Describe the bug
On Debian/Ubuntu systems without resolvconf installed, NetBird’s systemd service enters a 4-second self-restart loop:
- Engine configures DNS for
wt0 → resolvconf -a wt0 … returns exit status 99
- NetBird treats this as fatal, logs
stopped NetBird Engine, and actively calls free_netdev()
wt0 is destroyed → reconnect → loop repeats
(Docker images are unaffected because they usually ship resolvconf)
To Reproduce
sudo apt install resolvconf
sudo systemctl restart netbird
ip link show wt0 → interface appears and disappears every 4–5 s
journalctl -u netbird -f → endless “stopped NetBird Engine”
Expected behavior
DNS setup failure should be logged only, not fatal.
wt0 should remain up and retry DNS later, not self-stop.
Screenshots / Logs
Nov 19 10:46:39 host netbird[374638]: resolvconf: exit status 99
Nov 19 10:46:39 host netbird[374638]: stopped Netbird Engine
Nov 19 10:46:43 host netbird[374638]: WireGuard interface monitor: interface wt0 deleted: failed to lookup interface: route ip+net: no such network interface, restarting engine