How do I install the Astrill Watchdog skill?

Run npx skillmds@latest add modbender/astrill-watchdog in your terminal (requires Node.js), paste this page's agent-chat prompt into Claude, Cursor, or any MCP-connected agent, or download the SKILL.md file and copy it into your agent's skills directory.

Is Astrill Watchdog safe to use?

This skill has not completed SkillMD's automated safety review yet. Independent scanners report: SkillSpector: PASS, Skill Scanner: PASS. Capability flags: executes scripts, reads secrets. SkillMD never runs a skill's scripts for you; review the SKILL.md before installing.

Which AI agents work with Astrill Watchdog?

This skill is tagged as working with Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex. SKILL.md is an open format, so most agents that read a skills directory can load it too.

Is Astrill Watchdog free to use?

Yes. Installing skills from SkillMD is free, and the skill stays under its author's original license.

Who published Astrill Watchdog?

modbender (@modbender) published this skill. Their other Agent Skills are listed on their SkillMD profile.

Astrill Watchdog by modbender — Agent Skill

Name: Astrill Watchdog
Rating: 4.2 (5 reviews)
Author: modbender

Astrill Watchdog

Monitor and auto-reconnect Astrill VPN on Ubuntu Linux (deb GUI package). Detects dropped connections via tun interface + ping, then reconnects using Astrill's built-in /reconnect command or full process restart with /autostart. No sudo required.

modbender Updated Sep 9, 2026 12 repo stars

File contents

Astrill VPN Watchdog

Auto-detects and recovers dropped Astrill VPN connections on Ubuntu Linux. No sudo required. Works with the standard GUI deb package only.

Requirements

OS: Ubuntu Linux x86_64 (tested on 25.10; expected to work on 22.04+)
Astrill: deb GUI package — installs to /usr/local/Astrill/
Not compatible with the CLI .sh installer package
Standard tools: ping, ip, pgrep, pkill (Ubuntu defaults)
No sudo required

⚠️ Limitations

No server switching. Astrill encrypts its config and the OpenVPN management port requires an internal password. The watchdog reconnects to the last used server.
GUI deb only. Does not work with the Astrill CLI .sh installer.
Display session required for Method 3. Full restart needs an active desktop session (DISPLAY, DBUS, XDG vars). Works fine when started via systemd user service after login. Does not work headlessly without a desktop session.
Must run as the Astrill process owner. The watchdog enforces that it runs as the same user as the Astrill GUI process. No sudo is used at any point — if there is a user mismatch, the script logs an error and exits cleanly.

How it works

Health is checked every 30 seconds (configurable). Both must pass to be healthy:

tun0 interface exists and is UP/UNKNOWN
ping 8.8.8.8 succeeds (traffic actually flows)

Reconnect cascade (3 attempts, escalating)

Attempt	Method	Wait
1	`astrill /reconnect` — Astrill's built-in command (same one used after sleep/hibernate)	20s
2	Kill `asovpnc` + `asproxy` child processes — parent Astrill respawns them	20s
3	Kill entire Astrill process + relaunch with `/autostart` — Astrill connects to last server automatically	45s

Key discovery: killing only the main Astrill process (no sudo) is enough — the root-owned children (asovpnc, asproxy) die automatically with the parent. Relaunching with /autostart (the same argument used by the desktop autostart entry) causes Astrill to connect to the last used server without any GUI interaction.

Setup

1. Install systemd user service (auto-start on login)

Run the setup script once after installing the skill:

bash {baseDir}/setup.sh

This creates and enables a systemd user service that starts the watchdog automatically when you log in, and restarts it if it ever crashes.

2. Verify

systemctl --user status astrill-watchdog
bash {baseDir}/astrill-watchdog.sh status

Manual start (without systemd)

bash {baseDir}/astrill-watchdog.sh start

Commands

Command	Effect
`start`	Start background watchdog daemon
`stop`	Stop the watchdog (also kills orphaned instances)
`status`	Full diagnostics: VPN health, process info, recent log
`once`	Single check/reconnect and exit

Tunable parameters

Edit the top of astrill-watchdog.sh:

Variable	Default	Description
`CHECK_INTERVAL`	`30`	Seconds between health checks
`MAX_ATTEMPTS`	`3`	Reconnect attempts per drop event
`RECONNECT_WAIT_1`	`20`	Wait after attempt 1 (/reconnect)
`RECONNECT_WAIT_2`	`20`	Wait after attempt 2 (kill children)
`RECONNECT_WAIT_3`	`45`	Wait after attempt 3 (full restart)
`PING_HOST`	`8.8.8.8`	Host to ping for connectivity check
`LOG_DIR`	`~/.local/state/astrill-watchdog/`	Private log directory (mode 700)

Agent trigger phrases

"check my VPN" / "is Astrill connected?"
"start the VPN watchdog" / "monitor my VPN"
"reconnect Astrill" / "VPN dropped"
"stop the watchdog"
"show VPN logs"

Log

tail -f ~/.local/state/astrill-watchdog/watchdog.log

---name: astrill-watchdogdescription: Monitor and auto-reconnect Astrill VPN on Ubuntu Linux (deb GUI package). Detects dropped connections via tun interface + ping, then reconnects using Astrill's built-in /reconnect command or full process restart with /autostart. No sudo required.--- # Astrill VPN Watchdog Auto-detects and recovers dropped Astrill VPN connections on Ubuntu Linux. No sudo required. Works with the standard GUI deb package only. ## Requirements - **OS:** Ubuntu Linux x86_64 (tested on 25.10; expected to work on 22.04+) - **Astrill:** deb GUI package — installs to `/usr/local/Astrill/` - **Not compatible** with the CLI `.sh` installer package - Standard tools: `ping`, `ip`, `pgrep`, `pkill` (Ubuntu defaults) - No sudo required ## ⚠️ Limitations - **No server switching.** Astrill encrypts its config and the OpenVPN management port requires an internal password. The watchdog reconnects to the last used server. - **GUI deb only.** Does not work with the Astrill CLI `.sh` installer. - **Display session required for Method 3.** Full restart needs an active desktop session (DISPLAY, DBUS, XDG vars). Works fine when started via systemd user service after login. Does not work headlessly without a desktop session. - **Must run as the Astrill process owner.** The watchdog enforces that it runs as the same user as the Astrill GUI process. No sudo is used at any point — if there is a user mismatch, the script logs an error and exits cleanly. ## How it works Health is checked every 30 seconds (configurable). Both must pass to be healthy: 1. `tun0` interface exists and is UP/UNKNOWN 2. `ping 8.8.8.8` succeeds (traffic actually flows) ### Reconnect cascade (3 attempts, escalating) | Attempt | Method | Wait | |---------|--------|------| | 1 | `astrill /reconnect` — Astrill's built-in command (same one used after sleep/hibernate) | 20s | | 2 | Kill `asovpnc` + `asproxy` child processes — parent Astrill respawns them | 20s | | 3 | Kill entire Astrill process + relaunch with `/autostart` — Astrill connects to last server automatically | 45s | **Key discovery:** killing only the main Astrill process (no sudo) is enough — the root-owned children (`asovpnc`, `asproxy`) die automatically with the parent. Relaunching with `/autostart` (the same argument used by the desktop autostart entry) causes Astrill to connect to the last used server without any GUI interaction. ## Setup ### 1. Install systemd user service (auto-start on login) Run the setup script once after installing the skill: ```bash bash {baseDir}/setup.sh ``` This creates and enables a systemd user service that starts the watchdog automatically when you log in, and restarts it if it ever crashes. ### 2. Verify ```bash systemctl --user status astrill-watchdog bash {baseDir}/astrill-watchdog.sh status ``` ### Manual start (without systemd) ```bash bash {baseDir}/astrill-watchdog.sh start ``` ## Commands | Command | Effect | |---------|--------| | `start` | Start background watchdog daemon | | `stop` | Stop the watchdog (also kills orphaned instances) | | `status` | Full diagnostics: VPN health, process info, recent log | | `once` | Single check/reconnect and exit | ## Tunable parameters Edit the top of `astrill-watchdog.sh`: | Variable | Default | Description | |----------|---------|-------------| | `CHECK_INTERVAL` | `30` | Seconds between health checks | | `MAX_ATTEMPTS` | `3` | Reconnect attempts per drop event | | `RECONNECT_WAIT_1` | `20` | Wait after attempt 1 (/reconnect) | | `RECONNECT_WAIT_2` | `20` | Wait after attempt 2 (kill children) | | `RECONNECT_WAIT_3` | `45` | Wait after attempt 3 (full restart) | | `PING_HOST` | `8.8.8.8` | Host to ping for connectivity check | | `LOG_DIR` | `~/.local/state/astrill-watchdog/` | Private log directory (mode 700) | ## Agent trigger phrases - "check my VPN" / "is Astrill connected?" - "start the VPN watchdog" / "monitor my VPN" - "reconnect Astrill" / "VPN dropped" - "stop the watchdog" - "show VPN logs" ## Log ```bash tail -f ~/.local/state/astrill-watchdog/watchdog.log ```

Frequently asked questions