Pi-hole on Windows using Docker

 I tried putting pi-hole on the box by installing WSL2 and running a Debian instance, then installing it.  This resulted in a lot of "WSL2 limitations" coming to light, specifically related to the windows network stack.  After crashing the struggle bus multiple times, I decided to go into unknown Docker territory as an excuse to fool with Docker on windows.

Here's the recipe for success:

Prerequisites

• Windows with WSL2 and Docker Desktop installed
• PowerShell with administrator access

Step 1: Create Docker Compose Configuration

Create a dedicated directory for Pi-hole and the Docker Compose configuration:

mkdir C:\pihole
cd C:\pihole

Create a file named docker-compose.yml in the C:\pihole directory:

services:
  pihole:
    container_name: pihole
    image: pihole/pihole:latest
    ports:
      - "53:53/tcp"
      - "53:53/udp"
      - "67:67/udp"
      - "80:80/tcp"
    environment:
      TZ: 'America/New_York'
      WEBPASSWORD: 'admin123'
      PIHOLE_DNS_: '8.8.8.8;8.8.4.4'
      DNSMASQ_LISTENING: 'all'
    volumes:
      - './etc-pihole:/etc/pihole'
      - './etc-dnsmasq.d:/etc/dnsmasq.d'
    cap_add:
      - NET_ADMIN
    restart: unless-stopped

Step 2: Create Data Directories

Open PowerShell in the same directory and run:

mkdir -p etc-pihole, etc-dnsmasq.d

Step 3: Start Pi-hole

docker-compose up -d

Step 4: Set Admin Password

docker exec pihole pihole setpassword 'admin123'

Step 5: Configure Windows Firewall 

Run PowerShell as Administrator and execute:

New-NetFirewallRule -DisplayName "Pi-hole DNS TCP" -Direction Inbound -Protocol TCP -LocalPort 53 -Action Allow
New-NetFirewallRule -DisplayName "Pi-hole DNS UDP" -Direction Inbound -Protocol UDP -LocalPort 53 -Action Allow

Final Configuration

Once setup is complete, you'll have:

• Web Interface: http://[YOUR-WINDOWS-IP]/admin/ (e.g., http://192.168.1.3/admin/)
• Admin Password: admin123
• DNS Server: Your Windows IP address on port 53
• Data Persistence: Stored in ./etc-pihole and ./etc-dnsmasq.d directories

Management Commands

Here are some useful commands for managing your Pi-hole installation:

• Stop Pi-hole: docker-compose down
• Start Pi-hole: docker-compose up -d
• View logs: docker logs pihole
• Reset password: docker exec pihole pihole setpassword 'newpassword'