diff --git a/client/internal/engine.go b/client/internal/engine.go
index 4934a0184..8b383ae06 100644
--- a/client/internal/engine.go
+++ b/client/internal/engine.go
@@ -463,7 +463,9 @@ func (e *Engine) Start(netbirdConfig *mgmProto.NetbirdConfig, mgmtURL *url.URL)
 	log.Info("created dns server")
 
 	// Populate DNS cache with NetbirdConfig and management URL for early resolution
+	e.shutdownWg.Add(1)
 	go func() {
+		defer e.shutdownWg.Done()
 		backoff := time.Second
 		var lastErr error
 		const populateAttempts = 5