Use secure tunnels to reach your Pi, no matter where you are.

Trying to connect to your Raspberry Pi while you're away from home can be a hassle. Maybe you’ve set up a smart home dashboard, file server, or some other tool on your Pi, but when you're on another network, suddenly it’s unreachable.

The problem? Your Pi is sitting behind layers of NAT (and often CG-NAT thanks to your ISP), making it nearly impossible to access directly from the internet. Port forwarding used to be a solution, but in many cases, it's blocked or too complex to manage securely.

A better approach: tunneling. With tools like Pinggy, your Raspberry Pi can reach out and create a secure tunnel to the internet, giving you a public address to connect back, even if you're on a locked-down or mobile network.

What’s a Raspberry Pi Tunnel?

A tunnel creates an outbound connection from your Pi to an external server. That server gives you a public endpoint (URL or TCP address), and any traffic sent there is routed directly back to your Pi.

This works well for:

HTTP tunnels to expose web apps
SSH tunnels to get terminal access from anywhere

It avoids the pitfalls of port forwarding, firewalls, and dynamic IPs.

Why Port Forwarding Often Doesn’t Work

Port forwarding sounds simple in theory, but in practice:

Routers might not support it or are locked down
CG-NAT from your ISP hides your network
Public IPs change regularly
Firewalls may block it altogether
You risk exposing your device to the open internet

Instead of battling all that, tunneling gives you a secure, reverse connection.

Step 1: Turn on SSH on the Raspberry Pi

Before creating a tunnel, make sure your Pi allows SSH connections:

sudo systemctl enable ssh
sudo systemctl start ssh

Check the status with:

sudo systemctl status ssh

For security, use SSH keys and disable password login if possible.

Step 2: Expose a Web App Using an HTTP Tunnel

Running a web server or dashboard on your Pi? Let’s say it’s on port 8080:

python3 -m http.server 8080

You can share it with the world like this:

ssh -p 443 -R0:localhost:8080 qr@free.pinggy.io

You’ll get a public HTTPS link (like https://xyz123.pinggy.link) that anyone can use to view your web app, no router access required.

Step 3: Create an SSH Tunnel for Full Control

Need command-line access instead of a browser? Use this to tunnel your SSH port:

ssh -p 443 -R0:localhost:22 tcp@free.pinggy.io

It gives you something like:

tcp://abc123.pinggy.link:40123

Then, from any remote machine:

ssh pi@abc123.pinggy.link -p 40123

Now you’re in, just like you were at home.

What You Can Do With Remote Pi Access

There’s so much you can unlock:

Monitor and control smart home tools
Access a private cloud or web dashboard
Debug code or restart services
Build and test local web projects remotely
Keep an eye on sensors, cameras, or cron jobs

Remote access turns your Pi into a truly powerful server.

Keep It Safe

A few tips for staying secure:

Use SSH key pairs
Disable root login remotely
Only expose what you need
Use tools that encrypt traffic
Monitor active tunnels and sessions

You’re making your Pi accessible, just make sure it’s only accessible to you.

Final Thoughts

You don’t need a static IP or complex router setup to access your Raspberry Pi. Tunneling gives you a clean, secure workaround that just works. Whether you’re running a side project, smart home hub, or server on your Pi, a tunnel ensures you can reach it from anywhere.

With tools like Pinggy, it takes one simple command to spin up a remote connection, perfect for developers, tinkerers, and even beginners.

Easily Access Your Raspberry Pi Remotely, Without Touching Your Router