How Tailscale works

Tailscale is a networking service that uses WireGuard to create secure, encrypted tunnels for devices to communicate directly in a mesh network, bypassing the traditional hub-and-spoke VPN architecture. It provides a hybrid model with a centralized control plane for key exchange and coordination and a distributed data plane for direct, end-to-end encrypted connections between nodes. Tailscale simplifies configuration and management by using a coordination server to exchange public keys and supports authentication through external providers like OAuth2 and SAML, reducing the need for separate user accounts. It addresses network challenges like NAT traversal using advanced techniques and offers features like encrypted TCP relays through DERP servers for networks that block UDP. Additionally, Tailscale enables centralized policy control while distributing enforcement across nodes, making it suitable for incremental deployment and enhancing security with audit logs and zero-trust networking capabilities.