VPN protocols for iOS

For every project, we design the networking layer around the service infrastructure: integrating sing-box, VLESS, and Hysteria2 while handling routing, configuration parsing, and the VPN tunnel lifecycle.

VLESS is the default protocol for most deployments. It is lightweight by design, carrying minimal overhead per packet, and its traffic patterns resist deep packet inspection. For providers operating in restrictive network environments, VLESS delivers reliable connectivity where heavier protocols often fail.

Hysteria2 complements VLESS for a different set of conditions. Built on QUIC, it thrives on lossy and high-latency networks — mobile data, congested Wi-Fi, cross-continental links. Its aggressive congestion control fills available bandwidth quickly, giving users noticeably faster speeds when packet loss would cripple a TCP-based tunnel.

Provider subscription URLs follow the standard format and work out of the box. The user pastes the link into Skipfy, and the app parses, validates, and connects. On iOS, the entire tunnel runs inside a NetworkExtension process, meaning the VPN stays active even when the app is in the background and survives app termination gracefully.