This article explains how to import a subscription into Clash, connect after importing it, and troubleshoot cases where websites still won’t open in your browser. Follow the steps below to add a subscription, enable the configuration, and select a node. Then check your exit IP, DNS, and browser settings to narrow down the cause. Button names may vary between Clash-compatible clients, so follow the labels in your app.
1. What to Prepare Before Importing
First, install a trustworthy, actively maintained Clash-compatible client, and make sure your operating system version is supported. Get a Clash-format subscription link from your service provider. Individual VLESS or VMess share links may not be importable as subscriptions. Subscription links usually contain credentials. Don’t share screenshots of them publicly or send them to strangers. If you use free nodes collected by this site, check the format notes and last-updated date first. Availability should be confirmed by testing.
2. How to Import a Subscription into Clash
- Copy the full subscription URL. Make sure it doesn’t include spaces, line breaks, or punctuation added by a messaging app.
- Open the client’s “Configuration,” “Profiles,” or “Subscription” page, then look for an option such as “New” or “Import from URL.”
- Paste the link, enter a name that’s easy to recognize, and click Download or Import. If the client supports an update interval, set it as recommended by your provider. There’s no need to refresh it too often.
- Once the download completes, select the configuration to make it active. Importing a configuration doesn’t automatically enable it; make sure you switch to it.
- Go to the “Proxy” page and select an available node in a policy group, or choose the automatic selection group provided by the configuration.
- Turn on “System Proxy” and start with “Rule” mode. On mobile, you’ll usually also need to approve the system VPN connection request. On desktop, grant permission as prompted by the client.
- Test a familiar website, then try one that requires a proxy. If it fails, switch nodes and test again before changing any other settings.
3. How Subscriptions Relate to IP, DNS, and Your Browser
A subscription mainly provides nodes, policy groups, rules, and other configuration settings. Whether your exit IP changes depends on whether your requests go through the proxy and which exit node they use. In Rule mode, some websites connecting directly is normal. A single IP lookup page can’t tell you whether the proxy is working as a whole. Also check whether your browser is showing a cached page.
DNS translates domain names into addresses. If a node connects but some domains won’t open, the cause may be a DNS resolution failure, rule-based routing, or restrictions on your local network. Start with the client’s or subscription’s default DNS settings, and check the logs for resolution errors. Don’t copy DNS settings from an unverified source.
Your browser may also have its own proxy extension or secure DNS enabled, which can affect how requests are routed and domains are resolved. Temporarily disable other proxy extensions and test again in a private window. Decide whether to adjust secure DNS based on the logs; it shouldn’t be assumed to cause every problem.
4. What to Check If Importing or Connecting Fails
- Subscription download fails: Make sure the link is complete and hasn’t expired, check your local network, and ask the provider to confirm that the URL is valid.
- Format error: Confirm that you have a Clash-compatible subscription, not a webpage URL or a subscription for another client. Don’t give private links to untrusted conversion sites.
- Imported, but no nodes appear: Check that the configuration is active and the download is complete, then try updating it manually once.
- All nodes time out: Check your system clock, switch to another local network, and try again. Free nodes may stop working, and updating the subscription doesn’t guarantee they’ll become available again.
- Only the browser fails: Check whether System Proxy is enabled, look for conflicts with other proxy tools, and then review the client logs.
Check in this order: subscription download, configuration activation, node selection, proxy routing, and browser testing. Change only one setting at a time. If you report a problem, you can include the client version and a redacted error message, but don’t reveal your subscription URL or node credentials.