Raspberry Pi 2 as a Tailscale Exit Node for Home Network

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Raspberry Pi 2 as a Tailscale Exit Node for Home Network

This tutorial guides you through turning a Raspberry Pi 2 (RPi2) into a Tailscale exit node for secure remote access to your home network. With this setup, you can log into your home servers, edit your local wiki, or access devices from anywhere using a headless Raspberry Pi 2. Keywords: Raspberry Pi 2 Tailscale setup, headless SSH, home VPN, nmap IP discovery.

Overview

Transform your Raspberry Pi 2 into a Tailscale node to create a DIY VPN for your home network. This guide covers enabling SSH at boot for headless login, finding the Pi’s IP with nmap, and configuring Tailscale as an exit node for remote access to home servers and wikis.

Prerequisites

  • Raspberry Pi 2 with power supply and microSD card
  • Ubuntu laptop (for SSH and scanning)
  • Internet connection
  • Raspberry Pi Imager installed on your computer

Step 1: Enable SSH on Boot (Headless Setup)

Set up your Raspberry Pi 2 for headless login with SSH enabled at boot using the Raspberry Pi Imager.

  1. Download and open the Raspberry Pi Imager from raspberrypi.com/software/.
  2. Select your OS (e.g., Raspberry Pi OS Lite) and storage (microSD card).
  3. Click the "Edit Settings" button (gear icon or three dots).
  4. In the "General" tab, set a username and password.
  5. In the "Services" tab, check Enable SSH.
  6. Choose "Use password authentication" (or "public-key" if preferred).
  7. Click "Save" and write the image to the SD card.

This ensures your RPi2 is SSH-ready without a monitor—perfect for a headless Raspberry Pi setup.

Step 2: Find the Raspberry Pi IP with nmap

Locate your Raspberry Pi 2’s IP address on your home network using nmap from an Ubuntu laptop.

Install nmap

sudo apt install nmap

Identify Your Router IP

ip route | grep default

Example output: 

default via 192.168.0.1 dev wlp3s0 proto dhcp src 192.168.0.40 metric 600
  • Router IP: 192.168.0.1
  • Laptop IP: 192.168.0.40

Scan the Network

Scan your network before booting the Pi: 

sudo nmap -sn 192.168.0.1/24

Example output: 

Starting Nmap 7.94SVN ( https://nmap.org ) at 2025-03-03 10:07 GMT
Nmap scan report for _gateway (192.168.0.1)
Host is up (0.0038s latency).
MAC Address: AC:F8:CC:DD:EE:FF (Arris Group)
Nmap scan report for 192.168.0.40
Host is up.
Nmap done: 256 IP addresses (12 hosts up) scanned in 2.68 seconds

Boot your Raspberry Pi 2, wait 2-3 minutes, and scan again: 

sudo nmap -sn 192.168.0.1/24

New device appears: 

Nmap scan report for 192.168.0.69
Host is up (0.015s latency).
MAC Address: B8:17:CC:DD:CC:BB (Raspberry Pi Foundation)
  • RPi2 IP: 192.168.0.69 (note this for SSH).

This nmap IP discovery method is ideal for headless Raspberry Pi projects.

Step 3: Set Up Tailscale on the Raspberry Pi 2

Log into your RPi2 and configure it as a Tailscale exit node for your home network.

SSH into the Pi

ssh $USER@192.168.0.69

Replace $USER with the username set in Step 1.

Install Tailscale

Add Tailscale’s repository with these commands (run each line separately): curl -fsSL https://pkgs.tailscale.com/stable/debian/bookworm.noarmor.gpg | sudo tee /usr/share/keyrings/tailscale-archive-keyring.gpg >/dev/null
curl -fsSL https://pkgs.tailscale.com/stable/debian/bookworm.tailscale-keyring.list | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/tailscale.list

Update and install: 

sudo apt update

sudo apt install tailscale

Enable IP Forwarding

Enable IP forwarding for the exit node (run each line): echo 'net.ipv4.ip_forward = 1' | sudo tee -a /etc/sysctl.conf
echo 'net.ipv6.conf.all.forwarding = 1' | sudo tee -a /etc/sysctl.conf
sudo sysctl -p /etc/sysctl.conf

Start Tailscale as an Exit Node

Run Tailscale and advertise your home network: 

sudo tailscale up --accept-routes --advertise-routes=192.168.0.0/24 --advertise-exit-node

Copy the authentication URL output, paste it into a browser, and log in with your Tailscale account.

Get the Tailscale IP: 

tailscale ip -4

Example output: 100.115.103.24 (yours will differ).

Step 4: Connect from Your Laptop

Use your laptop as a Tailscale client to access your home network via the RPi2 exit node. 

sudo tailscale up --exit-node=100.115.103.24 --exit-node-allow-lan-access
  • Replace 100.115.103.24 with your Pi’s Tailscale IP.

To disconnect: 

sudo tailscale down

Step 5: Test the Setup

Verify the exit node works: 

curl ifconfig.me

Compare the IP when connected via your home Wi-Fi vs. a mobile hotspot. You should see your home public IP when using the exit node. Now, you can browse your local wiki, log into home servers, or access devices on 192.168.0.0/24.

Troubleshooting

  • SSH fails: Ensure the username/password match Step 1 settings.
  • Tailscale not connecting: Check your Tailscale account and re-authenticate.
  • IP not found: Re-run nmap or check your router’s DHCP list.

Conclusion

Your Raspberry Pi 2 is now a Tailscale exit node, providing secure remote access to your home network. This RPi2 Tailscale tutorial is perfect for DIY VPN enthusiasts wanting to access home servers or wikis from anywhere.

Keywords: Raspberry Pi 2 VPN, Tailscale home network, headless Pi setup, remote access tutorial.

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