
+   determines the name is not a tailnet name and marks it for forwarding
+   (`net/dns/resolver/tsdns.go`).
+2. The forwarder looks up which upstream resolver to use for the catch-all
+   `"."` route (`net/dns/resolver/forwarder.go` → `resolvers()`).
+3. That route set is **empty**, so `forwardWithDestChan` short-circuits and
+   synthesises an authoritative `SERVFAIL` (`servfailResponse`, `aa=1`) without
+   opening any socket. The query never reaches this router at all.
+
+Why the route set is empty: when a client selects an exit node,
+`dnsConfigForNetmap` (`ipn/ipnlocal/node_backend.go`) deliberately routes **all**
+default DNS through the exit node and drops the client's own LAN/system
+resolver — the whole premise of an exit node is "send everything, including
+DNS, through me." It does this by setting the client's default resolver to the
+exit node's **DoH proxy** URL (`http://<peer>/dns-query`). But that only happens
+if `exitNodeCanProxyDNS(thisRouter)` returns true — i.e. if **this router
+advertises a working PeerAPI DoH endpoint**. If it does not, and there is no
+tailnet global nameserver to fall back to, the client ends up with an empty
+default route and returns `SERVFAIL`.
+
+**Why this router didn't advertise the DoH proxy.** The `/dns-query` DoH
+endpoint is part of the **PeerAPI server**, gated by
+`buildfeatures.HasPeerAPIServer` (`ipn/ipnlocal/peerapi.go`). With
+`ts_omit_peerapiserver`, `initPeerAPIListenerLocked()` returns early: no PeerAPI
+listener is created, the `PeerAPIDNS` service is never advertised, and
+`peerCanProxyDNS()` is false for this node on every client.
+
+**The allowlist gap that caused it.** In `feature/featuretags/featuretags.go`,
+`advertiseexitnode` **declares a dependency on `peerapiserver`** ("to run the
+ExitDNS server"). Upstream's own `--add` resolution would have pulled it in.
+But this build's allowlist works differently: it runs `featuretags --min` to get
+the full omit set, then strips the specific `ts_omit_<feature>` tags it wants —
+it does **not** re-resolve transitive `Deps`. So opting in `advertiseexitnode`
+did not pull in `peerapiserver`, and `featuretags --min` had emitted
+`ts_omit_peerapiserver`, leaving the node an exit node *without* its declared
+ExitDNS dependency — a feature combination upstream's graph says shouldn't
+occur. Including `peerapiserver` explicitly closes the gap.
+
+> **Known limitation:** the allowlist (strip-individual-`ts_omit_`-tags) does
+> not resolve feature dependencies. When opting a feature in, check its `Deps`
+> in `featuretags.go` and add them explicitly. `peerapiserver` is the only such
+> gap found and fixed so far; a full dependency audit has not been done.
+
+**Cost.** Negligible. `peerapiserver` has **no** `Deps` and pulls in no large
+subsystems; measured at ~+10 kB on the UPX'd binary (arm64), rootfs unchanged
+within measurement noise.
+
+**Result.** The router now serves the exit-node DoH DNS proxy, so devices using
+it as their exit node resolve public names automatically — the normal exit-node
+behavior — with **no** tailnet DNS configuration required. (Setting a tailnet
+global nameserver in the admin console is an alternative runtime fix that also
+works, by populating the client's default resolver directly; it is not required
+once the router serves the proxy.)
+
+**Canary for future bumps:** from a client using this router as exit node,
+`dig google.com @100.100.100.100` must return real answers with `flags: ... ra`
+(recursion available) and a non-zero query time.
+
 ### Log verbosity filtering
 
 Upstream `tailscaled` embeds verbosity tags (`[v1]`, `[v2]`, …) inside its log