How to Update a Shadowrocket Subscription: Manual Refresh, Update on Open, and Troubleshooting

What subscription updates affect: lists, connections, and rules are managed separately

Shadowrocket is a closed-source commercial app for Apple platforms, primarily used on iPhone and iPad. It is available exclusively through the App Store as a one-time purchase. Buying the client does not include a service plan. This article assumes you already have your own provider and subscription. This site does not provide, sell, or recommend servers, subscriptions, or providers. See the App Store listing for pricing, system requirements, and general purchase availability.

A subscription update sends a new request to the saved subscription URL and parses the server information in the response. The provider may change server addresses, ports, names, or authentication details, so the list may change after an update. If nothing has changed on the provider's end, the list may remain the same even after a successful update. An unchanged server count alone does not mean the update failed.

The subscription list in Home, configuration files in Config, and the system VPN connection are separate things. A successful subscription request does not mean every server entry can connect; a working connection does not mean the subscription URL is still valid. Identify which part failed before choosing what to do next.

Manual update: refresh one subscription group and check the result

When troubleshooting for the first time, update just one subscription group to avoid confusion if multiple URLs fail. These steps apply to a group you've already imported; you don't need to add the same URL again. Importing it again can create duplicate groups with similar names and make it harder to check the results.

1. Open Home. Find the subscription group you want to update. Make sure you're viewing servers in that group, not entries you added individually.
2. Open the group actions. Touch and hold the subscription group name, then choose Update from the menu. Select the group title, not an individual server entry.
3. Wait for the request to finish. Avoid tapping repeatedly while it's in progress. Check the result message; if the interface shows an update time, note that too.
4. Check the list. Make sure the group is still there and its entries are present. Check whether any names or addresses the provider said it changed have appeared. The same number of entries does not prove that nothing was updated.
5. Check the connection separately. If the selected entry was removed or renamed, select an entry that is still listed, reconnect if needed, and check that it works for your intended access.

Pulling down to refresh the list in Home can also trigger subscription updates. If you manage multiple groups, check whether requests were triggered for other groups too. To isolate an issue with one URL, use Update on that group so you can match the result message to the right subscription. Menu placement and appearance may vary; follow the current app interface.

Update on Open: configure automatic updates

Enable automatic updates after confirming that a manual update works. This helps distinguish a failed request from a trigger condition that wasn't met. Update on Open triggers subscription updates when you open the app; it is not a recurring background download, and it does not necessarily send a new request every time you switch back to the app.

1. Go to Settings → Subscribe, find Update on Open, and turn it on.
2. Check the update-interval options on the same page. If the current interface offers an interval setting, keep its existing value for now and note it. Reopening the app repeatedly in a short period does not guarantee a new request.
3. Return to Home and leave the subscription group in place. Wait for the configured interval, then reopen the app and check for an update message or any time information shown in the interface.
4. If nothing visibly changes, run Update on the group once. If a manual update succeeds but automatic updates don't trigger, check the toggle, interval, and network connection when opening the app. Don't replace the subscription URL right away.

Opening the app and connecting to a VPN are separate actions. Settings → On Demand controls connections triggered by conditions; it does not update subscriptions. Enabling On Demand cannot replace Update on Open. Conversely, a subscription can still be updated manually without On Demand, provided the network needed for the request is available.

Update failed: choose your next step based on the error

An error may come from the system network layer, an HTTP response, or content parsing. The English messages below may appear in network error details, but the app may not display them in the same format every time. Save the actual message and note when it occurred; don't assume every failure means the subscription has expired.

If the URL returns a login page, verification page, or notice, an HTTP 200 status still doesn't mean it returned a subscription that can be parsed. You may see a parsing error or an empty list. Check the subscription link in your provider account instead of using a webpage URL as the subscription URL.

• URL integrity: Check for leading or trailing spaces and line breaks, and make sure query parameters haven't been omitted. In particular, check whether a token was cut off when copying.
• Authorization status: Check whether the subscription was reset, revoked, or replaced. A URL that worked before may no longer be valid.
• Response content: Make sure the provider returned subscription content compatible with the app, not an account management page or plain-text instructions.
• Certificate issue: First check that the device's date and time are correct, then ask your provider to verify the certificate. Don't hide the problem by disabling security checks.

Update via Proxy: use an existing working connection for the request

If the subscription URL is unreachable over your current direct connection, but an existing server still works, check Settings → Subscribe → Update via Proxy. This option changes the network route used for subscription updates; it cannot provide a working server or fix a revoked URL or an invalid response.

1. In Home, select an existing entry you've confirmed works, turn on the connection, and verify that network access works as expected.
2. Go to Settings → Subscribe, turn on Update via Proxy, then return to Home and run Update once on the same group.
3. Compare the results with the setting on and off. If updates work only through an existing connection, you can keep the relevant setting enabled. If both routes fail, continue checking the URL and provider status.
4. If none of your existing entries work, resolve the connection issue first or ask your provider to confirm the current valid details. Avoid relying on a failed connection to retry updates.

Config, Proxy, Direct, and Scene under Global Routing are traffic-handling modes, not subscription update settings. Direct does not mean “force a subscription refresh,” and switching to Proxy does not guarantee an update will succeed. Change one factor at a time and record the result. Otherwise, changing routing, DNS, and subscription options together can make the cause hard to identify.

FAQ: update intervals, list changes, and rule refreshes