v2rayNTutorial

Two things to do before you start: install the client and prepare a subscription link. Client installers are available by platform on the download page: choose the v2rayN desktop build for Windows and macOS, the deb or rpm package for your Linux distribution, and v2rayNG for Android. After installing, open the client once to confirm the main window displays correctly, then continue.

The subscription link is provided by your proxy provider. It is usually a URL starting with https://, but it can also be a single-node share link starting with vmess:// or vless://. A subscription link corresponds to a group of server nodes; the client pulls the node list from it in bulk, and every "Update Subscription" syncs the provider's latest node list, so you never have to enter nodes manually.

If the provider only gave you a single-node share link, paste the whole link into the client's "Import from Clipboard" entry; it works the same as importing one node. This guide uses a subscription as the example, but the configuration steps after importing a single node are identical.

v2rayN desktop requires Windows 10 or later, macOS 12 or later, or a mainstream x64 Linux distribution; v2rayNG requires Android 7.0 or later. If your system is too old, upgrade it before installing the client to avoid startup failures.

Importing a subscription is the first step in getting node information into the client. The subscription URL only fetches the node list; how often it updates is up to the provider. If connections act up, run "Update Subscription" once before blaming the node.

One client can maintain multiple subscription groups at the same time. If you have several subscription links, create a separate group for each provider and update them group by group. Groups do not affect each other; switching providers only means changing which group holds your active node.

Nodes in a subscription change as the provider adjusts its lineup, so update about once a week. Nodes unused for a long time may be reclaimed by the provider. If a connection fails, update the subscription first, then check whether any usable entries remain in the node list.

Proxy mode determines which traffic goes through the proxy and which goes direct. V2Ray clients come with three common modes: Bypass Mainland, Global, and Direct. Bypass Mainland sends mainland China domains direct and overseas domains through the proxy; it is the recommended choice for daily use. Global sends all traffic to the server, which suits scenarios that need a fixed exit IP. Direct proxies nothing, and is used to temporarily disable the proxy or test the local network.

Choose nodes based on real-world experience. The latency number only reflects handshake speed; download speed also depends on server bandwidth and line load. Try two or three nodes from the same subscription, open overseas sites to compare loading speed, then stick with the one that performs consistently.

Routing mode and system proxy are two independent settings: routing mode decides how traffic is split, and system proxy decides whether traffic enters the client. In daily use they work together; "Bypass Mainland" routing plus "Auto Configure System Proxy" is the standard combination.

Connecting essentially routes system traffic to the client's local port. The desktop side does this through the system proxy, and the Android side does it through a VPN tunnel; the two paths are enabled differently.

v2rayN's default local ports are 10808 (SOCKS) and 10809 (HTTP); you normally do not need to change them. If a port is taken by another program, change it in settings and update any app configuration that depends on it.

Do not close the client window right after connecting. Closing v2rayN's main window minimizes it to the system tray and the proxy keeps working. Swiping v2rayNG away from recent apps may interrupt the VPN, so you would need to tap connect again.

Open a browser and visit a site outside mainland China; if the page loads normally, the proxy path is working. Then visit an IP lookup site to see the exit IP's location. If it matches the node location (a node in Hong Kong shows Hong Kong), traffic is indeed going through the server. If the exit IP is still your local address, the proxy is not taking over browser traffic; go back to step 3 and check the system proxy status.

In v2rayN you can open the log window from settings; domains visited in the browser appear line by line in the log, which is direct evidence that traffic passes through the client. v2rayNG's "Run Log" page provides the same records; combine them with the connection duration to judge whether the link is stable.

To dig deeper into line issues, use ping and tracert (Windows) or traceroute (macOS, Linux) from the command line: no response when pinging the node address means the line is down, and tracert shows which hop the packets stop at. These two commands are for troubleshooting only, not for daily verification.

• Browser can open overseas sites
• Exit IP location matches the node
• v2rayN status bar traffic counters keep increasing
• v2rayNG status bar shows connection duration
• Mainland China sites are unaffected (Bypass Mainland mode)

If all five checks pass, the configuration is successful. If any check fails, follow the troubleshooting order on the FAQ page: first confirm the subscription has not expired, then confirm the node is usable, and finally check the routing mode and system proxy status. For deeper issues such as slow speeds or DNS resolution problems, see the symptom-by-symptom sections on the Problem Diagnosis page.

If overseas sites open but some pages load slowly during verification, the DNS resolution path is usually the culprit. Try switching the client's DNS setting to the server recommended by your provider, or follow the DNS section of the Problem Diagnosis page to adjust step by step.