On Windows, NymVPN consists of two parts: the app (client), the visual interface for accessing NymVPN, and the daemon, which is responsible for network operations and connectivity. A "daemon not connected" error means the two are not talking to each other, which prevents network access. The steps below resolve it in almost all cases.
Step 1: check if your app is connected to the daemon
If you see a red dot in the top left of the NymVPN app or a "daemon not connected" message, the app and daemon are not connected.
Step 2: start the daemon service manually
You can manually start the NymVPN daemon service by following these steps:
- Via the start menu open Services (services.msc)
- In the list find the 'NymVPN' service, right click the service and select Start or Restart
- Close the Services console
Alternatively, you can restart it from PowerShell. Press Start, type PowerShell, right-click it, select Run as administrator, then paste this command and hit Enter:
Restart-Service -Name "NymVPN Service"Step 3: if the service refuses to start
This often happens after the app was force-closed via Task Manager. When you force-close the VPN process, you also stop the Windows service that powers NymVPN. NymVPN is set up to restart automatically if something goes wrong, but Windows has built-in limits on how many times it will try to restart a service. After multiple failed attempts or force kills, Windows may stop trying until the failure counter resets (usually after a day) or you reset it manually.
You can clear the failure history from an administrator PowerShell with:
sc.exe reset "NymVPN Service"After running this, you should be able to start the service again normally (see step 2), and Windows will resume attempting restarts if needed.
Tip: avoid force-quitting NymVPN from Task Manager unless absolutely necessary. If the app is not responding, try exiting it from the system tray or restarting your device instead.
Step 4: reinstall the app
If the error persists, fully uninstall and reinstall the NymVPN app. Before doing so, ensure you have your 24-word access code to reconnect your device. Follow How to uninstall NymVPN on Windows?
Still having trouble?
Contact Nym Support with your Windows version, app version, what you tried, and your logs. See How to find app and daemon logs in NymVPN?
Related questions
What is the daemon, exactly?
A background service that handles all network operations: connecting to the Nym network, routing your traffic, and managing the tunnel. The app you see is just the control panel for it.
Does this error mean my traffic leaked?
No. When the daemon is not connected, the VPN is simply not running; the error prevents connections rather than exposing them.