Soar is a DNS tunnel from Lantern, the team behind the Lantern anti-censorship app. Like the other DNS tunnels it hides your traffic inside DNS lookups, but it spreads that traffic across many DNS resolvers at once, so one resolver being blocked doesn't drop your connection. It can also use DNS over TCP when a network blocks normal (UDP) DNS. Users in Iran have had it working on home broadband, Irancell and MCI.
What you need
- An active PremierVPN VPN plan
- SlipNet activated on at least one server in the client area
- The free SlipNet app on Android, version 2.5.6 or later. Older versions can't import Soar links, so update the app first.
Add Soar to SlipNet
- Sign in to the client area and go to Anti-Censorship › SlipNet.
- Click Activate on a server if you haven't already.
- Open the Soar group under Connection links. You'll see two links:
- DIRECT: your own personal Soar config. It connects fastest. Start with this one.
- SSH: signs in with your SlipNet username and password. Use it if Direct won't connect on your network.
- Click Copy next to the DIRECT link.
- Open SlipNet on your phone, tap +, then Import from URI. Paste the link and tap Import.
- Before you connect, change the settings below. They make the biggest difference to whether Soar connects and how fast it is.
Import the SSH link as well, so you can switch to it quickly if you need to. Each Soar link only works with its own Connection Method (Direct or + SSH), so switch between the two imported profiles rather than changing that setting in the app.
Recommended settings
In SlipNet, tap the Soar profile to edit it, then scroll to the Soar settings.
1. Turn on Resolver Discovery
Switch Resolver Discovery on. Soar then finds DNS resolvers that can carry the tunnel by itself, and checks each one against the server's signed handshake, so you don't have to look for working resolvers by hand.
Under Discovery list, choose where it looks:
| Option | What it uses | When to use it |
|---|---|---|
| Built-in | Soar's own bundled resolver lists. Then pick a Network country: Global, or IR, RU or CN to also try that country's list. | Start here. In Iran, try IR, and compare it with Global. |
| App list | SlipNet's own resolver list (tens of thousands of resolvers, the same list the scanner uses), then public resolvers. | If Built-in is slow or doesn't connect. |
| Custom | Your own list of resolvers. | If you already know which resolvers work on your network. |
Networks differ, so it's worth trying each option once and keeping the one that connects fastest for you.
2. Set DNS over TCP
Soar normally sends DNS over UDP, which is fastest. Some networks block UDP DNS, and TCP on port 53 still gets through. DNS over TCP controls this:
| Setting | What it does | When to use it |
|---|---|---|
| Auto (recommended) | Uses UDP, and switches to TCP for any resolver whose UDP never answers. | Almost always. Leave it here unless you have a reason to change it. |
| On | Uses TCP alongside UDP for every resolver. | If Auto connects but keeps dropping. |
| Only | Uses TCP only. | Very restricted networks where all UDP DNS is blocked. TCP is slower than UDP. |
| Off | Uses UDP only. | Less restricted networks where UDP DNS works fine. This gives the best speed. |
3. Connection Method
Leave this as it was imported: Direct for the DIRECT link and + SSH for the SSH link.
Quick setups
- Iran, mobile data (Irancell, MCI): Resolver Discovery on, Built-in with IR, DNS over TCP Auto. If it won't connect, switch DNS over TCP to Only.
- Iran, home broadband: Resolver Discovery on, Built-in with IR or Global, DNS over TCP Auto.
- A network that only blocks some sites: Resolver Discovery on, Built-in with Global, DNS over TCP Off for the best speed.
Troubleshooting
- The link won't import: update SlipNet to 2.5.6 or later. If it still fails, click Refresh links on the SlipNet page in the client area, copy the Soar link again and import the new one.
- It won't connect: check that Resolver Discovery is on, try the other Discovery lists, then try DNS over TCP Only.
- Direct won't connect but other tunnels do: use the SSH link instead.
- It connects but is slow: try a different Discovery list or Network country. On a lightly filtered network, set DNS over TCP to Off.
- Nothing works on this server: activate another server on the SlipNet page and import its Soar link. Each server is a separate route.
Still stuck? Open a support ticket and tell us your network (for example, Irancell mobile data) and which settings you tried.