This guide is for anyone installing the desktop version of Shadowrocket, unsure which Mac processor they have, or blocked by a security warning on first launch. First, match the device to the installer and complete installation. Use a one-time system override only after confirming the file came from this site and the warning is about verifying its source. Finally, check startup, configuration import, and connectivity to distinguish installation issues from connection issues.
1. Check your platform, processor, and download source
Shadowrocket for Mac is available for both Apple Silicon and Intel. Open the Apple menu in the top-left corner and select About This Mac. If Chip shows Apple, choose the Apple Silicon version. If Processor shows Intel, choose the Intel version. Don’t infer the processor from the Mac’s size, purchase year, or appearance—the same model family can use different processors.
Go to the download guide and choose your platform. The iPhone and iPad app is a one-time $2.99 purchase on the App Store; the developer is Shadow Launch Technology Limited. Check the App Store listing for system requirements. The Mac versions (Apple Silicon and Intel), Windows, Android, and Linux versions are free. Getting the app and subscribing to a service are separate; obtain subscription links from your service provider.
Identify your Mac
- Where to check
- Apple menu → About This Mac
- Chip shows Apple
- Choose the Apple Silicon DMG
- Processor shows Intel
- Choose the Intel DMG
- Download source
- This site’s download guide → Mac
Choose based on your Mac’s system information; don’t treat the Intel version as the default substitute for the Apple Silicon version.
Identify your Windows device
- Where to check
- Settings → System → About
- Check this field
- System type: note the processor architecture and system type
- Check compatibility
- Compare the installer’s architecture and system requirements with the current download page
- Download source
- This site’s download guide → Windows
Don’t determine compatibility from the Windows edition name alone. If requirements don’t match, stop before installing.
2. Install the Mac DMG: copy it to Applications before opening
A DMG is a disk image, not the place to run the app from. Open the image, copy the app to Applications, then launch it from there. If you keep running it from the mounted image, the app may disappear when you eject it. An old Dock shortcut may also still point to the copy inside the image.
-
Choose the right processor version
Check Chip or Processor in About This Mac, then choose the matching Mac DMG from this site’s download guide. Wait for the browser to finish downloading before opening the file; don’t open a temporary file that’s still downloading.
-
Mount the disk image
In Finder, open Downloads and double-click the DMG. A mounted volume and its contents should appear. If macOS says the image can’t be opened, download it again first; don’t assume it’s a first-launch security restriction.
-
Copy the app
Drag Shadowrocket into Applications. If the window doesn’t include an Applications shortcut, open Applications in Finder and copy the app there. If asked to replace an existing copy, quit the app first, then confirm whether to replace it.
-
Launch from Applications
Wait for the copy to finish, then open Shadowrocket from Finder → Applications. If macOS only asks whether to open an app downloaded from the internet, check the app name and source before confirming. If a verification warning appears, follow the next section.
-
Eject the disk image
Once you’ve confirmed the copy in Applications opens, eject the installer image from the Finder sidebar. From now on, launch the app from Applications or its Dock shortcut; you don’t need to mount the DMG again.
3. Mac says the developer can’t be verified: distinguish a source check from a security warning
“Developer cannot be verified” and “will damage your computer” are different warnings. The first may reflect macOS checking the app’s source or notarization status. The second is a security warning: stop and don’t open the app. The exact wording, when it appears, and where the file came from are more useful for troubleshooting than simply saying it “won’t open.”
- First confirm that you downloaded the installer for the right processor from this site’s download guide and copied the app to Applications. Don’t try to bypass a warning for a copy from an unknown source, repackaged by someone else, or with an unexpected filename.
- Try opening the app once, then go to Apple menu → System Settings → Privacy & Security and check the Security section for a block notice related to Shadowrocket.
- Click Open Anyway only if macOS offers it and the warning concerns source verification alone. Follow the prompts to confirm with your Mac administrator account or Touch ID, then confirm Open when prompted.
- Some macOS versions also let you Control-click the app in Finder → Applications and choose Open. Whether this option appears—and whether you still need to confirm in Privacy & Security—depends on the prompts in your version of macOS.
- Try launching the app again from Applications. If the same warning keeps appearing, note the full message and check that you aren’t opening an older copy. Don’t repeatedly change system-wide security settings.
On older versions of macOS, the control may be under System Preferences → Security & Privacy → General. If Open Anyway isn’t available, that doesn’t mean you need to run a Terminal command. Managed devices may prevent users from approving apps, and some security warnings don’t offer this option at all.
4. Install on Windows and handle SmartScreen warnings
On Windows, “Windows protected your PC” is usually shown by Microsoft Defender SmartScreen. This is separate from User Account Control, which may ask for administrator permission during installation. A SmartScreen warning about an app’s reputation doesn’t mean malware has been detected, but it also doesn’t prove the file is safe. Check the source before deciding whether to continue.
-
Check Windows
Go to Settings → System → About and check System type. Compare it with the compatibility requirements in this site’s download guide, then download the Windows installer. When the download is complete, locate the file in your browser’s download history.
-
Review the warning
Double-click the installer. If “Windows protected your PC” appears, select More info and check the App and Publisher details. Confirm again that the file came from this site’s download guide.
-
Allow this run only
Select Run anyway only after confirming the source, verifying that no malware detection has appeared, and checking that Windows offers this option. Don’t turn off SmartScreen or browser download protection just to install one app.
-
Complete installation
Follow the installer’s prompts to choose a location and finish setup. If User Account Control appears, verify that it refers to the installer you just opened before confirming. If the installer doesn’t ask for elevated permissions, there’s no need to use Run as administrator.
-
Check that it launches
Open Shadowrocket from the Start menu and confirm that the main window appears. Handle any network permission prompt separately from the installer warning. Don’t reinstall repeatedly just because you’re not connected yet.
If Run anyway isn’t available under More info, or Windows says an administrator has blocked the app, check the device’s management policies. Don’t try to fix this by editing the registry, turning off real-time protection, or disabling organizational policies. If Windows Security reports a specific threat, stop, note the detection name and file path in Protection history, and ask an administrator to review it.
5. After launch, check whether installation is complete or configuration is still needed
If the main window opens reliably, installation and first launch are complete. Accessing websites through a proxy also depends on server settings, subscription contents, the active policy, and system network permissions. Allowing the installer does not add a server or import configuration for you.
Get a subscription link from your service provider and import it using the setup guide. Home shows connections and servers, Config manages rule configurations, and Settings contains app preferences. Desktop permission dialogs vary by system; don’t assume another platform’s menu path applies.
Global Routing → Config
RecommendedRules in the active configuration determine how requests are routed. First make sure the expected configuration is selected in Config, then check which rule matches the request. Importing a subscription alone doesn’t mean traffic rules are configured.
Best for: restoring your usual setup after installation when you already have a rule configuration.
Global Routing → Proxy
Route requests handled by the app through the proxy policy. This can help determine whether a problem is related to rule-based routing. It won’t fix an incorrect password, an unreachable server, or missing system network permissions.
Best for: temporarily ruling out rules when using a server you know works.
Global Routing → Direct
Connect requests handled by the app directly. In this mode, an enabled connection switch doesn’t mean requests are passing through a proxy server.
Best for: comparing direct connections to check whether the underlying network is working.
- The app won’t show its main window: check the processor version, system compatibility, security warning, and duplicate copies.
- The window opens, but the server list is empty: import a subscription or existing server settings. Reinstalling isn’t necessary.
- Servers are listed, but connections fail: check the address, port, credentials, and service status. Get these details from your service provider.
- Connections work, but some sites use the wrong route: check Global Routing and the selected Config instead of allowing the installer again.
6. Common installation warnings and what to do
Mac says the app is damaged. Should I click Open Anyway?
Stop and don’t open it. “Damaged” may indicate an incomplete download, a signature issue, or a system verification problem; it’s not the same as “developer cannot be verified.” Delete that download and get the DMG for your processor again from this site’s download guide. If the warning returns, save the full message and check system compatibility. Don’t run commands to remove quarantine attributes.
After installation on Mac, why does the installer window appear every time I open the app?
First check where you’re launching the app from. Find it in Finder → Applications and open it there. If it works, remove the old Dock shortcut pointing to the installer image, then add the copy in Applications to the Dock. Quit any copy running from the image before ejecting the DMG, so you don’t switch between two copies.
Windows says, “This app can’t run on your PC.” What should I do?
This isn’t necessarily a SmartScreen warning. First, note System type under Settings → System → About, then check the download page’s architecture and system requirements. Running the installer as an administrator won’t fix an incompatible package. Stop if there’s no matching installer; compatibility mode can’t change the processor architecture.
My work computer has no option to allow the app. Can I fix this myself?
Managed devices may block apps through application controls or security policies. Give your administrator the app name, this site’s download page, your system type, and the full warning text so they can decide whether to allow installation. Don’t disable endpoint protection or treat approval on a personal device as authorization on a managed one.
Change one thing at a time when troubleshooting: first confirm the installer matches your device, then handle any source warning, and finally check configuration and connectivity. Note where the issue occurs, the exact message, and where you launched the app from; this is more useful than repeatedly reinstalling. Keep the full text of any permission or security warning, not just a screenshot of the buttons.