On the interaction between '120=Filter' and '441=List'

[gtcore1]

When I set up and enabled the list of excluded nodes (country codes) in '441=List', after clicking the Apply button, the settings in '120=Filter' automatically change to 'Selected Countries', and my settings are reflected below, but I also noticed some issues.

1. The excluded countries displayed in '120=Filter' are newly added, and were not there before. Does this mean that countries without node scan records will not appear here? Isn't this a bit inconvenient?
2. The excluded node country codes I set and some pre-set node configurations in the program are both displayed in '120=Filter'. Editing the entry, relay, or exit node settings below has no effect in '441=List', and even enabling the relevant list in '441=List' does not change anything. However, if I edit excluded nodes in '120=Filter', it will be reflected in '441=List'.
3. If I uncheck the excluded nodes (country codes) list in '441=List' but do not delete the contents of the list, after clicking Apply, the excluded countries settings displayed in '120=Filter' do not change. But if the contents of the excluded nodes (country codes) list in '441=List' are cleared, the excluded countries settings displayed in '120=Filter' are also cleared.
4. If the pre-set settings in '120=Filter' are cleared first, and then the excluded nodes (country codes) list is set and enabled in '441=List', after clicking Apply, the settings in '120=Filter' automatically change to 'No Filter' and cannot be modified.
5. It is completely unclear what the setting '474=Only countries from the Filter' does.

Overall, from an ordinary user's perspective, the logic and linkage mechanisms in these areas are quite confusing and difficult for users to understand. At the same time, it is unclear whether some pre-set node configurations in the software are suitable for users in different countries, which list they are in, and whether they can be deleted.

[abysshint]

1. I don't understand what you mean here. All countries are displayed in “Settings - Filter” If the “Hide unused countries” option is enabled in the filter settings, then countries that do not have Tor nodes and that the user has not selected with a ★ are not displayed. This works regardless of the network scanner results.
2. “Selected countries” and “Favorite nodes” are two different lists of nodes. The first list contains only the countries you select in the “Settings - Filter” section. The second list is for advanced users; in addition to {country codes}, this list can include Fingerprint, IP, and CIDR. This list is created in the “Relays” section, but for ease of editing, it is also available as text in the “Settings – Lists” section. The “Excluded nodes” list is SHARED between both filter modes. Why is this the case? Because initially, the program had only one mode: “Selected countries,” and later, the “Relays” section was added, along with the ability to select not only countries but also individual nodes. Beginners use countries, while advanced users use Selected nodes.
3. See point 2 – The Excluded Nodes list is SHARED by both modes. The “Excluded nodes” list is an advanced list and can contain all types of nodes (Fingerprint, IP, CIDR, {cc}). This list adds the ExcludeNodes option in the torrc. Even if you have disabled the node list and it will not actually be added to torrc, it still exists, which is why it is displayed in “Settings - Filter” and in the “Relays” section. I've already considered marking nodes in the excluded lists with the ☆ symbol and replacing “Incorrect” nodes with a different symbol—this would help users better understand the situation. If nodes are not displayed at all in the excluded lists, this will confuse the user even more.
4. You are thinking in terms of a “Blacklist”, but you need a “Whitelist”, and you are not considering that the “Excluded nodes” list is SHARED across the entire program: If you remove ★ from all countries and positions in the filter and you do not have any favorite nodes, then the EntryNodes/MiddleNodes/ExitNodes options will be empty, which is why the filter mode switches to “Without filtering.” When you set the EntryNodes/MiddleNodes/ExitNodes options, Tor is instructed not to use any countries other than those specified in these options, so in “Whitelist” mode, there is no need for the ExcludeExitNodes option—you can simply select the countries you are interested in as the exit node, and the rest will be excluded automatically. So, if you don't select any countries, then tor will use them all.
5. If the “Only countries from the Filter” setting is enabled, then during "Automatic Relay selection, only nodes from countries marked with the ★ symbol in the filter will be selected. Each position (Entry/Middle/Exit) is considered separately. For example: If you have marked ★ only the Middle position for Germany, then during auto-selection, nodes from Germany will be used only to create the MiddleNodes list, and there will be no nodes from Germany in the EntryNodes and ExitNodes lists. The “Auto-select relays” feature generates the “Favorite nodes” lists, and the “Selected countries” list is auxiliary in this case.

The logic here is very simple. If you use the “Selected Countries” mode, the EntryNodes/MiddleNodes/ExitNodes lists are generated from the countries you select in “Settings – Filter.” If you use the “Favorite nodes” mode, the lists are generated from the nodes you select in the Relays section or manually edit in “Settings – Lists.” The “Excluded nodes” list is SHARED by both modes and determines the ExcludeNodes option. To understand how different filter modes work, just look at what happens in the torrc file with different settings.

I created the default list of countries myself based on ping and the number of available nodes in my country. It is relevant for most European countries. You can always create your own country list and save it as a template, or edit the DefaultEntryCountries, DefaultMiddleCountries, and DefaultExitCountries options in the Defaults.ini file to customize the “Default” country list to suit your needs.

[gtcore1]

1. I don't understand what you mean here. All countries are displayed in “Settings - Filter” If the “Hide unused countries” option is enabled in the filter settings, then countries that do not have Tor nodes and that the user has not selected with a ★ are not displayed. This works regardless of the network scanner results.

   2. “Selected countries” and “Favorite nodes” are two different lists of nodes. The first list contains only the countries you select in the “Settings - Filter” section. The second list is for advanced users; in addition to {country codes}, this list can include Fingerprint, IP, and CIDR. This list is created in the “Relays” section, but for ease of editing, it is also available as text in the “Settings – Lists” section. The “Excluded nodes” list is SHARED between both filter modes. Why is this the case? Because initially, the program had only one mode: “Selected countries,” and later, the “Relays” section was added, along with the ability to select not only countries but also individual nodes. Beginners use countries, while advanced users use Selected nodes.

   3. See point 2 – The Excluded Nodes list is SHARED by both modes. The “Excluded nodes” list is an advanced list and can contain all types of nodes (Fingerprint, IP, CIDR, {cc}). This list adds the ExcludeNodes option in the torrc. Even if you have disabled the node list and it will not actually be added to torrc, it still exists, which is why it is displayed in “Settings - Filter” and in the “Relays” section. I've already considered marking nodes in the excluded lists with the ☆ symbol and replacing “Incorrect” nodes with a different symbol—this would help users better understand the situation. If nodes are not displayed at all in the excluded lists, this will confuse the user even more.

   4. You are thinking in terms of a “Blacklist”, but you need a “Whitelist”, and you are not considering that the “Excluded nodes” list is SHARED across the entire program: If you remove ★ from all countries and positions in the filter and you do not have any favorite nodes, then the EntryNodes/MiddleNodes/ExitNodes options will be empty, which is why the filter mode switches to “Without filtering.” When you set the EntryNodes/MiddleNodes/ExitNodes options, Tor is instructed not to use any countries other than those specified in these options, so in “Whitelist” mode, there is no need for the ExcludeExitNodes option—you can simply select the countries you are interested in as the exit node, and the rest will be excluded automatically. So, if you don't select any countries, then tor will use them all.

   5. If the “Only countries from the Filter” setting is enabled, then during "Automatic Relay selection, only nodes from countries marked with the ★ symbol in the filter will be selected. Each position (Entry/Middle/Exit) is considered separately. For example: If you have marked ★ only the Middle position for Germany, then during auto-selection, nodes from Germany will be used only to create the MiddleNodes list, and there will be no nodes from Germany in the EntryNodes and ExitNodes lists. The “Auto-select relays” feature generates the “Favorite nodes” lists, and the “Selected countries” list is auxiliary in this case.

The logic here is very simple. If you use the “Selected Countries” mode, the EntryNodes/MiddleNodes/ExitNodes lists are generated from the countries you select in “Settings – Filter.” If you use the “Favorite nodes” mode, the lists are generated from the nodes you select in the Relays section or manually edit in “Settings – Lists.” The “Excluded nodes” list is SHARED by both modes and determines the ExcludeNodes option. To understand how different filter modes work, just look at what happens in the torrc file with different settings.

I created the default list of countries myself based on ping and the number of available nodes in my country. It is relevant for most European countries. You can always create your own country list and save it as a template, or edit the DefaultEntryCountries, DefaultMiddleCountries, and DefaultExitCountries options in the Defaults.ini file to customize the “Default” country list to suit your needs.

Thank you very much for your prompt reply! After this period of frequent communication with you, I have a general understanding of the logical architecture and operating mechanism of TCP, and I also understand that some of its settings are restricted by TOR. The following are suggestions after careful consideration, of course, for your reference only.

1.I still believe that setting the ExcludeExitNodes parameter is quite important, and the reason is that I am still copying the content of my previous reply: in order to access some websites, it is sometimes necessary to temporarily set some Exclude Exit Nodes. For example, if you want to access the website www.yahoo.co.jp (which cannot be accessed from EEA countries), we need to temporarily set: ExcludeExitNodes {at},{be},{bg},{ch},{cy},{cz},{de},{dk},{ee},{es},{fi},{fo},{fr},{gb},{gl},{gr},{hr},{hu},{ie},{is},{it},{li},{lt},{lu},{lv},{mt},{nl},{no},{pl},{pt},{ro},{se},{si},{sj},{sk},{tr},{uk},{??}.

2.I still believe that setting up a 'Lock Circuit' button is necessary. The reasons are the same as in my previous reply: Many websites require a fixed exit node (IP address) for a certain period of time in order to access them smoothly. At the same time, we have no way to pre-assign an exit node (IP address) for such websites. For example, when we visit https://rapidgator.net/file/0062eb6f5de9a73d70b3d7f0f4be6b5b to download a file, the website stipulates that the same IP address can only download one file within 120 minutes, and each download can only be done in a single thread. Moreover, from the moment we open the URL to the moment the download successfully starts, there is a period of operations and waiting time during which the IP address cannot be changed, otherwise the download will fail. This requires us to continuously click the "Change Circuit" button to try different nodes, clearing cookies and refreshing the website each time to find an exit node (IP address) currently available for downloading from that website. Once an exit node is found, we must immediately click "Lock Circuit" to fix this exit node (IP address). Therefore, in such a scenario, unless TCP adds this button, other methods are very inconvenient. Hence, we sincerely hope the developer can consider this proposal when available.
The "124=Change a circuit that exists more than" setting is often ineffective. I have set it to 1800 seconds, but during this period, the circuit still changes automatically, even when accessing the website goes very smoothly. Therefore, I do not know whether this setting means to change once every 1800 seconds or to change "at least" once every 1800 seconds.
3. I have already understood the logic of "120=Filter" and "323=Relays" and believe there is a certain necessity to them, but sometimes the significance is minimal. For example, some high-throughput, high-quality nodes are located in countries with poor network infrastructure, meaning they are not actually in the 'selected countries.' In fact, 'selected countries' should primarily be used to exclude countries with network censorship, or even those that use bait to catch and take legal action. As for the 'favorited nodes' in '323=Relays,' I think this setting can significantly reduce one's anonymity. At the same time, some countries with network censorship block nodes very quickly, and the nodes' own IPs may also change, so it may not be very meaningful. Of course, I still believe that '120=Filter' and '323=Relays' should be retained, but we need to think about how to make them more effective and make the settings more convenient.
4. I believe the "440=Select the list to edit" section should be removed, and the corresponding functions should be implemented separately in "120=Filter" and "323=Relays". The common methods of "export list" and "load list" can be used, making it easier to understand where the functions apply and more convenient to operate. The excluded node list can continue to be shared. Only set countries in "120=Filter" and only set specific nodes or CIDR in "323=Relays". Of course, it is also recommended to add the ExcludeExitNodes icon separately in both "120=Filter" and "323=Relays".
5. After carefully observing the context in which '244=来源,目标,类型' appears, I believe this translation is correct, for your reference only.
6. If '592=Auto select relays after scanning' could automatically add some high-quality nodes to 'Favorite Nodes' after scanning, it would be very convenient. Additionally, I still don't quite understand whether the settings in '467=Auto select relays' will also be synced to 'Favorite Nodes', or if this refers to the node selection used for building TOR circuits. Also, can an option for 'Throughput' or 'weight' be added in '471=Priority'?

While making these suggestions to help improve TCP, I also wonder whether doing so would further reduce the anonymity of TCP users. At the same time, why does TOR make all its source code and node information public? I feel that censors can also see this information, and through TCP, they can easily figure out which nodes are the fastest and then block them. I am very concerned about these issues. I know you are also active in the TOR community, so keep up the good work!