Muddog per-app VPN
To connect only specific apps, such as a browser, through another country, select Only apps launched here. The VPN applies to apps newly launched through Muddog and their child processes. Other apps use your regular internet connection.
Requirements
This feature is available in Muddog 2 for Linux and Windows. On macOS, use the VPN for all internet traffic or specific IP addresses and ranges.
| Operating system | Requirements |
|---|---|
| Linux | Requires a systemd user session, cgroup v2, and nftables. The package installs nftables as a dependency. Snap and Flatpak apps are not supported. |
| Windows | Choose a program from the installed apps list or select its .exe file. The MSI includes the required WinDivert components. Apps run with the current user's permissions. |
Apps that delegate execution to a separate service and apps that reuse an already running instance are not supported. Even apps with the same name may work differently depending on how they were installed.
Launch an app through the VPN
- Under Settings → VPN traffic, select Only apps launched here.
- Click Save changes.
- On the Connection screen, choose a country and click Connect VPN. If you were connected in another mode, disconnect and reconnect first.
- Once Connected appears, use Choose an installed app in the Launch apps with VPN area to select an app. If it is not listed, use Browse for executable.
- If needed, expand Launch arguments (optional) and enter arguments.
- Click Launch with VPN.
You can select and launch several apps in turn. If a newly installed app
does not appear, click Refresh list in the app launch area.
On Windows, select the program's .exe file when using Browse for executable.
Enclose arguments containing spaces in quotation marks. This field passes arguments to the selected executable; it does not execute shell commands or pipelines.
Using a browser
Fully close any running browser before launching it again through Muddog. If a request to open a new window is handed to an existing browser process, it may continue using your regular connection. If an app leaves background processes running after you close its windows, stop those processes too.
In the browser newly launched through Muddog, open the public IP check page to check your IPv4 address. Another browser opened from your regular application menu is not covered by the VPN.
Closing the window, disconnecting, and reconnecting
| Action | Result |
|---|---|
| Close the Muddog window | The VPN and launched programs keep running. |
| Disconnect the VPN | The VPN no longer applies, but launched programs keep running. |
| Reconnect in per-app mode on Linux | Apps previously launched through Muddog by the same user are covered again. Existing communications are not guaranteed to switch to the new route, so restart apps as needed. |
| Reconnect in per-app mode on Windows | Fully close the programs you want to use through the VPN, then launch them again from Muddog. |
There is no kill switch to block an app's internet access if the VPN disconnects.
DNS and IPv6 handling
DNS requests sent on an app's behalf by the system DNS service and local network communication may use your regular connection.
- Linux: IPv6 traffic uses your regular connection.
- Windows: While connected in per-app VPN mode, selected apps' IPv4 internet TCP/UDP traffic goes through the VPN, and their IPv6 traffic is blocked. System DNS and local network traffic use your regular connection. If a selected app and another app share the same UDP port and Muddog cannot determine which app a packet belongs to, that packet is blocked.
If the launch button is disabled or an app does not use the VPN, see per-app VPN troubleshooting.