Shadowrocket Troubleshooting

First, check the store region for the Apple Account used to make App Store purchases. Don’t rely on your device language or physical location. In Settings, open your account, go to Media & Purchases, and check Country/Region; menu names may vary by system version. App availability depends on the current storefront, and Shadowrocket may not appear in the mainland China storefront. If you need to change your store region, follow the official steps on that page and first resolve any balance, subscription, or payment-method requirements. Changing your device region does not change your storefront.

Open the App Store product page and check the app name, Shadowrocket; developer, Shadow Launch Technology Limited; official white icon with a blue-purple outlined rocket; and product link containing id932747118. The numeric App ID is 932747118. A similar name or icon alone is not enough to verify the app. Shadowrocket is a paid, closed-source commercial app, available exclusively from the App Store. Before purchasing, check the Compatibility section. System requirements and purchase eligibility are as stated on the App Store page.

Shadowrocket is a one-time purchase. Make sure the App Store is signed in with the original purchasing account, then find Shadowrocket under Purchased or in your purchase history. If it’s eligible for redownload, you can restore it without buying it again. If a price still appears, check your purchase history and current storefront before paying again. Redownloading the app does not restore all local settings, so save any configurations you want to keep before changing devices. Family Sharing availability and restrictions depend on the App Store listing and your Family Sharing settings.

The US storefront lists the price at about $2.99 as a one-time purchase; prices in other storefronts are shown in local currency on the purchase confirmation screen. Buying the app does not include server access or a subscription. Any subsequent steps assume you already have your own subscription or server details. The purchase works on both iPhone and iPad; on iPad, check Purchased using the original purchasing account. Mac and Apple TV are also listed on the same App Store page. System requirements, compatibility, and purchase eligibility for each device are as stated on the App Store page.

The first time you start a connection in Shadowrocket, the system asks to add a VPN configuration. This authorization is required to establish the system network tunnel. Make sure the prompt follows an action you just initiated in Shadowrocket, then follow the system instructions and authenticate on your device. Never share your device passcode. If you dismissed the prompt, start the connection again in the app. Authorization only establishes the system tunnel; it does not create server details. You still need to import a subscription or server you already have and select the item you want to use in Home.

First, make sure a server is available and selected in Home, then check for any pending system VPN authorization prompt. If the switch turns off immediately, stop any other active VPN configuration and check whether device management policies restrict VPN settings. Reopen the app and try again. Note the exact error message, and avoid toggling the switch repeatedly. Restart the device if needed. If the issue persists, save your existing configuration before checking its status. Don’t delete everything yet; you could lose server details and rules needed to diagnose the problem.

This guide uses the interface’s original English labels: Home shows servers and the connection controls; Add Server is for entering details for a server you already have; Config manages configurations; Global Routing selects the routing mode; and Settings contains app settings. Find the matching label first, then read the corresponding instructions. You don’t need to change your device language just to follow the guide. The app’s display language may be affected by per-app language settings in the system. Check Settings to see whether Shadowrocket offers a language option; available options and menu paths depend on what your device shows.

Update Shadowrocket through the App Store: check for it in the updates section of your store account, or use the system’s automatic app update settings. App updates and subscription updates are separate: the first updates the app, while the second fetches the latest information from a subscription you already have. Before updating, save the configuration you’re using and make sure you can retrieve your subscription or server details again. Deleting and reinstalling the app is not a routine update method. If the store won’t update it, check the purchasing account, available storage, and network connection, then review the specific message from the store.

Make sure you copied the complete link for a subscription you already have, not an account webpage, an instruction page, or truncated text. Check for extra spaces, line breaks, or punctuation at either end. In Add Server, set Type to Subscribe, paste the link, and save. If you see a format error, check whether the response is a subscription Shadowrocket can read rather than a login page or error message. If it times out, check your current network first. Don’t post a full link containing access credentials in a public forum; when asking for help, share only a redacted error description.

Find the existing subscription entry in Home and use its update action; the exact button or gesture depends on the current interface. A manual update fetches the latest information immediately, which is useful after the service details change. Automatic updates when opening the app run according to the relevant settings; they don’t mean the app continuously checks in the background. After updating, check the server list and the selected item, not just whether the update finished. A subscription update changes the server information returned by its link; it does not update Config rule files. Manage them separately, and check that your routing configuration is still as expected before connecting.

Note the full error message and when it occurs. Then check that your device’s date and time are correct, that your current network can open ordinary webpages, and that the original subscription link hasn’t changed or expired. Switching once between Wi-Fi and cellular can help identify a network issue. Handle timeouts, certificate errors, and content parsing failures separately; don’t repeatedly add the same subscription. If you contact the provider for a service you already have, share only the necessary redacted details. Keep the original entry and configuration, and replace them only after confirming the new link works.

In Home, open Add Server and choose the Type that matches the server details you already have. Enter the address, port, and authentication information in the appropriate fields. The protocol must match your details; don’t choose a different type just because its name looks similar. For TLS, also check the hostname and related parameters in your details. Save the entry, return to Home, select the server, and test the connection. If you use Scan QR Code, check that all fields were imported correctly. Don’t disable certificate verification just to clear an error, and never show passwords or other sensitive details in full in a screenshot.

Config routes traffic according to the rules in the current configuration file and is suitable for everyday use once you’ve checked the rules. Proxy routes traffic through a proxy and still requires a valid, selected server. Direct routes traffic directly; it won’t fix problems with the server itself. For troubleshooting, use Direct to compare access to ordinary webpages, then switch back to Config and check the specific rules. These modes change how traffic is routed; they don’t fill in missing server details. Change one option at a time and note the result so you can identify the cause.

A connected status means the VPN tunnel is established; it doesn’t guarantee that the selected server or every website is reachable. First disconnect and check your basic network connection, then confirm the selection in Home and your Global Routing mode. Connectivity Test can help check connectivity, but a successful test doesn’t guarantee that requests to a specific website will work. Next, check the server details, DNS resolution, and which Config rules match. If only one website is affected, start with rules related to its domain. Note what happens and any error messages at each step instead of clearing the configuration and starting over.

First, separate routing from name resolution. Check that Global Routing is set to Config, confirm which configuration file is active, and see which rule matches the destination domain. Rules are evaluated in order, so an earlier, broader rule may match before a later DOMAIN-SUFFIX rule. FINAL acts as a fallback. Check DNS settings only if a domain won’t resolve, resolution times out, or the result is unexpected. Save the original value before making changes, and change one thing at a time. Changing DNS is not a general fix for every connection problem.

First, check app activity over time in the system’s Battery settings. Distinguish high data use and frequent reconnects from a connection that is simply staying active; the VPN status icon alone can’t tell you what’s using battery. If the connection comes back after you disconnect manually, check whether On Demand is enabled, whether its triggers match your current network, and what the system’s VPN on-demand settings specify. For troubleshooting, temporarily turn off on-demand triggers, avoid repeated tests and reconnects, then compare under the same usage conditions. Battery use also depends on signal strength, data usage, and activity from other apps, so don’t draw conclusions from a single short reading.