This guide is for people who bought Shadowrocket on iPhone and want to use it on their own iPad. First check your App Store purchase history, then handle configuration import, VPN authorization, and landscape controls separately. The same purchase record doesn’t mean settings will automatically match across devices. This guide assumes you already have a service provider and subscription; get your subscription link from your provider.
Same Apple ID: Check Your Purchase Before Getting the App
Shadowrocket is a one-time-purchase, closed-source commercial app available exclusively on the App Store. Here, “sharing a purchase” means using your existing purchase on your own iPhone and iPad with the same Apple ID—not giving your account to someone else. If the App Store lists the app as available to you, you can get it again on your iPad without paying for the app a second time.
Distinguish your iCloud account from your App Store purchase account. Being signed in to the same iCloud account on your iPad doesn’t prove that the App Store is using the account that bought the app. Check the Apple ID used for the purchase on the App Store account page. Compatibility, system requirements, and whether the purchase is universal are as stated on the App Store page.
-
Check the Purchase Account
Open the App Store on your iPad, tap your account photo in the upper-right corner, and check that the account matches the one used to buy Shadowrocket. Depending on the interface, your Apple ID may be labeled Apple Account.
-
Find the Purchased App
Look for Shadowrocket under Apps or Purchased on the account page; the exact label varies by system version. Open the product page from your own purchase history rather than relying on a search result with a matching name.
-
Verify the App
Check that the developer is Shadow Launch Technology Limited and the app ID is
932747118. Verify the official icon and App Store link on the app verification page. -
Get the App Again
If you see a cloud download button, tap it and follow the system prompts. If a price still appears, check the account, purchase history, and store region before confirming another payment.
First Launch: Handle Your Purchase, Configuration, and VPN Authorization Separately
Seeing the app on your iPad Home Screen only confirms that the client was obtained. To connect, you also need valid connection details and must authorize the system VPN configuration on this iPad. VPN authorization previously granted on your iPhone does not replace the system confirmation on your iPad.
Start by getting to know the three main sections: Home, Config, and Settings. Home shows connection entries and status; Config lets you review the active configuration and rules; Settings contains client preferences. Landscape orientation may rearrange these sections, but a change in their position doesn’t mean their names or functions have changed.
- Import an existing subscription: Go to Home → “+” in the upper-right corner → Type → Subscribe. Enter the subscription link from your provider, save it, and update the subscription.
- Check the local configuration: Open Config and confirm which configuration file is selected. An entry appearing in Home alone doesn’t prove that your rules have been migrated.
- Make your first connection: Return to Home, select a valid entry, and start the connection. When prompted to add a VPN configuration, verify the source before authorizing it.
- On-demand connections: If you need automatic connection triggers, check Settings → On Demand after verifying a manual connection. This keeps automatic triggers out of the picture while you troubleshoot.
Subscription links may contain access credentials. Redact the full link, passwords, and keys when troubleshooting; never include credential-bearing screenshots in public reports. Your app purchase account and service-provider account are separate identities and cannot replace each other.
Landscape and Narrow Windows: Identify Sections by Name
The usable width on an iPad depends on screen orientation, window size, and the system’s multitasking state. Even in landscape, a full-screen window and a narrow window may arrange content differently. The number of visible list columns and whether long names are truncated also depend on the available width. The layout varies with the app and system; a screenshot from one device doesn’t define a fixed layout for every iPad.
| State | What to Watch For | What to Check |
|---|---|---|
| Portrait or narrow window | Long names, addresses, and parameter values may be cut off | Open the entry’s edit screen and check the full fields instead of relying on the list summary |
| Full-width landscape | Lists and details have more horizontal space | Find sections by their names—Home, Config, and Settings—and confirm the selected item |
| After resizing the window | Navigation, text wrapping, and button layout may change | Finish and save your current edits before resizing, so an unsaved change isn’t mistaken for a sync failure |
Try a check without changing any settings: note the selected entry in Home, rotate the screen, and check it again; then open Config and verify the active configuration. Rotation itself should not switch the connection or configuration. If behavior changes, check whether another entry was tapped, a subscription was updated, or the network changed at the same time.
When connection entries have similar names, check the protocol and server address instead of relying on the first few visible characters. Shadowsocks, VMess, VLESS, Trojan, Hysteria2, and WireGuard are different protocol types; entries with the same display name are not interchangeable. Keep the original protocol type after migration and check each field against the details provided by your service provider.
Multitasking and Split View: A Window Change Isn’t a Connection Change
Support for Split View, windowed apps, and other multitasking features depends on the iPad model, system, and current app support; check the App Store page for system requirements. If the system doesn’t offer the relevant controls, don’t assume an option in Shadowrocket can enable them. Window management is a system interface feature, separate from whether a service-provider subscription is valid.
- Test in full screen first: Start a manual connection in the regular full-screen view and open the same test page each time. Once the basic connection works, switch to a multitasking mode offered by the system.
- Keep test conditions consistent: Use the same Wi-Fi network, connection entry, and destination page; change only the window size. Don’t update the subscription or switch rules at the same time.
- Distinguish foreground from background: Switching to another app doesn’t necessarily disconnect the system VPN. To check the connection, return to Home and review its status alongside the system VPN status.
- Note when the issue occurs: If a problem happens only after the screen locks, the network changes, or the app returns to the foreground, note the trigger and check Settings → On Demand and the system’s network status.
For example, if a browser reloads a page after entering Split View while Home still shows a connection, that only tells you the page reloaded; it doesn’t prove the connection dropped. Compare connection logs from the same time with the destination request result. If only one site fails, check the domain match and the destination service’s status before resetting all settings.
Global Routing: Check How Traffic Is Handled After Migration
Using the same subscription on two devices doesn’t mean requests will follow the same rules. The selection in Home → Global Routing affects routing decisions. If your iPhone already has custom rules and your iPad is newly set up, check the mode before comparing results. The descriptions below cover Shadowrocket’s own routing options; the recommended choice assumes you’ve verified that your rules are working.
Config
RecommendedUse the active configuration’s rules to determine where requests go. This doesn’t guarantee that unmatched requests will go direct; the result also depends on rules such as FINAL and the policies they reference.
Use when: You’ve checked the configuration and want both devices to follow the same rules.
Proxy
Route traffic through the proxy. This can help you check whether the current rules affect a particular request. The test still depends on a valid selected connection entry and can’t correct incorrect provider details.
Use for: A brief comparison test to distinguish connection issues from rule-matching issues.
Direct
Route traffic directly. Compare the result with the same destination in proxy mode. A successful direct connection doesn’t mean the provider connection is working.
Use for: Checking direct access from the current network to a destination.
Global Routing also includes Scene. Before using it, check the existing scene’s configuration and conditions; a scene name doesn’t guarantee a particular routing result. To reduce variables during the initial migration, first test one item at a time using a clearly selected Config, Proxy, or Direct mode, then restore your previous scene setup.
Bottom Line: Match the Mode Before Comparing Devices
Select the same connection entry and configuration on both devices, set Global Routing to Config, and open the same destination. If the results still differ, check the rules, DNS, and network conditions.
Configuration Sync: Check Subscriptions, Rules, and Device Settings Separately
A purchase under the same Apple ID doesn’t prove that all configuration has synced. Updating a subscription retrieves the connection entries provided by your service provider. Check the rules file in Config, the selected entry, local settings in Settings, and system VPN authorization separately. Even when using an in-app sync or export feature, verify each item after importing instead of assuming the transfer worked because the file names match.
Keep a record of the original configuration before migrating so you can compare it if a later subscription update replaces entries. If you import a file, check whether it contains passwords, PrivateKey values, or subscription credentials, and store it only in a location you control. Rule files and connection details serve different purposes; copying rule text alone won’t create a working connection to your provider.
| Item to Check | Where to Check | What to Verify |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription entries | Home | Whether the update succeeded, the entries are present, and the selected entry is the one you expect |
| Active rules | Config | Selected file, rule order, policy references, and the destination for unmatched requests in FINAL |
| Routing mode | Home → Global Routing | Whether Config, Proxy, Direct, or Scene matches the purpose of the current test |
| Automatic triggers | Settings → On Demand | Whether the enabled state and trigger conditions match this iPad’s network environment |
To review the rules, start with the example below, which is only intended to illustrate the syntax. Rules are matched from top to bottom, so more specific conditions should come before fallback rules. The example domain is not a service endpoint and can’t be used to test actual connection performance.
[Rule]
DOMAIN-SUFFIX,example.com,DIRECT
IP-CIDR,192.168.0.0/16,DIRECT
GEOIP,CN,DIRECT
FINAL,PROXYDOMAIN-SUFFIX matches a domain suffix, IP-CIDR matches an IP range, GEOIP checks the IP geolocation database, and FINAL handles requests that didn’t match earlier rules. Here, DIRECT means a direct connection, PROXY means a proxy policy, and REJECT denies a request. Check that the policies in your actual configuration are valid; don’t simply copy the last line.
- Purchase history looks right, but no connection entries appear: Return to Home and check whether the subscription was imported and updated instead of getting the app again.
- An entry is present, but it won’t connect: Check the protocol, address, port, authentication fields, and system VPN authorization. Don’t change every connection’s port to 443.
- The connection works, but some requests are routed differently: Check Global Routing, the selected item in Config, and rule order, then verify DNS results.
- Manual connections work, but automatic triggers behave differently: Check Settings → On Demand separately. Rebuilding all subscriptions won’t help diagnose trigger conditions.