🍸 DockTail

Unleash your Containers as Tailscale Services

Automatically expose Docker containers as Tailscale Services using label-based configuration - zero-config service mesh for your dockerized services.

Features

Automatically discover and expose Docker containers as Tailscale Services
Auto-create service definitions via Tailscale API (with OAuth or API key)
HTTP, HTTPS and TCP protocols
Tailscale HTTPS with automatic TLS certificates
Tailscale Funnel support (public internet access)
Multiple services from a single container
Automatic cleanup when containers stop
Runs entirely in a stateless Docker container

Quick Start

services:
  docktail:
    image: ghcr.io/marvinvr/docktail:latest
    restart: unless-stopped
    volumes:
      - /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock:ro
      - /var/run/tailscale:/var/run/tailscale
    environment:
      # Optional but recommended - enables auto-service-creation
      - TAILSCALE_OAUTH_CLIENT_ID=${TAILSCALE_OAUTH_CLIENT_ID}
      - TAILSCALE_OAUTH_CLIENT_SECRET=${TAILSCALE_OAUTH_CLIENT_SECRET}

  myapp:
    image: nginx:latest
    # No ports needed! DockTail proxies directly to container IP
    labels:
      - "docktail.service.enable=true"
      - "docktail.service.name=myapp"
      - "docktail.service.port=80"

docker compose up -d
curl http://myapp.your-tailnet.ts.net

That's it! See Configuration for OAuth setup (recommended) or running without credentials.

Configuration

DockTail works in three modes. Choose based on your needs:

Recommended: OAuth Credentials

OAuth lets DockTail auto-create services in your Tailscale Admin Console. No manual setup required.

Setup:

Go to Tailscale Admin Console → Settings → OAuth clients
Create a new OAuth client with scope all and your service tags (e.g., tag:container)
Add to your DockTail environment:

environment:
  - TAILSCALE_OAUTH_CLIENT_ID=your-client-id
  - TAILSCALE_OAUTH_CLIENT_SECRET=your-client-secret

Benefits:

Services auto-created when containers start
Never expires (unlike API keys)
Proper tag-based ACL support

Alternative: API Key

Also auto-creates services, but expires every 90 days.

Setup:

Go to Tailscale Admin Console → Settings → Keys
Generate an API key
Add to your DockTail environment:

environment:
  - TAILSCALE_API_KEY=tskey-api-...

No Credentials (Manual Mode)

DockTail works without any credentials for basic use. Services are advertised locally via the Tailscale CLI, but you must manually create service definitions in the Admin Console.

Manual setup required:

Go to Tailscale Admin Console → Services
Create a service for each container you want to expose
Configure ACL auto-approvers (see ACL Configuration)

Installation

Tailscale on Host

For systems with Tailscale installed on the host:

services:
  docktail:
    image: ghcr.io/marvinvr/docktail:latest
    restart: unless-stopped
    volumes:
      - /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock:ro
      - /var/run/tailscale:/var/run/tailscale
    environment:
      # Optional but recommended - enables auto-service-creation
      - TAILSCALE_OAUTH_CLIENT_ID=${TAILSCALE_OAUTH_CLIENT_ID}
      - TAILSCALE_OAUTH_CLIENT_SECRET=${TAILSCALE_OAUTH_CLIENT_SECRET}

Note: We mount the /var/run/tailscale directory rather than the socket file directly. When tailscaled restarts, it recreates the socket with a new inode — a file bind mount would go stale, but a directory mount stays in sync automatically.

Host tag requirement: The host machine running Tailscale must advertise a tag that matches your ACL auto-approvers (see Tailscale Admin Setup). For example:

sudo tailscale up --advertise-tags=tag:server --reset

Warning: The --reset flag briefly drops the Tailscale connection. If you are connected via SSH over Tailscale, your session will be interrupted momentarily. The connection will restore automatically once Tailscale reconnects.

When using the sidecar setup below, the sidecar container handles its own tags via TS_AUTHKEY, so this step is not needed.

Tailscale Sidecar

For systems without Tailscale installed on the host:

services:
  tailscale:
    image: tailscale/tailscale:latest
    hostname: docktail-host
    environment:
      - TS_AUTHKEY=${TAILSCALE_AUTH_KEY}
      - TS_STATE_DIR=/var/lib/tailscale
      - TS_SOCKET=/var/run/tailscale/tailscaled.sock
    volumes:
      - tailscale-state:/var/lib/tailscale
      - tailscale-socket:/var/run/tailscale
      - /dev/net/tun:/dev/net/tun
    cap_add:
      - NET_ADMIN
      - SYS_MODULE
    network_mode: host
    restart: unless-stopped

  docktail:
    image: ghcr.io/marvinvr/docktail:latest
    depends_on:
      - tailscale
    restart: unless-stopped
    volumes:
      - /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock:ro
      - tailscale-socket:/var/run/tailscale
    environment:
      # Optional but recommended - enables auto-service-creation
      - TAILSCALE_OAUTH_CLIENT_ID=${TAILSCALE_OAUTH_CLIENT_ID}
      - TAILSCALE_OAUTH_CLIENT_SECRET=${TAILSCALE_OAUTH_CLIENT_SECRET}

volumes:
  tailscale-state:
  tailscale-socket:

Set TAILSCALE_AUTH_KEY to authenticate the Tailscale container (generate at Tailscale Admin → Settings → Keys).

Tailscale Admin Setup

After deploying DockTail, you need to configure a few things in the Tailscale Admin Console for services to work.

1. Configure Access Controls (ACLs)

Services require ACL auto-approvers to allow the host machine to advertise them. Go to Access Controls and add an autoApprovers block:

{
  "autoApprovers": {
    "services": {
      "tag:container": ["tag:server"]
    }
  }
}

This allows machines tagged tag:server to advertise services tagged tag:container (the default DockTail tag). Adjust the tags to match your setup — the right side must match the tag on your host machine (or sidecar auth key), and the left side must match the docktail.tags label on your containers (defaults to tag:container).

2. Approve the Service

The first time a new service is advertised, it must be manually approved in the Tailscale Admin Console:

Go to the Services tab
Find the newly advertised service
Approve it to allow traffic

After the initial approval, the service will continue to work automatically on subsequent container restarts. If you are using OAuth or API key mode, service definitions are auto-created, but the first approval may still be required depending on your ACL configuration.

Labeling Containers

Direct Container IP Proxying (Default)

By default, DockTail proxies directly to container IPs on the Docker bridge network. No port publishing required!

services:
  myapp:
    image: nginx:latest
    # No ports needed!
    labels:
      - "docktail.service.enable=true"
      - "docktail.service.name=myapp"
      - "docktail.service.port=80"

DockTail automatically detects the container's IP address and configures Tailscale to proxy directly to it. When containers restart and get new IPs, DockTail automatically updates the configuration.

Opt-out: Set docktail.service.direct=false to use published port bindings instead (legacy behavior).

Service Labels

Label	Required	Default	Description
`docktail.service.enable`	Yes	-	Enable DockTail for container
`docktail.service.name`	Yes	-	Service name (e.g., `web`, `api`)
`docktail.service.port`	Yes	-	Container port to proxy to
`docktail.service.direct`	No	`true`	Proxy directly to container IP (no port publishing needed)
`docktail.service.network`	No	`bridge`	Docker network to use for container IP
`docktail.service.protocol`	No	Smart*	Container protocol: `http`, `https`, `https+insecure`, `tcp`, `tls-terminated-tcp`
`docktail.service.service-port`	No	Smart**	Port Tailscale listens on
`docktail.service.service-protocol`	No	Smart***	Tailscale protocol: `http`, `https`, `tcp`
`docktail.tags`	No	`tag:container`	Comma-separated tags for ACLs

Smart Defaults:

* protocol: https if container port is 443, otherwise http
** service-port: 443 if service-protocol is https, otherwise 80
*** service-protocol: https if service-port is 443, matches protocol for TCP, otherwise http

Funnel Labels (Public Internet Access)

Funnel exposes your service to the public internet. Independent from service labels.

Label	Required	Default	Description
`docktail.funnel.enable`	Yes	`false`	Enable Tailscale Funnel
`docktail.funnel.port`	Yes	-	Container port
`docktail.funnel.funnel-port`	No	`443`	Public port (443, 8443, or 10000)
`docktail.funnel.protocol`	No	`https`	Protocol: `https`, `tcp`, `tls-terminated-tcp`

Notes:

Only ONE funnel per port (Tailscale limitation)
Uses machine hostname, not service name: https://<machine>.<tailnet>.ts.net

Examples

Web Application

services:
  nginx:
    image: nginx:latest
    # No ports needed - DockTail proxies directly to container IP
    labels:
      - "docktail.service.enable=true"
      - "docktail.service.name=web"
      - "docktail.service.port=80"

HTTPS with Auto TLS

services:
  api:
    image: myapi:latest
    labels:
      - "docktail.service.enable=true"
      - "docktail.service.name=api"
      - "docktail.service.port=3000"
      - "docktail.service.service-port=443"  # Auto-enables HTTPS

Access: https://api.your-tailnet.ts.net

Database (TCP)

services:
  postgres:
    image: postgres:16
    labels:
      - "docktail.service.enable=true"
      - "docktail.service.name=db"
      - "docktail.service.port=5432"
      - "docktail.service.protocol=tcp"
      - "docktail.service.service-port=5432"

Multiple Services from One Container

A single container can expose multiple separate Tailscale services using numbered labels (docktail.service.N.*). Each indexed entry requires its own name and port, and becomes an independent service. Tags and network are inherited from the primary config.

This is useful for VPN gateway containers (e.g., gluetun) where multiple apps route through a single container but each needs its own Tailscale service.

services:
  gluetun:
    image: gluetun:latest
    labels:
      - "docktail.service.enable=true"
      - "docktail.service.name=qbittorrent"
      - "docktail.service.port=8000"
      - "docktail.service.1.name=bitmagnet"
      - "docktail.service.1.port=8001"

Per-index overridable labels: name (required), port (required), service-port, protocol, and service-protocol.

Custom Docker Network

services:
  app:
    image: myapp:latest
    networks:
      - backend
    labels:
      - "docktail.service.enable=true"
      - "docktail.service.name=app"
      - "docktail.service.port=3000"
      - "docktail.service.network=backend"  # Specify which network to use

networks:
  backend:

Legacy Mode (Published Ports)

services:
  app:
    image: myapp:latest
    ports:
      - "8080:3000"  # Required when direct=false
    labels:
      - "docktail.service.enable=true"
      - "docktail.service.name=app"
      - "docktail.service.port=3000"
      - "docktail.service.direct=false"  # Use published port instead of container IP

Public Website with Funnel

services:
  website:
    image: nginx:latest
    labels:
      - "docktail.service.enable=true"
      - "docktail.service.name=website"
      - "docktail.service.port=80"
      - "docktail.service.service-port=443"
      - "docktail.funnel.enable=true"
      - "docktail.funnel.port=80"

Access:

Tailnet: https://website.your-tailnet.ts.net
Public: https://your-machine.your-tailnet.ts.net

Reference

Environment Variables

Variable	Default	Description
`TAILSCALE_OAUTH_CLIENT_ID`	-	OAuth Client ID (optional, enables auto-service-creation)
`TAILSCALE_OAUTH_CLIENT_SECRET`	-	OAuth Client Secret (optional, enables auto-service-creation)
`TAILSCALE_API_KEY`	-	API Key (optional alternative to OAuth, expires 90 days)
`TAILSCALE_TAILNET`	`-`	Tailnet ID (defaults to key's tailnet)
`DEFAULT_SERVICE_TAGS`	`tag:container`	Default tags for services
`LOG_LEVEL`	`info`	Logging level (debug, info, warn, error)
`RECONCILE_INTERVAL`	`60s`	State reconciliation interval
`DOCKER_HOST`	`unix:///var/run/docker.sock`	Docker daemon socket
`TAILSCALE_SOCKET`	`/var/run/tailscale/tailscaled.sock`	Tailscale daemon socket

If both OAuth and API key are set, OAuth takes precedence.

Supported Protocols

Tailscale-facing (service-protocol):

http - Layer 7 HTTP
https - Layer 7 HTTPS (auto TLS)
tcp - Layer 4 TCP
tls-terminated-tcp - Layer 4 with TLS termination

Container-facing (protocol):

http - HTTP backend
https - HTTPS with valid certificate
https+insecure - HTTPS with self-signed certificate
tcp - TCP backend
tls-terminated-tcp - TCP with TLS termination

ACL Configuration

See Tailscale Admin Setup for the required ACL auto-approver configuration and service approval steps.

How It Works

 ┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
 │                     Docker Host                        │
 │                                                        │
 │  ┌──────────────────┐         ┌──────────────────┐     │
 │  │     DockTail     │────────▶│ Tailscale Daemon │     │
 │  │   (Container)    │  CLI    │   (Host Process) │     │
 │  └────────┬─────────┘         └────────┬─────────┘     │
 │           │                            │               │
 │           │ Docker Socket              │ Proxies to    │
 │           │ Monitoring                 │ container IP  │
 │           ▼                            ▼               │
 │  ┌──────────────────┐         ┌──────────────────┐     │
 │  │   App Container  │◀────────│  172.17.0.3:80   │     │
 │  │   Port 80        │         │  (bridge network)│     │
 │  │  No ports needed │◀────────│                  │     │
 │  └──────────────────┘         └──────────────────┘     │
 │                                                        │
 └────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
                          │
                          │ Tailscale Network
                          ▼
               ┌─────────────────────┐
               │  Tailnet Clients    │
               │  Access services:   │
               │  web.tailnet.ts.net │
               └─────────────────────┘

Container Discovery - Monitors Docker events for container start/stop
Label Parsing - Extracts service configuration from container labels
IP Detection - Gets container IP from Docker network settings (default: bridge)
Config Generation - Creates Tailscale service config proxying to container IP
Service Advertisement - Executes Tailscale CLI to advertise services
Control Plane Sync - If OAuth/API key configured, creates service definitions via API
Reconciliation - Periodically syncs state; auto-updates when container IPs change

Notes:

DockTail does NOT delete service definitions from the API when containers stop (conservative deletion strategy)
Container IP changes on restart are handled automatically during reconciliation

Building from Source

go build -o docktail .
docker build -t docktail:latest .
./docktail

Name		Name	Last commit message	Last commit date
Latest commit History 57 Commits
.github		.github
assets		assets
docker		docker
reconciler		reconciler
tailscale		tailscale
test		test
types		types
.dockerignore		.dockerignore
.env.example		.env.example
.gitignore		.gitignore
.golangci.yml		.golangci.yml
CLAUDE.md		CLAUDE.md
Dockerfile		Dockerfile
LICENSE		LICENSE
Makefile		Makefile
README.md		README.md
docker-compose.console-sync.yaml		docker-compose.console-sync.yaml
docker-compose.e2e.yaml		docker-compose.e2e.yaml
docker-compose.sidecar.yaml		docker-compose.sidecar.yaml
docker-compose.yaml		docker-compose.yaml
e2e.sh		e2e.sh
go.mod		go.mod
go.sum		go.sum
main.go		main.go

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🍸 DockTail

Features

Quick Start

Configuration

Recommended: OAuth Credentials

Alternative: API Key

No Credentials (Manual Mode)

Installation

Tailscale on Host

Tailscale Sidecar

Tailscale Admin Setup

1. Configure Access Controls (ACLs)

2. Approve the Service

Labeling Containers

Direct Container IP Proxying (Default)

Service Labels

Funnel Labels (Public Internet Access)

Examples

Web Application

HTTPS with Auto TLS

Database (TCP)

Multiple Services from One Container

Custom Docker Network

Legacy Mode (Published Ports)

Public Website with Funnel

Reference

Environment Variables

Supported Protocols

ACL Configuration

How It Works

Building from Source

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