44Net Connect/Quick Start

Get Started with 44Net Connect

Use this guide to quickly set up your first 44Net Connect tunnel and get your device participating on the Internet as a native 44Net host.

What you need

• A 44Net Portal account
• A verified amateur radio callsign
• A device capable of running WireGuard
• Some sort of Internet access

If you haven't set up your Portal account or verified your callsign yet, see 44Net: Get Started for instructions. For a partial list of supported devices, see Supported Platforms.

Create your Connect tunnel

Step 1: Sign in to the Connect dashboard

• Visit The 44Net Connect dashboard.
• Click the “Log In to Get Started” button.
• Sign in with your 44Net Portal account credentials.

Step 2: Create your first tunnel

• On the dashboard page, click the “Create Tunnel” button.

Step 3: Choose region and node

• In the list of regions, click the region closest to you.
• Nodes available in that region will appear.
• Click a node to select it as your endpoint.

You can change endpoints later if needed.

Step 4: Name your tunnel

• Enter a name for your tunnel (e.g. “Home Laptop” or “Raspberry Pi”)

Step 5: Save your new tunnel

• Check or uncheck the option to receive tunnel details via email.
• Click the “Create Tunnel” button.
• Review the confirmation dialog and click “Save Changes” to proceed.

Configure your WireGuard client

Step 6: Get your WireGuard configuration

• Scroll down to find your tunnel configuration.
• Click the “Copy to Clipboard” button to copy the configuration text.

Step 7: Create a new WireGuard tunnel

Windows or macOS:

• Open your WireGuard client.
• Click the “+ Add Tunnel“ button to add a new tunnel.
• Delete the default template text and paste in your configuration.
• Give your tunnel a name in the “Name” field.
• Click the “Save” button.

Linux

• Create a new file for your WireGuard configuration, e.g. /etc/wireguard/wg0.conf.
• Paste the configuration text into the file and save it.

Other platforms

• Use the configuration text with your platform’s WireGuard implementation. Refer to your platform’s documentation for details on how to set up a WireGuard tunnel.

Activate and connect

Step 8: Activate your tunnel

Windows or macOS:

• In your WireGuard client, select the tunnel you just created.
• Click the “Activate” button to start the tunnel.

Linux

• Run the command wg-quick up wg0 (replace wg0 with the name of your configuration file if different).

Other platforms

• Use your platform’s method for starting the WireGuard tunnel. Refer to your platform’s documentation for details.

Confirm your connection

Step 9: Confirm handshake

Windows or macOS:

• In your WireGuard client, look for the “Handshake” field in your tunnel status.
• If the handshake is successful, you should see a recent timestamp indicating the last successful handshake with the Connect endpoint.

Linux

• Run the command wg to check the status of your WireGuard interfaces.
• Look for the interface corresponding to your Connect tunnel and check the “latest handshake” timestamp.

Other platforms

• Use your platform’s method for checking WireGuard tunnel status and confirm that the handshake with the Connect endpoint is successful.

In the Connect dashboard

• Your tunnel status should show as “Active” with a green indicator.

Once the tunnel is active, your system operates as a native 44Net host. Inbound and outbound traffic is routed through the Connect endpoint, giving your device a direct connection to the Internet.

Your device is now reachable on the Internet at its 44Net IP address.