Dropbox and other apps want an HTTP / SOCKS proxy — what to do

On networks in mainland China today, unencrypted proxies (plain HTTP, SOCKS4, SOCKS5) get detected and disrupted: they connect for a while, then slow down or drop, and they send your password in the clear. Only encrypted connections stay usable, so the LeoTun web proxy is encrypted only and we no longer hand out plain HTTP / SOCKS5 addresses.

Browser extensions and command-line tools support encrypted proxies; apps like Dropbox only offer unencrypted options. That mismatch is the root reason a proxy entered in the app doesn't work.

• Wrong type: apps like Dropbox only offer HTTP, SOCKS4 and SOCKS5, all unencrypted; our proxy must be encrypted, so it can't be entered there.
• Unencrypted proxy addresses found online: even if one connects for a while, it gets disrupted — a proxy that works on and off is worse than none.
• Even a correct proxy only covers part of the app: many apps send only sign-in and sync through it, while updates, calls and LAN sync go direct; UDP traffic used by games and calls is never carried by an HTTP proxy.
• Every app needs its own settings: change region or password and you have to update each one; miss one and that app stops working.

Once Traffic Camouflage (Hiddify) is connected it takes over the computer's network, so every app goes through the tunnel with no settings at all — Dropbox, Telegram, Steam and dev tools in one go, UDP calls and games included. Its built-in "auto split" sends overseas services such as Dropbox through the tunnel while local apps and sites stay direct.

1. Open the Traffic Camouflage page on this site, download Hiddify for your system, and import by QR code or config URL (see the subscription import guide).
2. Connect in Hiddify's "VPN" mode (the default). Windows asks for administrator rights the first time; if antivirus flags it, exclude only the install folder.
3. Set each app's proxy back to "No proxy": in Dropbox, Preferences → Network → Proxies → "No proxy" (or "Auto-detect"); in Telegram Desktop, Settings → Advanced → Connection type → "Don't use proxy". Same for any other app with a proxy option.
4. Check: the Dropbox tray icon says "Up to date" and files start syncing; a what-is-my-IP page shows the region you picked.

• Dropbox: proxy "No proxy" or "Auto-detect". If you leave "Manual" with some other address, it will stay offline once Traffic Camouflage is off.
• Telegram Desktop: connection type "Don't use proxy". Its own MTProto / SOCKS5 proxy stacked on top of the tunnel only slows things down.
• OneDrive, Google Drive, iCloud for Windows: follow the system network — nothing to set.
• Steam, Epic, Battle.net: downloads and online play go through the tunnel; if downloads are slow, pick a closer region.
• Zoom, Teams, Slack, Discord: voice and video use UDP, which only whole-device methods carry — that's why chat works but calls don't through the web proxy.
• VS Code, JetBrains, Cursor: extension marketplaces and AI assistants follow the system network; clear any proxy you set inside the tool. For the command line, see the Linux guide's environment variables.

• Use the web version of Dropbox or your cloud drive through the web proxy in the browser — upload and download work, just no automatic sync.
• Command-line tools (git, pip, npm, curl) accept an encrypted proxy: put the web proxy address in https_proxy — see the Linux guide.
• Other desktop apps that only take HTTP / SOCKS5 have no workaround there; use them on a computer where you can install a client. Don't install a whole-device VPN on a work laptop to get around it — it trips corporate security alerts.