--- title: I blocked my devices from bypassing my DNS server with... description: Smart home and IoT devices often bypass custom DNS servers by hardcoding external DNS addresses. By adding a single NAT redirect rule on a firewall (like... canonical: https://daily.dev/posts/i-blocked-my-devices-from-bypassing-my-dns-server-with-one-firewall-rule-layv2qvxn twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:site: @dailydotdev og:type: website og:site_name: daily.dev og:title: I blocked my devices from bypassing my DNS server with one firewall rule | daily.dev og:description: Smart home and IoT devices often bypass custom DNS servers by hardcoding external DNS addresses. By adding a single NAT redirect rule on a firewall (like... og:url: https://daily.dev/posts/i-blocked-my-devices-from-bypassing-my-dns-server-with-one-firewall-rule-layv2qvxn og:image: https://api.daily.dev/og/posts/LaYV2qVxn.png og:image:alt: I blocked my devices from bypassing my DNS server with one firewall rule og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 630 og:locale: en --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://daily.dev/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # I blocked my devices from bypassing my DNS server with one firewall rule **[XDA Developers](https://daily.dev/sources/xda-developers)** · 4 min read · 2 upvotes · 0 comments ## Summary Smart home and IoT devices often bypass custom DNS servers by hardcoding external DNS addresses. By adding a single NAT redirect rule on a firewall (like OPNsense) that intercepts all outbound traffic on port 53 TCP/UDP and routes it to a local DNS resolver (Unbound or Pi-hole), you can force every device on your network to use your chosen DNS. This approach improves privacy, enables network-wide ad/malware blocking, and provides centralized logging without breaking device functionality. ## Full article daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: ## Similar posts on daily.dev - [I changed one DNS setting on my router, and my smart home stopped acting possessed](https://daily.dev/posts/i-changed-one-dns-setting-on-my-router-and-my-smart-home-stopped-acting-possessed-gf5q0p5vq) · XDA Developers · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [Your smart home is bypassing Pi-hole with encrypted DNS, and here's how to stop it](https://daily.dev/posts/your-smart-home-is-bypassing-pi-hole-with-encrypted-dns-and-here-s-how-to-stop-it-taf3nibaq) · XDA Developers · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [Your router's parental controls are security theater, and here's the firewall rule that actually works](https://daily.dev/posts/your-router-s-parental-controls-are-security-theater-and-here-s-the-firewall-rule-that-actually-wor-unq0ppa6x) · XDA Developers · 0 upvotes · 0 comments --- Tags: [#dns](https://daily.dev/tags/dns), [#firewall](https://daily.dev/tags/firewall) [View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/i-blocked-my-devices-from-bypassing-my-dns-server-with-one-firewall-rule-layv2qvxn) ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180},"sameAs":["https://twitter.com/dailydotdev","https://github.com/dailydotdev","https://www.linkedin.com/company/daily-dev-ltd"]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://daily.dev/#website","url":"https://daily.dev","name":"daily.dev","publisher":{"@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization"},"potentialAction":{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https://daily.dev/search?q={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"TechArticle","headline":"I blocked my devices from bypassing my DNS server with one firewall rule","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/i-blocked-my-devices-from-bypassing-my-dns-server-with-one-firewall-rule-layv2qvxn","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/i-blocked-my-devices-from-bypassing-my-dns-server-with-one-firewall-rule-layv2qvxn"},"datePublished":"2026-04-13T17:32:14.222Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T17:33:23.892Z","description":"Smart home and IoT devices often bypass custom DNS servers by hardcoding external DNS addresses. 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