diff --git a/net/dns/nm.go b/net/dns/nm.go
index 29f0f2205..5ba3130b7 100644
--- a/net/dns/nm.go
+++ b/net/dns/nm.go
@@ -183,25 +183,6 @@ func (m *nmManager) trySet(ctx context.Context, config OSConfig) error {
 	// settings here, but that led to #1870.
 
 	ipv4Map := settings["ipv4"]
-	// In some versions of NM, you can only provide DNS configuration
-	// if the interface is in "auto" or "manual" mode (defaults to
-	// "disabled").
-	//
-	// In "manual" mode we'd have to also give NM all our IP and
-	// routing configuration, which we don't want to do. So instead,
-	// we set the ipv4 mode to "auto", and then tell it to ignore any
-	// information it might get from DHCP (which is none, since we
-	// don't do DHCP on tailscale0). This is the documented way to
-	// provide only DNS configuration to NetworkManager.
-	//
-	// Some versions of NM don't need this, and will accept DNS
-	// configuration even for disabled interfaces, but there's no harm
-	// in telling those versions to do DHCP and ignore all results,
-	// hence why we have a single codepath here.
-	ipv4Map["method"] = dbus.MakeVariant("auto")
-	ipv4Map["ignore-auto-routes"] = dbus.MakeVariant(true)
-	ipv4Map["ignore-auto-dns"] = dbus.MakeVariant(true)
-	ipv4Map["never-default"] = dbus.MakeVariant(true)
 	ipv4Map["dns"] = dbus.MakeVariant(dnsv4)
 	ipv4Map["dns-search"] = dbus.MakeVariant(search)
 	// We should only request priority if we have nameservers to set.
@@ -221,9 +202,18 @@ func (m *nmManager) trySet(ctx context.Context, config OSConfig) error {
 	}
 
 	ipv6Map := settings["ipv6"]
-	// Same logic as above for IPv4 - request autoconfiguration, tell
-	// NM to ignore all autoconfiguration results, and provide manual
-	// DNS settings.
+	// In IPv6 settings, you're only allowed to provide additional
+	// static DNS settings in "auto" (SLAAC) or "manual" mode. In
+	// "manual" mode you also have to specify IP addresses, so we use
+	// "auto".
+	//
+	// NM actually documents that to set just DNS servers, you should
+	// use "auto" mode and then set ignore auto routes and DNS, which
+	// basically means "autoconfigure but ignore any autoconfiguration
+	// results you might get". As a safety, we also say that
+	// NetworkManager should never try to make us the default route
+	// (none of its business anyway, we handle our own default
+	// routing).
 	ipv6Map["method"] = dbus.MakeVariant("auto")
 	if len(addrs6) > 0 {
 		ipv6Map["address-data"] = dbus.MakeVariant(addrs6)