Pi-hole Moving Port 53

Free up port 53 (for Pi-hole Docker)

In Linux, you need to tell systemd-resolved not to listen on port 53 (via its stub listener), then restart it. This keeps local DNS working on the host while freeing the port for Pi-hole.

Step 1: Confirm what's using port 53

Run one of these commands (use sudo if needed):

sudo ss -tulpn | grep ':53'

or

sudo lsof -i :53

or the classic:

sudo netstat -tulpn | grep ':53'

Look for output like:

• systemd-resolved or systemd-resolve listening on 127.0.0.53:53 (or sometimes 0.0.0.0:53)
• Possibly dnsmasq, unbound, named (BIND), or another DNS service if you've installed one before.

If it's systemd-resolved (most common), proceed.

Step 2: Free up port 53 (for Pi-hole Docker)

You need to tell systemd-resolved not to listen on port 53 (via its stub listener), then restart it. This keeps local DNS working on the host while freeing the port for Pi-hole.

1. Edit the config file:

   
   

   sudo nano /etc/systemd/resolved.conf

   
   

   Find the line #DNSStubListener=yes (it might be commented out).

   Change it to (uncomment and set):

   text:

   
   

   DNSStubListener=no

   Save and exit.

2. Restart the service:

   Bash

   
   

   sudo systemctl restart systemd-resolved

   (Or if it was fully disabled before, sudo systemctl enable --now systemd-resolved isn't needed — just restart.)

3. Verify port 53 is now free:

   Run the check command from Step 1 again — no process should be listening on :53 anymore.

   If still taken, double-check for other services (e.g., sudo systemctl stop unbound if you have Unbound installed, or sudo systemctl disable --now dnsmasq).