Adguard Release Notes

This update improves filtering reliability, makes settings easier to share, and adds helpful popups to keep things clear and predictable.

Filtering: Faster, stronger, better

Custom filters in MV3 can now update independently from extension updates again, so ad blocking stays accurate and responds to changes more quickly.

We also fixed an issue where the extension would mistakenly accept HTML pages as filter lists when you added a custom filter by URL, causing the filter to fail silently. The extension now validates sources properly, preventing situations where a filter appears to be added but doesn’t actually work.

Beyond filter improvements, we’ve refined the Allowlist — the list of sites where blocking is disabled. Previously, if you added a full page URL (for example, copied straight from your browser’s address bar), the Allowlist might ignore it and keep blocking ads on that site. That’s no longer an issue — the extension now extracts the domain automatically, so your exclusions work as expected.

Settings import: Show, don’t tell

You can now generate a URL containing your full extension configuration. This makes it easy to set up AdGuard on a new device or after reinstalling your browser. Share the link with a friend, colleague, or support team, and they’ll see your exact setup instantly.

If you’re an active GitHub user, you can now import settings directly from Issues — especially useful for filter developers and those helping test fixes.

Interface: Better prompted than puzzled

We've added a few small improvements to prevent confusion and make the extension behave more predictably.

Warning for Opera users. Opera doesn’t grant extensions access to search engine pages by default, which prevents AdGuard from blocking ads in search results. The extension popup now displays a notice explaining that you need to allow access to search pages in your browser settings.

Confirmation for Invert Allowlist. The Invert Allowlist feature reverses how the extension works: blocking is disabled everywhere except sites on the list. To prevent accidental activation, we’ve added a confirmation dialog that explains what will happen when you enable it.

Changelog

Improvements

• Added beta suffix to the version in issue reports
• Implemented handling of speculative prerender requests
• Added confirmation modal for inverting allowlist
• Enabled independent updates of custom filters in MV3 without waiting for extension updates
• Added warning notification in Opera when Allow access to search page results permission is not granted
• Added support for importing settings via adguard:import_user_configuration links on reports.adguard.com
• HTTP Last-Modified header is now used as fallback when TimeUpdated metadata is missing
• Improved allowlist editor: now normalizes entries by extracting domains from URLs
• Updated issue report URL format to v4
• Cookie self-destruct stealth parameters are now MV2-only in issue reports (not supported on MV3)
• Added ROList support to Filters in MV3
• Added Share settings button to the main screen
• Updated @adguard/filters-downloader to v2.4.4
• Updated @adguard/dnr-rulesets to v4.2.1

Fixes

• Update indicator arrow flickers when opening the popup
• $badfilter incorrectly negates rules with different $denyallow values
• Filtering log window size and position are not restored with zoom
• Blocking page is incorrectly displayed for search results
• Invalid CSS selectors in element hiding rules affect all injected styles
• Hide Referer from third parties stealth option sets incorrect referrer value (missing trailing slash)
• $removeparam rules do not remove all tracking parameters when multiple rules match the same URL in MV3
• Block ads manually does not work on tabs opened before the update
• Extension does not always update filters after browser startup
• Blocked requests in cross-domain iframes are not counted in the extension badge
• Custom filter subscription accepts URLs returning HTML instead of filter lists

AGTree (A tool for working with adblock filter lists)

• Updated @adguard/agtree to v4.1.1

TSUrlFilter (AdGuard Browser Extension filtering engine)

• Updated @adguard/tsurlfilter to v5.0.1

TSWebExtension (Library wrapper for Browser API and TSUrlFilter)

• Updated @adguard/tswebextension to v4.1.1

Scriptlets (JavaScript enhancement for filtering rules)

• Updated Scriptlets to v2.4.2

v7.22.4 introduces SockFilter

This is one of those moments where a patch deserves the same attention as a full release: v7.22.4 introduces SockFilter, a new, experimental lightweight network driver for AdGuard for Windows. While still far from perfect (you will probably find a few bugs here and there), we’re confident in its potential to make AdGuard better in the future.

Why introduce a new driver at all?

Until now, AdGuard for Windows relied mostly on a WFP driver. WFP is powerful, but it also comes with complexity, compatibility challenges, and stability issues.
The TDI driver used to be an alternative, and while it is still available, it’s an outdated solution and may lead to filtering issues in some versions of Google Chrome. A temporary workaround exists, but it’s not a reliable long-term solution.
The conclusion was simple: it was time for a change. That’s why we’re introducing SockFilter — it brings a different approach that works especially well for ad blocking, plus it’s the solution we’ve been waiting for to finally put these problems behind us.

The advantages of SockFilter

When fully tested and implemented, SockFilter has the potential to bring several advantages over other drivers. Right now, it’s still experimental and unstable, so you might not see all the benefits yet. But here’s a look at what’s possible in the future:

• Better interaction with other network apps: SockFilter is designed to cooperate smoothly with VPNs, firewalls, and antivirus software. By avoiding clashes over network control, it can help prevent connection issues and make everything work together more reliably.
• Lower risk of system crashes: SockFilter works in a safer part of Windows networking, which can help it avoid deep system errors that can sometimes cause sudden blue-screen crashes. In practice, this can result in better stability and fewer chances of your system unexpectedly crashing while AdGuard is running.
• On track for better stability: SockFilter works closer to how apps normally use the Internet, instead of dealing with low-level network data, resulting in the potential to reduce complexity behind the scenes and making AdGuard more reliable in everyday use.

Known issues

So far, a small number of users have reported an issue with SockFilter: the new driver appears to interfere with voice and video calls on Discord. The problem was described on GitHub.
Our QA team has successfully reproduced the issue and is actively working on a fix. If you notice any related problems or have additional details to share, please let us know. Your feedback helps us resolve this faster.

How to start using it

Other issues may appear when using SockFilter, after all, Experimental mode means that it’s ready for testing and that there may be bugs. We’d love your help in finding them!
To test it, go to Settings → Network → Traffic filtering, enable traffic filtering, and select SockFilter (Experimental) from the list of available options. If you notice anything unusual, unexpected, or just plain broken, you can switch back to TDI or WFP at any time. In that case, please report the issue on GitHub — your feedback directly helps shape the future of AdGuard for Windows.

Changelog

• Added SockFilter driver #5780