hwdsl2/ipsec-vpn-server repository overview

⁠IPsec VPN Server on Docker

GitHub: https://github.com/hwdsl2/docker-ipsec-vpn-server⁠

Docker image to run an IPsec VPN server, with IPsec/L2TP, Cisco IPsec and IKEv2.

Based on Alpine 3.23 or Debian 12 with Libreswan⁠ (IPsec VPN software) and xl2tpd⁠ (L2TP daemon).

An IPsec VPN encrypts your network traffic, so that nobody between you and the VPN server can eavesdrop on your data as it travels via the Internet. This is especially useful when using unsecured networks, e.g. at coffee shops, airports or hotel rooms.

Features:

• Automatically generates VPN credentials and IKEv2 configuration on first start
• Supports IKEv2 with strong and fast ciphers (e.g. AES-GCM)
• Generates VPN profiles to auto-configure iOS, macOS and Android devices
• Supports Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, Chrome OS and Linux as VPN clients
• Includes a helper script to manage IKEv2 users and certificates
• Automatically built and published via GitHub Actions⁠
• Persistent data via a Docker volume
• Multi-arch: linux/amd64, linux/arm64, linux/arm/v7

Also available:

• VPN: IPsec without Docker⁠, WireGuard⁠, OpenVPN⁠, Headscale⁠
• AI: Self-Hosted AI Stack⁠ for local LLMs, chat, RAG, voice and AI tools
• Books: The Self-Hosted AI Builder’s Guide⁠, Privacy Tools in the Age of AI⁠

⁠Quick start

Use this command to set up an IPsec VPN server on Docker:

docker run \
    --name ipsec-vpn-server \
    --restart=always \
    -v ikev2-vpn-data:/etc/ipsec.d \
    -v /lib/modules:/lib/modules:ro \
    -p 500:500/udp \
    -p 4500:4500/udp \
    -d --privileged \
    hwdsl2/ipsec-vpn-server

Your VPN login details will be randomly generated. See Retrieve VPN login details⁠.

Alternatively, you may set up IPsec VPN without Docker⁠. To learn more about how to use this image, read the sections below.

⁠Community

• 📬 Subscribe for project updates⁠ (1–2 emails/month) — get free VPN and AI deployment guides (PDF)
• 💬 Join the r/selfhostedstack⁠ community for discussions
• ⭐ Star the repository if you find it useful — it helps others discover it

⁠Requirements

• A Linux server with a public IP address or DNS name
• Docker installed
• VPN ports open in your firewall (UDP 500 and 4500)
• You may also use Podman⁠ to run this image, after creating an alias for docker

Note: Advanced users can use this image on macOS with Docker for Mac⁠. Before using IPsec/L2TP mode, you may need to restart the container once with docker restart ipsec-vpn-server. This image does not support Docker for Windows.

⁠Download

Get the trusted build from the Docker Hub registry⁠:

docker pull hwdsl2/ipsec-vpn-server

Alternatively, you may download from Quay.io⁠:

docker pull quay.io/hwdsl2/ipsec-vpn-server
docker image tag quay.io/hwdsl2/ipsec-vpn-server hwdsl2/ipsec-vpn-server

Supported platforms: linux/amd64, linux/arm64 and linux/arm/v7.

Advanced users can build from source code⁠ on GitHub.

⁠Image comparison

Two pre-built images are available. The default Alpine-based image is only ~19 MB.

Note: To use the Debian-based image, replace every hwdsl2/ipsec-vpn-server with hwdsl2/ipsec-vpn-server:debian in this README. These images are not currently compatible with Synology NAS systems.

⁠How to use this image

⁠Environment variables

Note: All the variables to this image are optional, which means you don't have to type in any variable, and you can have an IPsec VPN server out of the box! To do that, create an empty env file using touch vpn.env, and skip to the next section.

This Docker image uses the following variables, that can be declared in an env file (see example⁠):

VPN_IPSEC_PSK=your_ipsec_pre_shared_key
VPN_USER=your_vpn_username
VPN_PASSWORD=your_vpn_password

This will create a user account for VPN login, which can be used by your multiple devices*⁠. The IPsec PSK (pre-shared key) is specified by the VPN_IPSEC_PSK environment variable. The VPN username is defined in VPN_USER, and VPN password is specified by VPN_PASSWORD.

Additional VPN users are supported, and can be optionally declared in your env file like this. Usernames and passwords must be separated by spaces, and usernames cannot contain duplicates. All VPN users will share the same IPsec PSK.

VPN_ADDL_USERS=additional_username_1 additional_username_2
VPN_ADDL_PASSWORDS=additional_password_1 additional_password_2

The variables above are only for IPsec/L2TP and IPsec/XAuth ("Cisco IPsec") modes. For IKEv2, see Configure and use IKEv2 VPN⁠.

Note: In your env file, DO NOT put "" or '' around values, or add space around =. DO NOT use these special characters within values: \ " '. A secure IPsec PSK should consist of at least 20 random characters.

Note: If you modify the env file after the Docker container is already created, you must remove and re-create the container for the changes to take effect. Refer to Update Docker image⁠.

⁠Additional environment variables

Advanced users can optionally specify a DNS name, client name and/or custom DNS servers.

VPN_DNS_NAME=vpn.example.com

VPN_CLIENT_NAME=your_client_name

VPN_DNS_SRV1=1.1.1.1
VPN_DNS_SRV2=1.0.0.1

VPN_PROTECT_CONFIG=yes

⁠Start the IPsec VPN server

Create a new Docker container from this image (replace ./vpn.env with your own env file):

docker run \
    --name ipsec-vpn-server \
    --env-file ./vpn.env \
    --restart=always \
    -v ikev2-vpn-data:/etc/ipsec.d \
    -v /lib/modules:/lib/modules:ro \
    -p 500:500/udp \
    -p 4500:4500/udp \
    -d --privileged \
    hwdsl2/ipsec-vpn-server

In this command, we use the -v option of docker run to create a new Docker volume⁠ named ikev2-vpn-data, and mount it into /etc/ipsec.d in the container. IKEv2 related data such as certificates and keys will persist in the volume, and later when you need to re-create the Docker container, just specify the same volume again.

It is recommended to enable IKEv2 when using this image. However, if you prefer not to enable IKEv2 and use only the IPsec/L2TP and IPsec/XAuth ("Cisco IPsec") modes to connect to the VPN, remove the first -v option from the docker run command above.

Note: Advanced users can also run without privileged mode⁠.

⁠Retrieve VPN login details

If you did not specify an env file in the docker run command above, VPN_USER will default to vpnuser and both VPN_IPSEC_PSK and VPN_PASSWORD will be randomly generated. To retrieve them, view the container logs:

docker logs ipsec-vpn-server

Search for these lines in the output:

Connect to your new VPN with these details:

Server IP: your_vpn_server_ip
IPsec PSK: your_ipsec_pre_shared_key
Username: your_vpn_username
Password: your_vpn_password

The output will also include details for IKEv2 mode, if enabled.

(Optional) Backup the generated VPN login details (if any) to the current directory:

docker cp ipsec-vpn-server:/etc/ipsec.d/vpn-gen.env ./

⁠Using docker-compose

cp vpn.env.example vpn.env
# Edit vpn.env if needed, then:
docker compose up -d
docker logs ipsec-vpn-server

Example docker-compose.yml (already included):

volumes:
  ikev2-vpn-data:

services:
  vpn:
    image: hwdsl2/ipsec-vpn-server
    restart: always
    env_file:
      - ./vpn.env
    ports:
      - "500:500/udp"
      - "4500:4500/udp"
    privileged: true
    hostname: ipsec-vpn-server
    container_name: ipsec-vpn-server
    volumes:
      - ikev2-vpn-data:/etc/ipsec.d
      - /lib/modules:/lib/modules:ro

⁠Next steps

Get your computer or device to use the VPN. Please refer to:

Configure and use IKEv2 VPN (recommended)⁠

Configure IPsec/L2TP VPN Clients⁠

Configure IPsec/XAuth ("Cisco IPsec") VPN Clients⁠

Enjoy your very own VPN!

⁠Important notes

Windows users: For IPsec/L2TP mode, a one-time registry change⁠ is required if the VPN server or client is behind NAT (e.g. home router).

The same VPN account can be used by your multiple devices. However, due to an IPsec/L2TP limitation, if you wish to connect multiple devices from behind the same NAT (e.g. home router), you must use IKEv2⁠ or IPsec/XAuth⁠ mode.

If you wish to add, edit or remove VPN user accounts, first update your env file, then you must remove and re-create the Docker container using instructions from the next section⁠. Advanced users can bind mount⁠ the env file.

For servers with an external firewall (e.g. EC2⁠/GCE⁠), open UDP ports 500 and 4500 for the VPN. Aliyun users, see #433⁠.

Clients are set to use Google Public DNS⁠ when the VPN is active. If another DNS provider is preferred, read this section⁠.

⁠Update Docker image

To update the Docker image and container, first download⁠ the latest version:

docker pull hwdsl2/ipsec-vpn-server

If the Docker image is already up to date, you should see:

Status: Image is up to date for hwdsl2/ipsec-vpn-server:latest

Otherwise, it will download the latest version. To update your Docker container, first note your VPN login details⁠. Then remove the Docker container with docker rm -f ipsec-vpn-server. Finally, re-create it using instructions from How to use this image⁠.

⁠Configure and use IKEv2 VPN

See Configure and use IKEv2 VPN⁠.

⁠Advanced usage

See Advanced usage⁠.

⁠Technical details

There are two services running: Libreswan (pluto) for the IPsec VPN, and xl2tpd for L2TP support.

The default IPsec configuration supports:

• IPsec/L2TP with PSK
• IKEv1 with PSK and XAuth ("Cisco IPsec")
• IKEv2

Ports required: 500/udp and 4500/udp (IPsec)

⁠License

See License⁠.