Slipstream (Rust)

Slipstream is a high-performance DNS tunnel that carries QUIC packets over DNS queries and responses. This repository hosts the Rust rewrite of the original C implementation.

What is here

• slipstream-client and slipstream-server CLI binaries.
• A DNS codec crate with vector-based tests.
• picoquic FFI integration for multipath QUIC support.
• Fully async with tokio.

Quick start (local dev)

Prereqs:

• Rust toolchain (stable)
• cmake, pkg-config
• OpenSSL headers and libs
• python3 (for interop and benchmark scripts)

Initialize the picoquic submodule:

git submodule update --init --recursive

Build the Rust binaries:

cargo build -p slipstream-client -p slipstream-server

Generate a test TLS cert (example):

openssl req -x509 -newkey rsa:2048 -nodes \
  -keyout key.pem -out cert.pem -days 365 \
  -subj "/CN=slipstream"

Run the server:

cargo run -p slipstream-server -- \
  --dns-listen-port 53 \
  --target-address 127.0.0.1:5201 \
  --domain slipstream.example.com \
  --cert ./cert.pem \
  --key ./key.pem \
  --normalize-case \
  --mtu 900

Run the client:

cargo run -p slipstream-client -- \
  --tcp-listen-port 7000 \
  --resolver 127.0.0.1:8853 \
  --domain example.com \
  --mtu 800 \
  --max-subdomain-length 101

New Features:

• --normalize-case / --no-normalize-case: Handle DNS case randomization (default: enabled)
• --mtu <value>: Configure QUIC MTU size (server default: 900, client: computed from domain)
• --max-subdomain-length <value>: Limit subdomain length to bypass GFW restrictions (recommended: 101 for Iran)

Note: You can also run the client against a resolver that forwards to the server. For local testing, see the interop docs.

Documentation

• docs/README.md for the doc index
• docs/build.md for build prerequisites and picoquic setup
• docs/usage.md for CLI usage
• docs/protocol.md for DNS encapsulation notes
• docs/dns-codec.md for codec behavior and vectors
• docs/interop.md for local harnesses and interop
• docs/benchmarks.md for benchmarking harnesses
• docs/benchmarks-results.md for benchmark results
• docs/profiling.md for profiling notes
• docs/design.md for architecture notes

Repo layout

• crates/ Rust workspace crates
• docs/ Public docs and internal design notes
• fixtures/ Golden DNS vectors
• scripts/ Interop and benchmark harnesses
• tools/ Vector generator and helpers
• vendor/ picoquic submodule

License

Apache-2.0. See LICENSE.