# Connecting

> You received a Meridian link. Install an app, add the connection, and get it working again when it stops.

Someone who runs a Meridian server sent you a link. This page is for you: you need no command line and no server knowledge.

## Open the link

Open the link on the device you want to connect. It leads to your **connection page**, which recognizes your device and walks you through two steps:

1. **Install an app.** The page recommends apps for your platform and links to their downloads.
2. **Add the connection.** Tap **Add to …** for the app you installed. The app opens with your connection already in it.

To set up a phone from a computer, open the link on the computer and scan the QR code beside the steps with the phone's camera or the app's scanner.

Keep the link to yourself. It is your personal access, and anyone who has it can connect as you.

## Apps

These apps work with Meridian. Your connection page shows the ones for your device first.

- [Happ](https://happ.su/) — iOS, Android, Windows, macOS, Linux
- [FlClashX](https://github.com/pluralplay/FlClashX/releases/latest) — Android, Windows, macOS, Linux
- [Clash Mi](https://clashmi.app/download) — iOS, Android, Windows, macOS, Linux
- [Throne](https://github.com/throneproj/Throne/releases/latest) — Windows, macOS, Linux

If you received a subscription link (its address contains `/sub/`) instead of a page, copy it and add it in the app as a subscription, usually with a **+** button and "Import from clipboard" or "Add from URL".

## Turn on VPN (TUN) mode

Most apps run either as a proxy or as a VPN. As a proxy only, some apps bypass the connection, and websites in your browser can sometimes see your real IP address (a WebRTC leak). Turn on the app's **VPN** or **TUN** mode so all traffic goes through the connection. To confirm, open any leak-check site: the address it shows should differ from your usual one.

## The entries in your app

Your app lists several entries, named by country and method, such as "🇩🇪 DE · Reality · Chrome" or "🇩🇪 DE · XHTTP · Chrome". They are different routes to the same service; one may work on a network where another is blocked. Entries marked "via relay" go through an extra server first. If your app offers an automatic entry, use it; it switches to a working route by itself.

## When it stops working

1. **Refresh the subscription.** Your app updates it on its own; to update it now, open the subscription (or profile) list in the app and tap **Update**. This picks up new servers and routes.
2. **Try another entry.** Pick one with a different method, or one "via relay".
3. **Check your device's clock.** A clock that is off by more than a minute can make connections fail; turn on automatic date and time.
4. **Run the connection check.** Turn your VPN app off so the check sees your real network. Open your connection page, expand **Not connecting?** and **Check my connection**, and tap **Run check**. Then tap **Copy report** and send it to the person who gave you the link; the report contains no links or keys.
5. **Ask for help.** If the connection page itself no longer opens, your network may be blocking the server. Tell the person who runs it; [recovering from a block](/en/recovery.md) is part of their job, and your app picks up the new route on its next refresh.