Get started with NetRoute
Learn how to route individual Windows applications through specific network adapters, understand the two routing paths, and choose the right protection for each rule.
Quick start
NetRoute’s installer adds both the desktop app and the background routing service.
- 1Install NetRoute
Download and run
NetRoute-Setup.exe. Approve the administrator prompt so Windows can register the service. - 2Open Applications
In NetRoute, choose Applications and select the executable you want to route.
- 3Choose an adapter
Assign Wi-Fi, Ethernet, a USB-tethered phone, or another active adapter.
- 4Apply the rule
Enable Strict Mode if the app must never fall back to Windows’ default connection.
Create a routing rule
Rules match a Windows executable to one adapter. From Applications, add the executable, select the assigned adapter, choose whether the rule is strict, then apply it.
Close existing connections or restart the target app after creating a rule so new connections use the selected route.
Automatic routing
The automatic path uses WinDivert to detect a matched app’s new connection and redirect it through the selected adapter. It requires no proxy setting inside the target app, making it the easiest option for browsers, games, and tools without proxy controls.
Manual proxy
For applications with their own HTTP/HTTPS proxy setting, NetRoute exposes a local proxy address for each adapter. Enter the address shown in the selected rule, for example 127.0.0.1:28184.
Because NetRoute creates the outbound connection itself, the route is correct from its first packet. This is the recommended path for download managers and any task where a first-attempt timeout matters.
The app supports a proxy and you want the most reliable first-connection behavior available in v1.0.
Strict Mode
Strict Mode prevents accidental fallback. If the assigned adapter disconnects, the application is blocked instead of moving to the default Windows route.
The app may show an offline or connection error until its assigned adapter returns. That block is the rule working as intended.
How NetRoute runs
The WPF interface provides the dashboard, rule editor, settings, and system tray controls.
The Windows Service performs routing and keeps enforcing active rules independently of the window.
Known limitation
Windows can send the first packet of a brand-new connection before NetRoute’s user-mode code finishes reacting to the kernel notification. That first attempt can occasionally time out. A retry—automatic in most apps—then works, and later connections to the same destination are unaffected.
Full automatic first-packet precision would require a signed Windows Filtering Platform kernel driver. Until then, use the manual proxy path where the first attempt must be exact.
Uninstall
Open Settings → Apps → NetRoute → Uninstall. The uninstaller stops and removes the routing service, shortcuts, and installed files.
Check the repository for release notes and open issues.