[GH-ISSUE #4451] Netbird client hijacks Proxmox DNS settings #9124

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opened 2026-08-05 01:20:56 -04:00 by saavagebueno · 6 comments
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Originally created by @lthieman on GitHub (Sep 6, 2025).
Original GitHub issue: https://github.com/netbirdio/netbird/issues/4451

Describe the problem

On my Proxmox hosts with the Netbird agent installed the Netbird has hijacked the DNS settings setting netbird.cloud as the search domain and some IP I don't recognize for the DNS server. I cannot remove the Netbird set DNS server from the list and if I set my own DNS server as a second or third, those settings do not survive a reboot.

To Reproduce

Install Proxmox
Install Netbird client
Look for DNS settings in Proxmox UI

Expected behavior

Allow me to set my own DNS servers

Are you using NetBird Cloud?

Yes,

NetBird version

Multiple recent versions

Is any other VPN software installed?

Nope

Originally created by @lthieman on GitHub (Sep 6, 2025). Original GitHub issue: https://github.com/netbirdio/netbird/issues/4451 **Describe the problem** On my Proxmox hosts with the Netbird agent installed the Netbird has hijacked the DNS settings setting netbird.cloud as the search domain and some IP I don't recognize for the DNS server. I cannot remove the Netbird set DNS server from the list and if I set my own DNS server as a second or third, those settings do not survive a reboot. **To Reproduce** Install Proxmox Install Netbird client Look for DNS settings in Proxmox UI **Expected behavior** Allow me to set my own DNS servers **Are you using NetBird Cloud?** Yes, **NetBird version** Multiple recent versions **Is any other VPN software installed?** Nope
saavagebueno added the triage-needed label 2026-08-05 01:20:56 -04:00
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@jbatesy commented on GitHub (Sep 6, 2025):

Have you tried disabling the DNS functionality on the client?

netbird up --disable-dns

See #2495 for more information

<!-- gh-comment-id:3261673262 --> @jbatesy commented on GitHub (Sep 6, 2025): Have you tried disabling the DNS functionality on the client? ```netbird up --disable-dns``` See #2495 for more information
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@lthieman commented on GitHub (Sep 7, 2025):

Have you tried disabling the DNS functionality on the client?

netbird up --disable-dns

See #2495 for more information

Thank you! That command didn't work, but the thread you linked lead me to where I could turn the bug off. That bug should definitely be turned off by default as it's wasted hours of my time since being introduced.

<!-- gh-comment-id:3264149667 --> @lthieman commented on GitHub (Sep 7, 2025): > Have you tried disabling the DNS functionality on the client? > > `netbird up --disable-dns` > > See [#2495](https://github.com/netbirdio/netbird/issues/2495) for more information Thank you! That command didn't work, but the thread you linked lead me to where I could turn the bug off. That bug should definitely be turned off by default as it's wasted hours of my time since being introduced.
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@steventhorne commented on GitHub (Oct 7, 2025):

Have you tried disabling the DNS functionality on the client?
netbird up --disable-dns
See #2495 for more information

Thank you! That command didn't work, but the thread you linked lead me to where I could turn the bug off. That bug should definitely be turned off by default as it's wasted hours of my time since being introduced.

What did you end up doing?

<!-- gh-comment-id:3377531178 --> @steventhorne commented on GitHub (Oct 7, 2025): > > Have you tried disabling the DNS functionality on the client? > > `netbird up --disable-dns` > > See [#2495](https://github.com/netbirdio/netbird/issues/2495) for more information > > Thank you! That command didn't work, but the thread you linked lead me to where I could turn the bug off. That bug should definitely be turned off by default as it's wasted hours of my time since being introduced. What did you end up doing?
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@lthieman commented on GitHub (Oct 10, 2025):

Have you tried disabling the DNS functionality on the client?
netbird up --disable-dns
See #2495 for more information

Thank you! That command didn't work, but the thread you linked lead me to where I could turn the bug off. That bug should definitely be turned off by default as it's wasted hours of my time since being introduced.

What did you end up doing?

Under the DNS settings on the Netbird dashboard there was the setting. Changing it there allowed all my machines to revert to their correct DNS servers.

<!-- gh-comment-id:3388328562 --> @lthieman commented on GitHub (Oct 10, 2025): > > > Have you tried disabling the DNS functionality on the client? > > > `netbird up --disable-dns` > > > See [#2495](https://github.com/netbirdio/netbird/issues/2495) for more information > > > > > > Thank you! That command didn't work, but the thread you linked lead me to where I could turn the bug off. That bug should definitely be turned off by default as it's wasted hours of my time since being introduced. > > What did you end up doing? Under the DNS settings on the Netbird dashboard there was the setting. Changing it there allowed all my machines to revert to their correct DNS servers.
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@urssich commented on GitHub (Nov 26, 2025):

Have you tried disabling the DNS functionality on the client?
netbird up --disable-dns
See #2495 for more information

Thank you! That command didn't work, but the thread you linked lead me to where I could turn the bug off. That bug should definitely be turned off by default as it's wasted hours of my time since being introduced.

What did you end up doing?

Under the DNS settings on the Netbird dashboard there was the setting. Changing it there allowed all my machines to revert to their correct DNS servers.

This has worked, thanks, but still - there is a DisableDNS flag in Netbird's config.json that does nothing - resolv.conf still gets rewritten when it is set to true. This is happening from version 0.52.0 onwards, my clients on 0.51.2 still have unmodified resolv.conf without changing Disable DNS management for their peer group on the dashboard.

My understanding is that this is the same flag that gets applied when running netbird up --disable-dns. For my use case, NetBird should never modify DNS settings, regardless of dashboard configuration, so the previous behavior was ideal. If this is indeed a regression, it would be great to have it fixed.Also it would be nice to add description of Disable DNS management setting to the docs page (https://docs.netbird.io/manage/dns).

Aside from this, NetBird has been excellent to work with — thank you for the project!

<!-- gh-comment-id:3580053940 --> @urssich commented on GitHub (Nov 26, 2025): > > > > Have you tried disabling the DNS functionality on the client? > > > > `netbird up --disable-dns` > > > > See [#2495](https://github.com/netbirdio/netbird/issues/2495) for more information > > > > > > > > > Thank you! That command didn't work, but the thread you linked lead me to where I could turn the bug off. That bug should definitely be turned off by default as it's wasted hours of my time since being introduced. > > > > > > What did you end up doing? > > Under the DNS settings on the Netbird dashboard there was the setting. Changing it there allowed all my machines to revert to their correct DNS servers. This has worked, thanks, but still - there is a `DisableDNS` flag in Netbird's config.json that does nothing - resolv.conf still gets rewritten when it is set to `true`. This is happening from version 0.52.0 onwards, my clients on 0.51.2 still have unmodified resolv.conf without changing Disable DNS management for their peer group on the dashboard. My understanding is that this is the same flag that gets applied when running `netbird up --disable-dns`. For my use case, NetBird should *never* modify DNS settings, regardless of dashboard configuration, so the previous behavior was ideal. If this is indeed a regression, it would be great to have it fixed.Also it would be nice to add description of Disable DNS management setting to the docs page (https://docs.netbird.io/manage/dns). Aside from this, NetBird has been excellent to work with — thank you for the project!
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@walterdevos-dev commented on GitHub (Jan 5, 2026):

Same for me, version 0.60.7
netbird up --disable-dns works
DisableDNS flag in Netbird's config.json is ignored.

<!-- gh-comment-id:3710020949 --> @walterdevos-dev commented on GitHub (Jan 5, 2026): Same for me, version 0.60.7 netbird up --disable-dns works DisableDNS flag in Netbird's config.json is ignored.
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Reference: DYNR/netbird#9124