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Documentation Index

Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://mintlify.com/ProtonVPN/android-app/llms.txt

Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

Open Settings → Advanced to access settings that affect performance and network-level behaviour. Most users can leave these at their defaults.
If a profile is active and overrides any of these settings, a banner at the top of the Advanced screen shows the profile name. The displayed values reflect the profile’s settings, not your global preferences.

VPN Accelerator

VPN Accelerator is a Proton technology that uses multi-path routing and other optimisations to improve speeds, especially over long-distance or high-latency connections. VPN Accelerator has its own entry in the main Settings screen under the Connection category — it is not nested inside Advanced. It is enabled by default.
VPN Accelerator requires a paid Proton VPN plan. Free users see an upgrade prompt when tapping this setting.
A reconnect is required after toggling VPN Accelerator.

Alternative routing (DoH)

Alternative routing sends API traffic through DNS-over-HTTPS (DoH) when the standard Proton API endpoint is blocked. This setting does not affect VPN tunnel traffic — it only helps the app reach Proton’s servers to authenticate and load server lists. Toggle this setting under Settings → Advanced. It is enabled by default.
Leave alternative routing enabled if you are in a region where access to Proton services is restricted.

IPv6 support

When IPv6 is enabled, the VPN tunnel carries both IPv4 and IPv6 traffic. When disabled, IPv6 traffic is blocked inside the tunnel and falls back to IPv4 only.
Disabling IPv6 can cause connectivity issues on networks that rely on IPv6. Only disable this setting if you have a specific reason to do so.
IPv6 support is controlled by a feature flag and may not appear in all builds.

App exclusions (split tunneling)

Split tunneling lets you choose which apps use the VPN tunnel and which connect directly to the internet. You can find this in Settings → Split tunneling, under the Features category. Two modes are available:
ModeBehaviour
Standard (exclude only)All apps use the VPN except those you add to the exclusion list.
Inverse (include only)Only the apps you add to the list use the VPN; all other apps connect directly.
You can exclude apps and IP address ranges independently.
Apps excluded from the VPN send their traffic outside the encrypted tunnel. Their real IP address is visible to the services they connect to.
Split tunneling requires a paid Proton VPN plan. Changes take effect on the next connection.

Always-on VPN and kill switch

Always-on VPN is an Android system feature that keeps the VPN connected at all times and prevents traffic from leaking if the connection drops. The kill switch (which blocks all internet traffic when the VPN is off) is part of the same system setting.
1

Open the kill switch setting

In Proton VPN, go to Settings → Kill switch (under the Features category). Tap the row to be taken to the correct place in Android system settings.
2

Enable Always-on VPN

In the Android VPN system settings screen, find Proton VPN in the list of installed VPN apps and tap the gear icon next to it.
3

Turn on Always-on VPN

Enable the Always-on VPN toggle. Optionally enable Block connections without VPN to activate the kill switch.
4

Return to Proton VPN

Go back to Proton VPN. The app will reconnect automatically according to the system setting.
Enabling Block connections without VPN (the kill switch) means your device will have no internet access if Proton VPN cannot connect. This includes when the app is updating or the device is rebooting.
Always-on VPN is only available on Android 7.0 (Nougat) and later.

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