Connect iPhone to Home LAN with WireGuard on MikroTik

Recently I had to configure my iPhone to connect securely to my home LAN using WireGuard VPN. I wanted a solution that was:

Secure (not just exposing random ports to the internet)
Easy to use from my iPhone
Lightweight and reliable

If you’re trying to do the same, follow the steps below.

Prerequisites

A MikroTik router running RouterOS v7+
An iPhone with the WireGuard app installed
A public IP (static is easiest; if not, use a DDNS service)

Step 1: Create WireGuard Interface on MikroTik

Log into your MikroTik (Winbox or terminal) and create a WireGuard interface:

/interface wireguard add name=wg0 listen-port=51820
/ip address add address=10.10.10.1/24 interface=wg0

This sets up:

Interface wg0 listening on UDP port 51820
Router’s VPN IP = 10.10.10.1

Step 2: Generate Keys

When you created the interface, MikroTik auto-generated keys. View them with:

/interface wireguard print

You’ll see the server’s private/public key pair.

Save the public key you’ll use it on the iPhone.
Keep the private key safe, stays on the MikroTik.

Step 3: Add iPhone as a Peer

Later we’ll generate the iPhone’s public key. For now, here’s the peer command you’ll run on MikroTik once you have it:

/interface wireguard peers add interface=wg0 public-key=<IPHONE_PUBLIC_KEY> allowed-address=10.10.10.2/32

This tells MikroTik to trust your iPhone at VPN IP 10.10.10.2.

Step 4: Allow VPN Traffic in Firewall

On MikroTik, open UDP/51820 and allow VPN clients:

/ip firewall filter add chain=input action=accept protocol=udp dst-port=51820 comment="Allow WireGuard"
/ip firewall filter add chain=forward in-interface=wg0 action=accept comment="Allow WG clients"
/ip firewall nat add chain=srcnat src-address=10.10.10.0/24 action=masquerade comment="NAT for WG clients"

Step 5: Configure WireGuard on iPhone

Open the WireGuard app -> tap Add Tunnel -> Create from Scratch
Fill in the fields:

Interface (your iPhone)

Private Key tap once to auto-generate
Public Key copy this and add it as a peer on MikroTik
Address 10.10.10.2/24
DNS Servers 8.8.8.8 (or your home router)

Peer (your MikroTik)

Public Key MikroTik server’s public key (from /interface wireguard print)
Allowed IPs
- 0.0.0.0/0 (full tunnel, all traffic)
- or 192.168.88.0/24 (LAN-only access, adjust for your LAN range)
Endpoint 203.0.113.10:51820
Persistent Keepalive 25

Save the config.

Step 6: Add iPhone Peer on MikroTik

Now paste the iPhone’s public key into MikroTik:

/interface wireguard peers add interface=wg0 public-key=<IPHONE_PUBLIC_KEY> allowed-address=10.10.10.2/32

Copy/Paste MikroTik Command

If you just want the full configuration in one go, here’s a block of commands you can copy and paste into your MikroTik terminal.

Replace <IPHONE_PUBLIC_KEY> with your iPhone’s public key, and adjust 203.0.113.10 to your own public IP if needed.

# Create WireGuard interface
/interface wireguard add name=wg0 listen-port=51820

# Assign an internal VPN IP to the WG interface
/ip address add address=10.10.10.1/24 interface=wg0

# Add iPhone as a peer (replace with your iPhone’s public key)
/interface wireguard peers add interface=wg0 public-key=<IPHONE_PUBLIC_KEY> allowed-address=10.10.10.2/32

# Firewall rules to allow WireGuard traffic
/ip firewall filter add chain=input action=accept protocol=udp dst-port=51820 comment="Allow WireGuard"
/ip firewall filter add chain=forward in-interface=wg0 action=accept comment="Allow WG clients"
/ip firewall nat add chain=srcnat src-address=10.10.10.0/24 action=masquerade comment="NAT for WG clients"

Step 7: Test the VPN

Turn on the tunnel in the iPhone WireGuard app
You should see a VPN icon on the iPhone status bar
Try pinging your router’s VPN IP (10.10.10.1) or open a LAN service

Step 8: Use Wake-on-LAN (Optional)

Now that your iPhone is “inside” your home LAN:

Open a Wake-on-LAN app
Enter your PC’s MAC address and LAN IP
Send a magic packet: your PC powers on from anywhere

Security Notes

WireGuard only accepts traffic from peers you explicitly configure, attackers can’t just “guess” their way in
The handshake is silent, if someone scans your IP, the router won’t reveal it’s WireGuard
Keep your RouterOS firmware updated

Conclusion

That’s it! With WireGuard, I can now connect my iPhone to my home LAN from anywhere in the world, securely. It also gave me a safe way to use Wake-on-LAN without exposing insecure ports.

If you’re trying to set this up yourself, just follow the steps above — it takes about 10 minutes once you know the commands.

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