Hysteria2 Setup and Comparison Guide | Generated by AI

Home 2026.02

Question: How to install Hysteria, the proxy protocol, on an Ubuntu server? And compare Hysteria and Hysteria2.

Answer:

Hysteria refers to a fast, QUIC-based proxy protocol designed for high performance on lossy networks and strong censorship resistance. There are two main versions: the original Hysteria 1.x (often just called “Hysteria”) and Hysteria 2 (the modern, recommended version).

As of 2026, Hysteria 2 is the actively maintained version with better protocol design, improved masquerading as HTTP/3, and overall superior performance and resistance. Hysteria 1 is considered legacy.

The official one-click installation script is the easiest and most reliable method for Ubuntu (works on 20.04, 22.04, 24.04, etc.).

  1. Run the installation script (installs latest version, sets up systemd service): 
    bash <(curl -fsSL https://get.hy2.sh/)
    • This downloads the binary, creates /etc/hysteria/config.yaml, and sets up hysteria-server.service.
  2. Edit the configuration file: 
    nano /etc/hysteria/config.yaml

    Minimal working example (replace values):

    listen: :443   # UDP port (usually 443)

acme:
  domains:
    - your-domain.com
  email: your@email.com

auth:
  type: password
  password: your-strong-password-here

masquerade:
  type: proxy
  proxy:
    url: https://news.ycombinator.com/
    rewriteHost: true
    • For self-signed certs or manual certs, use the tls section instead of acme.
    • Full config options → official docs.
  3. Start and enable the service: 
    systemctl daemon-reload
systemctl enable --now hysteria-server
  4. Check status and logs: 
    systemctl status hysteria-server
journalctl -u hysteria-server -ef
  5. Firewall (if using ufw): 
    ufw allow 443/udp
  6. Update later → just re-run the same install command.

Note: If GitHub is blocked, download the binary manually from https://github.com/apernet/hysteria/releases and use:

bash <(curl -fsSL https://get.hy2.sh/) --local /path/to/hysteria-linux-amd64

Installing Original Hysteria 1.x (Legacy – Not Recommended)

Use the old repo/script if you specifically need compatibility with old clients:

bash <(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/apernet/hysteria/master/scripts/install_server.sh)

But in 2026 this is strongly discouraged — switch to Hysteria 2.

Comparison: Hysteria 1 vs Hysteria 2

Feature / Aspect Hysteria 1.x (legacy) Hysteria 2 (current)
Protocol Custom QUIC + own obfuscation Redesigned QUIC-based, masquerades as real HTTP/3
Censorship resistance Good Significantly better (looks like normal HTTP/3 traffic)
Congestion control Custom (very aggressive) Brutal (custom) + BBR support, more stable
Performance Excellent on lossy networks Usually better/faster + more consistent
Compatibility Only with Hysteria 1 clients Only with Hysteria 2 clients (not backward compatible)
Codebase Older, less maintained Almost complete rewrite, actively developed
Masquerade Basic HTTP proxy masquerade Much more advanced (proxy, files, string, etc.)
Missing in v2 — No client-side ACL (yet), no FakeTCP (niche)
Recommendation in 2026 Avoid for new setups Strongly recommended for all new deployments

Summary: Use Hysteria 2 unless you have a specific reason to stay on 1.x (e.g., old client compatibility). It offers better speed, much stronger censorship resistance, and is the future-proof choice.

References:

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