[GH-ISSUE #5466] Specific relay selection for clients #11519

New Issue

saavagebueno · 2026-08-05T01:29:55-04:00

saavagebueno commented

2026-08-05 01:29:55 -04:00

Originally created by @Longtianmu on GitHub (Feb 26, 2026).
Original GitHub issue: https://github.com/netbirdio/netbird/issues/5466

Is your feature request related to a problem? Please describe.
The NetBird client currently selects the fastest relay. This can lead to problems if that relay is overloaded or otherwise unsuitable, and users currently have no way to control or prioritize relay choice.

Describe the solution you'd like
Add a client option to explicitly select or prioritize a specific relay.

Describe alternatives you've considered
I had considered option like pointing dns record to other relay but that's not reliable.

Additional context
This feature would improve connection stability and give users more flexibility, especially in environments where relay connections are using.

Originally created by @Longtianmu on GitHub (Feb 26, 2026). Original GitHub issue: https://github.com/netbirdio/netbird/issues/5466 **Is your feature request related to a problem? Please describe.** The NetBird client currently selects the fastest relay. This can lead to problems if that relay is overloaded or otherwise unsuitable, and users currently have no way to control or prioritize relay choice. **Describe the solution you'd like** Add a client option to explicitly select or prioritize a specific relay. **Describe alternatives you've considered** I had considered option like pointing dns record to other relay but that's not reliable. **Additional context** This feature would improve connection stability and give users more flexibility, especially in environments where relay connections are using.

saavagebueno added the feature-request label 2026-08-05 01:29:55 -04:00

saavagebueno commented

2026-08-05 01:29:55 -04:00

@Kunlun-Hub commented on GitHub (Jun 5, 2026):

This can be accomplished using Codex. I implemented a relay priority distribution and first-relay functionality; a higher-priority relay will always be selected if it is alive.

@Kunlun-Hub commented on GitHub (Jun 5, 2026): <img width="1479" height="580" alt="Image" src="https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/29ea0257-52fe-4961-9b73-b4de0bf38982" />This can be accomplished using Codex. I implemented a relay priority distribution and first-relay functionality; a higher-priority relay will always be selected if it is alive.

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Reference: DYNR/netbird#11519