Clash Party Changed macOS DNS to 223.5.5.5? How to Restore It

When comparing with the macOS user report for Clash Party v2.0.3, record whether 223.5.5.5 appears in the network service after “system default DNS” is selected in the interface. The reporter in issue #2176 removed the address manually and saw it return after restarting; this record does not mean every device will reproduce it.

223.5.5.5 may also come from existing settings, so its presence alone does not prove the app wrote it. This macOS recovery procedure does not apply to Windows, router DNS, browser DoH (encrypted domain queries) or ordinary node failures.

In macOS System Settings > Network, select the Wi-Fi or Ethernet service actually in use, then open Details > DNS. Apple documents this as the place to view that service's DNS servers and search domains; do not rely solely on Clash Party's core DNS screen.

First, capture or record the DNS list, network service name, any existing work or home custom DNS, and the Clash Party version, TUN state, and Helper state. If you intentionally configured 223.5.5.5 or the device is managed by an organization, do not treat the address as an error and remove it outright.

On the same network, compare the DNS lists before startup, after startup and after a full quit. Do not also change subscriptions, rules or the system proxy during the comparison. Continue only if the active service gained this address. Wi-Fi and Ethernet may have different DNS settings; confirm the active network service again after switching networks.

First turn off network interception features in Clash Party that require Helper, such as TUN, then fully quit the app. Turning off TUN only reduces the number of active features; it does not guarantee that the app will stop executing code that changes system DNS. Still check the macOS network settings after quitting.

If 223.5.5.5 is the only unintended addition to the active network service and you have saved the original settings, select and remove just that entry through Apple's documented DNS settings. Keep existing work DNS, search domains, and other services' settings intact. Then disconnect and reconnect the current network and check whether that service's DNS matches the expected values.

If DNS was configured manually, restore the original servers from your notes. If the network supplied servers automatically, remove only the unintended manual entry. Apple's networksetup documentation also supports clearing manual DNS for a named service, but mistakes in the service name or permissions raise the risk; most users should use the graphical settings instead.

If the system says a configuration profile or organization manages the setting, stop making manual changes and contact the administrator. Deleting Clash Party's data directory, Helper files, or system plist files for a DNS anomaly can erase configuration or make the failure worse; it is not part of this rollback.

First, confirm that the network service's DNS in System Settings matches the original values you recorded and that a real HTTPS request works. Restart the Mac or reconnect to the same network and check again. Seeing “system-default DNS” in Clash Party's core settings alone does not establish that the system setting has been restored.

If you need to keep using Clash Party, leave TUN off, launch the app, and watch whether the same service's DNS changes again. If the change recurs only after launch or Helper activity, stop using that mode and record the exact sequence. Do not repeatedly write DNS back and obscure the recurrence.

If DNS stops changing but pages still fail, check the system proxy, current Profile, nodes and browser DoH. The system DNS addresses and the DNS resolution rules in proxy configuration are separate settings. A single test site's address is not enough to confirm recovery.

If DNS keeps changing after Clash Party has fully quit, do not continue attributing it directly to #2176. Check for other running VPNs, DNS filters, device-management profiles, or older clients, and note when the same network service changes. Do not uninstall multiple tools at once or you will lose the comparison.

Clash Party's official macOS troubleshooting guide identifies the Helper service as party.mihomo.helper and documents its log location. Only after confirming that it belongs to the current installation should an administrator stop it as documented and observe whether the DNS changes stop. Do not directly delete plist files, executables, or the entire data directory.

If reporting upstream, include the macOS version, full Clash Party version, active network service, DNS lists before and after launch, TUN state, and the first relevant log entry. Redact the subscription URL, node passwords, device identifiers, and personal network details before sharing screenshots or logs publicly.

If connectivity worsens after removing 223.5.5.5, first restore the network service's DNS, search domains, and proxy state from your pre-change notes, then reconnect. For work or school settings, restore the values provided by the administrator. A public DNS address is not a universal fix for every network.

Keep Clash Party's TUN off and avoid any mode suspected of rewriting DNS. If you need a temporary proxy, first confirm that system DNS and ordinary connectivity are restored, then consider a verified setup that does not depend on that Helper. Recheck system DNS after enabling each feature.

Do not roll back to an unverified installer just because an older version appeared to work, and do not copy the data-directory deletion steps from the official macOS installation troubleshooting guide into this case. Maintainers have not concluded a fix for #2176; reassess only against a later project issue, Release, or commit.