[GH-ISSUE #5480] Auto-Connect on Mobiles when no longer connected to a trusted Wifi SSID #11542

Open
opened 2026-08-05 01:29:59 -04:00 by saavagebueno · 5 comments
Owner

Originally created by @orehmann on GitHub (Mar 1, 2026).
Original GitHub issue: https://github.com/netbirdio/netbird/issues/5480

Is your feature request related to a problem? Please describe.
Not really. It is a convenience feature request.

Describe the solution you'd like
I would like to be able to define a list of trusted WiFi SSIDs (my home wifi(s). As soon as I leave my home and my mobile drops off the wifi and switches to cellular data, Netbird should auto-connect. When I am returning back home and the mobile reconnects my home wifi Netbird should disconnect.

Describe alternatives you've considered
I didn't. Wireguard clients such as WG-Tunnel have this feature but are very limited compared to the super cool Netbird.

Additional context
I know with routing and DNS-routing it would be possible to stay connected wether I am at home or off-home. And yes that works.
But there are other reasons to have Netbird disconnected when at home.

  • Battery drain
  • Not wanting an extra layer on my communication stack when connected to my Intranet.
  • etc.
Originally created by @orehmann on GitHub (Mar 1, 2026). Original GitHub issue: https://github.com/netbirdio/netbird/issues/5480 **Is your feature request related to a problem? Please describe.** Not really. It is a convenience feature request. **Describe the solution you'd like** I would like to be able to define a list of trusted WiFi SSIDs (my home wifi(s). As soon as I leave my home and my mobile drops off the wifi and switches to cellular data, Netbird should auto-connect. When I am returning back home and the mobile reconnects my home wifi Netbird should disconnect. **Describe alternatives you've considered** I didn't. Wireguard clients such as WG-Tunnel have this feature but are very limited compared to the super cool Netbird. **Additional context** I know with routing and DNS-routing it would be possible to stay connected wether I am at home or off-home. And yes that works. But there are other reasons to have Netbird disconnected when at home. - Battery drain - Not wanting an extra layer on my communication stack when connected to my Intranet. - etc.
saavagebueno added the feature-request label 2026-08-05 01:29:59 -04:00
Author
Owner

@praneetloke commented on GitHub (Mar 1, 2026):

Aside from the friendly name for the SSID, is there an internal identifier that the app could track for trusted SSIDs? I just worry that the name could be spoofed. I am not familiar with Wifi internals personally. For example, if someone was being targeted and their Wifi SSID is discoverable, another one could be setup elsewhere and cause the app to disconnect because it thinks it's a trusted SSID, which would be very bad.

<!-- gh-comment-id:3981172694 --> @praneetloke commented on GitHub (Mar 1, 2026): Aside from the friendly name for the SSID, is there an internal identifier that the app could track for trusted SSIDs? I just worry that the name could be spoofed. I am not familiar with Wifi internals personally. For example, if someone was being targeted and their Wifi SSID is discoverable, another one could be setup elsewhere and cause the app to disconnect because it thinks it's a trusted SSID, which would be very bad.
Author
Owner

@orehmann commented on GitHub (Mar 2, 2026):

Yeah good question. Thought about that too. In WG-Tunnel it is simply a text field where you enter the SSID and then it adds it to the list. You can add any text you want. It does not need to be a SSID in your list. I mean that could be a cheap security mechanism. It must exist in your list of "saved" SSIDs. So you must have been connected to this Wifi-SSID-Name before. But yeah. Not really secure. Let me dig a little bit about WiFi internals and come back.

<!-- gh-comment-id:3983045555 --> @orehmann commented on GitHub (Mar 2, 2026): Yeah good question. Thought about that too. In WG-Tunnel it is simply a text field where you enter the SSID and then it adds it to the list. You can add any text you want. It does not need to be a SSID in your list. I mean that could be a cheap security mechanism. It must exist in your list of "saved" SSIDs. So you must have been connected to this Wifi-SSID-Name before. But yeah. Not really secure. Let me dig a little bit about WiFi internals and come back.
Author
Owner

@orehmann commented on GitHub (Mar 2, 2026):

It seems that the BSSID is our friend; kind of. As far as I understood it is the MAC-Address of the router. The problem with it is that if you have a network with one SSID and multiple Access Points you have multiple BSSIDs. In some setups you can have multiple BSSIDs per AP for different radio bands (2.5, 5 GHz, etc.). So to say maybe it is easier to define GPS coordinates for your home and then switch on when leaving that area with a distance of 50 meters or so. Problem. GPS would need to be on always --> Battery Drain

<!-- gh-comment-id:3983268932 --> @orehmann commented on GitHub (Mar 2, 2026): It seems that the BSSID is our friend; kind of. As far as I understood it is the MAC-Address of the router. The problem with it is that if you have a network with one SSID and multiple Access Points you have multiple BSSIDs. In some setups you can have multiple BSSIDs per AP for different radio bands (2.5, 5 GHz, etc.). So to say maybe it is easier to define GPS coordinates for your home and then switch on when leaving that area with a distance of 50 meters or so. Problem. GPS would need to be on always --> Battery Drain
Author
Owner

@praneetloke commented on GitHub (Mar 2, 2026):

It seems that the BSSID is our friend; kind of. As far as I understood it is the MAC-Address of the router. The problem with it is that if you have a network with one SSID and multiple Access Points you have multiple BSSIDs. In some setups you can have multiple BSSIDs per AP for different radio bands (2.5, 5 GHz, etc.). So to say maybe it is easier to define GPS coordinates for your home and then switch on when leaving that area with a distance of 50 meters or so. Problem. GPS would need to be on always --> Battery Drain

Yeah, personally, I don't think relying on the location is a good idea for a few reasons, one of them being battery drain problem you mentioned.

<!-- gh-comment-id:3985250109 --> @praneetloke commented on GitHub (Mar 2, 2026): > It seems that the BSSID is our friend; kind of. As far as I understood it is the MAC-Address of the router. The problem with it is that if you have a network with one SSID and multiple Access Points you have multiple BSSIDs. In some setups you can have multiple BSSIDs per AP for different radio bands (2.5, 5 GHz, etc.). So to say maybe it is easier to define GPS coordinates for your home and then switch on when leaving that area with a distance of 50 meters or so. Problem. GPS would need to be on always --> Battery Drain Yeah, personally, I don't think relying on the location is a good idea for a few reasons, one of them being battery drain problem you mentioned.
Author
Owner

@RiX012 commented on GitHub (Jun 3, 2026):

I know that spoofing can be a problem, but having this convenient feature is a fair trade of for me personally.

<!-- gh-comment-id:4615170536 --> @RiX012 commented on GitHub (Jun 3, 2026): I know that spoofing can be a problem, but having this convenient feature is a fair trade of for me personally.
Sign in to join this conversation.
No Label feature-request
1 Participants
Notifications
Due Date
No due date set.
Dependencies

No dependencies set.

Reference: DYNR/netbird#11542