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Knocker, a knock based access control system for your homelab

github.com

41–50 of 175 posts

Re: Knocker, a knock based access control system for your homelab

#41
post #31

Aw man, I thought this was going to be audio sensor that logs you in with a secret physical knocking pattern (like on a door or desk).

That's what I thought was well, like a Morse code detector tied to the lock on the door or something lol

Maybe I'll vibecode that this weekend...

Re: Knocker, a knock based access control system for your homelab

#42
post #3

I implemented something similar as a caddy module, then I realized that if I was connected to a public wifi network I was actually authorizing the whole bunch of people that were connected to it with me. How do you avoid this, or is it just not important?

> How do you avoid this

IPv6 of course.

> or is it just not important

Port knocking not a security feature anyway.

Re: Knocker, a knock based access control system for your homelab

#43
post #33

I had hoped this would allow me to use various patterns of knocking on my desk to perform system actions. Do the cut-and-a-hair-shave knock to log in, or taptaptaptap-wait-tap to lock the screen, etc. Maybe with two microphones you could even distinguish between left and right handed knocks. ...now I'll have to make this myself.

I was thinking exactly the same thing. Or maybe a knock on the door before you enter to set stuff in your room to a certain state.

Re: Knocker, a knock based access control system for your homelab

#44
post #2

I don't want to be a hater, but exposing access to your homelab through a "fully vibe coded" application (it's mentioned at the bottom of the README) is probably not a good idea. The idea itself sounds fun though

> If you're Anti-AI please don't use this.

I'm pro security. The gall to put something out there, pretend it being vibe coded is not a big deal and possibly exposing hundreds of people to security issues. Jesus.

Re: Knocker, a knock based access control system for your homelab

#45
post #33

I had hoped this would allow me to use various patterns of knocking on my desk to perform system actions. Do the cut-and-a-hair-shave knock to log in, or taptaptaptap-wait-tap to lock the screen, etc. Maybe with two microphones you could even distinguish between left and right handed knocks. ...now I'll have to make this myself.

>Cut-and-a-hair-shave knock

TIL that that has a name.[1] All I ever knew it as was "the knock from Roger Rabbit".

[1]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shave_and_a_Haircut

Re: Knocker, a knock based access control system for your homelab

#46
I use fwknop in a similar manner, the main advantage it has is it's using an encrypted UDP packet. It's ability to call shell scripts for more advanced uses is its best feature. I have a packet set up for a rolling restart of all my services as well as ssh access

Re: Knocker, a knock based access control system for your homelab

#47

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> IP based exclusion should not be considered a security measure Apologies in advance if I'm missing something obvious here, but are you saying an IP allow list is not a standard security practice? If so I'd appreciate further explanation.

It's useful when the client always has its own static IP that _doesn't change_ between sessions. In this case, where the public facing IP may be shared by thousands of users, it provides no real security. All you'd have to do to gain access would be getting the client IP and finding some way of getting on the same network. Which in many cases could be as easy as subscribing to the same cell network or other ISP, or c…

Thanks for filling in the details. I agree that an IP allow list works best for users who are alone on an IP that doesn't change often, which is the case for a majority of home internet users but not when they're away from home.

Re: Knocker, a knock based access control system for your homelab

#48

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Fwiw I bought an Asus router that came with Wireguard pre-installed & has a nice management UI. It handles client onboarding via a simple QR code that integrates with the Wireguard mobile app - even my mother had no issue setting it up. Buying hardware is an investment (& not something everyone can do) but I've really never understood the point of the control server from the perspective of an open-source self-hoster…

There’s a cost with using Asus firmware instead of using stock OpenWRT, which might even be compatible with your router. Many Asus products are compatible, and may even be running OpenWRT themselves. The upshot is you get a nice GUI and a nice out of the box experience, but you’re also phoning home to Asus in small ways, just like one would be if they ran Tailscale. I would agree that stock WireGuard is going to have…

I'm on Merlin currently but I'm in the process of moving over to OPNSense for this exact reason.

However, while you can never really trust anything you run with internet access, I feel there's a fundamental line between an explicitly cloud-dependent service like Tailscale (e.g. a Tailscale control server outage incident would impact your home server access) compared to a fully self-hosted service that may or may not phone home if you don't put preventative measures in front of it, but will continue to function fine if you do put said measures in place.

The Asus mobile app is another potential concern but the Merlin browser UI is fine for most purposes.

Re: Knocker, a knock based access control system for your homelab

#50
post #40
post #3

I implemented something similar as a caddy module, then I realized that if I was connected to a public wifi network I was actually authorizing the whole bunch of people that were connected to it with me. How do you avoid this, or is it just not important?

It’s the third option: Port knocking is stupid. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=39898061 >

I implemented port knocking couple decades ago as a teenager and it was stupid then too.
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