cli.wiki

Tor Network Configuration and Usage Guide

Dec 30, 20244 min read

Table of Contents

Overview

Tor (The Onion Router) is a network protocol designed to provide anonymous communication over the internet.

Key Features

  • Anonymous browsing
  • Hidden services
  • Encrypted traffic
  • Bridge support
  • SOCKS proxy
  • Exit node control
  • Traffic routing
  • Network isolation

Installation

Ubuntu (22.04/24.04)

# Install Tor
sudo apt update
sudo apt install tor tor-geoipdb
 
# Install utilities
sudo apt install proxychains-ng

Build from Source

# Install dependencies
sudo apt install build-essential libevent-dev libssl-dev zlib1g-dev
 
# Download and build
wget https://www.torproject.org/dist/tor-[version].tar.gz
tar xzf tor-[version].tar.gz
cd tor-[version]
./configure
make
sudo make install

Basic Configuration

torrc Configuration

# /etc/tor/torrc
# Basic configuration
SocksPort 9050
ControlPort 9051
DataDirectory /var/lib/tor
 
# Logging
Log notice file /var/log/tor/notices.log
Log debug file /var/log/tor/debug.log
 
# Circuit building
NumEntryGuards 3
NumDirectoryGuards 3

Access Control

# Control authentication
HashedControlPassword [password_hash]
CookieAuthentication 1
 
# SOCKS policy
SocksPolicy accept 127.0.0.1
SocksPolicy reject *

Service Management

Service Control

# Start Tor service
sudo systemctl start tor
 
# Enable at boot
sudo systemctl enable tor
 
# Check status
sudo systemctl status tor
 
# Restart service
sudo systemctl restart tor

Log Monitoring

# View logs
sudo tail -f /var/log/tor/notices.log
 
# Debug logs
sudo tail -f /var/log/tor/debug.log
 
# Journal logs
sudo journalctl -u tor

Client Configuration

SOCKS Proxy

# Configure SOCKS proxy
export ALL_PROXY=socks5://127.0.0.1:9050
 
# Test connection
curl --socks5 127.0.0.1:9050 https://check.torproject.org/
 
# DNS through Tor
DNSPort 53
AutomapHostsOnResolve 1

Proxychains Configuration

# /etc/proxychains.conf
strict_chain
proxy_dns
[ProxyList]
socks5 127.0.0.1 9050

Hidden Services

Basic Hidden Service

# /etc/tor/torrc
HiddenServiceDir /var/lib/tor/hidden_service/
HiddenServicePort 80 127.0.0.1:80

Multiple Services

# Web service
HiddenServiceDir /var/lib/tor/web/
HiddenServicePort 80 127.0.0.1:80
 
# SSH service
HiddenServiceDir /var/lib/tor/ssh/
HiddenServicePort 22 127.0.0.1:22

Security Features

Bridge Configuration

# Use bridges
UseBridges 1
Bridge [bridge-line]
Bridge [bridge-line]
 
# obfs4 support
ClientTransportPlugin obfs4 exec /usr/bin/obfs4proxy

Exit Node Control

# Exclude exit nodes
ExitNodes {us} StrictNodes 1
ExcludeExitNodes {ru},{cn}
 
# Restrict ports
ExitPolicy reject *:25
ExitPolicy accept *:80
ExitPolicy accept *:443

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

# Check connectivity
netstat -antlp | grep 9050
 
# Test SOCKS proxy
curl --socks5-hostname 127.0.0.1:9050 https://check.torproject.org/
 
# Debug mode
tor --verify-config

Circuit Testing

# New circuit
sudo killall -HUP tor
 
# Monitor circuits
watch -n 1 "sudo cat /var/lib/tor/state"

Best Practices

Security Guidelines

# Secure configuration
sudo chmod 700 /var/lib/tor/hidden_service/
sudo chown debian-tor:debian-tor /var/lib/tor/hidden_service/
 
# Isolate streams
IsolateDestAddr 1
IsolateDestPort 1

Performance Tuning

# Circuit performance
CircuitBuildTimeout 60
LearnCircuitBuildTimeout 1
MaxCircuitDirtiness 600

Example Scripts

Tor Status Monitor

#!/bin/bash
# Monitor Tor status and circuits
 
LOG_FILE="/var/log/tor/notices.log"
ALERT_EMAIL="[email protected]"
 
check_tor_status() {
    if ! systemctl is-active --quiet tor; then
        echo "Tor service is down!" | mail -s "Tor Alert" "$ALERT_EMAIL"
        sudo systemctl restart tor
    fi
}
 
monitor_circuits() {
    grep "Built circuit" "$LOG_FILE" | tail -n 5
}
 
while true; do
    check_tor_status
    monitor_circuits
    sleep 300
done

Hidden Service Setup

#!/bin/bash
# Set up new hidden service
 
SERVICE_NAME=$1
SERVICE_PORT=$2
TOR_DIR="/var/lib/tor"
 
# Create service directory
sudo mkdir -p "$TOR_DIR/${SERVICE_NAME}"
sudo chown debian-tor:debian-tor "$TOR_DIR/${SERVICE_NAME}"
sudo chmod 700 "$TOR_DIR/${SERVICE_NAME}"
 
# Add configuration
cat << EOF | sudo tee -a /etc/tor/torrc
HiddenServiceDir $TOR_DIR/${SERVICE_NAME}/
HiddenServicePort $SERVICE_PORT 127.0.0.1:$SERVICE_PORT
EOF
 
# Restart Tor
sudo systemctl restart tor
 
# Show onion address
sudo cat "$TOR_DIR/${SERVICE_NAME}/hostname"

Tor Circuit Tester

#!/bin/bash
# Test Tor circuits and performance
 
TEST_URL="https://check.torproject.org/"
TESTS=5
 
test_circuit() {
    start_time=$(date +%s.%N)
    
    curl --socks5 127.0.0.1:9050 \
         -s -o /dev/null \
         -w "%{http_code}" \
         "$TEST_URL"
    
    end_time=$(date +%s.%N)
    duration=$(echo "$end_time - $start_time" | bc)
    
    echo "Circuit test completed in $duration seconds"
}
 
for ((i=1; i<=TESTS; i++)); do
    echo "Test $i of $TESTS"
    test_circuit
    sudo killall -HUP tor
    sleep 5
done

Tor Network Monitor

#!/bin/bash
# Monitor Tor network status
 
LOG_DIR="/var/log/tor"
STATS_FILE="tor_stats.log"
 
gather_stats() {
    echo "=== Tor Statistics $(date) ===" >> "$LOG_DIR/$STATS_FILE"
    
    # Check connections
    netstat -an | grep 9050 | wc -l >> "$LOG_DIR/$STATS_FILE"
    
    # Check circuits
    grep "Built circuit" "$LOG_DIR/notices.log" | tail -n 5 >> "$LOG_DIR/$STATS_FILE"
    
    # Check bandwidth
    tail -n 50 "$LOG_DIR/notices.log" | grep "Bandwidth" >> "$LOG_DIR/$STATS_FILE"
}
 
# Rotate logs
rotate_logs() {
    if [ -f "$LOG_DIR/$STATS_FILE" ] && [ $(stat -f%z "$LOG_DIR/$STATS_FILE") -gt 1048576 ]; then
        mv "$LOG_DIR/$STATS_FILE" "$LOG_DIR/$STATS_FILE.$(date +%Y%m%d)"
    fi
}
 
while true; do
    gather_stats
    rotate_logs
    sleep 3600
done

Remember:

  • Regular security updates
  • Monitor logs
  • Verify configurations
  • Use strong authentication
  • Keep services isolated
  • Follow security best practices

For detailed information, consult the Tor documentation and manual pages.

Graph View

Backlinks

  • No backlinks found