Telegram proxy errors: find the fix by what you see
Telegram gives almost no diagnostics when a proxy fails: it shows a status word and keeps retrying. This page maps each symptom to its likely cause, a check you can do in a minute and the page with the full fix. Status names are the exact wording of Telegram for Android, iPhone and Telegram Desktop.
Symptom, cause, check, fix
| What you see | Likely cause | Quick check | Full fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| “Connecting to proxy…” never ends | The server is down, blocked on your network, or saved with a mistake | Add a second server from a fresh list and compare | Stuck on “Connecting…” |
| “Unavailable” or “not available” next to a proxy | The app’s test got no working answer from that server | Test another saved proxy on the same network | “Unavailable” status |
| Connected, but “Updating…” never finishes | The server answers but is overloaded or slowed down | Send a message to Saved Messages, then switch servers | Stuck on “Updating…” |
| “Waiting for network” | The device itself is offline; the proxy is not involved | Open any website with VPN apps turned off | “Waiting for network” |
| The proxy link opens a web page or nothing | The browser did not pass the link to the app | Send the link to Saved Messages and tap it there | Proxy link does not open |
| “The proxy link is invalid.” | A parameter is missing or damaged, or the app is outdated | Split the link into parts with the link checker | “The proxy link is invalid” |
| “invalid secret” or “not configured correctly” | The secret is cut, edited or does not match the server | Count the characters: 32, 34 or longer with ee | Invalid secret |
| Works on Wi-Fi, fails on mobile data | The two networks block different servers or ports | Try a port 443 server on the failing network | Works on one network only |
| Connected, but media crawls | The server is overloaded, far away or throttled | Load the same video through two servers | Slow proxy |
| A SOCKS5 proxy will not connect | Wrong login, wrong type, or SOCKS5 traffic is blocked | Re-enter the login; try an MTProto server | SOCKS5 proxy not working |
| Messages work, calls do not | Calls do not go through the proxy at all | Call on another network or over a VPN | Calls fail with a proxy |
| The proxy fails only while a VPN is on | Two tunnels get in each other’s way | Turn one of them off and test again | Proxy and VPN together |
Error messages, word for word
Search this list for the exact text on your screen. Each message links to its explanation.
- “Connecting to proxy...”Android, iPhone
- “Connecting through proxy...”Desktop
- “Unavailable / not available”Android, iPhone, Desktop
- “The proxy may be unavailable. Try selecting another one.”iPhone
- “The proxy link is invalid.”Desktop
- “Your Telegram Desktop version doesn’t support this proxy type or the proxy link is invalid.”Desktop
- “This is not a proxy link.”Desktop
- “This proxy link uses invalid secret parameter.”Desktop
- “The proxy you are using is not configured correctly and will be disabled.”Android
- “Failed to connect”iPhone
- “Updating...”Android, iPhone
- “Waiting for network”Android, iPhone
- “This will expose your IP address to the admin of the proxy server.”Android, iPhone, Desktop
By app
Testing and proxy types
Try a server that passed our last check
These servers passed a full MTProto handshake from our checker. List built 17 October 2026 at 21:05 UTC; it is rebuilt every 20 minutes. A server that works for our checker can still be blocked on your network.
- Our checker lists 200 working proxies right now: 17 FakeTLS, 80 dd and 103 plain.
- Only one in eight proxy and VPN channels with 1,000+ subscribers had posted in the 30 days before our 13 August 2026 snapshot (12.5%), so a proxy copied from a channel is often long dead.
- On 9 October 2026, 53.5% of working proxies in our list used port 8443 and only 17.5% the standard HTTPS port 443, which matters on networks that let only common ports through.
Questions
Why does Telegram not say what is wrong with a proxy?
The app mostly knows one thing: whether the server answered in time. A dead server, a blocked address and a damaged secret often look the same from inside the app. That is why the checks here compare servers and networks.
What is the fastest fix for most proxy errors?
A server that passed a check a few minutes ago. Free proxies come and go within days, and most errors disappear with a fresh server.
Are the steps different in Iran or Russia?
The statuses are the same everywhere; what differs is how networks block. The main diagnostic is also available in Persian and Russian.
Do these pages promise that a proxy will work in my country?
No. Our checker tests servers from its own location. Only a test from your network shows whether a server is open for you, and the pages explain how to run one.