# π‘οΈ SSH Tunnel - Secure Remote Access via SSH Tunnels
## π **Quick Start**
For a fast setup, run:
```sh
docker run -d -e SSH_HOST=your-server -e SSH_USER=user \
-v ~/.ssh/id_rsa:/tmp/id_rsa:ro ripleybooya/ssh-tunnel
```
## π Why this image?
This container was created to **securely expose remote services via SSH tunnels**.
Instead of exposing databases or other services to the public internet, this container allows you to **create secure SSH tunnels** inside a Docker network.
### π₯ **Use Cases:**
- Securely connect to **remote databases** (PostgreSQL, MySQL, MariaDB).
- Access **internal services** (Redis, Elasticsearch, APIs) via SSH.
- Securely tunnel any service **without exposing it publicly**.
---
## π How to Use
### **1οΈβ£ Run with `docker run`**
```bash
docker run -d --name ssh-tunnel \
-e SSH_HOST="your-server.com" \
-e SSH_USER="your-username" \
-e REMOTE_PORTS="127.0.0.1:5432 127.0.0.1:443" \
-e LOCAL_PORTS="15432 8443" \
-v /path/to/id_rsa:/tmp/id_rsa:ro \
--network=my_docker_network \
ripleybooya/ssh-tunnel
```
π **Explanation:**
- `SSH_HOST`: The remote server where SSH tunnels will be established.
- `SSH_USER`: The SSH user on the remote server.
- `REMOTE_PORTS`: Ports from the remote server (format: `127.0.0.1:PORT`).
- `LOCAL_PORTS`: Ports inside the Docker container (mapped to `REMOTE_PORTS`).
- `LOGROTATE_FREQUENCY`: Logrotate Frequency (default to `daily`).
- `LOGROTATE_ROTATE`: Logrotate rotation to keep (default to `7`).
- `LOGROTATE_COMPRESS`: Logrotate compression (default to `compress`).
- `-v /path/to/id_rsa:/tmp/id_rsa:ro`: **Mounts your SSH key securely** (using `/tmp/id_rsa` for better permissions).
---
### **2οΈβ£ Using `docker-compose.yml`**
For easier management, use **Docker Compose**:
#### **2οΈβ£.1οΈβ£ Using a Custom Network (Recommended)**
```yaml
version: '3.8'
services:
ssh-tunnel:
image: ripleybooya/ssh-tunnel
container_name: ssh-tunnel
restart: always
networks:
- internal
environment:
SSH_HOST: "your-server.com"
SSH_USER: "your-username"
REMOTE_PORTS: "127.0.0.1:5432 127.0.0.1:443"
LOCAL_PORTS: "15432 8443"
volumes:
- /path/to/id_rsa:/tmp/id_rsa:ro
networks:
internal:
driver: bridge
```
#### **2οΈβ£.2οΈβ£ Using Host Network Mode (Alternative)**
If you need the ports to be accessible outside Docker, use `network_mode: host` :
```yaml
version: '3.8'
services:
ssh-tunnel:
image: ripleybooya/ssh-tunnel
container_name: ssh-tunnel
restart: always
network_mode: host # Uses the host network instead of a Docker network
environment:
SSH_HOST: "your-server.com"
SSH_USER: "your-username"
REMOTE_PORTS: "127.0.0.1:5432 127.0.0.1:443"
LOCAL_PORTS: "15432 8443"
volumes:
- /path/to/id_rsa:/tmp/id_rsa:ro
```
π Which mode to choose?
- β
Custom network (default) β If services are inside Docker.
- β
Host mode β If you want to expose the tunnel outside Docker.
---
## π Using with Tailscale
This version integrates Tailscale VPN for secure remote access & exposes the port to your tailnet.
To use the Tailscale version you need to append the `tailscale` tag: `ripleybooya/ssh-tunnel:tailscale`
### **Run with `docker run`**
```bash
docker run -d --name ssh-tunnel-tailscale \
-e SSH_HOST="your-server.com" \
-e SSH_USER="your-username" \
-e REMOTE_PORTS="127.0.0.1:5432 127.0.0.1:443" \
-e LOCAL_PORTS="15432 8443" \
-e TAILSCALE_AUTH_KEY="your-tailscale-auth-key" \
-v /path/to/id_rsa:/tmp/id_rsa:ro \
-v /path/to/tailscale/persistent/data:/var/lib/tailscale # Persistent Tailscale state, needed after initial key expiration
-p 15432:15432 # (Optional) Also expose port on local network.
-p 8443:8443 # (Optional) Also expose port on local network.
--cap-add=NET_ADMIN \
--device /dev/net/tun:/dev/net/tun \
ripleybooya/ssh-tunnel:tailscale
```
π **Explanation:**
- `SSH_HOST`: The remote server where SSH tunnels will be established.
- `SSH_USER`: The SSH user on the remote server.
- `REMOTE_PORTS`: Ports from the remote server (format: `127.0.0.1:PORT`).
- `LOCAL_PORTS`: Ports inside the Docker container (mapped to `REMOTE_PORTS`).
- `TAILSCALE_AUTH_KEY`: Initial Tailscale Authentication Key (optionnal) /!\ Must be empty if you want to use `TAILSCALE_PARAM`.
(You can generate a key here: [Tailscale Keys](https://login.tailscale.com/admin/settings/keys))
- `TAILSCALE_PARAM`: full control over `tailscale up` options. Usefull if you plan to automate deployment with OAuth Client etc.
([tailscale up command parameters](https://tailscale.com/kb/1241/tailscale-up) & [Registering new nodes using OAuth credentials](https://tailscale.com/kb/1215/oauth-clients#registering-new-nodes-using-oauth-credentials)).
- `LOGROTATE_FREQUENCY`: Logrotate Frequency (default to `daily`).
- `LOGROTATE_ROTATE`: Logrotate rotation to keep (default to `7`).
- `LOGROTATE_COMPRESS`: Logrotate compression (default to `compress`).
- `-v /path/to/id_rsa:/tmp/id_rsa:ro`: **Mounts your SSH key securely** (using `/tmp/id_rsa` for better permissions).
- `-v /path/to/tailscale/persistent/data:/var/lib/tailscale`: Required for Persistent Tailscale state. (optionnal)
> - Exposing ports with `-p PORT:PORT` is not mandatory to access the ports from a docker network or your Tailnet.
> - Only usefull if you want your ports to be exposed to the local network.
{.is-info}
> Without [Registering new nodes using OAuth credentials](https://tailscale.com/kb/1215/oauth-clients#registering-new-nodes-using-oauth-credentials) or a persistent storage for `/var/lib/tailscale` after the initial key expire, the container will not be able to connect to your Tailnet.
> {.is-warning}
---
### **Using `docker-compose.yml`**
```bash
version: '3.8'
services:
ssh-tunnel-tailscale:
image: ripleybooya/ssh-tunnel:tailscale
container_name: ssh-tunnel-tailscale
restart: always
environment:
SSH_HOST: "your-server.com"
SSH_USER: "your-username"
REMOTE_PORTS: "127.0.0.1:5432 127.0.0.1:3306"
LOCAL_PORTS: "5432 3306"
TAILSCALE_PARAM: "--reset --auth-key='tskey-client-XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX-YYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY?ephemeral=true&preauthorized=true' --advertise-tags=tag:dba --hostname=TS-DB-ACCESS"
volumes:
- /root/.ssh/ripley_id_rsa:/tmp/id_rsa:ro
cap_add:
- NET_ADMIN
devices:
- /dev/net/tun:/dev/net/tun
```
π **Explanation:**
- `SSH_HOST`: The remote server where SSH tunnels will be established.
- `SSH_USER`: The SSH user on the remote server.
- `REMOTE_PORTS`: Ports from the remote server (format: `127.0.0.1:PORT`).
- `LOCAL_PORTS`: Ports inside the Docker network (mapped to `REMOTE_PORTS`).
- `TAILSCALE_AUTH_KEY`: Initial Tailscale Authentication Key (optionnal) /!\ Must be empty if you want to use `TAILSCALE_PARAM`.
(You can generate a key here: [Tailscale Keys](https://login.tailscale.com/admin/settings/keys))
- `TAILSCALE_PARAM`: full control over `tailscale up` options. Usefull if you plan to automate deployment with OAuth Client etc.
([tailscale up command parameters](https://tailscale.com/kb/1241/tailscale-up) & [Registering new nodes using OAuth credentials](https://tailscale.com/kb/1215/oauth-clients#registering-new-nodes-using-oauth-credentials)).
- `LOGROTATE_FREQUENCY`: Logrotate Frequency (default to `daily`).
- `LOGROTATE_ROTATE`: Logrotate rotation to keep (default to `7`).
- `LOGROTATE_COMPRESS`: Logrotate compression (default to `compress`).
- `/path/to/id_rsa:/tmp/id_rsa:ro`: **Mounts your SSH key securely** (using `/tmp/id_rsa` for better permissions).
- `ssh_tunnel_tailscale_data:/var/lib/tailscale`: Required for Persistent Tailscale state. (optionnal)
> - Exposing ports with "`ports:`" is not mandatory to access the ports from a docker network or your Tailnet.
> - Only usefull if you want your ports to be exposed to the local network.
{.is-info}
> Without [Registering new nodes using OAuth credentials](https://tailscale.com/kb/1215/oauth-clients#registering-new-nodes-using-oauth-credentials) or a persistent storage for `/var/lib/tailscale` after the initial key expire, the container will not be able to connect to your Tailnet.
> {.is-warning}
---
## π **Why use this image?**
β
**Secure**: No need to expose services publicly.
β
**Simple**: Just set environment variables and run.
β
**Multi-Arch**: Works on **x86_64 (Intel/AMD)** and **ARM64 (Oracle Cloud, Raspberry Pi, etc.)**.
β
**Lightweight**: Uses **Alpine Linux** for minimal resource usage.
---
## π¦ Pull & Run
```bash
docker pull ripleybooya/ssh-tunnel
docker run --rm -it ripleybooya/ssh-tunnel sh -c "uname -m && echo 'Container is working'"
```
π **Now your remote services are accessible through secure SSH tunnels!**
---
## π Tags & Keywords
This image can be used for:
- π‘οΈ **SSH Tunneling**
- π **Networking & Proxy**
- π **Security & Encryption**
- ποΈ **Database Access (PostgreSQL, MySQL, MariaDB, etc.)**
- ποΈ **Remote Service Exposure in Docker**
---
## π Third-Party Licenses
This project is based on:
- [Alpine Linux](https://www.alpinelinux.org/) - MIT License
- [OpenSSH](https://www.openssh.com/) - BSD License
- [Tailscale](https://tailscale.com/) - MIT License
- [Docker](https://www.docker.com/) - Apache 2.0 License
## π License
This project is licensed under the **MIT License**.
You are free to use, modify, and distribute it.
Read the full license [here](https://opensource.org/licenses/MIT).
---
## π€ AI Assistance & Acknowledgment
- This project was built with the help of an **AI-powered assistant (LLM)** to improve structure, efficiency, and documentation clarity.
- A big thank to [XΓ©nophΓ©e](https://github.com/Xenophee) for the inspiration that started this project.
## ποΈ How to Build the Image
If you want to build this image yourself, follow these steps:
### **1οΈβ£ Clone the Repository**
```bash
git clone https://github.com/RipleyBooya/ssh-tunnel.git
cd ssh-tunnel
```
### **2οΈβ£ Build for Multi-Architecture (`amd64` & `arm64`)**
```bash
docker buildx build --platform linux/amd64,linux/arm64 \
-t dockerhub_account/ssh-tunnel:latest \
--push .
```
### **3οΈβ£ Verify the Image**
```bash
docker buildx imagetools inspect dockerhub_account/ssh-tunnel:latest
```
### **4οΈβ£ Test Locally**
```bash
docker run --rm -it dockerhub_account/ssh-tunnel sh -c "uname -m && echo 'Container is running successfully'"
```
Now your image is built and ready for use! π
## π Project Links & Contributions
This project is open-source and welcomes contributions!
- π **Source Code & Issues:** [GitHub Repository](https://github.com/RipleyBooya/ssh-tunnel)
- π³ **Docker Hub Page:** [Docker Image](https://hub.docker.com/r/ripleybooya/ssh-tunnel)
- π«π· **Version franΓ§aise (WikiJS):** [ltgs.wiki (FR)](https://ltgs.wiki/fr/InfoTech/Virt/Docker/ssh-tunnel)
- πΊπΈ **English version (WikiJS):** [ltgs.wiki (EN)](https://ltgs.wiki/en/InfoTech/Virt/Docker/ssh-tunnel)
If you find any issues or have suggestions, feel free to open a GitHub issue or contribute! π