Provided by: syncthing-relaysrv_1.1.4~ds1-4ubuntu1.2_amd64 
NAME
strelaysrv - Syncthing Relay Server
SYNOPSIS
strelaysrv [-debug] [-ext-address=<address>] [-global-rate=<bytes/s>] [-keys=<dir>] [-listen=<listen addr>]
[-message-timeout=<duration>] [-nat] [-nat-lease=<duration> [-nat-renewal=<duration>]
[-nat-timeout=<duration>] [-network-timeout=<duration>] [-per-session-rate=<bytes/s>]
[-ping-interval=<duration>] [-pools=<pool addresses>] [-protocol=<string>] [-provided-by=<string>]
[-status-srv=<listen addr>]
DESCRIPTION
Syncthing relies on a network of community-contributed relay servers. Anyone can run a
relay server, and it will automatically join the relay pool and be available to Syncthing
users. The current list of relays can be found at http://relays.syncthing.net/.
OPTIONS
-debug Enable debug output.
-ext-address=<address>
An optional address to advertising as being available on. Allows listening on an
unprivileged port with port forwarding from e.g. 443, and be connected to on port
443.
-global-rate=<bytes/s>
Global rate limit, in bytes/s.
-keys=<dir>
Directory where cert.pem and key.pem is stored (default “.”).
-listen=<listen addr>
Protocol listen address (default “:22067”).
-message-timeout=<duration>
Maximum amount of time we wait for relevant messages to arrive (default 1m0s).
-nat Use UPnP/NAT-PMP to acquire external port mapping
-nat-lease=<duration>
NAT lease length in minutes (default 60)
-nat-renewal=<duration>
NAT renewal frequency in minutes (default 30)
-nat-timeout=<duration>
NAT discovery timeout in seconds (default 10)
-network-timeout=<duration>
Timeout for network operations between the client and the relay. If no data is
received between the client and the relay in this period of time, the connection is
terminated. Furthermore, if no data is sent between either clients being relayed
within this period of time, the session is also terminated. (default 2m0s)
-per-session-rate=<bytes/s>
Per session rate limit, in bytes/s.
-ping-interval=<duration>
How often pings are sent (default 1m0s).
-pools=<pool addresses>
Comma separated list of relay pool addresses to join (default “‐
http://relays.syncthing.net/endpoint”). Blank to disable announcement to a pool,
thereby remaining a private relay.
-protocol=<string>
Protocol used for listening. ‘tcp’ for IPv4 and IPv6, ‘tcp4’ for IPv4, ‘tcp6’ for
IPv6 (default “tcp”).
-provided-by=<string>
An optional description about who provides the relay.
-status-srv=<listen addr>
Listen address for status service (blank to disable) (default “:22070”). Status
service is used by the relay pool server UI for displaying stats (data transfered,
number of clients, etc.)
SETTING UP
Primarily, you need to decide on a directory to store the TLS key and certificate and a
listen port. The default listen port of 22067 works, but for optimal compatibility a well
known port for encrypted traffic such as 443 is recommended. This may require additional
setup to work without running as root or a privileged user, see Running on port 443 as an
unprivileged user below. In principle something similar to this should work on a
Linux/Unix system:
$ sudo useradd relaysrv
$ sudo mkdir /etc/relaysrv
$ sudo chown relaysrv /etc/relaysrv
$ sudo -u relaysrv /usr/local/bin/relaysrv -keys /etc/relaysrv
This creates a user relaysrv and a directory /etc/relaysrv to store the keys. The keys are
generated on first startup. The relay will join the global relay pool, unless a -pools=""
argument is given.
To make the relay server start automatically at boot, use the recommended procedure for
your operating system.
Client configuration
Syncthing can be configured to use specific relay servers (exclusively of the public pool)
by adding the required servers to the Sync Protocol Listen Address field, under Actions
and Settings. The format is as follows:
relay://<host name|IP>[:port]/?id=<relay device ID>
For example:
relay://private-relay-1.example.com:443/?id=ITZRNXE-YNROGBZ-HXTH5P7-VK5NYE5-QHRQGE2-7JQ6VNJ-KZUEDIU-5PPR5AM
The relay’s device ID is output on start-up.
Running on port 443 as an unprivileged user
It is recommended that you run the relay on port 443 (or another port which is commonly
allowed through corporate firewalls), in order to maximise the chances that people are
able to connect. However, binding to ports below 1024 requires root privileges, and
running a relay as root is not recommended. Thankfully there are a couple of approaches
available to you.
One option is to run the relay on port 22067, and use an iptables rule to forward traffic
from port 443 to port 22067, for example:
iptables -t nat -A PREROUTING -i eth0 -p tcp --dport 443 -j REDIRECT --to-port 22067
Or, if you’re using ufw, add the following to /etc/ufw/before.rules:
*nat
:PREROUTING ACCEPT [0:0]
:POSTROUTING ACCEPT [0:0]
-A PREROUTING -i eth0 -p tcp --dport 443 -j REDIRECT --to-port 22067
COMMIT
You will need to start relaysrv with -ext-address ":443". This tells relaysrv that it can
be contacted on port 443, even though it is listening on port 22067. You will also need to
let both port 443 and 22067 through your firewall.
Another option is described here <https://wiki.apache.org/httpd/NonRootPortBinding>,
although your mileage may vary.
FIREWALL CONSIDERATIONS
The relay server listens on two ports by default. One for data connections and the other
for providing public statistics at http://relays.syncthing.net/. The firewall, such as
iptables, must permit incoming TCP connections to the following ports:
• Data port: 22067/tcp overridden with -listen and advertised with -ext-address
• Status port: 22070/tcp overridden with -status-srv
Runtime iptables rules to allow access to the default ports:
iptables -I INPUT -p tcp --dport 22067 -j ACCEPT
iptables -I INPUT -p tcp --dport 22070 -j ACCEPT
Please consult Linux distribution documentation to persist firewall rules.
SEE ALSO
syncthing-relay(7), syncthing-faq(7), syncthing-networking(7)
AUTHOR
The Syncthing Authors
COPYRIGHT
2014-2019, The Syncthing Authors