Prostor - a Zapret alternative for Windows
Zapret is a free open-source unblocking utility: it reshapes network packets locally so that your ISP's DPI hardware fails to recognise the request to a blocked resource. It works, but the approach has limits: the strategy has to be tuned per ISP and re-tuned after every DPI update, setup runs through scripts and the command line, and services that block by IP themselves (ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini) stay closed.
Prostor solves the same problem differently: traffic to foreign services goes through an encrypted tunnel on the Xray core (VLESS, Hysteria2), while local sites keep going direct thanks to split tunnelling. No strategies, no scripts, no lists - a graphical app and a one-click connection.
Zapret and Prostor compared
| Zapret | Prostor | |
|---|---|---|
| How it works | Local packet manipulation to defeat DPI (WinDivert). Traffic is not encrypted and never leaves the ISP network | A secure tunnel through a foreign server on the Xray core (VLESS, Hysteria2) |
| ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini and services that block by IP | No help: your IP stays local, so the service keeps refusing access | They work: traffic reaches the internet from a foreign IP |
| Setup | Command line, bat scripts, hunting for a strategy with blockcheck for each ISP | A graphical app: install it, press Connect, done |
| When the ISP updates DPI | The strategy stops working - time to hunt for parameters again | Keeps working: DPI cannot see inside an encrypted tunnel |
| Traffic separation | Only domains from hostlist files are processed, and the lists are maintained by hand | Split tunnelling out of the box: local services direct, foreign ones through the proxy |
| Updates | Manual: watch GitHub releases, update the scripts and the service | Auto-update, msi / dmg / apk installers |
| Price | Free, open source | Free with your own keys and subscriptions; the in-app subscription is optional |
Where Zapret cannot help
Blocking by IP
ChatGPT, Claude and others refuse your IP themselves. Zapret does not change your address - you need an exit through a foreign server.
The ISP updated its DPI
A working strategy stops passing, and the blockcheck hunt for parameters starts over.
You want it simple
Scripts, services and hostlist files take time and experience. In Prostor a single Connect button replaces all of it.
Moving from Zapret to Prostor
- 1
Stop the Zapret service (winws) so its packet processing does not interfere with the tunnel.
- 2
Download Prostor for Windows 10/11 - a regular msi installer, no manual setup.
- 3
Add your key or subscription - or subscribe right in the app - and press Connect.