I'm currently using Tailscale together with a Mullvad exit node to route my internet traffic through a VPN endpoint. While the connection appears to be functioning correctly, I've noticed indications that some DNS requests may not be following the same route as the rest of my traffic. This raises concerns about potential DNS leaks and whether my browsing activity is being fully protected.
I've reviewed my Tailscale and Mullvad settings, but I'm unsure if the issue is related to DNS configuration, operating system network settings, split DNS behavior, or a misconfiguration within the exit node setup. Has anyone encountered similar DNS leak issues when combining Tailscale with a Mullvad exit node, and what steps can be taken to verify and resolve them?
Hello Johnadam,
Bucking_horn found that my router was interfering.
The following article is the guide I was mostly following:
https://medium.com/@renatokauric/yet-another-privacy-setup-pi-hole-tailscale-mullvad-exit-nodes-and-how-i-almost-lost-my-mind-e61f6f64a3e3
I'm on Linux, so I don't know how helpful this is to you, but there's a part of the article that mentions changing an /etc/resolv.conf to point at Cloudflared's IP address. This is now deprecated, so you want to go through Tailscale and the Pi-hole admin panel have everything point at Cloudflare (no d) instead.
Then, when you edit /etc/resolv.conf (make sure to back it up first, and I'd recommend putting a # in front of the initial nameserver line instead of erasing it entirely in case you have to change it back), use the IP address 1.1.1.1 instead.
This fixed it for me.
EDIT: Forgot to add, under settings > DNS you also want to make sure Cloudflare is ticked under IPv6, and uncheck everything else. It's off by default.
EDIT 2: Never mind, I've broken something again. Try the above and see if it gets you anywhere but you may need to tweak it.