VPN not working: what to check, step by step

Step-by-step checks

1. Check the internet without the VPN

Turn the VPN off in the app and open any website. If it doesn't load, the problem is the network: the router, mobile data, your balance with the operator. Restart the router or toggle airplane mode on and off. If it loads, go to the next step.

2. Refresh the subscription or key

The app keeps the subscription data from the last refresh. In Happ and INCY, tap ↻ next to the subscription name. If that doesn't help, check with your VPN service whether the subscription term or traffic has run out, and add the subscription again.

3. Restart the app and the device

Close the app completely: on a phone, swipe it out of the open apps; on a computer, quit it from the tray or menu bar icon. Open it again and connect. If that doesn't help, restart the device. A restart clears network settings left over from earlier connections.

4. Switch networks: Wi-Fi ↔ mobile data

Switch from Wi-Fi to mobile data or the other way round. If the VPN works on one network and not the other, the restriction sits on that network's side: the provider, the operator or the Wi-Fi administrator. Public networks in cafés, hotels and offices close VPN protocols at the router.

5. Switch the server or country

Pick a different country in the app. If one works and another doesn't, the provider has blocked the IP of that particular server. Connect to the working one and report the problem to your service's support.

6. Check the date and time on the device

An encrypted connection checks the time on both ends. If the device clock is behind or ahead, the server rejects the connection. Turn on automatic date, time and time zone:

• iPhone: Settings → General → Date & Time → Set Automatically.
• Android: Settings → System → Date & time → Set time automatically.
• Windows: Settings → Time & language → Date & time → Set time automatically.
• macOS: System Settings → General → Date & Time → Set time and date automatically.

7. Reinstall the app

Delete the app, download it again from the official store or the developer's site, and add the subscription again. Reinstalling resets the app's settings and cache. Verified download links for Happ and INCY are on the Happ and INCY pages and in the Apps section.

If the VPN connects but you're not sure the traffic actually goes through it, check your IP and DNS with the leak test.

VPN not working on iPhone

On an iPhone, a few iOS-specific checks are added to the general steps.

• Permission for the VPN configuration. On the first connection, iOS asks you to allow the app to add a VPN configuration. If you decline, the app won't connect. Delete the configuration in Settings → General → VPN & Device Management → VPN and connect in the app again — the prompt will come back.
• Another VPN profile. iOS keeps only one VPN active. Open Settings → General → VPN & Device Management → VPN and check that the right app's configuration is selected. Delete the extra profiles.
• The VPN switch in Settings. A “Connected” status in the VPN section confirms the tunnel is up. “Not Connected” while the app is on is a reason to restart the app and the iPhone.
• Happ disappeared from the App Store. RKN demands that Apple remove VPN clients, and Happ comes back under new names. How to find the real Happ and avoid installing a fake is in Happ disappeared from the App Store.

Why a VPN stops working

A VPN stops working when someone between the device and the server restricts the connection.

Protocol blocking. TSPU — traffic-filtering equipment that operators install at the request of Roskomnadzor (RKN), Russia's communications regulator — recognises VPN protocols by the characteristic shape of their packets (DPI, deep packet inspection) and cuts the connections. Protocols with a recognisable signature, OpenVPN and WireGuard, are blocked first.

IP address blocking. RKN adds VPN server addresses to its registry, and providers close access to them. To the user it looks like an endless connection attempt with no error.

Whitelists on mobile internet. In some regions mobile operators switch mobile internet into whitelist mode: only websites and services from an approved list open, and all other traffic is dropped. That is why a VPN works on home Wi-Fi and stops on mobile data. In this mode only services that have prepared for it work on mobile internet. Ask your service whether it works under whitelists. What is on the list and where it applies is covered in Mobile internet whitelists.

A failure on the server side. A reliable service has several servers in every country and switches between them automatically. If your service has a single server, its failure or blocking takes out the whole country.

When to contact support

Write to your VPN service's support if you've gone through every step and the VPN still doesn't work.

Attach to your message:

• a screenshot of the error or the app screen;
• the network: Wi-Fi or mobile data, the provider or operator name, the city;
• the location you chose;
• the device, the system version and the app;
• when the connection dropped.

With this information support can find the cause without follow-up questions.

If the VPN breaks regularly

Regular failures are the sign of a service that can't keep up with blocking. MaskNet checks every server every 20 seconds and, if one fails, moves traffic to a spare in the same country without you doing anything. It works under whitelists on mobile internet. The subscription is added to Happ or INCY with a single button, and we refund within 30 days.

Frequently asked questions