# The Short User Manual This user manual contains information about how to download Tor, how to use it, what to do when Tor is unable to connect to the network, and so on. If you can't find the answer to your question in this document, email . How Tor works ------------- Tor is a network of virtual tunnels that allows you to improve your privacy and security on the Internet. Tor works by sending your traffic through three random servers in the network, before the traffic is sent back out onto the public Internet. ![How Tor Works](images/how-tor-works.png) The image above illustrates a user browsing to the Twitter website over Tor. The green monitors represent servers in the Tor network, while the three locks represent the layers of encryption between the user and each server that the user is sending the traffic through. Tor will anonymize the origin of your traffic, and it will encrypt everything between you and the Tor network. Tor will also encrypt your traffic inside the Tor network, but it cannot encrypt your traffic between the Tor network and its final destination. If you are communicating sensitive information, for example when logging on to a website with a username and password, make sure that you are using HTTPS (e.g. **https**://twitter.com, not **http**://twitter.com). How to download Tor ------------------- The package that we recommend to most users is the [Tor Browser Bundle](https://www.torproject.org/projects/torbrowser.html.en). This bundle contains a browser preconfigured to safely browse the Internet through Tor, and requires no installation. You download the package, extract the archive, and start Tor. There are two different ways to get hold of the Tor software. You can either browse to the [Tor Project website](https://www.torproject.org/) and download it there, or you can use GetTor, the email autoresponder. ### How to get Tor via email To receive the English Tor Browser Bundle for Windows via email, send an email to with **windows** in the body of the message. You can leave the subject blank. You can also request the Tor Browser Bundle for Mac OS X (write **macos-i386** for Intel Macs or **macos-ppc** for older PPC Macs). It is also available for Linux (write **linux-i386** for 32-bit systems or **linux-x86_64** for 64-bit systems). If you want a translated version of Tor, write **help** instead. You will then receive an email with instructions and a list of available languages. How to verify that you have the right version --------------------------------------------- The software you receive is accompanied by a file with the same name as the package and the extension **.asc**. This .asc file is a GPG signature, and will allow you to verify the file you've downloaded is exactly the one that we intended you to get. Before you can verify the signature, you will have to download and install GnuPG: **Windows**: [http://gpg4win.org/download.html](http://gpg4win.org/download.html) **Mac OS X**: [http://macgpg.sourceforge.net/](http://macgpg.sourceforge.net/) **Linux**: Most Linux distributions come with GnuPG preinstalled. Please note that you may need to edit the paths and the commands used below to get it to work on your system. Erinn Clark signs the Tor Browser Bundles with key 0x63FEE659. To import Erinn's key, run: gpg --keyserver hkp://keys.gnupg.net --recv-keys 0x63FEE659 After importing the key, verify that the fingerprint is correct: gpg --fingerprint 0x63FEE659 You should see: pub 2048R/63FEE659 2003-10-16 Key fingerprint = 8738 A680 B84B 3031 A630 F2DB 416F 0610 63FE E659 uid Erinn Clark uid Erinn Clark uid Erinn Clark sub 2048R/EB399FD7 2003-10-16 To verify the signature of the package you downloaded, run the following command: gpg --verify tor-browser-2.2.33-2_en-US.exe.asc tor-browser-2.2.33-2_en-US.exe The output should say *"Good signature"*. A bad signature means that the file may have been tampered with. If you see a bad signature, send details about where you downloaded the package from, how you verified the signature, and the output from GnuPG in an email to . How to use the Tor Browser Bundle --------------------------------- After downloading the Tor Browser Bundle and extracting the package, you should have a directory with a few files in it. One of the files is an executable called "Start Tor Browser" (or "start-tor-browser", depending on your operating system). When you run this file, Vidalia will start and connect you to the Tor network. Once that is done, you'll see a browser start up and confirm that you are now using Tor. **Please note that it is important that you use the browser that comes with the bundle, and not your own browser.** What to do when Tor does not connect ------------------------------------ Some users will notice that Vidalia gets stuck when trying to connect to the Tor network. If this happens, make sure that you are connected to the Internet. If you need to connect to a proxy server, see below for how to configure Tor to use a proxy. If Tor still doesn't work, it's likely that your Internet Service Provider (ISP) is blocking Tor. Very often this can be worked around with **Tor bridges**, hidden servers that aren't as easy to block. ### How to find a bridge To use a bridge, you will first have to locate one; you can either browse to [bridges.torproject.org](https://bridges.torproject.org), or you can send an email to . If you do send an email, please make sure that you write **get bridges** in the body of the email. Without this, you will not get a reply. Note that you need to send this email from either a gmail.com or a yahoo.com address. ### How to use a bridge Once you have a set of bridges to use, open the Vidalia control panel, click on *Settings*, *Network* and tick the box that says *My ISP blocks connections to the Tor network*. Enter the bridges in the box below, hit *OK* and start Tor again. Configuring more than one bridge address will make your Tor connection more stable, in case some of the bridges become unreachable. ### How to use an open proxy If using a bridge does not work, try configuring Tor to use any HTTPS or SOCKS proxy to get access to the Tor network. This means even if Tor is blocked by your local network, open proxies can be safely used to connect to the Tor Network and on to the uncensored Internet. The steps below assume you have a functional Tor/Vidalia configuration, and you have found a list of HTTPS, SOCKS4, or SOCKS5 proxies. 1. Open the Vidalia Control Panel, click on *Settings*. 2. Click *Network*. Select *I use a proxy to access the Internet*. 3. On the Address line, enter the open proxy address. This can be a hostname or an IP Address. 4. Enter the port for the proxy. 5. Generally, you do not need a username and password. If you do, enter the information in the proper fields. 6. Choose the Type of proxy you are using, whether HTTP/HTTPS, SOCKS4, or SOCKS5. 7. Push the *OK* button. Vidalia and Tor are now configured to use a proxy to access the rest of the Tor Network. Frequently Asked Questions -------------------------- This section will answer some of the most common questions asked on tor-assistants and community-support. If your question is not mentioned here, please send an email to and we'll get back to you as soon as possible. ### Cannot get the package from GetTor The Tor Browser Bundles for Linux and Mac OS X are rather large and needs your email provider to allow for attachments of about 30MB in size. You will not be able to receive any of these bundles with a Gmail, Hotmail or Yahoo account. If you cannot receive the package you want, send an email to and we will give you a list of website mirrors to use. ### Unable to extract the archive If you are using Windows and find that you cannot extract the archive, download and install [7-Zip](http://www.7-zip.org/). ### Vidalia asks for a password You should not have to enter a password when starting Vidalia. If you are prompted for one, you are likely affected by one of these problems: **You are already running Vidalia and Tor**: For example, this situation can happen if you installed the Vidalia bundle and now you're trying to run the Tor Browser Bundle. In that case, you will need to close the old Vidalia and Tor before you can run this one. **Vidalia crashed, but left Tor running**: If the dialog that prompts you for a control password has a Reset button, you can click the button and Vidalia will restart Tor with a new random control password. If you do not see a Reset button, or if Vidalia is unable to restart Tor for you; go into your process or task manager, and terminate the Tor process. Then use Vidalia to restart Tor. For more information, see the [FAQ](https://torproject.org/docs/faq.html.en#VidaliaPassword) on the Tor Project website. ### Flash does not work For security reasons, Flash, Java, and other plugins are currently disabled for Tor. Plugins operate independently from Firefox and can perform activity on your computer that ruins your anonymity. Most YouTube videos work with HTML5, and it is possible to view these videos over Tor. All you need to do is [join the HTML5 trial](https://www.youtube.com/html5) on the YouTube website. Please see the [Torbutton FAQ](https://www.torproject.org/torbutton/torbutton-faq.html.en#noflash) for more information. ### I want to use another browser For security reasons, we only recommend using Tor with Firefox and the Torbutton extension. It is technically possible to use Tor with other browsers, but by doing so you may open yourself up to potential attacks. ### Why Tor is slow Tor can sometimes be a bit slower than your normal Internet connection. After all, your traffic is sent through many different countries!