Ad blocking without a remote VPN

Use the built-in DNS ad filter in 2.1.0 with Direct traffic. The local MintFlow VPN must stay connected, but no remote VPN provider or MITM certificate is needed.

Enable built-in filtering

Choose Simple Mode with a Direct output, configure Direct DNS, then open DNS & Routing → DNS Ad Blocking, enable Block ads with DNS, choose one list, and save. Start VPN and inspect its active filter state.

This profile fragment expresses the same setup:

[dns]
app-routing-enabled=true
direct-dns=tls://1.1.1.1

[simple-mode]
enabled=true
output=type:DIRECT

[dns-adblock]
enabled=true
list=adguard-dns

All three presets include offline snapshots and update asynchronously. Check a domain against the active tunnel policy and inspect DNS Log's matched rule type.

Add your own rules

For specific domain or IP rules, use Rules Mode. A domain-set/keyword Drop or Reject is independent of the ad filter; a forwarding domain rule bypasses it. See the routing engine before adding exceptions.

DNS filtering cannot remove all ads, inspect every URL, or hide page placeholders. App-owned encrypted DNS, shared hostnames, and cached addresses can escape the check. Internal DNS guide.

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