From 0b256c5b83c323a22140ad13bb195d201877a6fa Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Anthony Bilinski Date: Mon, 18 May 2020 03:29:21 -0700 Subject: [PATCH] chore(docs): add instructions for avoiding bootstrap node censorship Fix #5948 --- doc/user_manual_en.md | 21 ++++++++++++++++++++- 1 file changed, 20 insertions(+), 1 deletion(-) diff --git a/doc/user_manual_en.md b/doc/user_manual_en.md index 3b9b535b8..dc6c863c2 100644 --- a/doc/user_manual_en.md +++ b/doc/user_manual_en.md @@ -12,7 +12,8 @@ * [Keyboard Shortcuts](#keyboard-shortcuts) * [Commandline Options](#commandline-options) * [Emoji Packs](#emoji-packs) -* [Bootstrap nodes](#bootstrap-nodes) +* [Bootstrap Nodes](#bootstrap-nodes) +* [Avoiding Censorship](#avoiding-censorship) ## Profile corner @@ -466,6 +467,24 @@ stored in `bootstrapNodes.json` and can be found and modified if wanted at `~/.config/tox/` on Linux, `%APPDATA%\Roaming\tox` on Windows, and `~/Library/Application Support/Tox` on macOS. +## Avoiding Censorship + +Although Tox is distributed, to initially connect to the network +[public bootstrap nodes](https://nodes.tox.chat) are used. After first run, +other nodes will also be saved and reused on next start. We have seen multiple +reports of Tox bootstrap nodes being blocked in China. We haven't seen reports +of Tox connections in general being blocked, though Tox makes no effort to +disguise its connections. There are multiple options available to help avoid +blocking of bootstrap nodes: + +* Tox can be used with a VPN. +* Tox can be used with a proxy, including with Tor + * This can be done at [startup](#commandline-proxy-options) or + * By setting [connection settings](#connection-settings). +* [Custom bootstrap nodes](#bootstrap-nodes) can be set. Note that these +require the DHT key of the node, which is different from the longterm Tox +public key, and which changes on every start of a client, so it's best to use a +[bootstrap daemon](https://github.com/TokTok/c-toxcore/tree/master/other/bootstrap_daemon). [ToxMe service]: #register-on-toxme [user profile]: #user-profile