The second row on Shadowrocket Home is Global Routing. The current mode follows it—usually Config on a fresh install. Tap it and you see at least three choices: Config, Proxy, Direct. Many people treat this as a "change servers" menu, so they flip modes while also tapping around SERVER. Then they cannot tell whether the server failed or the policy sent the request somewhere else.
Remember the split. The SERVER list chooses which server to use when traffic is proxied. Global Routing chooses whether to proxy, and by which rules. Together they produce what you see in Safari. Changing only the server and ignoring mode—or changing only mode with no server selected—looks like random success and failure.
Config splits traffic by the current rules. The app ships default.conf. A dot marks the default file; a check marks the one in use. Keep that file the first time. Rules send some requests direct and some through the proxy. If sites that work without the proxy still open and some that need the proxy do not, the server or subscription is the usual cause—not a broken rule file. The reverse—Proxy opens a site and Config does not—looks more like a rule blocking it. Until you understand the file, do not turn on HTTPS Decryption, and do not paste a server subscription into remote rules on the Config tab.
Proxy sends everything through the proxy. Use it for a narrow question: does this selected server work at all? When a test is high but the page fails, switch to Proxy and open the same site. That rules out "did a rule send it direct?" Proxy is a poor everyday default. Sending everything through the proxy also sends traffic that should stay local, uses more battery and heat, and makes the failing hop harder to see. Switch back when the comparison is done.
Direct sends nothing through the proxy. Use it for the other narrow question: can this phone open this site on its own? If the toggle is on and every page fails, switch to Direct first. If Direct also fails, turn the toggle off and check Wi-Fi or cellular in Settings. If Direct works, the phone network is up. The problem is the server, the subscription, or the rules—handle that in Config or Proxy. Switch back to Config when you are done.
The first-run order should be: select a server, set the second row to Config, flip the toggle, then confirm in Safari. Do not start everyday use in Proxy, and do not sample all three modes before you add a server. Changing modes will not invent servers while SERVER still shows only Add Server.
The rule file is easy to mix up too. The second tab is configuration files, not servers. Restore Default Config puts the shipped rules back—use it after you have edited the file into a mess. Add remote rules only when your provider gave a rules URL. Open default.conf and you will see counts for Rule, Hosts, and URL Rewrite. You do not need to edit them the first time. To see what is blocking a site, switch Proxy or Direct on Home. That is faster than guessing among hundreds of rules.
On Demand is not on this row. It lives in Settings. When it is on, the app may connect without you flipping the toggle. Leave it off until you understand the match rules, or you will wonder why you are connected. Language, colors, and widgets have nothing to do with this policy.
Think of three questions. Config asks: with everyday rules, does it work now? Proxy asks: ignoring rules, does this server work? Direct asks: ignoring the proxy, does the phone network work? Ask one question at a time and the answer stays clean. Change the server, the mode, and the rules together, and you get a symptom you cannot retell.
The list menu, the default dot, and the mode switch are also treated as one control. The dot marks the default server. Selecting another row only changes the server. Global Routing does not follow it. Some people think a new server becomes Proxy automatically, or that Direct clears the list. Neither happens. Mode and list are two switches. Keep them separate and logs and tests make sense: the test is for the selected server. A test in Direct is not a useful comparison, because requests should not enter that tunnel.
Leaving Proxy on for days also erases your everyday baseline. When something breaks later, you no longer remember whether split routing worked or global just happened to work. Config is not only about saving data. It is a stable everyday baseline. Leave the baseline to compare; return to it after. Same idea as removing one screw at a time.
People ask whether they can leave Proxy on forever and forget rules. You can. It is a poor default. Global proxy spends the comparison tool, and the only leftover moves are changing servers and reinstalling. Config keeps everyday use and troubleshooting apart. One extra tap looks like more work and saves time. Switch to Proxy for the few minutes you truly need global, then switch back. The picture stays clear. Borrow Direct for a few minutes too, then switch back, or you will think the app is idle and reinstall for no reason—mixing up a symptom you already sorted. Keep the baseline and the comparison means something. Then you can write the conclusion and send it to your provider as-is.
If you only need to explain it, three lines are enough. Everyday: select a server, use Config, open a familiar site in Safari. Suspect the server: switch to Proxy, change only that, open the same site. Suspect the phone network: switch to Direct, change only that, open the same site. The point is "change only one thing." If you can say it, you can retell it. If you can retell it, you do not need to reinstall.
The tutorial keeps the three modes, the rule file, and the comparison table in one place. Open it when you need it. Everyday, two sentences are enough: use Config; when something fails, try Direct, then decide network or server. Do not reinstall the app to answer those questions. If you still lack the official app, verify it on the download page, finish the first connection in Get Started, and then the three modes have something you can observe.