OpenVPN

OpenVPN uses the OpenSSL library to provide encryption of both the data and control channels. It lets OpenSSL do all the encryption and authentication work. Thus, it allows OpenVPN to use all the ciphers available in the OpenSSL package. It’s a little more challenging to set up that PPTP but with the right tutorials an average computer user should not encounter any problems.

What is an OpenVPN VPN provider?

OpenVPN VPN providers use the OpenVPN protocol to connect users to VPN servers. Every provider uses its configurations to set up the connections, depending on the desired level of encryption.

How do the VPN providers integrate OpenVPN?

There are two ways OpenVPN can be integrated. The first one by using the OpenVPN user interface and predefined configuration files provided by the VPN service. Thus, when you subscribe to such a VPN service, you need to download some .opvn files that will be used by the OpenVPN UI to connect to the desired servers. The advantage of this approach is that you may use several VPN services from the same interface and connect to a large variety of servers.

The second approach is to integrate the OpenVPN connection library in custom build apps. Thus, you don’t need to install OpenVPN yourself. It will be done silently by the app installer. The advantage offered by such apps is that you may switch between different VPN protocols (for example from OpenVPN to PPTP, L2TP or SSTP).

My recommendation is to go for the second type of providers if you are a regular VPN user and you plan to use one service at a time. However, for users with special needs (lots of locations and IPs), the OpenVPN UI can be a more straightforward alternative.

List of OpenVPN VPN providers

Finally, here is the list of several OpenVPN based VPN services (alphabetically ordered):

Content not available for your country

Most regular users would think that when this Windows message stating that the VPN connection is established shows up, everything is fine and that they now have a secure VPN connection. They think they can now access services like Hulu, Spotify or any geo-targeted website. Then, surprise, when they try to access this site, they still have the regular message “content not available for your country.” What’s happening? Didn’t I use my VPN connection? Is this VPN solution I opted for lying to me? ….

Verify your IP address

The most advanced user will then try to verify what IP address the whole internet think they have. So let’s say that I am based in Madagascar, and I usually an IP address similar to 41.x.x .x. If I go to places like xmyip.com, it will confirm that I am actually based in Madagascar. If I used a VPN connection, and if this connection was setup correctly, xmyip.com would see that I now have a 208.x.x.x – like IP address, and it will think that I am somewhere in Los Angeles, or whatever VPN endpoint that I would have chosen.

However, most of the times, when you run an  OpenVPN client on Windows (OpenVPN is the most popular VPN protocol), everything seems to be connecting fine although the whole internet still thinks you are not behind a VPN, though you’re still showing your original country IP address.

Not an issue with the VPN provider: OpenVPN connection issues

It’s not an issue with the VPN provider that you opted for; it is an OpenVPN connection problem. A lot of people are using this software so it must be working, right? It’s not your fault too, as you are proceeding the way it should be, which is: use the OpenVPN client, enter your credentials and then hit “connect,” wait for the client to confirm that you are connected.

The issue resides in the fact that some OpenVPN client is launched at Windows startup phase, but with the wrong credentials. To be able to do low-level network configuration, the OpenVPN needs to be run with Administrator privileges. That’s where the issue lies. Most OpenVPN clients aren’t run with administrator privilege at startup, though some network components failed to load successfully.

Simple solution: Run as administrator

Luckily, the solution to the OpenVPN connection problem is pretty simple: you first need to stop the currently running OpenVPN client (this usually is a matter of exiting from the OpenVPN). Then you need to relaunch the OpenVPN with administrator mode. This is often just a matter of right-clicking on the OpenVPN icon, then chose “Run as administrator.” Now you should have the OpenVPN client running, then you can connect, and xmyip.com should find your VPN IP for this session.

This is a bit tricky and can sometimes lead you to unpredictable results.

Other possible solutions for troubleshooting OpenVPN:

• Take a look at the OpenVPN client log file. It may show some error messages that may help you find the problem.
• Close the OpenVPN application and restart it. If the error persists try to:
• Restart your computer.

Some articles that may help you if you are still not able to make the OpenVPN work:

• TLS Error: TLS key negotiation failed to occur within 60 seconds
• TAP installer failed on Windows 10

Now we’d like to hear from you any other issues you had while using your VPN connections. Tell us more in the comment section.