Merge pull request 'Let a project's container run a VPN client' (#27) from feat/vpn-support into main
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This commit was merged in pull request #27.
This commit is contained in:
2026-08-14 15:30:03 +00:00
8 changed files with 427 additions and 2 deletions
+35
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@@ -273,6 +273,41 @@ migration and Reset. Four things here are not obvious:
actively **removes** `triple-c-*.crt` when the setting is cleared — `/usr/local/share` rides the
project's snapshot image, so turning the feature off has to undo, not merely stop.
### VPN support (`vpn_support_enabled`, `docker/container.rs`)
An opt-in per-project switch granting the container what a VPN client needs to build a tunnel.
`vpn_host_config()` is the single definition of what that means, and it is unit-tested because a
container is created once by a very long function where a dropped capability is invisible.
- **All three pieces or none.** `CAP_NET_ADMIN` (Docker's default set has `net_raw` but *not*
`net_admin`, so a client can ping but never connect), the `/dev/net/tun` device (absent
entirely from a default container — nothing to open even with the capability), and
`net.ipv4.conf.all.src_valid_mark=1` (WireGuard's `wg-quick` sets it and cannot from inside a
container, since `/proc/sys` is read-only, so handshake packets die to reverse-path filtering).
Any two without the third still presents as a connection that hangs to a timeout, which is why
the tests assert the whole set.
- **The device is passed through from the host, never `mknod`-ed inside.** The kernel's `tun`
module has to back it.
- **A missing device fails at `start`, not `create` — verified against Docker 29.7.** `docker
create --device /dev/does-not-exist` succeeds and prints an id; runc resolves the device (and
validates sysctls) only when it builds the container. So the guard belongs on the start path:
`explain_container_failure()` covers both and is called from `start_container`, where it has a
container id and no project — which is why it keys off the error naming `/dev/net/tun` rather
than off `vpn_support_enabled`. Nothing else in Triple-C requests a device, so that is
unambiguous. A version of this check wired to `create` alone is dead code that looks correct.
- **`NET_ADMIN` here is not user-namespaced.** Docker does not enable userns remapping by default,
so only the *network* namespace confines it: no reach onto host interfaces, but promiscuous
mode, arbitrary addresses/routes/NAT on the shared `docker0` segment (sibling containers, the
LiteLLM gateway among them, are ARP-spoofable), netlink-triggered host module auto-load, and
enough authority to flush in-container netfilter rules that sandbox mode may rely on. Keep the
code comments honest about this — an earlier draft claimed it "confers no authority" outside the
container, which is too strong.
- **`triple-c.vpn-support` is written unconditionally, including `false`.** The usual
`docker commit` reason: a `true` stamped once would ride the snapshot image into every future
container and make the switch impossible to turn off.
- Off is byte-identical to a container created before the feature existed, and a missing label
reads as `false`, so no existing project is churned.
### Container Lifecycle
Containers use a **stop/start** model (not create/destroy). Installed packages persist across stops. The `.claude` config dir uses a named Docker volume (`triple-c-claude-config-{projectId}`), nested inside the home volume (`triple-c-home-{projectId}`), so OAuth tokens and Claude Code config survive container stop/start *and* container recreation.
+31
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@@ -471,6 +471,37 @@ When enabled, the host Docker socket is mounted into the container so Claude Cod
> Toggling this requires stopping and restarting the container to take effect.
### VPN Support
When enabled, the container is given the three things a VPN client needs to build a tunnel:
the `NET_ADMIN` capability, the `/dev/net/tun` device, and the `net.ipv4.conf.all.src_valid_mark`
sysctl that WireGuard requires. This is **off by default**.
Without it, a client such as PIA, WireGuard or OpenVPN installs and its daemon starts normally, but
the connection attempt **hangs until it times out** — a default container has no tun device to open
and no permission to add an interface or a route, and most clients report that as a generic timeout
rather than a permissions error.
Things worth knowing:
- Tailscale is the exception: in its `--tun=userspace-networking` mode it needs neither the
capability nor the device, so leave this off if that is all you want.
- `NET_ADMIN` applies to the container's **own** network namespace — it cannot touch the host's
interfaces. It is not nothing, though: within that namespace anything in the container can set
promiscuous mode and add arbitrary addresses, routes and firewall rules on the Docker bridge it
shares with your other containers, and it can flush firewall rules that sandbox mode relies on.
Grant it per project, to projects that need it.
- The **Docker host's** kernel must have the `tun` module available. With Docker Desktop that is
the Linux VM, not your own machine. If it is missing, the container is created but fails to
**start**, with an error naming `/dev/net/tun` and pointing back at this setting.
- A VPN client's kill switch applies to everything in the container, Claude Code included. If the
tunnel drops, expect API calls to fail until it reconnects or the kill switch is turned off.
> This setting can only be changed when the container is stopped. Capabilities and devices are
> fixed when a container is created, so toggling it recreates the container on the next start.
> Recreation preserves the home and `.claude` volumes — it is not a Reset.
### Mission Control
Toggle **Mission Control** to integrate Flight Control — an AI-first development methodology bundled with Triple-C — into the project. When enabled:
+224 -2
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@@ -798,6 +798,111 @@ async fn resolve_base_image_id(image_name: &str, base_image_name: &str) -> Strin
.unwrap_or_default()
}
/// The `/dev/net/tun` character device, as it is named on both sides.
const TUN_DEVICE: &str = "/dev/net/tun";
/// The `HostConfig` fields "VPN support" contributes: `CapAdd`, `Devices`,
/// `Sysctls` — in that order.
type VpnHostConfigParts = (
Option<Vec<String>>,
Option<Vec<bollard::models::DeviceMapping>>,
Option<HashMap<String, String>>,
);
/// The three host-config pieces a VPN client needs, or all-`None` when the
/// project has not opted in.
///
/// Returned as a triple rather than set inline so the exact shape is unit
/// testable — a container is created once, by a very long async function, and a
/// silently-dropped capability looks identical to a VPN server that is simply
/// unreachable.
///
/// All three are required together and each fails differently on its own:
/// * **`CAP_NET_ADMIN`** — without it the client cannot create an interface or
/// write a route. Docker's default bounding set grants `net_raw` but not
/// `net_admin`, which is why a client can ping but never connect.
/// * **`/dev/net/tun`** — the device is absent from a default container, so
/// there is nothing to open even with the capability. It is passed through
/// from the host rather than `mknod`-ed inside, so the kernel's `tun` module
/// backs it.
/// * **`net.ipv4.conf.all.src_valid_mark`** — WireGuard's own `wg-quick` sets
/// this, and cannot from inside a container (`/proc/sys` is read-only), so
/// its handshake packets are dropped by reverse-path filtering. Harmless for
/// OpenVPN-based clients, so it is set unconditionally with the rest.
///
/// What it costs, stated accurately: Docker does not enable user-namespace
/// remapping by default, so this is a real `CAP_NET_ADMIN` in the *initial*
/// user namespace and only the **network** namespace confines it. It cannot
/// touch the host's interfaces, but within its own namespace it can set
/// promiscuous mode and add arbitrary addresses, routes and NAT rules on the
/// shared `docker0` L2 segment — which puts sibling containers (the LiteLLM
/// gateway among them) within reach of ARP spoofing, and lets netlink trigger
/// host-kernel module auto-loading. It is also enough to flush netfilter rules
/// inside the container, so pair it with `sandbox_mode_enabled` advisedly.
/// Hence opt-in, per project, rather than on for everyone.
fn vpn_host_config(enabled: bool) -> VpnHostConfigParts {
if !enabled {
return (None, None, None);
}
let devices = vec![bollard::models::DeviceMapping {
path_on_host: Some(TUN_DEVICE.to_string()),
path_in_container: Some(TUN_DEVICE.to_string()),
cgroup_permissions: Some("rwm".to_string()),
}];
let sysctls = HashMap::from([(
"net.ipv4.conf.all.src_valid_mark".to_string(),
"1".to_string(),
)]);
(
Some(vec!["NET_ADMIN".to_string()]),
Some(devices),
Some(sysctls),
)
}
/// Turn the daemon's device-passthrough failure into an explanation.
///
/// **This fires on `start`, not `create`.** Verified against Docker 29.7:
/// `docker create --device /dev/does-not-exist` succeeds and prints an id; the
/// device is only resolved when runc builds the container, so the failure lands
/// on the *next* call. Sysctls validate at the same point. Anything that
/// inspects only the create path will never see it — which is why both paths
/// route through here and the tests exercise the start-side string.
///
/// Unmapped, this reads as `Failed to start container: Docker responded with
/// status code 500: error gathering device information while adding custom
/// device "/dev/net/tun": no such file or directory` — a path the user will go
/// looking for on the wrong machine, since with Docker Desktop the relevant
/// host is the Linux VM rather than their own, and with nothing pointing back
/// at the switch that caused it.
///
/// Deliberately not gated on `vpn_support_enabled`: nothing else in Triple-C
/// ever asks for a device, so an error naming `/dev/net/tun` can only have come
/// from a container created with the switch on. That keeps the check usable
/// from [`start_container`], which has a container id and no project.
fn explain_container_failure(action: &str, err: &str) -> String {
let device_missing = err.contains(TUN_DEVICE)
&& (err.contains("no such file or directory")
|| err.contains("No such file or directory")
|| err.contains("error gathering device information"));
if device_missing {
return format!(
"Failed to {} container: the Docker host has no {} device, which \
\"VPN support\" requires. The host kernel needs the `tun` module \
loaded (on Docker Desktop that is the Linux VM, not your own \
machine). Turn VPN support off in Config → Runtime to start this \
project without it. Original error: {}",
action, TUN_DEVICE, err
);
}
format!("Failed to {} container: {}", action, err)
}
pub async fn create_container(
project: &Project,
docker_socket_path: &str,
@@ -1375,6 +1480,13 @@ pub async fn create_container(
labels.insert("triple-c.image".to_string(), image_name.to_string());
labels.insert("triple-c.timezone".to_string(), timezone.unwrap_or("").to_string());
labels.insert("triple-c.mission-control".to_string(), project.mission_control_enabled.to_string());
// Capabilities, devices and sysctls are fixed at creation, so this is
// container state and gets the label-and-compare treatment. Written
// unconditionally (`false`, not omitted) because `docker commit` copies
// container labels onto the snapshot image: a `true` stamped once would
// otherwise ride that snapshot into every future container and make the
// switch impossible to turn back off.
labels.insert("triple-c.vpn-support".to_string(), project.vpn_support_enabled.to_string());
labels.insert("triple-c.permission-mode".to_string(),
project.effective_permission_mode().as_env_value().to_string());
labels.insert("triple-c.custom-env-fingerprint".to_string(), custom_env_fingerprint.clone());
@@ -1443,10 +1555,15 @@ pub async fn create_container(
labels.insert((*key).to_string(), (*value).to_string());
}
let (cap_add, devices, sysctls) = vpn_host_config(project.vpn_support_enabled);
let host_config = HostConfig {
mounts: Some(mounts),
port_bindings: if port_bindings.is_empty() { None } else { Some(port_bindings) },
init: Some(true),
cap_add,
devices,
sysctls,
..Default::default()
};
@@ -1476,7 +1593,7 @@ pub async fn create_container(
let response = docker
.create_container(Some(options), config)
.await
.map_err(|e| format!("Failed to create container: {}", e))?;
.map_err(|e| explain_container_failure("create", &e.to_string()))?;
Ok(response.id)
}
@@ -1486,7 +1603,7 @@ pub async fn start_container(container_id: &str) -> Result<(), String> {
docker
.start_container(container_id, None::<StartContainerOptions<String>>)
.await
.map_err(|e| format!("Failed to start container: {}", e))
.map_err(|e| explain_container_failure("start", &e.to_string()))
}
pub async fn stop_container(container_id: &str) -> Result<(), String> {
@@ -2367,6 +2484,19 @@ pub async fn container_needs_recreation(
return Ok(true);
}
// ── VPN support (NET_ADMIN + /dev/net/tun + sysctl) ───────────────────
// A container's capabilities, devices and sysctls are set at creation and
// cannot be changed on a running or stopped container, so recreation is the
// only way a toggle here takes effect. A missing label means the container
// predates the feature, which is the same thing as having it off — so
// existing projects are not churned until someone actually turns it on.
let expected_vpn = project.vpn_support_enabled.to_string();
let container_vpn = get_label("triple-c.vpn-support").unwrap_or_else(|| "false".to_string());
if container_vpn != expected_vpn {
log::info!("VPN support mismatch (container={:?}, expected={:?})", container_vpn, expected_vpn);
return Ok(true);
}
// ── Permission mode ────────────────────────────────────────────────────
// The mode is injected as the TRIPLE_C_PERMISSION_MODE env var, and
// container env can only change by recreating the container. A missing
@@ -2616,6 +2746,98 @@ mod tests {
assert_eq!(fp, "");
}
#[test]
fn vpn_support_off_touches_nothing_in_the_host_config() {
// The default must stay byte-identical to a container created before the
// feature existed, or every project recreates on the next start.
let (cap_add, devices, sysctls) = vpn_host_config(false);
assert_eq!(cap_add, None);
assert_eq!(devices, None);
assert_eq!(sysctls, None);
}
#[test]
fn vpn_support_on_grants_all_three_pieces() {
// Each is useless without the others — a client with the capability but
// no device, or the device but no capability, still times out — so this
// asserts the whole set rather than any one of them.
let (cap_add, devices, sysctls) = vpn_host_config(true);
assert_eq!(cap_add, Some(vec!["NET_ADMIN".to_string()]));
let devices = devices.expect("the tun device must be passed through");
assert_eq!(devices.len(), 1);
assert_eq!(devices[0].path_on_host.as_deref(), Some(TUN_DEVICE));
assert_eq!(devices[0].path_in_container.as_deref(), Some(TUN_DEVICE));
assert_eq!(devices[0].cgroup_permissions.as_deref(), Some("rwm"));
assert_eq!(
sysctls
.expect("wireguard needs src_valid_mark")
.get("net.ipv4.conf.all.src_valid_mark")
.map(String::as_str),
Some("1")
);
}
#[test]
fn vpn_support_never_grants_more_than_net_admin() {
// NET_ADMIN is already a step out of the sandbox. Anything else added
// here (SYS_ADMIN, or a blanket privileged flag) would be a much larger
// one, so pin the set.
let (cap_add, _, _) = vpn_host_config(true);
assert_eq!(cap_add.unwrap(), vec!["NET_ADMIN"]);
}
/// What bollard actually hands us when a tun-less host rejects the device.
///
/// Captured verbatim from Docker 29.7: `docker create` with a missing
/// device **succeeds**, and this arrives from the subsequent `start`.
/// `DockerResponseServerError`'s Display is
/// `"Docker responded with status code {code}: {message}"` with the
/// daemon's message unaltered.
const REAL_TUN_ERROR: &str = "Docker responded with status code 500: error \
gathering device information while adding custom device \
\"/dev/net/tun\": no such file or directory";
#[test]
fn a_missing_tun_device_is_explained_on_the_path_that_actually_fails() {
// The start path is the one that matters: the daemon defers device
// resolution to runc, so create returns an id on a host with no tun
// module and only start fails. A version of this that checked create
// alone would be dead code.
let msg = explain_container_failure("start", REAL_TUN_ERROR);
assert!(msg.starts_with("Failed to start container:"), "{}", msg);
assert!(msg.contains("VPN support"), "should name the switch: {}", msg);
assert!(msg.contains("tun` module"), "should name the cause: {}", msg);
assert!(msg.contains("Config → Runtime"), "should say where to fix it: {}", msg);
assert!(msg.contains(REAL_TUN_ERROR), "should keep the original: {}", msg);
}
#[test]
fn the_same_explanation_covers_create_if_the_daemon_ever_checks_earlier() {
// Belt and braces — older and future daemons may validate at create.
let msg = explain_container_failure("create", REAL_TUN_ERROR);
assert!(msg.starts_with("Failed to create container:"), "{}", msg);
assert!(msg.contains("VPN support"), "{}", msg);
}
#[test]
fn unrelated_failures_are_left_alone() {
for (action, err) in [
("create", "Conflict. The container name \"/triple-c-x\" is already in use"),
("start", "Docker responded with status code 404: No such container"),
("start", "error gathering device information while adding custom device \"/dev/dri/card0\""),
] {
assert_eq!(
explain_container_failure(action, err),
format!("Failed to {} container: {}", action, err),
"{} should pass through untouched",
err
);
}
}
#[test]
fn the_orphan_sweep_only_ever_looks_at_our_own_untagged_images() {
// Both conditions are load-bearing. Without `dangling` the sweep would
+17
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@@ -145,6 +145,22 @@ pub struct Project {
/// container-recreation label.
#[serde(default)]
pub browser_view_enabled: bool,
/// Grant the container what a VPN client needs to build a tunnel:
/// `CAP_NET_ADMIN`, the `/dev/net/tun` device, and the WireGuard
/// `src_valid_mark` sysctl. Without all three a client (PIA, WireGuard,
/// OpenVPN) installs and runs but its connection attempt hangs until it
/// times out, because it cannot create the tunnel interface or touch the
/// routing table.
///
/// Off by default and deliberately opt-in: `NET_ADMIN` lets anything in the
/// container reconfigure its own network stack, which reaches further than
/// it sounds — see `vpn_host_config` for what it does and does not confer.
/// Unlike `auth_bridge_enabled` this *is*
/// container state, so it carries a `triple-c.vpn-support` label and is
/// compared in `container_needs_recreation` — capabilities and devices are
/// fixed at creation and can only change by recreating the container.
#[serde(default)]
pub vpn_support_enabled: bool,
/// Use the shared, long-lived Claude Code OAuth token (from
/// `claude setup-token`, held in the OS keychain) for this project instead
/// of requiring its own `claude login`. Only consulted when `backend` is
@@ -366,6 +382,7 @@ impl Project {
mission_control_enabled: false,
auth_bridge_enabled: false,
browser_view_enabled: false,
vpn_support_enabled: false,
use_shared_auth_token: default_use_shared_auth_token(),
full_permissions: false,
permission_mode: None,
@@ -120,6 +120,15 @@ export default function OverviewTab({
{project.mission_control_enabled ? "ON" : "OFF"}
</span>
</span>
{/* Only when granted. It is off for nearly every project and an
always-present "VPN OFF" would be noise, but where it *is* on the
container holds NET_ADMIN, which is worth seeing at a glance. */}
{project.vpn_support_enabled && (
<span className="text-[var(--text-secondary)]">
VPN support{" "}
<span className="text-[var(--text-primary)] font-medium">ON</span>
</span>
)}
<button
type="button"
onClick={() => onOpenTab("config")}
@@ -0,0 +1,94 @@
import { describe, it, expect, vi, beforeEach } from "vitest";
import { render, screen, fireEvent } from "@testing-library/react";
import RuntimeSection from "./RuntimeSection";
import type { Project } from "../../../../lib/types";
const baseProject: Project = {
id: "p1",
name: "api-server",
paths: [{ host_path: "/src/api", mount_name: "api" }],
container_id: null,
status: "stopped",
backend: "anthropic",
bedrock_config: null,
ollama_config: null,
llamacpp_config: null,
openai_compatible_config: null,
allow_docker_access: false,
sandbox_mode_enabled: true,
mission_control_enabled: false,
auth_bridge_enabled: false,
browser_view_enabled: false,
vpn_support_enabled: false,
use_shared_auth_token: true,
full_permissions: false,
permission_mode: null,
ssh_key_path: null,
ca_cert_path: null,
git_token: null,
git_user_name: null,
git_user_email: null,
custom_env_vars: [],
port_mappings: [],
claude_instructions: null,
claude_code_settings: null,
renamed_session_names: {},
created_at: "2026-01-01T00:00:00Z",
updated_at: "2026-01-01T00:00:00Z",
};
const VPN = "VPN support";
const save = vi.fn().mockResolvedValue(true);
function renderSection(over: Partial<Project> = {}, disabled = false) {
return render(
<RuntimeSection
project={{ ...baseProject, ...over }}
save={save}
disabled={disabled}
disabledReason="Container must be stopped to change this setting."
/>,
);
}
describe("RuntimeSection — VPN support toggle", () => {
beforeEach(() => vi.clearAllMocks());
it("saves only the VPN flag when switched on", () => {
renderSection();
fireEvent.click(screen.getByRole("switch", { name: VPN }));
expect(save).toHaveBeenCalledWith({ vpn_support_enabled: true });
});
it("saves the flag off again, rather than dropping the key", () => {
// Off has to be written explicitly: the container carries a
// `triple-c.vpn-support` label either way, and an absent value would leave
// the capability granted.
renderSection({ vpn_support_enabled: true });
fireEvent.click(screen.getByRole("switch", { name: VPN }));
expect(save).toHaveBeenCalledWith({ vpn_support_enabled: false });
});
it("reflects the project's current state", () => {
renderSection({ vpn_support_enabled: true });
expect(screen.getByRole("switch", { name: VPN })).toBeChecked();
});
it("cannot be changed while the container is running", () => {
// Capabilities and devices are fixed at creation, so this setting is gated
// on the container being stopped along with the rest of the tab.
renderSection({}, true);
const toggle = screen.getByRole("switch", { name: VPN });
expect(toggle).toBeDisabled();
fireEvent.click(toggle);
expect(save).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
});
it("warns that the change recreates the container", () => {
renderSection();
expect(
screen.getByText(/recreates the container on its next start/i),
).toBeInTheDocument();
});
});
@@ -57,6 +57,19 @@ export default function RuntimeSection({
}
/>
<SwitchRow
label="VPN support"
hint="Grants NET_ADMIN and the /dev/net/tun device so a VPN client (PIA, WireGuard, OpenVPN) can build a tunnel inside the container. Without it a client installs and runs but its connection hangs until it times out. Anything in the container can then reconfigure the container's own network stack; the host's is untouched. Changing this recreates the container on its next start — the home and .claude volumes are preserved."
control={
<Toggle
label="VPN support"
checked={project.vpn_support_enabled}
disabled={disabled}
onChange={(v) => save({ vpn_support_enabled: v })}
/>
}
/>
<SwitchRow
label="Mission Control"
hint="A web dashboard for monitoring and managing Claude sessions remotely."
+4
View File
@@ -33,6 +33,10 @@ export interface Project {
auth_bridge_enabled: boolean;
/** Opt in to the browser-view pane. Host-side only, like `auth_bridge_enabled`. */
browser_view_enabled: boolean;
/** Grant NET_ADMIN, /dev/net/tun and the WireGuard `src_valid_mark` sysctl so
* a VPN client inside the container can build a tunnel. Unlike the two flags
* above this is container state — changing it recreates the container. */
vpn_support_enabled: boolean;
/** Use the shared long-lived Claude Code token (from `claude setup-token`,
* held in the OS keychain) instead of this project's own `claude login`.
* Defaults to true; only applies when `backend` is "anthropic" and a token