Help center

Short answers for the most frequent questions, taken from the guide of Warda: install the box, connect the network, the devices that go around it, every day.

Install Warda

On a Raspberry Pi, with Docker, or with a package for Debian, Ubuntu, Fedora or RHEL.

Install on a Raspberry PiWrite the Warda image to a microSD card with Raspberry Pi Imager, plug the box into the router, then sign in within the hour with the default password.
Install with DockerRun Warda with the docker-compose.yml of the release: the ports to free (53, 80, 443), moving the interface beside a reverse proxy, the logs, the updates.
Install the Debian or rpm packageThe .deb package for Debian and Ubuntu, the .rpm package for Fedora, RHEL, Rocky Linux and AlmaLinux: the command, the ports to free, the updates.

Connect the network

Give the address of Warda to the devices through your router or your internet box, in IPv4 and in IPv6.

Point the router DNS to WardaGive the address of Warda to every device through the DHCP of the router: the generic method, then Freebox, Livebox, SFR Box and Bbox, and the check.
IPv6: announce Warda as DNSWhen the box announces its own IPv6 DNS, devices go around Warda. Have it announce Warda instead, in the right order; cutting IPv6 is the last resort.
Block outgoing DNS on the routerClose ports 53 and 853 to every device but your Warda box, so that no TV, app or malware asks another DNS. Why, a firewall rule, and the limits.

Devices that go around Warda

Phones and browsers that ask another DNS: what to change so that they go through Warda.

Android: Private DNSA named Private DNS provider makes an Android phone go around Warda at home. Set it to Automatic, or give it the encrypted DNS name of your box.
iPhone: iCloud Private RelayiCloud Private Relay and Limit IP Address Tracking send Safari around a home DNS filter. What Warda does for children's devices, and what you set.
Browsers with their own DNS (DoH)A browser with its own secure DNS (DoH) never asks Warda. Turn it off, or give it the DoH address of your box: Firefox, Chrome, Edge and Brave.

Every day

A site that no longer works, the block page, the updates and the backups.

Pause and unblock a siteSomething is broken pauses Warda 15 minutes for one device and lists what it blocked; unblock a name for that device, or ask the administrator.
Block page and certificateWhy a blocked site shows a security warning, and how to install the certificate of your Warda box from http://warda/certificate on each device.
Updates and backupsSigned automatic updates at night, encrypted backups at 01:30 with a copy to a USB drive, restoring on a new box: the settings of Warda, step by step.

Security and questions

The data hidden in DNS names, and the questions asked most often.

DNS exfiltration: what Warda detectsData hidden in DNS names (MITRE T1048, T1071.004, T1572): what Warda checks on your network, what it blocks for 24 hours, and what it cannot see.
Frequently asked questionsNothing opens, a forgotten password, the page of Warda unreachable, IPv6, privacy: the short answers to the questions asked most often about Warda.

Still stuck?

Tell us what happened, with the version of Warda: the form of the beta page reaches the team, or write to [email protected]. A diagnostic of System (Download a diagnostic, without any site visited) helps a lot.

Report a problem Write to us