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Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) are very helpful, whether you’re using public Wi-Fi at a coffee shop in your hometown or travelling the world. However, you are not required to pay for a VPN service because you can host your own VPN server at home. The upload speed of your home Internet connection is crucial in this situation. If your upload bandwidth is limited, you might only want to use a paid VPN service. The amount of upload bandwidth that internet service providers provide is typically much less than their download bandwidth.
However, if you do have the necessary bandwidth, installing a VPN server at home might be the best option for you. Thanks to increased visibility and the creation of user-friendly and affordable services, VPNs have experienced a meteoric rise in popularity in recent years. As we’ll explain, having a basic understanding of VPNs operate can be helpful. We mentioned below are the ways to Set Up Home VPN Server for yourself.
Ways to Set Up Home VPN Server for yourself
Use Other Devices as VPN Servers
Keep in mind that the device acting as the VPN server must always be turned on. You won’t be able to connect through the VPN if the device is turned off (or crashes), which is a big problem if you’re away from home and unable to turn it back on.
You must configure port forwarding on your router before creating the VPN server in order for the server to be reachable from the internet. Accessing and configuring port forwarding on your router are covered in our instructions for changing your NAT Type. We’ll show you how to install macOS, Windows, and the Raspberry Pi.
Flash Your Current router
Be aware that compared to purchasing a router with built-in VPN server support, this method of setting up a home VPN server is riskier because it leaves more room for error and security flaws. This method requires that you first flash your current router to support a third-party firmware in order to create a VPN.
After that, you must configure the device you want to use as the VPN client by entering a series of commands on the flashed router to create a VPN server. There is much room for error, which could eventually jeopardies your online security and privacy. Before flashing your router, do your homework because doing so on a device that doesn’t support the firmware could cause your router to malfunction (or “brick”).
- Check to see if your router supports DD-WRT, OpenWRT, or Tomato firmware. Alternatively, you can purchase a router with the firmware pre-flashed.
- Download the compatible firmware file to your computer.
- Plug the router into a power outlet and plug one end of the Ethernet cable into one of the LAN ports and the other end into the LAN port on your computer.
- Open the Web browser of your choice on your computer and enter the internal IP address of your router. Most routers are set to 192.168.1.1 or 192.168.0.1.
- Log into your router’s control panel and find the Router Update or Upgrade section in the settings menu.
- Flush the router with firmware according to the device-specific instructions that you will find on the provider’s website.
- Every router is different and getting the flashing process wrong can break it.
- Reboot the newly flashed router and log into the control panel again.
Router is setup with the correct firmware, you can create the VPN server:
- Click on the Wireless tab in the router’s web interface.
- Find the VPN tab or the Settings menu and enable OpenVPN.
- Now it’s time to set up your VPN server and VPN client. This step requires you to run many commands to set up the VPN correctly – it is not for beginners. You should follow closely the detailed instructions for your chosen firmware – DD-WRT, OpenWRT, or Tomato. Even a single mistake could brick your router.
Buy a VPN Router
These routers can be pricey, sometimes costing more than $100. That costs about the same as annual (and multi-year) subscription plans to some of the top VPN services available today. Make sure the router supports your preferred VPN protocol before you purchase it. The OpenVPN protocol is suggested because it strikes a balance between performance and privacy. On a router, you can’t quickly switch between various VPN protocols like you can with many third-party VPNs.
To setup your home router as a VPN server:
- Launch your preferred browser.
- Enter the LAN (internal) IP address of your router in the search bar. Typically, manufacturers give routers one of the following IP addresses: 192.168.0.1 or 192.168.1.1. If neither is your router’s IP address, do the following steps to find out what it is
- Enter your router’s user name and password. If you haven’t changed this yet, both parts will likely be ‘admin‘.
- Go into Settings (or Advanced) > VPN Services.
- Enable the VPN service.
- Make sure that the client using the VPN connection is allowed to access all sites on the Internet and home network.
- Confirm these settings and click Apply.
Now set up your VPN client:
- Download the configuration file for the VPN client (Windows, macOS, smartphone or other device) from the router’s control panel.
- Unzip the file and copy it to the VPN client folder on the device you wish to connect to the VPN (either wirelessly or with a USB-C cable).
- Connect to the VPN (away from your home network) and test for leaks.
- If there is a problem with the VPN, troubleshoot – it may be server or client related.
Final Words
That’s it with our article on how to Set Up Home VPN Server for yourself. Virtual private networks, or VPNs, enable secure connections between your device and the VPN server, enabling you to browse the internet without being tracked. Your VPN server can be set up in a variety of ways. You can gain remote access to your home network in this manner. For particular operating systems, there are a set of steps that you must take.
The easiest way is to purchase a router with VPN capabilities. Making your personal computer into a home VPN server is the least expensive method. You can flash your existing router to convert it to VPN compatibility if you don’t want to buy a new one. In addition to these approaches, you can build your VPN server in the cloud using a cloud service provider like AWS.