CoreDNS plugin: accept RFC 2136 dynamic DNS updates with TSIG auth. Targets self-hosted ACME DNS-01 cert automation.
Find a file
Ryan Malloy 8e421f925e C1/C2/M9: tighten security boundary at handleUpdate
C1 — Document the process-global MsgAcceptFunc mutation:
CoreDNS 1.14.3 doesn't expose per-Config MsgAcceptFunc (server.go:159
hardcodes the dns.Server struct), so the override has to be global. The
init()-level comment now explains the operational consequences in
detail, and setup() emits a loud INFO log calling out the global scope
for operator audit. Upstream support for per-Config MsgAcceptFunc would
let us delete the whole stanza.

C2 — handleUpdate now requires the caller to assert TSIG verification
via an explicit `verified bool` parameter. The security contract is
encoded in the function signature, not in convention. ServeDNS passes
verified=true after checkTSIG succeeds; verified=false produces an
immediate Refused with no state mutation. Future internal callers
(NOTIFY relay, admin RPC, refactor) physically cannot reach the
mutation code without proving the request was authenticated.

M9 — Don't sign TSIG-failure rejection responses. Per Hamilton's
finding, signing a rejection with the named key attests "yes, this
server holds that key" — useful intel for an attacker probing key
existence. Unsigned Refused is the right shape: nsupdate sees "no TSIG
on reply" and treats as auth failure, which is what actually happened.

New test TestUpdate_UnverifiedCaller_Refused proves the C2 contract:
handleUpdate(w, msg, false) refuses, zone file unchanged.
2026-05-22 21:18:47 -06:00
.gitignore Initial commit: plugin skeleton, compiles against CoreDNS 1.14.3 2026-05-20 18:25:36 -06:00
config.go Phase 1.2: wire parser → typed config + 13 unit tests 2026-05-21 10:31:22 -06:00
go.mod Phase 1.2: wire parser → typed config + 13 unit tests 2026-05-21 10:31:22 -06:00
go.sum Initial commit: plugin skeleton, compiles against CoreDNS 1.14.3 2026-05-20 18:25:36 -06:00
plugin.go C1/C2/M9: tighten security boundary at handleUpdate 2026-05-22 21:18:47 -06:00
README.md Phase 1.2: wire parser → typed config + 13 unit tests 2026-05-21 10:31:22 -06:00
setup.go C1/C2/M9: tighten security boundary at handleUpdate 2026-05-22 21:18:47 -06:00
setup_test.go Phase 2b: refactor to file-backed storage; UPDATE writes zones/*.zone 2026-05-21 11:26:50 -06:00
tsig.go Sign responses to TSIG-signed UPDATEs (RFC 8945 §5.4.2) 2026-05-22 09:24:12 -06:00
update.go C1/C2/M9: tighten security boundary at handleUpdate 2026-05-22 21:18:47 -06:00
update_test.go C1/C2/M9: tighten security boundary at handleUpdate 2026-05-22 21:18:47 -06:00
zonefile.go Widen SOA serial counter: YYMMDDNNNN, 10000 bumps/day 2026-05-22 11:51:45 -06:00
zonefile_test.go Widen SOA serial counter: YYMMDDNNNN, 10000 bumps/day 2026-05-22 11:51:45 -06:00

coredns-rfc2136

A CoreDNS plugin that accepts RFC 2136 dynamic DNS updates (TSIG-authenticated), filling a gap in the official plugin set.

CoreDNS as-shipped has no plugin for accepting dynamic updates — its plugin model treats authoritative data as read-only (loaded from auto, file, secondary, etc.). This plugin adds the missing piece.

Primary use case: self-hosted ACME DNS-01

The motivating problem: automate Let's Encrypt cert issuance for many domains without depending on registrar APIs (Vultr/Route53/Cloudflare). The architecture:

_acme-challenge.example.com  CNAME  <uuid>.auth.supported.systems
                                      │
                                      │ delegated NS to your CoreDNS host
                                      ▼
                              CoreDNS + rfc2136 plugin
                                      │
                                      │ accepts TSIG UPDATEs from Caddy
                                      │ (caddy-dns/rfc2136) or any other
                                      │ ACME client
                                      ▼
                                  Let's Encrypt validates

One-time per protected domain: add a CNAME glue line in your static zones. After that, all cert issuance + renewal happens via UPDATE messages — zero static zone-file churn.

Status

Phase 1 (skeleton): compiles, registers with CoreDNS, parses the Corefile directive. Does not yet handle UPDATE messages or serve any records. ServeDNS is a pass-through. See phases.md for the roadmap.

Configuration

rfc2136 <zone> [<zone>...] {
    tsig-key <key-name> <algorithm> <base64-secret>
    ttl <seconds>
    persist <path>
}

Example:

.:53 auth.example.com {
    rfc2136 auth.example.com {
        tsig-key acme-key. hmac-sha256 BASE64SECRET==
        ttl 60
    }
    errors
    log
}

Building

This plugin is consumed by a custom CoreDNS build via plugin.cfg:

# In CoreDNS source's plugin.cfg, BEFORE the `cache` plugin:
rfc2136:git.supported.systems/rsp2k/coredns-rfc2136

Then go get git.supported.systems/rsp2k/coredns-rfc2136 && make.

License

MIT (TODO: add LICENSE file).