Android VPN won't connect. VPN for Android: application and configuration methods. Manually setting up a VPN connection on an Android device using the PPTP protocol

The technology of secure virtual private networks Virtual Private Network, or VPN for short, has recently been used not only on computers, but also on mobile devices running certain operating systems. What is it intended for and how to set up such a connection on mobile devices, read on. It is proposed to understand both the technology itself and the correct activation of VPN on different mobile devices.

Let's figure out what VPN is in phones

Actually, there is not much difference between what constitutes access to the Internet through the use of a VPN on desktop computers, laptops, smartphones or tablets, no.

This is the most common tunneling, which, according to its operating principles, is somewhat similar to the functioning of anonymous proxy servers, otherwise called anonymizers.

What is VPN on phones? This is a tool that allows you to change the external IP of the device to access blocked resources. When the IP changes, the location of the user who is trying to enter a certain page that is not allowed to be accessed in his region also changes accordingly. In addition, in this state of affairs, the user remains as if unrecognized on the Internet, and his data is completely encrypted based on WPA protection.

True, just the other day it became known that the WPA2 protocol, in most cases used for connections via Wi-Fi, has quite serious vulnerabilities that allow attackers to monitor outgoing and incoming traffic in its entirety.

Why do you need a VPN on your phone?

The practical benefits of using a VPN connection are obvious, because the user can by and large bypass any blocking imposed on a certain resource and visit it as if he were geographically located in the region where the access permission is valid.

Examples include some US Internet radio stations, Russian news sites blocked in Ukraine, and much more. True, in countries such as China and North Korea, the question of how to set up a VPN seems completely pointless, since to restrict access to the same social networks or even YouTube video hosting is subject to a state-scale blocking, which consists of using the most powerful firewalls, not of a software nature, but of hardware equipment (otherwise they would have been hacked long ago).

Connection problems

There are many advantages to using such technologies. But there are also problems. The most important one is that the tunnel being used cannot simultaneously monitor different types networks through which the connection to the Internet is made.

For example, the connection may be lost when changing Wi-Fi to 3G/4G. The problem has only recently begun to be resolved. Dedicated VPN servers now have special authorization that allows two-way data transfer, regardless of which network is currently in use.

The main advantage here is that in cryptographic terms and virtual interface user gadget, the operator’s network, and the access protocol itself have become the same.

Setting up a VPN on Android devices

But all this was purely theoretical information. We figured out a little about what VPN is in phones, and now let’s move on to the practical part. As is already clear, any modern mobile device has a function that allows you to use a VPN connection. On Android devices, how to set up a VPN can be solved in the easiest way (and without using third-party applications):

To do this, you need to use the basic settings section, go to the wireless network settings and select “Other networks”.
By tapping on the “Advanced” line (the names may differ depending on the system version), you can enter the section containing VPN settings.
After clicking the button marked with a plus sign, information about all available protocols will be added.
Then all that remains is to select the desired connection, come up with a username and password, and then log in under your own registration.

Activating VPN on Apple devices

On Apple devices, the operation of activating a VPN looks somewhat more complicated. You can, of course, activate VPN in the settings to configure in automatic mode, but, as practice shows, in most cases the connection has to be established manually:

After entering the section, you need to select adding a configuration.
Specify the type of security used (IPSec, L2TP, IKEv2).
Enter information about the remote ID and proxy server, login and password, and also indicate the type of connection mode (manual or automatic).

All this is quite complicated. So isn't it better to use applets specifically designed to simplify settings?

Using Third Party Applications

You can find a lot of them today. Enough with mobile device log in to AppStore services or Play Market and set a search using the “VPN” criterion. Next, in the results found, you will have to select the right application independently, at least by looking at the download rating.

Every user knows how to install a VPN on a phone. You just need to click the installation button and wait until the temporary distribution is downloaded and the main applet is installed.

When it comes to the best applets, it's hard to give advice on a case-by-case basis. For example, the Orbot VPN client or the Tor-based Orfox browser work quite well on Android systems. The Super VPN app looks good.

For Apple devices, you can use the same Onion browser, which initially has a built-in VPN client or something else.

Sometimes the performance of an application, unfortunately, may depend on the manufacturer of the gadget. You can't guess here, so you'll have to install each applet and try it in practice. But in almost all cases, the settings are fully automated (with the exception of selecting the fastest VPN server, and even then not always).

Instead of an afterword

That, in brief, is all that concerns the consideration of the question of what a VPN is in phones. Simply put, this is the same as in desktop computers or laptops.

IN in this case The operating system as such does not play a special role. But on mobile devices, access to anonymous online proxy servers is almost never used, since in this case the use of tunneling technology with encryption looks much simpler.

is a technology that allows you to organize a virtual logical network on top of a real network, for example, on top of the Internet. VPNs have many uses. For example, this technology can be used to create a single network for several branches of one company or to provide access to the Internet. But, to the majority ordinary users VPN technology is known as a way to bypass website blocking.

In this article we will talk about how to set up a VPN on Android and what to do if you don’t want to delve into the settings.

How to connect VPN in Android settings

IN operating system Android right out of the box has everything you need to set up an Internet connection via VPN. All the user needs to do is go to the settings and specify how exactly to connect to the VPN and which VPN service to use.

So, if you need to set up a VPN on Android, then first of all you need to go to the settings and open the section called “More”. By default, this section contains network settings that are not used very often.

If you have not used a VPN before, the “VPN” section will be empty. Click on the button with the plus sign to add a new connection.

After this, a menu for setting up a VPN connection will appear on the screen. In this menu you need to enter the name of the VPN connection (any name convenient for you), the connection type (can be found from your VPN provider) and the server address for connecting to the VPN (can also be found from the VPN provider. The number of fields that need to be filled in may be different , since it depends on the type of connection you choose.In any case, all the information needed to connect to a VPN can be obtained from the VPN provider.

For example, let's set up a connection to the VPN service Hide.Me. Enter the name of the connection “Hide Vpn”, the connection type PPTP and the server address nl.hide.me. After making all the settings, close the window by clicking on the “SAVE” button.

As a result, a new connection called “Hide Vpn” appeared in the “VPN” settings section. Click on it to connect.

As a result, a connection window appears. Here you need to enter the username and password that you received when registering on the VPN provider’s website. If you plan to regularly use a VPN connection, you can check the boxes next to the “Save credentials” and “Permanent VPN” functions.

After entering this data, click on the “CONNECT” button and your Android smartphone starts working via VPN. This completes the setup.

How to use a VPN on Android without digging into the settings

If all of the above seems too complicated to you, then you can take a simpler path. Most popular VPN providers have their own Android apps that make setting up a VPN connection much easier.

As an example, we will use an application from the service, the description of which is given below. To do this, go to the application store Google Play, find the “HideMy Name” application there and install it on your Android smartphone.

After that, we enter the username and password that we received when we registered on the VPN provider’s website.

After logging into the application, click on the “Activate protection” button.

And confirm the connection to the VPN.

Everything after this is yours Android smartphone will start working via a VPN connection. The same thing happens with other VPN providers. Install the provider's application, enter your login/password and connect. Everything is extremely simple.

VPN services for Android

As you may have noticed, there is nothing complicated about setting up a VPN. On Android phones, all you need to do is create a configuration and click on it to connect. You can also simply install the application and connect in one click. But the question remains, where can I get access to a VPN?

For this you will need a VPN service. Now there are many such services on the Internet, you need to choose one of them, register on the site and pay for its services. After payment has been made, the service will provide you with instructions for setting up your Android device. Services similar services are paid for a month or for a longer period, in the latter case a noticeable discount is provided. Also available in some cases trial period, during which you can check and configure everything absolutely free.

Below we will look at a couple of proven options that will ensure a stable and fast connection.

- a popular foreign VPN service with a large selection of servers and good speed. The advantage of NordVPN is increased security; it uses only the most safe ways connections and no logs are recorded. In addition, NordVPN protects users from IP and DNS leaks. There is an application to simplify connection setup. A month of work costs $12, but if you pay a subscription for a year or more, the cost will be noticeably lower. Refunds are possible (within 30 days).

Here I will try to talk about setting up a VPN on Android devices.
Many users have never heard of VPN, and when they saw this item in the phone settings, they simply shrugged their shoulders and moved on. If you know what a VPN is and how it works, then most likely this article will not tell you anything new. I wrote it for beginners who want to protect their security online, bypass censorship and regional bans, and maintain their anonymity.
So what is a VPN?
VPN- (eng. Virtual Private Network - virtual private network) is a generalized name for technologies that allow one or more network connections(logical network) on top of another network (such as the Internet).
PPTP VPN- PPTP (English Point-to-point tunneling protocol) is a point-to-point tunnel protocol that allows a computer to establish a secure connection with a server by creating a special tunnel in a standard, unprotected network. PPTP wraps (encapsulates) PPP frames into IP packets for transmission over a global IP network such as the Internet. PPTP can also be used to establish a tunnel between two local networks. PPTP uses an additional TCP connection to maintain the tunnel. PPTP traffic can be encrypted using MPPE. Various mechanisms can be used to authenticate clients, the most secure of which are MSCHAP-v2 and EAP-TLS.
My goal in this article is not a detailed story about VPN (what it is, how it works, where it came from), you can get the information yourself here: ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/VPN
Let's go straight to the phone settings, I did everything on mine Samsung Galaxy GT N-7100 Galaxy Note2, MIUI firmware, Android 4.1.1 settings on other devices are similar. First, we need to choose a provider who will provide us with services VPN Service, for myself I chose russianproxy.ru and selected the “Upload” tariff that suited me, after payment to you in Personal Area and your personal settings (login, password, server name) will be sent to your e-mail; they roughly look like this:
VPN server address: pptp-l2tp-vpn-russia-1.atomintersoft.com
User: v1111-111111
Password: XXXXXXXXXXX
Access end date: 2013-01-26 00:00:00
Open the phone settings
->WIRELESS NETWORKS
->Additionally...
->VPN
->CONFIGURATION
->Add VPN network
Next, enter the appropriate data in the fields listed below:
“Network name” - enter any name
"Type" - select PPTP
“VPN server address” - the name of the server to connect (check in the Client Account in the My Subscriptions section)
“Enable Encryption (MPPE)” - check the box
Confirm the creation of the connection by clicking the Save button in the lower right corner.
Click on the VPN connection you just created and enter the following information:
“Username” - login of your subscription
“Password” - the password for your subscription
“Save credentials” - check the box
Click Connect to establish a connection.
If the connection is successful, a key icon will appear in the upper status bar; when you click on it, you have the following options: view connection statistics (time, traffic)
disable the subscription using the “Disconnect” button

I would also like to tell you about several programs for working with VPNs that I found in the market.
VpnRoot- play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.did.vpnroot shareware VPN client, to unlock all functions you need a donation via PayPal, unlike the standard VPN in Android, it can reconnect after the connection is lost, has a widget with with which you can activate a VPN session in one click on the desktop, it does not yet have autostart, the author promised to add it in future versions.
DroidVPN- play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.aed.droidvpn requires registration on the program website to work, after creating a personal account they give 100MB of VPN traffic for a month, then you have to pay, a penny in general, something like 150 rubles for three months, I don’t understand the users who left negative comments on the program... There are several VPN servers to choose from different countries, for some reason I liked Italian more, you can make the servers change randomly each time, your IP will correspond to the country whose server you chose in the settings, which makes it easy to bypass regional restrictions. The program has autostart and can reconnect when the connection is lost.
Orbot: Tor for Android- play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.torproject.android Tor is a cross-platform open source software source code, whose task is to protect against eavesdropping and ensure the confidentiality of personal and business data transmitted to global network. The product provides complete anonymity for clients when visiting websites, publishing materials, sending messages and working with applications that use the TCP protocol. Platform users Android already provided the opportunity to use Tor proxy networks for anonymous surfing. Some time ago, a group of researchers from the University of Cambridge released a product called Shadow. The new Orbot app is official version Tor client from the creators of the platform. Tor on Wikipedia

Let's figure out how to set up a VPN on Android phone or tablet so that you can use prohibited programs or visit blocked sites. Let's look at popular applications and their configuration.

This article is suitable for all brands that produce phones on Android 10/9/8/7: Samsung, HTC, Lenovo, LG, Sony, ZTE, Huawei, Meizu, Fly, Alcatel, Xiaomi, Nokia and others. We are not responsible for your actions.

Attention! You can ask your question to a specialist at the end of the article.

Enable VPN in Android settings

For this method no need to install additional applications. The user needs to work with the settings to be able to use the VPN. Before connecting to a private VPN, you must obtain access credentials from the administrator of that network.

We follow the instructions:

Go to the “Settings” of your tablet or phone, there select the “More” tab.
We indicate the “VPN” item.

A window will appear where you need to click “OK” and then set a screen lock password or PIN code.

We apply one of the proposed methods. For example, select “Password”.

Specify the password and click on the “Continue” button. Then we duplicate the password again.

Now, on the locked gadget, select the notification mode. We do this at our own discretion.

A window will appear as in the screenshot below. There you need to click “+” in the upper right corner of the screen, then add a new VPN network.

Enter the name, for example, Legat. Leave the default type PPTP.

Enter the server address provided by the network administrator. In our example, this is us.justfreevpn.com. Click on the “Save” button.

After that, the VPN will be shown in the list new network. Tap on it, enter the username and password received from network administrator. Next to the “Save credentials” line, check the box so that you don’t have to enter them again. Click on the “Connect” button.

The network status will now read “Connected” and the key icon will appear at the top of the command line.

Increase

After this, the real location and IP address will be hidden from prying eyes. Other methods are simpler to implement, but they require downloading additional applications.

Application "Hide.Me VPN"

If the above method seems complicated to you, then you can use a simpler way. Many popular VPN providers offer their own Android applications that greatly simplify the process of setting up a VPN connection.

As an example, consider a program from the company Hide.Me. You should go to the Google Play application store and find the “Hide.Me Vpn” software there. Install it on your Android tablet or phone.

Then launch the programs and click on “Log in with your account.”

Increase

Now you need to enter the login and , which were received during the registration process on the VPN provider’s resource.

Increase

When you enter the application, click on the “Enable protection” button.

Increase

We confirm the connection to the VPN.

Increase

After this, the Android device will work through the VPN connection.

Turbo VPN app

The application does not require entering passwords, and it is free for messengers, web surfing, etc. Instructions:

Download the application and install it on your gadget.
During the first start, you should press the big red button.

After a three-second wait, all traffic will be redirected to a server that the application will choose independently.

In the settings you can select servers to work from a specific country. Just click on the flag icon in the upper right corner.

In the settings you can also set the automatic connection function when the program starts.

Opera VPN

The Opera VPN application allows you to connect to a private virtual network in one click. The advantage of the program was best tool to bypass access and blocking of blocked applications. The software is entirely in Russian. There is training, so even beginners should not have problems using it.

Full encryption

This implies that all traffic will be encrypted through the VPN, and it will also be additionally encrypted through the TOR network. Application "Orbot!" includes TOR client and VPN, which allows you to provide root rights for owners full encryption. This is the safest and reliable way, the cost of which is low - you need to get root rights.

Limitations of free VPN services

Free services are quite enough to surf the Internet using a web browser, access instant messengers and other applications that do not actively consume traffic. Free servers have a number of limitations:

Advertising. To recoup costs, operators free services They show paid ads and advertising to their users.
Low reliability. No one guarantees that the free server will be available around the clock. Users have to change servers periodically because they are overloaded with clients or are closed.
Low speed, traffic limitation. The work of other programs that require a large amount of transferred data is often blocked. In this way, operators of free servers reduce the load on equipment and encourage users to switch to paid plans.

Benefits of paid VPN servers

Confidence that the server will not close in the near future.
No restrictions when watching streaming video in high resolution. These companies have incomparably higher power than free services. They are able to provide their clients with a higher speed of information transfer.
High reliability, availability of technical support. Users are provided with data confidentiality and stable support services. It is important to remember that the server knows your real IP address and some other data.

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