For iPhone and iPad users who already use Shadowrocket and have noticed increased background activity in their battery report. First, distinguish app activity from network traffic flowing through the VPN. Then decide whether to keep the connection active or use On Demand based on how often your network changes, and compare results under the same conditions.
First, pinpoint when the battery drain occurs
After Shadowrocket connects, the system VPN tunnel may continue handling requests from other apps even after you leave Shadowrocket. An app running in the background does not mean the connection has stopped. Seeing Shadowrocket in your battery report alone does not identify the cause. Screen use, background network requests, signal strength, and repeated reconnections can all affect the readings.
On your iPhone or iPad, open Settings → Battery and select a view that includes the period in question. Check Shadowrocket’s activity alongside the times your screen was on or off. If the battery graph drops sharply while the screen is off, check whether syncing, audio playback, or frequent network changes occurred at the same time. If the drop happened while the screen was on, start by checking which apps were in the foreground and how long you used the screen. The system battery page offers clues about power use; it does not measure VPN tunnel power consumption on its own.
Recording the conditions makes comparisons more useful than noting a single percentage. Use the same device, similar usage periods, the same Wi-Fi or cellular network, and the same connection configuration, then compare the battery graphs before and after changing a setting. Comparing different network conditions can make the extra power used by a weak wireless signal look like an effect of the setting. Battery health and system background tasks also affect the results.
Always-on connections vs. On Demand
Here, an “always-on connection” means connecting manually and leaving the VPN connected until you disconnect it. Shadowrocket does not need to stay open in the foreground. On Demand is a setting that attempts to connect when the system’s network conditions match. Find it in Shadowrocket under Settings → On Demand. It controls when a connection is attempted; it does not guarantee lower battery use than keeping a connection active.
If you spend most of the day on one stable network and need traffic to keep flowing through the VPN, keeping the connection active can avoid repeatedly establishing the tunnel. If you only need a connection under certain network conditions, On Demand can reduce the time the VPN is connected unnecessarily. But frequent switches between Wi-Fi and cellular, an unstable signal, or overly broad conditions can also trigger repeated connections and increase activity. Base your decision on actual connection frequency and how you use your device—not on the assumption that “On Demand” is a battery-saving mode.
Choose a connection approach for your network
Start by noting what you need: Do you need to stay connected on both cellular and Wi-Fi? Do you have specific conditions for connecting only on certain networks? Can you tolerate a brief reconnection when switching networks? If you need a connection all day and your network is stable, keep the always-on approach for now and check active apps and the configuration itself. If you only need a connection on some networks, consider On Demand and set the conditions shown in the app to match your needs. Available options depend on the current interface.
- Stable network, consistent connection: If you need requests handled continuously, keep the existing connection and check whether background traffic is coming from apps you’re actively using. Don’t change the service configuration and routing mode at the same time just to test battery use.
- Frequent switches between Wi-Fi and cellular: Check the connection status on Home after each switch. If it keeps disconnecting and reconnecting, first check whether the network itself is stable, then assess whether your On Demand conditions suit your commute or other mobile use.
- Connect only under specific conditions: In Settings → On Demand, set conditions that match your needs, then test on both the target network and a network that should not trigger a connection. Don’t assume the conditions are working just because the setting is enabled.
Bottom line: Reduce unnecessary reconnections first
If battery drain coincides with frequent network changes, first check whether the connection is being re-established repeatedly, then decide whether to adjust On Demand. If the connection is stable but background activity remains high, identify which apps are generating traffic instead of changing only the connection trigger.
Change one setting at a time
Before you begin, confirm that you’re using your existing service configuration. Note the connection status on Home, the selected service configuration, and the current Global Routing mode. These steps don’t require you to re-import a subscription. If your provider has recently changed its configuration, follow their instructions to update it first; failed reconnections caused by an outdated configuration can complicate battery troubleshooting.
Record a baseline
In Settings → Battery, check the period in question and note the difference in activity while the screen is on and off. Also note whether you were using Wi-Fi or cellular. Choose a typical period of use that you can repeat for comparison.
Check the connection
Open Home in Shadowrocket and check the connection status and selected service configuration. If the status says Not Connected, troubleshoot the connection first. Don’t count a period when the connection was never established as an always-on connection test.
Set up On Demand
Go to Settings → On Demand and set the network conditions using the options shown in the app. Enable it only if you need connections to start automatically. After saving, return to Home and check the connection status.
Test network switching
Test on your usual Wi-Fi and cellular networks. Check whether the connection behaves as expected when you leave and rejoin each network. After each switch, wait for the system to finish connecting to the network before checking the VPN status. This helps avoid mistaking a brief network transition for a rule failure.
Check battery activity again
Return to Settings → Battery and compare activity periods and connection frequency under conditions similar to your baseline. If the results aren’t what you expected, restore the previous setting first, then check the On Demand conditions or network quality separately.
Keep the same configuration and Global Routing mode throughout the test. For example, if you started with Config, leave it on Config; if you selected Proxy, don’t switch to Direct while adjusting On Demand. Otherwise, you won’t know whether a change in battery activity came from the connection trigger or from how traffic was handled.
Troubleshoot repeated connection changes
If a sudden increase in battery activity coincides with connection problems, treat the connection failure as a separate issue first. Not Connected on Home means the expected connection is not currently established; it does not identify whether the service configuration, network, or On Demand conditions are at fault. Test a manual connection first, then test automatic triggering to narrow down the cause.
Error: Not Connected
Cause and solution: This status on Home means there is no active connection. It may appear after a network switch or before a connection is established. First, make sure your device can access the current network, then try connecting manually from Home. If manual connection works but On Demand doesn’t trigger, review your conditions under Settings → On Demand.
If a manual connection also fails to stay active, check whether the network is dropping frequently and whether your existing service configuration is still valid. Check with your provider to see whether the subscription needs updating and follow their instructions. A subscription URL retrieves configuration details; On Demand determines when a connection is triggered. They serve different purposes. Repeatedly importing the same subscription won’t help diagnose battery drain and only adds more settings to check.
If Not Connected appears only briefly during a network switch, check whether the connection recovers on its own after the device joins the network again. Record ongoing failures separately from brief transitions: ongoing failures call for checking the conditions and connection configuration, while brief transitions call for checking the network connection process. A precise description such as “switched to cellular after leaving my usual Wi-Fi” or “still disconnected after rejoining that Wi-Fi” is more useful for troubleshooting than “background battery drain.”
Bottom line: Verify manual connection first
If manual connection fails, hold off on assessing On Demand’s effect on battery use. If manual connection is stable but automatic triggering doesn’t behave as expected, focus on the conditions under Settings → On Demand.
How to decide which setting to keep
After completing a comparison, first check whether the setting meets your needs, then look for repeatable changes in battery activity. An always-on connection suits situations where you need continuous connectivity and the network is stable. On Demand suits situations with clear network triggers where you can accept a reconnection when conditions change. Neither option is consistently more battery-efficient on every device: actual traffic, signal strength, and connection frequency all affect the outcome.
If On Demand connects as expected and activity while the screen is off decreases under similar usage conditions, you can keep it enabled and continue monitoring. If connections are repeatedly re-established or fail when needed, restore the previous setting that worked reliably, then check the trigger conditions separately. Recording the same network, time period, and connection stability before and after the change is more reliable than comparing only the remaining battery percentage.
Verify the official app and continue setup
To check the app’s details, start with the guide to verifying the official App Store listing. To troubleshoot your connection configuration step by step, continue with the tutorials.
Go to the app verification guide View tutorials