Changelog

1.16 (2026-11-09)

A flip counter, and restart without a flip first.

Flip counter: the button shows how many times the app has reconnected this game, amber one before your limit and red at it. Past the limit a tap only warns, and a second tap flips. Some games remove a player after too many reconnects in one match.
In Settings > Flip counter you can switch it off, set the limit (10 by default) and how many minutes with no flip start a new game (6 by default). New game in the notification resets it by hand.
An emergency restart counts as a reconnect too, since the app rejoins from scratch.
New option, Hold the button to restart (off by default): hold the button still for about a second to get the restart question at any time, without a flip first. Dragging still moves the button, and it always asks first.
Stop stays reachable: the notification comes back whenever the floating button hides.
Still no internet permission.

Install over the top of any earlier version; your settings are kept.

Verify the download: - APK SHA-256: b6b0b12d0c0a80ae161bf3b9003d529ed343e7b741c410f0cf32401ba715b886 - Signing certificate SHA-256: 23c4cf27a70b2b804f58726183bd771e6fd1844853e9362b4c43a4e92263b179 (same as every release)

1.15 (2026-10-14)

Works with Private DNS set to a provider name.

With Private DNS set to a provider name (for example an ad-blocking DNS), apps inside the tunnel had no internet, because Android would not look names up for them. The tunnel now leaves name lookups to your normal network, so they keep working and Private DNS stays on, still encrypted to your provider.
Check setup has a Private DNS row that says how it is set and whether anything needs changing.
If Android ever does block lookups in the tunnel, SocketFlip says so once, with the fix, instead of failing silently.
Thanks to @FAOlivieri for reporting this and for the details that made it reproducible (#1).
Still no internet permission.

Install over the top of any earlier version; your settings are kept.

Verify the download: - APK SHA-256: 863821ec458cc6be914b71b6a59581f296aac96b8ed855aae46df5ac7bae467b - Signing certificate SHA-256: 23c4cf27a70b2b804f58726183bd771e6fd1844853e9362b4c43a4e92263b179 (same as every release)

1.14 (2026-10-12)

Easier to see, hear and reach, ready for translators, and up to date for Android 17.

Easier to see, hear and reach

TalkBack now names every slider and reads its value in words, reads the status and setup check marks as words (OK, Warning, Problem), announces the selected skin and each colour, and the floating button says whether the tunnel is up and how much cooldown is left.
Warnings and status text are easier to read in light mode, and the theme's accent colour is checked for contrast, with a clear blue used instead if it would be hard to read.
Settings now opens with Behaviour, so the cooldown is the first thing you see; Appearance comes after it. Reset appearance turns into Undo reset for a few seconds.
The colour picker works when starting from black, scrolls on small screens, and the preview fits large button sizes.
A small floating button still has a touch area of at least 48 dp around it, so a near miss does not land on the app underneath.
With large text the target list puts Cooldown and Remove on their own line, and on tablets and in landscape the screens stay a readable width instead of stretching.

Ready for translators, and up to date under the hood

Every piece of text, including the skin names, is now in one file that translators can work from, with no sentences glued together from pieces. German, Brazilian Portuguese, Spanish, French and Russian are the first languages wanted: see Translations in the README.
The Check setup report stays in English whatever language your phone is in, so a bug report can always be read.
The size slider shows a percentage of the normal size instead of dp, and cooldowns read in whole words ("10 seconds").
Built with the current Android build tools and now targets Android 16. Nothing changes in how SocketFlip works; the permissions are the same.

Up to date for Android 17

SocketFlip now targets Android 17. Nothing changes in how it works; the permissions are the same.
The floating button handles a TalkBack double-tap through the same path as a finger tap.
Still no internet permission.

Install over the top of any earlier version; your settings are kept.

Verify the download: - APK SHA-256: 0fa1443fa66b3148cd522ed0ac8569ed5cac8889398a24e66799121040981721 - Signing certificate SHA-256: 23c4cf27a70b2b804f58726183bd771e6fd1844853e9362b4c43a4e92263b179 (same as every release)

1.13 (2026-10-08)

Share it, and steadier.

Share SocketFlip on the main screen sends the app itself (the same signed APK as this release) to a friend over Quick Share or a chat app, or just the download link.
A permanent Your numbers card: reconnects in total and this week, and emergency restarts used. Share sends it as one line of text. The counts never leave your phone unless you share them.
Check setup > Copy report now includes those counts.
Once your copy is more than 30 days old, the About card says so and points at Updates. SocketFlip still never checks online.

Steadier

The emergency restart question is quicker to answer mid-game: "Restart (app)?" with two big buttons, a red Restart and a plain Cancel; Back or a tap outside cancels. It still appears when you tap the red ! during the cooldown, and always asks first. Open App info (Force stop) moved to Settings.
Press and hold on the floating button is only for moving it: a hold you let go of without moving no longer counts as a tap, so it never flips and never offers a restart.
With emergency restart off, a tap the cooldown ignores now gives a short "no" buzz (Android 11 and newer) and a pulse of the ring, instead of the same buzz and flash as a real flip.
Your settings are now part of your phone's own backup, so a reinstall or a new phone keeps your apps, cooldowns and look. Only that one settings file is included.
On Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO phones, Check setup shows the "Open new windows while running in the background" permission that emergency restart needs, with a Fix button.
Following the target app (the two Usage access settings) now pauses while the screen is off.
Under the hood: unit tests for the core logic, and the APK is signed with v3 as well as v2 (same key), so the key could be rotated later.
Still no internet permission.

Install over the top of any earlier version; your settings are kept.

Verify the download: - APK SHA-256: 65debd713927ebafcb039082e6cf50e262ef07c7b8869aa6278ee028366a151e - Signing certificate SHA-256: 23c4cf27a70b2b804f58726183bd771e6fd1844853e9362b4c43a4e92263b179 (same as every release)

1.12 (2026-10-05)

One tap to start, and an easier first run.

One tap to start

Put a shortcut for your app on the home screen: under Target apps, tap Home screen shortcut.
Tapping it ticks the app if needed, shows the floating button and opens the app in one go. The icon is the app's own at full size (your home screen may add a small SocketFlip mark to it).
If the tunnel is already up for other apps, the shortcut takes it down first, so the first tap reconnects this app too. If another VPN app is on and you have not seen SocketFlip's warning about it yet, the shortcut opens SocketFlip to show it first.

An easier first run

After you allow Display over other apps, SocketFlip carries on by itself: no second tap, and the next step stays on screen ("Step 2 of 3").
Before Android's VPN warning appears, SocketFlip says what it means: the tunnel covers only your ticked apps, nothing is read from it, and there is no internet permission.
A new app picker with icons and a search box. Apps that Android knows are games are listed first.
When a tap cannot reconnect, the reason now stays in a notification; tap it to open Check setup.
Check setup: Fix on Target apps opens the app list, and Report a problem opens a new bug report in your browser with the setup report filled in (never your apps).
Home screen shortcuts that cannot run yet say why and walk you through the setup.
A new adaptive icon that follows your launcher's shape, with a themed (monochrome) version.
Still no internet permission.

Install over the top of any earlier version; your settings are kept.

Verify the download: - APK SHA-256: 18a16bef6c7c72ae84d2f7382f3ade8f63476a3ba7f7a06f0e02ede04e48e1cb - Signing certificate SHA-256: 23c4cf27a70b2b804f58726183bd771e6fd1844853e9362b4c43a4e92263b179 (same as every release)

1.11 (2026-10-01)

Automation, skins and an optional emergency restart.

Automation and home screen shortcuts

Automation apps (Tasker, MacroDroid, Key Mapper and similar) can now trigger a flip with a broadcast, once you allow it in Settings. Key Mapper can use it to flip on a volume button press. Off by default.
The broadcast must carry a private code shown in Settings (with a Copy button), so no other app can trigger it, and a stop request respects the cooldown like a flip.
Long-press the SocketFlip icon for Flip now, Show button and Hide button shortcuts.
See the guide for the broadcast details.

A cleaner look, and skins

The main screen, Settings and Check setup are laid out in cards, with one big button to show or hide the floating button.
New Skins row in Settings: 14 ready-made looks, from quiet dark ones to bright ones, including Clear Pair, whose two colours stay easy to tell apart with red-green colour blindness. Tap one to use it, then tweak anything you like.
The arrow on the button can now be mirrored so it turns the other way.

An optional emergency restart

For the rare time an app stays stuck on its reconnecting screen: turn on Settings > Emergency restart and, while the cooldown runs, the button turns into a red !. Tap it and SocketFlip asks whether to restart the app.
It always asks first, and if it cannot ask it restarts nothing, so a stray tap never restarts anything. Off by default.
It closes the app's screens and opens it again, and most games start fresh. If an app survives that, Open App info (Force stop) opens its App info page. Android does not let one app force-stop another directly.
It keeps opening the app again for up to 12 seconds, until the app is back on screen, and after the first few seconds stops if you switch to another app.
If the app takes a couple of seconds to close, the restart brings it back by itself instead of leaving you on the home screen, and the button stays on screen until it has.
Still no internet permission.

Install over the top of any earlier version; your settings are kept.

Verify the download: - APK SHA-256: 14082d16bbb21c587400cb56ffd531789b10ae22ccca1ae1d1186b8de66c297d - Signing certificate SHA-256: 23c4cf27a70b2b804f58726183bd771e6fd1844853e9362b4c43a4e92263b179 (same as every release)

1.10 (2026-09-30)

More than one target app.

Add as many apps as you like and tick the ones you want: every ticked app is reconnected by each tap.
Each app can have its own cooldown; with several ticked, the longest applies.
The list has clear Cooldown and Remove buttons, and Remove asks before it removes anything.
Fixed: when your Wi-Fi renews its address and lists the same DNS servers in a different order, SocketFlip no longer rebuilds the tunnel, so the app is not disconnected an extra time.
Still no internet permission.

Install over the top of any earlier version; your settings are kept.

Verify the download: - APK SHA-256: d29c1da07762d55880e26cc64cc8aa2898c93128449e0aece901b5cb6f020dbe - Signing certificate SHA-256: 23c4cf27a70b2b804f58726183bd771e6fd1844853e9362b4c43a4e92263b179 (same as every release)

1.9 (2026-09-29)

Two optional settings that follow the app you are using.

Only show the button while the target app is on screen: the button stays out of the way everywhere else.
Take the tunnel down when I leave the target app: the VPN key disappears as soon as you switch away.
Both need Usage access, which SocketFlip only asks for when you turn one of them on. Both are off by default. On Android 15 and newer the app explains how to unlock the Usage access switch if it is greyed out.
Leaving means the home screen, or another app that stays in front for 2 seconds, so a purchase sheet or sign-in page over the app does not drop the tunnel. A drop inside the cooldown waits for the cooldown to end.
Fixed: after a quick swipe to the home screen and back, the button comes back over the app within a second instead of staying hidden.
Still no internet permission.

Install over the top of any earlier version; your settings are kept.

Verify the download: - APK SHA-256: a1888ab95651efe8cb7bbf09a11b8daab4b6f3d9e8f56cae3730221196add5e6 - Signing certificate SHA-256: 23c4cf27a70b2b804f58726183bd771e6fd1844853e9362b4c43a4e92263b179 (same as every release)

1.8 (2026-09-28)

Make the button your own.

New Appearance section in Settings with a full colour picker (wheel, brightness and hex code) for the button, the tunnel-up colour, the cooldown ring and the icon.
Opacity sliders for resting and just tapped, and a size slider. Opacity never goes below 15%, so the button can always be found.
A live preview shows every state as you change things, plus Default, Subtle and High contrast presets and a reset.
Optional: the button can snap to the screen edge when you let go.
Still no internet permission.

Install over the top of any earlier version; your settings are kept.

Verify the download: - APK SHA-256: 341314ec7af8cdd636efdcc1aef804798441b225a190e6f77d7088df7cae32fc - Signing certificate SHA-256: 23c4cf27a70b2b804f58726183bd771e6fd1844853e9362b4c43a4e92263b179 (same as every release)

1.7 (2026-09-27)

A Settings page, and a button that shows what it is doing.

New Settings page. The cooldown between taps can be set from 3 to 60 seconds (10 by default).
Vibration on tap and hint messages can each be switched off. Error messages are always shown.
The floating button is now blue while the tunnel is down and teal while it is up, and an amber ring counts down the cooldown.
Still no internet permission.

Install over the top of any earlier version; your settings are kept.

Verify the download: - APK SHA-256: 0612ec3424f804abbcf00e9748a7dca292c1e851d9920715ae701a43261323d5 - Signing certificate SHA-256: 23c4cf27a70b2b804f58726183bd771e6fd1844853e9362b4c43a4e92263b179 (same as every release)

1.6 (2026-09-26)

Opening SocketFlip no longer switches off your other VPN, plus a new Check setup screen.

Fixed: just opening SocketFlip (the main screen or Check setup) no longer switches off another VPN app. SocketFlip now warns you before anything replaces your VPN, and only when you turn the floating button on.
Fixed: if another VPN app is set as Always-on, SocketFlip now says so, with a button to Android's VPN settings, instead of doing nothing when you tap Show floating button.
Fixed: cancelling Android's VPN request now explains why SocketFlip asks, with Try again and Why is this safe? buttons.
Fixed: taking the tunnel down (Stop, or changing the target app) now starts the cooldown too, so the next tap cannot hit the app again while it is still reconnecting.
Fixed: the floating button explains instead of crashing if Android refuses to show it, and layout code is safer on Android 10.
Check setup lists every permission and setting SocketFlip needs, marked OK, warning or problem, with a Fix button next to anything that needs it.
Copy report puts your phone model, Android version and that whole list on the clipboard, ready to paste into a bug report. It never includes the name of the app you chose.
On Samsung, Xiaomi, OnePlus and other phones known to close background apps, SocketFlip offers once to be allowed to run in the background, so the floating button stops disappearing.
Still no internet permission.

Install over the top of any earlier version; your settings are kept.

Verify the download: - APK SHA-256: e02c546e14a21f3166c22eec551632144e95583bfd4170b10d93f7628dab302a - Signing certificate SHA-256: 23c4cf27a70b2b804f58726183bd771e6fd1844853e9362b4c43a4e92263b179 (same as every release)

1.5 (2026-09-25)

Name lookups keep working when you change network, and a warning before replacing another VPN.

Leaving Wi-Fi for mobile data (or the other way round) while the tunnel is up no longer breaks the target app's name lookups: SocketFlip now follows the new network's DNS servers.
If another VPN app is running, SocketFlip warns you once before its tunnel takes that VPN's place, and shows a short message whenever a tap replaces it.
The FAQ now explains which DNS servers the app uses while the tunnel is up.
Donate now lets you choose how to give: card or Google Pay, or Ko-fi.
Still no internet permission.

Install over the top of any earlier version; your settings are kept.

Verify the download: - APK SHA-256: d3411a60163393c7a41e84fd4c27b13649dc9351999e07e9464faef26159bb96 - Signing certificate SHA-256: 23c4cf27a70b2b804f58726183bd771e6fd1844853e9362b4c43a4e92263b179 (same as every release)

1.4 (2026-09-24)

Clearer feedback, and a Quick Settings tile that shows the tunnel state.

A tap that cannot start the tunnel now says why (no target app chosen, another VPN set as Always-on, SocketFlip could not start) instead of doing nothing.
A failed tap no longer triggers the 10 second cooldown message.
The Quick Settings tile lights up while the tunnel is up.
The one-time thank-you card now shows how many times SocketFlip has reconnected your app.
Still no internet permission. New way to support the app: Ko-fi.

Install over the top of any earlier version; your settings are kept.

Verify the download: - APK SHA-256: 3ac0a3ad111f326b91dacaef7c29c5a9c44ba74d40f16fd797f80c02413730ac - Signing certificate SHA-256: 23c4cf27a70b2b804f58726183bd771e6fd1844853e9362b4c43a4e92263b179 (same as every release)

1.3 (2026-09-24)

SocketFlip is now free software under the GNU GPL, version 3 or later.

Relicensed from MIT to GPL-3.0-or-later: you can use, study, change and share it, and any version you distribute must also be open source under the same licence. (Releases up to 1.2 were MIT.)
New Source code (GPL-3.0) button on the main screen.
Everything from 1.2 is unchanged: Donate and Check for updates buttons, no internet permission.

Install over the top of any earlier version; your settings are kept.

Verify the download: - APK SHA-256: 1d85ab5fd2d842b9b0954cdaf7b38e6ff97d47d40966a99ba30f903cb753c083 - Signing certificate SHA-256: 23c4cf27a70b2b804f58726183bd771e6fd1844853e9362b4c43a4e92263b179 (same as every release)

1.2 (2026-09-24)

New: Donate and Check for updates buttons.

A permanent Donate button on the main screen. It opens a Stripe tip page in your browser (card, Apple Pay, Google Pay). SocketFlip itself still has no internet permission.
A one-time thank-you card after your 25th flip. Not now hides it for good. Nothing ever pops up during use.
A Check for updates button that shows your installed version and opens this releases page in your browser. For automatic update alerts, see Obtainium.

Install over the top of 1.0 or 1.1; your settings are kept.

Verify the download: - APK SHA-256: d7e198b19b747e3d117ed16709706ca6ff020a13f24e311da3dcf2dc4d731061 - Signing certificate SHA-256: 23c4cf27a70b2b804f58726183bd771e6fd1844853e9362b4c43a4e92263b179 (same as every release)

1.1 (2026-09-24)

Fix: SocketFlip can no longer be set as the Always-on VPN.

On 1.0, if SocketFlip was chosen as the phone's Always-on VPN with "Block connections without VPN", the whole phone lost its internet connection, because SocketFlip's tunnel deliberately carries no traffic. 1.1 tells Android it does not support Always-on, so those switches are greyed out ("Not supported by this app"), and it shows a warning with a shortcut to the fix if it is ever set anyway.

If your phone lost its connection on 1.0: Settings > Network & internet > VPN, tap the gear next to SocketFlip, and turn both switches off. Then install this update over the top; your settings are kept.

Verify the download: - APK SHA-256: d5b74cc566de01f8fec088de3dae8152d93051118d7f067a1338581bfbf79051 - Signing certificate SHA-256: 23c4cf27a70b2b804f58726183bd771e6fd1844853e9362b4c43a4e92263b179 (same as 1.0)

1.0 (2026-09-24)

First release.

SocketFlip puts a small floating button over the app you choose. Tap it and Android closes that app's open TCP connections, so it reconnects straight away over your normal network. Nothing else on the phone is touched and no traffic passes through SocketFlip.

Install: download socketflip-1.0.apk below and follow the install guide. Android 10 or newer. Questions and problems: FAQ.

Verify the download: - APK SHA-256: f999997eac121acb39b1474107db9465bd1435e6686850910532d2a2a75ca392 - Signing certificate SHA-256: 23c4cf27a70b2b804f58726183bd771e6fd1844853e9362b4c43a4e92263b179

Every future release will be signed with the same certificate, so updates install over this one.

Older builds and every APK: GitHub releases.