AdGuard Home DNS for Newbies - Part 2

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Part 2: Deploying AdGuard Home in Your Lab

1. Introduction — So You’re Ready to Deploy

So you’ve learned what AdGuard Home does — how it blocks ads at the DNS level and speeds up your network with caching. Now comes the fun part: putting it to work in your own home lab.

Setting up AdGuard Home isn’t complicated, but there are a few choices to make depending on your environment. You might be running a Raspberry Pi that already handles network jobs, a Docker host where you prefer to containerise everything, or a VM on Proxmox or VirtualBox that you use for network services. The good news? AdGuard Home runs beautifully on all of them.

When I first installed AdGuard Home, I started small — just to block ads on my smart TV. Within a week, it became the backbone of my whole network. My Pi turned into a mini DNS powerhouse, handling every request, caching responses, and silently keeping trackers out of my traffic. That’s the magic of this setup: once you see the difference, you won’t want to browse without it.

In this part of the guide, you’ll learn:

  • How to choose the best installation method for your setup (Raspberry Pi, Docker, or VM).

  • How to install and configure AdGuard Home step by step.

  • How to access the web dashboard, set your DNS clients, and fine-tune performance.

  • And finally, how to integrate it with other tools like Unbound or DNS-over-HTTPS for extra privacy and speed.

Whether you’re running a small Raspberry Pi or a full-blown homelab server, this guide will help you deploy AdGuard Home confidently and correctly — without breaking your network.

2. Choosing Your Setup Method

Before you start typing commands, it’s worth deciding where AdGuard Home will live in your home lab.

The good news is that AdGuard Home is flexible — it runs smoothly on almost anything, from a low-powered Raspberry Pi to a full virtual machine. The “best” method really depends on your hardware, network layout, and how you like to manage services.

Here’s a breakdown of the three most common setups for home lab enthusiasts:

🥧 Option 1: Raspberry Pi (Bare-Metal Installation)

If you’ve got a spare Raspberry Pi lying around, this is the classic, lightweight way to run AdGuard Home.

Why it’s great:

  • Low power consumption — runs 24/7 without a noticeable energy cost.

  • Always-on — perfect for being your network’s dedicated DNS resolver.

  • Simple setup — direct installation on the Pi’s operating system, no container management needed.

Ideal for:
Home users who want a “set it and forget it” device quietly handling DNS for the whole network.

Pros:
✅ Easy to manage — runs directly on the OS
✅ Lightweight and efficient
✅ Stable — nothing else competing for resources
✅ Perfect for learning how DNS services run on bare metal

Cons:
⚠️ Single point of failure — if your Pi crashes, DNS resolution stops
⚠️ Limited performance for large networks
⚠️ Requires manual updates and backups

If you like a simple, dedicated setup that just works, a Raspberry Pi is a fantastic choice.

🐳 Option 2: Docker (Containerised Installation)

If you already run Docker on your home server, then this is the most flexible and portable way to deploy AdGuard Home.

Why it’s great:

  • Quick to spin up or tear down with a single command.

  • Easy to update — just pull the latest image and redeploy.

  • Works perfectly alongside other self-hosted services (like Pi-hole, Nginx Proxy Manager, or Home Assistant).

Ideal for:
Home labbers who already use Docker and like to keep everything modular and reproducible.

Pros:
✅ Isolated — doesn’t interfere with other services on your host
✅ Easy to back up and replicate
✅ Version control and environment consistency
✅ Ideal for experimenting with configurations safely

Cons:
⚠️ Requires some familiarity with Docker networking
⚠️ Can conflict with other containers using port 53 (DNS) if not configured carefully
⚠️ Slightly more complex to expose across your whole network

If your home lab revolves around Docker and Compose files, this setup will feel natural — and you’ll gain a lot of control over how AdGuard fits into your stack.

💻 Option 3: Virtual Machine (VM on Proxmox, VirtualBox, or ESXi)

Running AdGuard Home in a VM gives you the most control over isolation, networking, and persistence — perfect for those who treat their home lab like a mini data centre.

Why it’s great:

  • Full system-level isolation — no dependency conflicts.

  • Easier to snapshot and roll back if you experiment.

  • Scales better for multiple DNS instances or redundant setups.

Ideal for:
Advanced users with a virtualisation platform (like Proxmox) who prefer to allocate dedicated resources for each service.

Pros:
✅ Excellent isolation and control
✅ Easy to back up or clone using VM snapshots
✅ Works well in segmented lab networks (e.g. VLANs or test environments)

Cons:
⚠️ More resource usage than a Pi or Docker container
⚠️ Requires maintaining a full OS
⚠️ Slightly more complex setup process

If you already manage a Proxmox cluster or keep your services in VMs, AdGuard Home will slot right in as a lightweight network utility — and you can even run multiple instances for redundancy.

🧩 Quick Comparison
















🏁 TL;DR

If you want simplicity, go with a Raspberry Pi.
If you want flexibility and modularity, choose Docker.
If you want control and scalability, deploy on a VM.

No matter which option you pick, the installation steps are straightforward — and we’ll walk through all three in the next section so you can follow along with the one that fits your setup best.

3. Installing AdGuard Home

The installation process for AdGuard Home is straightforward, but the steps vary slightly depending on your platform. Below you’ll find setup instructions for the three most common home lab environments: Raspberry Pi, Docker, and Virtual Machine (VM).

Each method ends at the same destination — a working AdGuard Home instance accessible from your browser.

🥧 Option 1: Installing AdGuard Home on Raspberry Pi (Bare-Metal)

Step 1: Update Your System

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y

Step 2: Download AdGuard Home

curl -s -S -L https://static.adguard.com/adguardhome/release/AdGuardHome_linux_arm64.tar.gz -o adguard.tar.gz
tar -xvzf adguard.tar.gz
cd AdGuardHome

Step 3: Run the Installation

sudo ./AdGuardHome -s install

Step 4: Access the Web Interface

http://<your-pi-ip>:3000

Follow the setup wizard to configure your admin password, listening interfaces, and upstream DNS servers.

Step 5: Confirm DNS Functionality

Point one of your devices to your Pi’s IP as its DNS server. If pages load fine and ads disappear, it’s working. 🎉

💡 Tip: Assign a static IP to your Pi so DNS resolution remains stable across reboots.

🐳 Option 2: Installing AdGuard Home in Docker

Step 1: Create Directories

mkdir -p /opt/adguardhome/work
mkdir -p /opt/adguardhome/conf

Step 2: Create a docker-compose.yml

version: '3'
services:
  adguardhome:
    image: adguard/adguardhome:latest
    container_name: adguardhome
    restart: unless-stopped
    ports:
      - "53:53/tcp"
      - "53:53/udp"
      - "3000:3000/tcp"
      - "80:80/tcp"
    volumes:
      - ./work:/opt/adguardhome/work
      - ./conf:/opt/adguardhome/conf

⚠️ Ensure no other service is using port 53.

Step 3: Deploy

docker compose up -d

Step 4: Access the Dashboard

http://<your-server-ip>:3000

Follow the same setup wizard as before.

🧠 Tip: Use a reverse proxy (like Nginx Proxy Manager) to map it to a friendly subdomain like adguard.local.

💻 Option 3: Installing AdGuard Home in a VM

Step 1: Prepare Your VM

Create a lightweight Debian or Ubuntu Server VM with 1–2 cores, 512 MB RAM, and 4 GB disk. Assign it a static IP address.

Step 2: Update and Install

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y
curl -s -S -L https://static.adguard.com/adguardhome/release/AdGuardHome_linux_amd64.tar.gz -o adguard.tar.gz
tar -xvzf adguard.tar.gz
cd AdGuardHome
sudo ./AdGuardHome -s install

Step 3: Access the Dashboard

http://<your-vm-ip>:3000

Follow the initial setup wizard to complete configuration.

🧩 Bonus: If you’re using Proxmox, snapshot your VM after setup — it’s an easy rollback point.

🔍 Quick Recap

Once you’ve completed the setup wizard, AdGuard Home is technically live 


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