What TUN Mode Does in Clash Verge Rev

TUN mode in Clash Verge Rev creates a virtual network interface that allows the Mihomo core to capture traffic below the level of ordinary browser proxy settings. Instead of asking each application to understand an HTTP or SOCKS proxy, Windows sends packets toward the virtual tunnel, and Mihomo applies your selected proxy groups and rules before forwarding them. This is why TUN mode can cover applications that ignore the Windows system proxy, including many terminals, game launchers, desktop messengers, update tools, and development utilities.

That distinction matters when a browser works but another application reports a timeout. System proxy mode normally affects programs that read Windows’ HTTP proxy configuration. It does not automatically control every raw TCP or UDP connection. A program may use its own proxy settings, connect directly to an IP address, launch a separate helper process, or use a network library that never checks the operating system proxy table. TUN mode is designed for this wider system coverage, although it still depends on correct DNS, permissions, routing rules, and protocol support.

Clash Verge Rev uses the Mihomo core, so the exact labels can differ slightly between releases. You may see options such as Enable TUN, Auto Route, Strict Route, Stack, DNS Hijack, or Service Mode. Do not assume that every option must be enabled in every environment. The safest setup is to enable the minimum features required for your goal, confirm that traffic is captured, and then add stricter routing or DNS controls only when testing shows they are necessary.

Prepare Windows and the Active Profile

Before turning on the tunnel, make the Windows environment predictable. Close other Clash-family clients, VPN applications, packet filters, and traffic-capture utilities that may install their own virtual adapters. Running Clash for Windows, Clash Verge Rev, Mihomo Party, a commercial VPN, and a corporate endpoint agent at the same time makes diagnosis unnecessarily difficult. Multiple services can compete for DNS port 53, change routes, or install overlapping Wintun interfaces. Start with one primary network client and disable the rest while configuring TUN mode.

Open Clash Verge Rev and confirm that the client is using a modern Mihomo core. In most builds, the core selector is located under Settings, Kernel, or a similarly named section. A profile exported for Mihomo or Clash Meta may contain fields that an older legacy core cannot parse correctly. If the interface shows an error while loading the profile, inspect the profile status before troubleshooting TUN. A tunnel cannot repair invalid YAML, an expired subscription, or a provider response that is actually an HTML login page.

Import your subscription through the profile or subscription manager, then activate the downloaded configuration. Select a proxy group that you know can reach the sites or services you intend to test. Avoid using an automatic latency group for the first test if it is constantly switching nodes. A stable, manually selected node gives you a fixed baseline and makes connection logs easier to read. You can return to url-test, fallback, or load-balanced groups after the basic tunnel works.

Check the current mode before enabling TUN. If the client is in Rule mode, Mihomo will follow the profile’s ordered rules. If it is in Global mode, most captured traffic will use the selected global proxy group. For initial verification, Rule mode is usually more representative of normal use, but Global mode can help determine whether a failure comes from routing rules or from the tunnel itself. Do not leave Global mode enabled permanently without considering local services, banking sites, printers, and other destinations that should remain direct.

It is also useful to record the existing state of your machine. Note whether the Windows proxy switch is on, which DNS servers are configured, and whether another VPN adapter appears in Network Connections. If something breaks after TUN is activated, this small record gives you a clear comparison point instead of relying on memory.

Enable TUN Mode Step by Step

The following sequence works across most recent Clash Verge Rev Windows builds. The names and location of controls may move between versions, so use the words TUN, Service, and Network as landmarks rather than expecting every screen to look identical.

1. Launch Clash Verge Rev with the correct permissions. Start the application normally first. If the client reports that it cannot install a service, create an adapter, or modify routes, close it and use Run as administrator for the setup phase. Administrator approval is commonly required for the helper service and virtual network interface.
2. Open the TUN settings. Go to Settings and locate the section named TUN Mode, Service Mode, or Network. Some releases place TUN controls in the general settings page, while others expose them under the Mihomo core configuration.
3. Install or enable the service helper. If Verge Rev offers an Install Service, Install Helper, or Service Mode button, approve the Windows elevation prompt. The helper allows the core to create and manage the virtual adapter even when the graphical window is not running with full administrative privileges.
4. Turn on the TUN switch. Enable TUN and wait several seconds for the status to change. Do not repeatedly click the switch if it appears slow; the client may be creating the adapter, applying routes, and starting the Mihomo listener in sequence.
5. Review the routing options. Enable Auto Route when you want Mihomo to add the routes needed for system-wide capture. Use Strict Route only when you understand its effect and need to prevent traffic from escaping through an unintended interface. If your build asks for a stack, Mixed or the recommended default is a sensible starting point.
6. Configure DNS carefully. If DNS Hijack or a TUN DNS option is available, enable it only when you want DNS requests to be handled by Mihomo. Confirm that the profile has a valid DNS section and an upstream that is reachable through your chosen policy. A tunnel with broken DNS often looks like a dead proxy because browsers cannot resolve hostnames.
7. Apply the change and restart only if requested. Some versions require a core restart or application restart after changing TUN settings. Follow the prompt rather than rebooting Windows immediately. Once the client returns, confirm that the profile is still active and that the TUN status remains enabled.

Verify the Tunnel and System-Wide Routing

A green TUN indicator is useful, but it is not proof that the applications you care about are actually using the tunnel. Verification should cover the interface, DNS resolution, browser traffic, a command-line request, and the Mihomo connection log. Each test answers a different question.

First, open Windows Network Connections by running ncpa.cpl. Look for a virtual adapter associated with Clash Verge Rev, Mihomo, or Wintun. The exact adapter name depends on the core and release. It does not need to replace your physical Ethernet or Wi-Fi adapter; it should appear as an additional interface while TUN is active. If no virtual adapter exists, focus on service permissions and driver installation before changing rules.

Next, test a normal website in a private browser window and watch the Clash Verge Rev connection panel. The destination hostname, selected rule, proxy group, and node should appear in the log. If the browser loads but no connection appears, the browser may be using a cached page, a separate VPN, or a route outside the expected interface. Open a fresh HTTPS page and clear any browser-specific proxy extension while testing.

Then test a command-line application. PowerShell’s curl.exe is useful because it can make a direct request without depending on the browser UI:

curl.exe -I https://example.com
nslookup example.com
route print

The first command checks whether a basic HTTPS connection completes. The second shows how Windows resolves a name, although the result can be affected by the DNS mode selected in Mihomo. The third lets you inspect whether the expected virtual route exists. These commands do not prove that every UDP application will work, but they quickly separate a general tunnel failure from an application-specific limitation.

Use a destination whose expected path is clear, such as a service that your profile deliberately assigns to a proxy group. If the rule column says DIRECT when you expected a proxy, inspect rule order. Mihomo evaluates rules from top to bottom, so an early DOMAIN-SUFFIX, GEOIP, or FINAL rule can win before the intended rule is reached. If the connection is assigned to the correct group but fails, test another node rather than editing YAML immediately.

Finally, check for leakage in more than one direction. A DNS leak test can show whether requests leave through the resolver you intended, while an IP check can show the egress address used by web traffic. These tests are indicators, not absolute guarantees. Applications may use encrypted DNS, hard-coded endpoints, IPv6, QUIC, or their own relay. For a practical check, compare the result with the live connection list and confirm that the application process itself is producing Mihomo connections.

Common Windows Conflicts and Fixes

Permission and service errors

If Verge Rev says that TUN cannot start, the first suspect is usually permission rather than the subscription. Exit the client, launch it as administrator, and install the helper or service again. Check whether Windows Security or a third-party antivirus has quarantined the core or blocked service creation. In managed corporate environments, local administrator rights may be restricted by policy; in that case, a personal configuration change cannot override the organization’s endpoint rules.

Adapter and driver conflicts

Old Wintun or TAP adapters can remain after uninstalling another VPN client. Open Device Manager, expand Network adapters, and look for disabled, duplicated, or warning-marked virtual devices. Do not delete a device blindly if it belongs to work VPN software or a security product. Instead, disconnect those tools, restart Windows, and allow Clash Verge Rev to recreate its own adapter. A yellow warning icon or an adapter that immediately disables itself points to a driver or security-policy problem.

DNS and IPv6 issues

When websites fail by hostname but work by IP address, investigate DNS before changing proxy nodes. Confirm that the profile’s DNS nameservers are valid and that DNS hijacking is compatible with the selected TUN stack. IPv6 can create a second path that does not follow the same policy as IPv4. If your network, provider, or rule set does not support IPv6 consistently, temporarily disable IPv6 on the active Windows adapter for testing. If the issue disappears, choose a deliberate IPv6 policy rather than leaving the result to chance.

Port and VPN conflicts

Another VPN, container platform, emulator, or security suite may already own the route or DNS service that Mihomo needs. Check the Clash log for bind errors and inspect active listeners with:

netstat -ano | findstr LISTENING
Get-NetAdapter
Get-NetIPInterface

Do not change random ports just because a connection fails. A mixed-port conflict normally appears as an explicit bind error, while a tunnel that starts but cannot reach anything is more likely to involve routing, DNS, or rules. Disconnect other VPNs, restart Verge Rev, and retest with one node and one profile before changing advanced values.

How to roll back safely

If TUN breaks local access, disable TUN from the same settings page and restore the Windows proxy state that you recorded earlier. Restarting the core is often enough; a full Windows reboot is useful only when a route or adapter remains stuck. Remove temporary rule overrides one by one, keep a copy of the original profile, and avoid deleting the entire configuration directory as a first response. A clean rollback preserves evidence that can help identify the exact conflict.

A Stable TUN Configuration Checklist

Once the tunnel works, spend a few minutes making it reliable. Keep Clash Verge Rev and its Mihomo core updated from a trusted release source, but do not replace a working core immediately before an important meeting or trip. Save a copy of your profile and record any local mixin or override files. Treat subscription URLs as credentials because they can expose your node list and usage account.

• Use one active TUN-capable client at a time.
• Keep the helper service and virtual adapter on a known-good installation.
• Choose a stable node while diagnosing rules and DNS.
• Confirm whether local network services should use DIRECT.
• Review IPv4 and IPv6 behaviour instead of assuming both follow identical routes.
• Check the connection log when an application fails; do not rely only on the tray icon.
• Test after sleep, Wi-Fi changes, and Windows updates because route state can be rebuilt.

Remember that TUN mode is a capture mechanism, not a universal compatibility promise. Some anti-cheat systems, banking software, enterprise security tools, and applications using unusual kernel-level networking may reject virtual adapters or refuse proxied connections. UDP support also depends on the Mihomo core, the outbound protocol, the provider, and the destination. If one program fails while browser and terminal tests pass, inspect that program’s own network model before concluding that Clash Verge Rev is misconfigured.

Compared with older Windows proxy helpers or competing GUI clients that hide adapter status behind a single switch, Clash Verge Rev can still feel more technical because you may need to understand service permissions, Mihomo rules, DNS mode, and route tables. The trade-off is useful control: its modern core, visible connection logs, profile management, and explicit TUN options make it easier to see why system-wide traffic is or is not being captured instead of guessing from a browser icon. If you want a maintained starting point for this Windows TUN workflow, download Clash Official Site and then apply the checks in this guide one change at a time.