Starter Profiles

A profile should match the kind of device and the level of control you want.

The most common mistake is making the setup too aggressive too early. A stable profile is much more useful than a maximal one.

Beginner-friendly profile

This is the profile I would recommend to most people for their first setup.

Core settings

  • Malware filtering enabled
  • Phishing filtering enabled
  • One moderate ad and tracker filter
  • No unnecessary aggressive lists
  • Small allowlist for exceptions only

Why this works

This gives you a meaningful improvement in privacy and protection without making browsing feel like a constant debugging exercise.

Balanced profile

Use this for a general-purpose profile on laptops, phones, and other end-user devices.

Recommended characteristics:

  • Moderate ad and tracker filtering
  • Smart blocking for malware and phishing
  • Reasonable privacy protection
  • Limited exception list
  • Easy to maintain

Basic profile

Use this for devices where compatibility matters more than aggressive blocking.

Good examples:

  • Smart TVs
  • Game consoles
  • Shared household devices
  • Older devices with limited flexibility

This profile should be simpler and more conservative.

Hardened profile

Use this only if you are comfortable troubleshooting and maintaining DNS rules.

This profile may:

  • Block more tracking domains
  • Catch more suspicious traffic
  • Increase false positive risk
  • Require more maintenance and exceptions

This is not a bad profile. It is simply a more advanced one.

Simple rule of thumb

  • If you are new: start with Balanced or Basic
  • If you want more privacy: move toward Balanced
  • If you want more strict filtering: use Hardened only after testing
  • If a device is unreliable: keep it on Basic

The goal is not maximum blocking. The goal is reliable protection with minimal friction.