SHADOWSOCKS-LIBEV(8)

📦
version 3.3.6 · 9 versions
, in opensuse-leap 16.0

🌸 NAME 🌸

okay bestie, welcome to the Shadowsocks-libev Manual page for shadowsocks-libev — the lightweight and secure socks5 proxy, no cap. 💅

It’s a port of the original shadowsocks created by clowwindy, and it’s written in pure C while taking advantage of libev to achieve both high performance and low resource consumption. ✨

✨ SYNOPSIS ✨

The whole squad lines up like this, exactly:

ss-local|ss-redir|ss-server|ss-tunnel|ss-manager [-s <server_host>] [-p <server_port>] [-l <local_port>] [-k <password>] [-m <encrypt_method>] [-f <pid_file>] [-t <timeout>] [-c <config_file>]

🦋 DESCRIPTION 🦋

shadowsocks-libev is literally a lightweight and secure socks5 proxy. It’s a port of the original shadowsocks created by clowwindy, written in pure C, and it uses libev to get both high performance and low resource consumption. iconic behavior, honestly. 👑

The squad has five components. ss-server(1) runs on a remote server and provides the secured tunnel service. ss-local(1) and ss-redir(1) are clients on your local machines that proxy traffic (TCP/UDP or both). ss-tunnel(1) is the tool for local port forwarding. 🫶

ss-local(1) works as a standard socks5 proxy, while ss-redir(1) works as a transparent proxy and requires netfilter’s NAT module. For more information, check out the EXAMPLE section, bestie. 🔥

ss-manager(1) is the controller for multi-user management and traffic statistics, using a UNIX domain socket to talk with ss-server(1). It also provides a UNIX domain socket or IP based API for other software. For the details of this API, please refer to the PROTOCOL section. 🌈

👑 OPTIONS 👑

Every flag, every caveat, every little detail — kept intact, fr fr:

  • -s <server_host> — sets the server’s hostname or IP. 🌐
  • -l <local_port> — sets the local port number. Not available in server nor manager mode. 🚫
  • -k <password>, --password <password> — sets the password. The server and the client should use the same password. 🔐
  • --key <key_in_base64> — sets the key directly. The key should be encoded with URL-safe Base64. Not available in manager mode. 🗝️
  • -m <encrypt_method> — sets the cipher. shadowsocks-libev accepts 19 different ciphers: aes-128-gcm, aes-192-gcm, aes-256-gcm, rc4-md5, aes-128-cfb, aes-192-cfb, aes-256-cfb, aes-128-ctr, aes-192-ctr, aes-256-ctr, bf-cfb, camellia-128-cfb, camellia-192-cfb, camellia-256-cfb, chacha20-ietf-poly1305, xchacha20-ietf-poly1305, salsa20, chacha20 and chacha20-ietf. The default cipher is chacha20-ietf-poly1305. If built with PolarSSL or custom OpenSSL libraries, some of these ciphers may not work. 😭
  • -a <user_name> — runs as a specific user. 👤
  • -f <pid_file> — starts shadowsocks as a daemon with a specific pid file. 🧚
  • -t <timeout> — sets the socket timeout in seconds. The default value is 60. ⏳
  • -c <config_file> — uses a configuration file. 📄
  • -n <number> — specifies the max number of open files. Not available in manager mode. Only available on Linux. 🐧
  • -i <interface> — sends traffic through a specific network interface. For example, there are three interfaces on your device: lo (127.0.0.1), eth0 (192.168.0.1) and eth1 (192.168.0.2). Meanwhile, you configure shadowsocks-libev to listen on 0.0.0.0:8388 and bind to eth1. That results in the traffic going out through eth1, but not lo nor eth0. This option is useful to control traffic in a multi-interface environment. Not available in redir mode. 🛰️
  • -b <local_address> — specifies the local address to bind. For servers: specify the local address to use while this server is making outbound connections to remote servers on behalf of the clients. For clients: specify the local address to use while this client is making outbound connections to the server. Not available in manager mode. 🎯
  • -u — enables UDP relay. TPROXY is required in redir mode. You may need root permission. ⚡
  • -U — enables UDP relay and disables TCP relay. Not available in local mode. 🔄
  • -T — uses tproxy instead of redirect (for tcp). Only available in redir mode. 🌀
  • -L <addr:port> — specifies the destination server address and port for local port forwarding. Only available in tunnel mode. 🚇
  • -d <addr> — sets up name servers for the internal DNS resolver (libc-ares). The default server is fetched from /etc/resolv.conf. Only available in server and manager mode. 🧠
  • --fast-open — enables TCP fast open. Not available in redir nor tunnel mode, with Linux kernel > 3.7.0. 🚀
  • --reuse-port — enables port reuse. Only available with Linux kernel > 3.9.0. ♻️
  • --no-delay — enables TCP_NODELAY. 📨
  • --tcp-incoming-sndbuf <size> — sets the TCP send buffer size for incoming connections. Not available in manager mode. 📥
  • --tcp-incoming-rcvbuf <size> — sets the TCP receive buffer size for incoming connections. Not available in manager mode. 📦
  • --tcp-outgoing-sndbuf <size> — sets the TCP send buffer size for outgoing connections. Not available in manager mode. 📤
  • --tcp-outgoing-rcvbuf <size> — sets the TCP receive buffer size for outgoing connections. Not available in manager mode. 🧺
  • --acl <acl_config> — enables ACL (Access Control List) and specifies the config file. Not available in redir nor tunnel mode. 🛂
  • --manager-address <path_to_unix_domain> — specifies the UNIX domain socket address. Only available in server and manager mode. 🔌
  • --executable <path_to_server_executable> — specifies the executable path of ss-server. Only available in manager mode. 🧭
  • -D <path>, --workdir <path> — specifies the working directory of ss-manager. Only available in manager mode. 📁
  • --nftables-sets <family:table:set> — specifies nftables sets for reporting malicious IPs. Only available in server mode, when built with nftables support. 🛡️
  • -v — enables verbose mode. 🗣️
  • -h|--help — prints the help message. 💖
tiny note, bestie: -p <server_port> is in the synopsis above, but the original options list doesn’t give it its own description here — so I’m not inventing one. 🫶

🎀 CONFIG FILE 🎀

Okay so the config file is written in JSON, and bestie, it is so easy to edit. Like, genuinely. No cap. ✨

The config file equivalent of the command line options is listed as an example below 💖 — one lil bullet per vibe, command line on the left, JSON on the right:

  • -s some.server.net → "server": "some.server.net"
  • -s some.server.net -p 1234 (client) → "server": "some.server.net:1234"
  • -p 1234 → "server_port": "1234"
  • -b 0.0.0.0 → "local_address": "0.0.0.0"
  • -b 10.0.0.2 → "local_ipv4_address": "10.0.0.2"
  • -b 2620:129:35::33 → "local_ipv6_address": "2620:129:35::33"
  • -l 4321 → "local_port": "4321"
  • -k "PasSworD" → "password": "PasSworD"
  • -m "aes-256-cfb" → "method": "aes-256-cfb"
  • -t 60 → "timeout": 60
  • -a nobody → "user": "nobody"
  • --acl "/path/to/acl" → "acl": "/path/to/acl"
  • --fast-open → "fast_open": true
  • --reuse-port → "reuse_port": true
  • --no-delay → "no_delay": true
  • --plugin "obfs-server" → "plugin": "obfs-server"
  • --plugin-opts "obfs=http" → "plugin_opts": "obfs=http"
  • -6 → "ipv6_first": true
  • -n "/etc/nofile" → "nofile": "/etc/nofile"
  • -d "8.8.8.8" → "nameserver": "8.8.8.8"
  • -L "somedns.net:53" → "tunnel_address": "somedns.net:53"
  • -u → "mode": "tcp_and_udp"
  • -U → "mode": "udp_only"
  • no -u nor -U options (default) → "mode": "tcp_only"
  • -T → "tcp_tproxy": true
  • (only in ss-manager’s config) → "port_password": {"1234":"PasSworD"}
👀 Eyes on that last one — port_password is only a thing in ss-manager’s config. Don't come for me, I'm just the messenger 🫶

🌈 EXAMPLE 🌈

So ss-redir requires netfilter's NAT function — that's the whole vibe check it needs to pass. Here is an example 💅:

# Create new chain
iptables -t nat -N SHADOWSOCKS
iptables -t mangle -N SHADOWSOCKS

# Ignore your shadowsocks server's addresses
# It's very IMPORTANT, just be careful.
iptables -t nat -A SHADOWSOCKS -d 123.123.123.123 -j RETURN

# Ignore LANs and any other addresses you'd like to bypass the proxy
# See Wikipedia and RFC5735 for full list of reserved networks.
# See ashi009/bestroutetb for a highly optimized CHN route list.
iptables -t nat -A SHADOWSOCKS -d 0.0.0.0/8 -j RETURN
iptables -t nat -A SHADOWSOCKS -d 10.0.0.0/8 -j RETURN
iptables -t nat -A SHADOWSOCKS -d 127.0.0.0/8 -j RETURN
iptables -t nat -A SHADOWSOCKS -d 169.254.0.0/16 -j RETURN
iptables -t nat -A SHADOWSOCKS -d 172.16.0.0/12 -j RETURN
iptables -t nat -A SHADOWSOCKS -d 192.168.0.0/16 -j RETURN
iptables -t nat -A SHADOWSOCKS -d 224.0.0.0/4 -j RETURN
iptables -t nat -A SHADOWSOCKS -d 240.0.0.0/4 -j RETURN

# Anything else should be redirected to shadowsocks's local port
iptables -t nat -A SHADOWSOCKS -p tcp -j REDIRECT --to-ports 12345

# Add any UDP rules
ip rule add fwmark 0x01/0x01 table 100
ip route add local 0.0.0.0/0 dev lo table 100
iptables -t mangle -A SHADOWSOCKS -p udp --dport 53 -j TPROXY --on-port 12345 --tproxy-mark 0x01/0x01

# Apply the rules
iptables -t nat -A PREROUTING -p tcp -j SHADOWSOCKS
iptables -t mangle -A PREROUTING -j SHADOWSOCKS

# Start the shadowsocks-redir
ss-redir -u -c /etc/config/shadowsocks.json -f /var/run/shadowsocks.pid
💀 Real talk though — that 123.123.123.123 line is very IMPORTANT, so just be careful, okay? Like actually. Don't skip it. 🔥

🛰️ PROTOCOL (the actual fun part)

okay so ss-manager(1) is literally serving several APIs through a UDP protocol and honestly? iconic. here's the whole vibe 👑

Send UDP commands in this exact format to the manager-address you handed to ss-manager(1):

command: [JSON data]

that's it, that's the whole handshake bestie 💅 like, command, colon, JSON. periodt.

💖 To add a port

add: {"server_port": 8001, "password":"7cd308cc059"}

boom, new port, slay ✨ (copy that JSON exactly, the quotes and spacing are doing the lord's work)

🗑️ To remove a port

remove: {"server_port": 8001}

bye bye port, you had a good run 🫶

🏓 To receive a pong

ping

no JSON, no drama, just vibes. it's giving "just checking in" 😌

Then — and this is the good part — ss-manager(1) will send back the traffic statistics:

stat: {"8001":11370}

like it literally reports back with the numbers, main character energy fr fr 🔥 (the key is the port, the value is the traffic stat — that's the shape of it, iykyk)

⚠️ heads up bestie: this is all UDP. no TCP, no retries, no little helping hand catching your packet if it gets lost. keep that in mind before you go trusting every ping 💀

👀 SEE ALSO

go read the rest of the family, they're all icons in their own right 🎀

okay that's the whole page bestie, you made it to the end 🎉💖 go forth and configure responsibly. this one's Shadowsocks-libev 3.3.6, dated 10/11/2026 — so yes, future-dated manual page, we stan a time traveler ⭐ no cap. mwah 💋🌸

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