Import subscriptions and configurations

How to import a Clash / Mihomo, V2Ray / Xray or Surge subscription or configuration into Potatso on iPhone and iPad, and keep it updated.

Potatso imports servers, proxy groups, rules and DNS settings from a link, pasted text, a file or a QR code. It detects the format on its own, shows you a preview, and lets you choose what to import and where it goes. A subscription imported from a URL keeps updating.

Supported formats

Format	What Potatso imports
Share links (`ss://`, `vless://`, `trojan://`, …)	One server per link. Paste several links at once to import them together.
Base64 subscriptions	The servers in the list. This is the usual V2Ray / Xray and Shadowsocks subscription format.
Shadowsocks JSON and SIP008	The Shadowsocks servers.
Mihomo / Clash YAML	Proxies, proxy providers, proxy groups, rules, rule providers, DNS settings and the outbound mode.
V2Ray / Xray JSON	Outbounds as servers, and routing rules that match domains or IP addresses.
Surge profiles	Proxies, proxy groups, rules, rule sets and DNS settings. See Surge profiles.
Rule lists	The rules in the list.

When Potatso downloads a subscription, it identifies itself to the server as clash.meta. Subscription servers that choose the format by app usually send their Clash / Mihomo configuration, which brings proxy groups and rules along with the servers.

Potatso supports the protocols listed in Protocols. A server whose protocol or settings Potatso doesn't support is skipped, and the preview says why.

Import a subscription

On Home, tap the + button at the top right.
Tap Import via Link/File.
Under Source, keep Link and paste your subscription URL into the field. You can also paste a share link or a whole configuration.
Tap Continue. Potatso downloads and reads the subscription, then shows the preview.
Check the preview, then tap the button at the bottom to import.

To import a configuration file instead, choose File under Source and tap Choose File…. Potatso reads YAML, JSON, CONF and text files. A file must be UTF-8 text and no larger than 5 MB.

To scan a QR code, tap Scan QR Code instead of Import via Link/File. To read a QR code from a picture, tap the photo button in the corner of the scanner.

During first-run setup, a pasted or scanned link is imported into your new profile without a preview. See Getting started.

The import preview

The top of the preview shows the import's name, its format and the server it came from.

If the subscription server reports your data allowance, the preview shows it:

Row	Shows
Data Used	Data used so far, and the total when the plan has one, with a progress bar.
Data Remaining	Data left in the plan.
Expires	When the subscription expires. The date is red once it has passed.

If something couldn't be imported, a Compatibility Issues row shows how many problems there are. Tap it to see each one. Unsupported content is skipped, and the list says what was skipped and why. Skipped rules are listed with their rule number. Import Notices are for your information only, such as a configuration downloaded over plain HTTP.

Choose what to import

Under Import, each part of the import has its own row: Proxies, Proxy Groups, Rules and DNS, with a count or summary. Tap a row to include it or leave it out. Rules need their proxy groups, and proxy groups need proxies, so they're selected together.

Tap View All Contents to see everything in the import: subscription details, proxies, proxy providers, proxy groups, rules and rule providers. You can view each proxy's fields, and edit them before importing unless a subscription manages them.

Entries that only show subscription information, like traffic left or the expiry date, are skipped when you import proxies on their own.

Choose where it goes

Under Import To, choose a destination. The choices depend on what you import:

Destination	What happens
Update “…”	Shown when a profile already follows this subscription. That profile is updated, and your local changes are kept.
New Profile	Creates a profile from the import. The current profile stays as it is.
Replace Current Profile	Replaces the proxies, proxy groups and rules of the current profile. Potatso asks you to confirm first.
Add to Current Profile	Adds the import to the current profile. A configuration with groups or rules is merged once.

Proxies on their own can go to a new profile or into the current one. When you add them to the current profile, choose under Add Proxies To which group lists them: a new group named after the import, one of your existing groups, or None. A new group also comes with a -auto group that picks the fastest proxy.

Adding a profile needs Potatso Pro. Without Pro, import into the current profile with Replace Current Profile or Add to Current Profile.

The button at the bottom says what it does, such as Create “…”, Replace “…” or Add 12 Proxies. Tap it to import.

Automatic updates

An import from a URL shows an Auto Update switch, on by default, with an Update Interval of Daily. Whether an import can keep updating depends on what you import:

What you import	Updates
A whole configuration into a new or replaced profile	The profile follows the subscription and updates daily.
Proxies on their own, with Auto Update on	They're added as a proxy subscription that updates daily. You can't edit these proxies.
Proxies on their own, with Auto Update off	They're added as standalone proxies you can edit. They don't update.
Part of a configuration	A one-time copy. Only a complete configuration can keep updating.
Rules and proxy groups added to an existing profile	Imported once.
A file or pasted text	Imported once: there's nothing to update from.

A subscription profile: data used and expiry, Last Updated, Next Update, Update Now, and My Overrides.

Update a subscription

On Home, tap More Configurations.
The Configuration page shows the profile as a Subscription, with its data allowance if the server reports it, and when it was Last Updated and will have its Next Update.
Tap Update Now to update it straight away.

To change how often it updates, tap Edit on the same card. Under Automatic Updates, choose an Update Interval, or turn Automatic Updates off. You can also change the Subscription URL there; tap Update Now after saving to download from the new URL. Until an update succeeds, the profile keeps what it last downloaded. Background updates run when iOS allows.

Your changes are kept

You can edit a profile that follows a subscription: add or change proxies, groups and rules, or change its DNS settings. Potatso records these as overrides and applies them again after each subscription update. The original subscription is never modified.

The Configuration page lists them under My Overrides. Tap View to see each one. From there you can revert a change, restore something you removed, or delete something you added. To see what the subscription itself contains, tap View Original Configuration File.

Surge profiles

Potatso reads a Surge profile's [General] DNS settings, [Proxy], [Proxy Group] and [Rule] sections. It converts what Potatso has an equivalent for:

RULE-SET and DOMAIN-SET rules become rule providers.
smart groups become automatic (url-test) groups.
subnet and ssid groups become manual groups set to their default policy, because Potatso doesn't switch policies by network.
A group's HTTP(S) policy-path becomes a proxy provider.

These parts aren't imported, and the preview lists them:

Sections Potatso has no equivalent for, such as [MITM], [Script], [URL Rewrite], [Header Rewrite], [Body Rewrite], [Map Local] and [Host].
#!include lines. Import the included files on their own.
USER-AGENT and URL-REGEX rules, because Potatso doesn't inspect HTTP requests, and SCRIPT rules.
A proxy's underlying-proxy chain. The proxy connects to its server directly.

See Move from Surge for more.