VPNBOOK – Free VPN – How to set up a VPN on Windows 7
If you’d like to try out a VPN, that’s totally free, VPN Book is a good choice to begin with. The IP runs from Romania, which as a country does not require logging of IP connections, or you to register for a VPN. That’s right. No registration and no logging.
VPN Username and Password – we’ll use the PPTP option
Windows 7 - Setup.
The easiest way to set up a VPN is via PPTP on windows.
Step 1
1) Go to the control panel and open the “Network and Sharing center”. From here, select “Set up a new connection or network”.
Step 2
2) In the new window select the “Connect to a workplace” link.
Step 3
3) In the new window select “Use my Internet connection (VPN)”.
Step 4
4) In the Internet address box you may enter either the IP or web address of your VPN server ie
euro1.vpnbook.com
Click “Next”.
Step 5
5) In the new window enter the username and password.
Username = vpnbook
Password = adv7ebeh
Tick the “Remember this password”. Click “Create”.
Step 6
6) You can either connect now or close the connection wizard.
Step 7
7) From the Control Panel navigate to Network and Sharing Center. Select your new connection.
Step 8
8) You can also connect from the Network and Connection icon in your system tray (bottom right hand corner, by your clock).
Simply left click on it (it looks like a monitor with a cable up the left side) or if wifi, then a barchart. Right click on your connection and select “Properties” or “Connect” to connect straight away.
Under properties, there are 5 tabs (General, Options, Security, Networking and Sharing).
If you selected “Connect”, You should now connect to VPN Book.
To Test the IP has changed to VPNBook’s server
www.dnsleaktest.com
or
Thanks it! You’re now running on a foreign IP – Romanian to be precise. Over a VPN – so not even your ISP can see what you’re reading.
I love the flag shown with DNSLeakTest.com:
Using AES 256 encryption – which is the Cisco recommended level of encryption, as it’s unbreakable by the code breakers.
FoxyVPN offer the best visual VPN tutorials (steps 1 to 7). So if you use Vista, Linux, Mac, you might want to check them out.
http://www.foxyvpn.com/tutorials/
VPNBook are great to introduce you to using a VPN, if you’ve lacked the know how or confidence to try it.
* Free
* Unlimited Bandwidth
* No Registration
* No server Logging
* AES 256 Encryption.
Next week:
I’ll cover OpenVPN – on Port 53 – for faster performance. OpenVPN on Port 53 is the preferred method, as not even the great firewall of China can block it. If a government decides to block PPTP, then you’d lose protection. So next week, we’ll give you the bulletproof method – that no ISP or Government can block – and all this is for free. Whichever VPN provider you use the two underlying protocols are the same, you’ll use PPTP (Windows) or OpenVPN (unstoppable).
How do you do this for windows XP?
Hi Kit,
Great instructions for XP are here
http://www.foxyvpn.com/tutorials/tutorial_xp_pptp.html
Have fun!
To whom it may concern. Thank you very much.
Can’t wait to see the port53 thing.
Yes, Port 53 makes you bulletproof
No government or ISP can block it, neither can any firewall.
Port 53 also speeds up performance, so you’ll see a speed increase in your VPN connection.
Thank you for leaving a comment, it’s so nice to hear back from everyone.
You always wonder if the work was liked, and I’m really pleased that you liked it:)
So, until next week.
Done, thanks for the assistance and will get the port 53 when instructions are uploaded.
Port 53 is much faster, and unstoppable. There’s no government or firewall that can stop it.
Thanks for commenting. It’s so great to hear back, that it’s all systems go!
Do you have one for the mac?
Just checked and FoxyVPN.com does have these.
http://www.foxyvpn.com/tutorials/
“Romania, which as a country does not require logging of IP connections,”
Sorry folks, this is false.
The IP logging was made in Romania, as in every country, like forever. Is an ex-communist country, folks.
However, for about 2 years now, in Romania there is a low that is FORCING all ISP to log IP traffic.
So… care about that one.
)
) Is easy and they do have all they need for.
Also, Romania is a well known country for cybercrime activity. Imagine what is happening with an VPN with exit point in Romania
Oh, and, did I mentioned that, for about one year ago, secret services in Romania are running “legit civil businesses” in the cyberspace espionage? If I was them, I would definitely set up some VPN-s like that
Hi Tom,
I’ve previously checked online risk assessments for VPNBook, and Romania was the main criticism. However Romania is much better than the UK or Australia regarding data retention. They don’t store traffic logs, and delete connection logs in 3 days.
Positives are that they’re free, used latest encryption, shared IP’s, unlimited downloading, community based and allow others to learn the VPN set up tutorial so that they can decide whom to use in future.
We have to compare this against hidemyass.com who handed over the logs to the police. One of the biggest decisions with VPN’s is being careful who you trust – so we do agree on that point and very strongly agree.
Most VPN supplies say no to downloading and yes to handing data over on their users. So why pay to use them? If a court order is served, the only protection for users is that they have no server logs.
If downloading is a concern, then there are few paid options, namely:
1. BT Guard (connection logs kept < 1 day) – Torrents allowed
2. Tor Guard (connection logs kept 1 day) – Torrents allowed
Connection logs are different to traffic logs, but data retention on either is bad news. Shared IP's are better again.
I'm researching in as much depth as possible the answers to all these questions.
VPN Book offer the best free option. I have tried to find their background or negative comments. Their risk assessment came out at 72%, which was good for a VPN (who is both new and based in Romania). This 72% came from scamalert – to see if they were bogus.
Importantly VPN Book are free – so that everyone can follow the VPN notes and connect. Once you've learnt this, you're free to connect to whomever you wish. But do not use a VPN based in your own country. Find out how quickly they delete their logs (so that they cannot comply with court orders). Look carefully at their terms on downloading and bandwidth, and whether they bar you or will hand your IP over to the Police. Beware of sleeping with the enemy on this issue if you're downloading, and use a paid for provider who deals with torrents. If the VPN is to protect your work and private life – then look for those outside of your country that delete those logs, that is *the* critical aspect.
Thank’s for the comment – as it opens up a whole new angle of discussion, to help everyone get the right VPN for them.
Hi there.
I’ve set up UDP 53 and everything went fine. But when I check my IP, its still the same? Whats wrong? :/
I’m guessing that you double clicked the OpenVPN icon.
That launching Openvpn – with red lights (not yet connected).
Then go to your system tray (by your clock – bottom right hand side)
Look for the openVPN icon.
Right click it – opt for VPNBook, then CONNECT
The red lights, will have changed to Yellow.
Yellow = connected by not authenticated.
Green = authenticated.
If you right click and then STATUS – it will give you a screen of error messages.
Any chance you could cut n paste these errors messages in for me?
I can then tell you at what stage it’s gone wrong, and why.
It could be that VPNbook’s system had a hiccup, or that something in the config stage has gone wrong.
Sorry about asking for more info, I always hate that when someone else says it to me, so you have my sympathy, but error messages help me pin point what’s happening for you.
Thanks for your answer m8!
Before I check anything, I have to say that my computer is connected via WI-FI access point. May that be the problem?
Hiya,
Just unplugged my ethernet cable and connected via wifi… and it’s slower but connects fine.
(Sorry, I’m a lazy powerline fan – running it via Ethernet is far more secure, faster and cheaper than a hispeed wifi system).
So we need to look elsewhere for the problem.
How can i get high download speeds on VPN in Ghana
Hi Seth,
Your speed is set by your connection to the ISP.
Some towns in the UK get 50 mb downloads… whereas I don’t… I get 2 mb.
The speed is dictated by the capacity of your telephone exchange (if it’s older, it will have lower speeds).
I’m guessing that you’re not on cable – they get the fabulous speeds of 100 mb or more. I wish I had cable!!
Another factor is how many miles you are from your telephone exchange. You lose an enormous amount of speed, by being say 6 miles from your exchange. Even in the UK, if you’re a long way from an exchange… your speed will be dire.
What you can do though…
1. TCP is a connection orientated protocol so is slower than UDP.
2. Use a UDP based VPN for higher speed – but you won’t go faster than your exchanges capacity.
I wish we all lived in Sweden – as they have fabulous speeds of 100 mb to everyone’s house. Therefore, lets all emigrate.
I like snow. 
I’m kind of where sikiduck is-it says I am connected but my ip is still the same.I’m on Windows 8 and udp-53-the icon is bluish green.It says HMAC authentication failed and then it says Error local remote tls keys are out of sync-thanks!
Hi JS,
HMAC authentication failure is serious… that’s why it won’t let you proceed.
HMAC means “hash message authentication code”. What it’s doing is using a hash (probably SHA1), and your key. This is so that they can verify the message “integrity”, which means it hasn’t been eavesdropped on and changed in transit. This eavesdropping is usual with a man in the middle attack (MITM), usually carried out by the govt or your ex’s lawyers.
Hopefully the source of this mismatch is the TLS error – which says remote keys out of sync. This would explain the dodgy results the HMAC is getting – and the reason it’s closed you down. Your “ex” isn’t listening in I hope?
Reconnect, and with luck, it’ll be a network error. If it fails with UDP – switch to the TCP protocol. TCP is a “connection orientated” system and will count your connections in and order, and make your machine resend.
You may find you will connect fine with TCP (a bossy protocol), but will be unstable under UDP – and generate network errors. UDP is a fast paced protocol – but it’s not bossy and doesn’t manage the connection. If the networks between you and VPNBook are a bit unstable, you may have to stay with TCP I’m afraid.
Try it again… and see if the UDP works for you at a less busy time of day.
If not, you can connect on TCP – it’s slower but very stable.
***ADDITION – RFC 2104
Providing a way to check the integrity of information transmitted
over or stored in an unreliable medium is a prime necessity in the
world of open computing and communications. Mechanisms that provide
such integrity check based on a secret key are usually called
“message authentication codes” (MAC). Typically, message
authentication codes are used between two parties that share a secret
key in order to validate information transmitted between these
parties. In this document we present such a MAC mechanism based on
cryptographic hash functions. This mechanism, called HMAC,
also said returned error code 1
I’ve taken a look at the OpenVPN support forum for you. This looks like an Admin rights issue. You have to run OpenVPN with full admin rights.
Right click on the OpenVPN icon – Run as Administrator.
Which a very easy fix – Phew!
Let me know, as Windows 8 users seem to be having problems… I wonder….
https://forums.openvpn.net/topic11710.html
thanks for your help-tcp attempt, I got a refused connection. and udp, and a no server certificate has been enabled message on both connections
Okay.
I’ll go test VPNBook to make sure they’re running…
****
Hi JS,
I’ve just tried connecting…
Tue Dec 04 13:23:27 2012 UDPv4 link remote: 195.60.76.223:53
Tue Dec 04 13:24:27 2012 TLS Error: TLS key negotiation failed to occur within 60 seconds (check your network connectivity)
Tue Dec 04 13:24:27 2012 TLS Error: TLS handshake failed
Tue Dec 04 13:24:27 2012 TCP/UDP: Closing socket
Tue Dec 04 13:24:27 2012 SIGUSR1[soft,tls-error] received, process restarting
Tue Dec 04 13:24:29 2012 WARNING: No server certificate verification method has been enabled.
I’m guessing that VPNBook are doing maintenance.
But at least we know it’s not your client that has the issue – which is one good thing.
ok-thanks-I will let you know
A tutorial on youtube to help get connected
http://youtu.be/WS27BAohSYI
Hi John,
Thank you. Had a look at the video, and it’s working on the latest 4 certificates for VPNBook, so that’s really good. Thanks
Hello,the vpnbook was working perfectly but has stop working.i would like to know if it can be block by my network operators,if not how do i get it back to work.By the way i’m in Ghana West Africa,Thanks for reading and your help.
Hi Stephen,
What protocol/port are you using, and i’ll test connections from the UK. TCP/port 80 or UDP/port 53.
VPNbook issued new certificates… starting the first week of December.
So you’d need to download the latest certificate/config files (changed in the last 2 weeks)?
That might explain the problems, as then you won’t be able to connect, as you won’t be authenticated.
Hi Stephen,
It’s unlikely to be your network operator.
VPNBook changed their certificates in December. This would block your access.
Go back to http://www.vpnbook.com and download new certificates (ie UDP port 53 or TCP port 80).
It’ll probably work for you. This change in certificates caught me too…
Good luck!
I am coming of the opinion that I may not want to deal with you or this VPN provider. I have sent three emails asking questions to contact@vpnbook.com and haven’t had the common decency of a reply yet. What is the problem?
Hi,
I’ve emailed then, and they’ve replied… after a couple of days, and sometimes they haven’t replied to me either
. They’re a community project, so are a little pushed for time. That’s the problem when a service isn’t “paid” for, but free. The nice things like “customer service have to come out of someone’s weekend. In their defence, they have been changing to a different ISP, and have issued brand new certificates, so they’ve been busy.
If it’s anything I can help you with, then I will gladly.
I may know the answer, and if I don’t then I’ll try and find out for you.
Hi,
I’ve been having a look at of some of the best paid for VPN providers.
AirVPN is 15 euros for 3 months, and looks good for privacy
https://www.airvpn.org/plans/
Private are $7 a month
https://www.privateinternetaccess.com/
They offer servers in Romania (good privacy laws, and they struck down the EU data retention laws.
Astrill – $6 a month, 2 servers based in Romania
https://www.astrill.com/servers.php
I’ve taken the suggestion from lifehacker, rather than them being random.
If you’re using torrenting, you’d need unlimited high bandwidth accounts, and then I’d suggest
Torguard or
BitGuard.
Hope that helps.
மிக்க நன்றி
நான் மகிழ்ச்சி உங்களுக்கு பிடிக்கும்
Has anyone had trouble connecting? I’m stuck on the yellow bit and all it says is this :
Mon Dec 24 14:51:45 2012 OpenVPN 2.3_rc2 x86_64-w64-mingw32 [SSL (OpenSSL)] [LZO] [PKCS11] [eurephia] [IPv6] built on Dec 17 2012
Mon Dec 24 14:51:45 2012 MANAGEMENT: TCP Socket listening on [AF_INET]127.0.0.1:25340
Mon Dec 24 14:51:45 2012 Need hold release from management interface, waiting…
Mon Dec 24 14:51:45 2012 MANAGEMENT: Client connected from [AF_INET]127.0.0.1:25340
Mon Dec 24 14:51:45 2012 MANAGEMENT: CMD ‘state on’
Mon Dec 24 14:51:45 2012 MANAGEMENT: CMD ‘log all on’
Mon Dec 24 14:51:45 2012 MANAGEMENT: CMD ‘hold off’
Mon Dec 24 14:51:45 2012 MANAGEMENT: CMD ‘hold release’
Mon Dec 24 14:51:45 2012 WARNING: No server certificate verification method has been enabled. See http://openvpn.net/howto.html#mitm for more info.
Mon Dec 24 14:51:45 2012 NOTE: OpenVPN 2.1 requires ‘–script-security 2′ or higher to call user-defined scripts or executables
Mon Dec 24 14:51:45 2012 NOTE: –fast-io is disabled since we are running on Windows
Mon Dec 24 14:51:46 2012 Socket Buffers: R=[8192->8192] S=[8192->8192]
Mon Dec 24 14:51:46 2012 Attempting to establish TCP connection with [AF_INET]195.60.76.223:81
Mon Dec 24 14:51:46 2012 MANAGEMENT: >STATE:1356360706,TCP_CONNECT,,,
Mon Dec 24 14:52:07 2012 TCP: connect to [AF_INET]195.60.76.223:81 failed, will try again in 5 seconds:
Forget the last message it works now. I had to use the new .zip files.
Lol, that caught me out too.
When VPNbook changed to a new ISP, they reissued all their certificates… and we were all caught by surprise.
hello, only today that i have known about VPN and how it works. i am working here in saudi arabia and my favorite chat room is blocked here. i wonder if this VPN can help unblock it so that i can continue to chat with my friends same as before..can you help me please to configure my pc for a free vpn connection?THANKS A LOT.i will just wait anybody to help me.
Hi,
Yes. Install the VPN – and providing you can use UDP port 53, or TCP port 80, the VPN will locate your chat room in Romania.
The DNS runs from Romania – so local govt laws do not apply.
Eg the piratebay in the UK is blocked – but not in Romania.
Make sure you use OpenVPN for maximum security.
Windows7 and PPTP – may leak your ISP. Use OpenVPN – which does not leak.
If you want to just read the chat room – and not post, an alternative is
http://www.startpage.com – install their SSL version (it installs directly into the firefox browswer for SSL connections).
Search for your chat room under startpage.
The results will display 2 links.
The second link has IXPROXY. Select this proxy link – their proxy runs from Holland.
Startpage retain no IP, no search queries. NOTHING. So any government contacting them with a court order, is told “sorry, we have no server logs”.
I’ve spoken to Startpage – Dutch police are aware of them, and know they have no server logs, so the police don’t bother contacting them anymore.
Startpage have won the EU privacy award – the only search engine to do so.
The EU audits their logs – to ensure all server logs are delete and no traces of personal data exist.
It’s a second method to use if you just want to read the site.
Good luck!
Please help me here. While connecting it gave me following error :
Sun Feb 03 15:29:24 2013 OpenVPN 2.3.0 i686-w64-mingw32 [SSL (OpenSSL)] [LZO] [PKCS11] [eurephia] [IPv6] built on Jan 8 2013
Enter Management Password:
Sun Feb 03 15:29:24 2013 MANAGEMENT: TCP Socket listening on [AF_INET]127.0.0.1:25340
Sun Feb 03 15:29:24 2013 Need hold release from management interface, waiting…
Sun Feb 03 15:29:24 2013 MANAGEMENT: Client connected from [AF_INET]127.0.0.1:25340
Sun Feb 03 15:29:24 2013 MANAGEMENT: CMD ‘state on’
Sun Feb 03 15:29:24 2013 MANAGEMENT: CMD ‘log all on’
Sun Feb 03 15:29:24 2013 MANAGEMENT: CMD ‘hold off’
Sun Feb 03 15:29:24 2013 MANAGEMENT: CMD ‘hold release’
Sun Feb 03 15:29:25 2013 WARNING: No server certificate verification method has been enabled. See http://openvpn.net/howto.html#mitm for more info.
Sun Feb 03 15:29:25 2013 NOTE: OpenVPN 2.1 requires ‘–script-security 2′ or higher to call user-defined scripts or executables
Sun Feb 03 15:29:25 2013 NOTE: –fast-io is disabled since we are running on Windows
Sun Feb 03 15:29:25 2013 Socket Buffers: R=[8192->8192] S=[8192->8192]
Sun Feb 03 15:29:25 2013 UDPv4 link local: [undef]
Sun Feb 03 15:29:25 2013 UDPv4 link remote: [AF_INET]93.115.84.198:53
Sun Feb 03 15:29:25 2013 MANAGEMENT: >STATE:1359934165,WAIT,,,
Sun Feb 03 15:30:25 2013 TLS Error: TLS key negotiation failed to occur within 60 seconds (check your network connectivity)
Sun Feb 03 15:30:25 2013 TLS Error: TLS handshake failed
Sun Feb 03 15:30:25 2013 SIGUSR1[soft,tls-error] received, process restarting
Sun Feb 03 15:30:25 2013 MANAGEMENT: >STATE:1359934225,RECONNECTING,tls-error,,
Sun Feb 03 15:30:25 2013 Restart pause, 2 second(s)
Sun Feb 03 15:30:27 2013 WARNING: No server certificate verification method has been enabled. See http://openvpn.net/howto.html#mitm for more info.
Sun Feb 03 15:30:27 2013 NOTE: OpenVPN 2.1 requires ‘–script-security 2′ or higher to call user-defined scripts or executables
Sun Feb 03 15:30:27 2013 NOTE: –fast-io is disabled since we are running on Windows
Sun Feb 03 15:30:27 2013 Socket Buffers: R=[8192->8192] S=[8192->8192]
Sun Feb 03 15:30:27 2013 UDPv4 link local: [undef]
Sun Feb 03 15:30:27 2013 UDPv4 link remote: [AF_INET]93.114.44.253:53
Sun Feb 03 15:30:27 2013 MANAGEMENT: >STATE:1359934227,WAIT,,,
Sun Feb 03 15:31:27 2013 TLS Error: TLS key negotiation failed to occur within 60 seconds (check your network connectivity)
Sun Feb 03 15:31:27 2013 TLS Error: TLS handshake failed
Sun Feb 03 15:31:27 2013 SIGUSR1[soft,tls-error] received, process restarting
Sun Feb 03 15:31:27 2013 MANAGEMENT: >STATE:1359934287,RECONNECTING,tls-error,,
Sun Feb 03 15:31:27 2013 Restart pause, 2 second(s)
Sun Feb 03 15:31:29 2013 WARNING: No server certificate verification method has been enabled. See http://openvpn.net/howto.html#mitm for more info.
Sun Feb 03 15:31:29 2013 NOTE: OpenVPN 2.1 requires ‘–script-security 2′ or higher to call user-defined scripts or executables
Sun Feb 03 15:31:29 2013 NOTE: –fast-io is disabled since we are running on Windows
Sun Feb 03 15:31:29 2013 Socket Buffers: R=[8192->8192] S=[8192->8192]
Sun Feb 03 15:31:29 2013 UDPv4 link local: [undef]
Sun Feb 03 15:31:29 2013 UDPv4 link remote: [AF_INET]93.115.84.198:53
Sun Feb 03 15:31:29 2013 MANAGEMENT: >STATE:1359934289,WAIT,,,
Sun Feb 03 15:32:29 2013 TLS Error: TLS key negotiation failed to occur within 60 seconds (check your network connectivity)
Sun Feb 03 15:32:29 2013 TLS Error: TLS handshake failed
Sun Feb 03 15:32:29 2013 SIGUSR1[soft,tls-error] received, process restarting
Sun Feb 03 15:32:29 2013 MANAGEMENT: >STATE:1359934349,RECONNECTING,tls-error,,
Sun Feb 03 15:32:29 2013 Restart pause, 2 second(s)
Sun Feb 03 15:32:31 2013 WARNING: No server certificate verification method has been enabled. See http://openvpn.net/howto.html#mitm for more info.
Sun Feb 03 15:32:31 2013 NOTE: OpenVPN 2.1 requires ‘–script-security 2′ or higher to call user-defined scripts or executables
Sun Feb 03 15:32:31 2013 NOTE: –fast-io is disabled since we are running on Windows
Sun Feb 03 15:32:31 2013 Socket Buffers: R=[8192->8192] S=[8192->8192]
Sun Feb 03 15:32:31 2013 UDPv4 link local: [undef]
Sun Feb 03 15:32:31 2013 UDPv4 link remote: [AF_INET]93.114.44.253:53
Sun Feb 03 15:32:31 2013 MANAGEMENT: >STATE:1359934351,WAIT,,,
Sun Feb 03 15:33:31 2013 TLS Error: TLS key negotiation failed to occur within 60 seconds (check your network connectivity)
Sun Feb 03 15:33:31 2013 TLS Error: TLS handshake failed
Sun Feb 03 15:33:31 2013 SIGUSR1[soft,tls-error] received, process restarting
Sun Feb 03 15:33:31 2013 MANAGEMENT: >STATE:1359934411,RECONNECTING,tls-error,,
Sun Feb 03 15:33:31 2013 Restart pause, 2 second(s)
Sun Feb 03 15:33:33 2013 WARNING: No server certificate verification method has been enabled. See http://openvpn.net/howto.html#mitm for more info.
Sun Feb 03 15:33:33 2013 NOTE: OpenVPN 2.1 requires ‘–script-security 2′ or higher to call user-defined scripts or executables
Sun Feb 03 15:33:33 2013 NOTE: –fast-io is disabled since we are running on Windows
Sun Feb 03 15:33:33 2013 Socket Buffers: R=[8192->8192] S=[8192->8192]
Sun Feb 03 15:33:33 2013 UDPv4 link local: [undef]
Sun Feb 03 15:33:33 2013 UDPv4 link remote: [AF_INET]93.115.84.198:53
Sun Feb 03 15:33:33 2013 MANAGEMENT: >STATE:1359934413,WAIT,,,
Hi Neil,
the critical part of the error message is:
Sun Feb 03 15:32:29 2013 TLS Error: TLS key negotiation failed to occur within 60 seconds (check your network connectivity)
Sun Feb 03 15:32:29 2013 TLS Error: TLS handshake failed
TLS is the updated version of SSL – think of it as SSL v 3.1.
It undertakes a handshake – where it exchanges the super secret keys.
The problem here, is that it allows 60 seconds for the exchange – and it’s not happening in time.
So it’s closing down your connection – to protect you.
Normally this is a slow network – or a congested network.
Try again 2 hours later – and the congestion will probably have cleared.
Can VPNbook be used by VistaPremium Home Edition?
Yes.
You can install it for Vista…
I would recommend you use OpenVPN, as it’s far more secure than using the Windows OS.
OpenVPN doesn’t leak your DNS – you can check here to see if your DNS is leaking.
http://www.dnsleaktest.com
Hi,
I tried again many a times but still no luck.
Hi Neil,
Can you try say UDP instead of the TCP. You download a different certificate.
TCP is slower than UDP – so that might be the cause of the slow network.
hello there, actually sry to say this but i don’t know what is this VPN and all.. but i just know this it increases the speed on internet.. i am from India.. i had done everything above like those 8 steps. that’s it.. but i don’t think so. my speed is increasing .. need some help .. guys don’t shout me.. okay :p
Hi Abhishek,
A VPN is a virtual private network. If your ISP is blocking your access, you may find you can browse the internet – and they won’t know what you’re reading.
Have fun.
Hello, I’m trying to use VPNBook but it’s giving me the TLS handshake failed to occur within 60 seconds message.
I’ve been trying every half hour for 3 hours now but it looks like it’s not going through. Any suggestions or extra logs needed to help me sort this out?
Normally that means you’ve got an slow or congested network.
The handshake is timing out, as the response isn’t getting to you in time.
If you’re on wireless can you change to wired, as that’s faster.
It maybe your ISP network is slow, or the VPNBook server is overloaded. Can you try the other server, download the second certificate for the second server, and see if it’s their server rather than the network.
I connected to openVPN , it showed green which means its connected but still when i check DNSleaks it still shows my ip address .. even after fixing the leak.
H Rohith,
http://www.dnsleaktest.com go through these VPN leaks.
You may have to ensure that your ISP’s DNS has been flushed from the cache.
start > all programs > accessories > black tv screen (which is your Command prompt – it will bring up a black tv screen).
you’ll be shown a c: prompt
type in :
ipconfig /flushdns
*****Here’s mine – I’ve just typed the command into my system****
C:\Windows\system32>ipconfig /flushdns
Windows IP Configuration
Successfully flushed the DNS Resolver Cache.
C:\Windows\system32>
Even when i use there PPTP it shows PORT OPEN.. but after a while it shows me an error
“The remote connection was not made because the name of the remote access server did not resolve ” ERROR : 868
Hi Rohith,
Double checked this error code… it looks like DNS
I believe that Windows’ built-in VPN setup will only work on port 1723 (PPTP) or 443 (SSTP).
As you’re on PPTP – you’ll be on port 1723.
http://retrohack.com/howto-troubleshoot-microsoft-vpn-connections-part-two/
868 The remote connection was not made because the name of the remote access server did not resolve. Check your DNS. If it is correct, then there is something wrong on the client’s network.
***
Next tasks:
1. Check that there’s no typo’s in the server name/ip address. the dns is saying that it can’t match up the server name to an IP. It could be as simple as a typo.
2. Start > all programmes > accessories > command prompt
ping euro1.vpnbook.com
(what ip is returned to you… is your dns able to look up the IP? this is where the fault appears to be ).
ping euro2.vpnbook.com
(again check what ip is returned).
now check that you’ve not made a typo in the set up stage. It’s easy to do. but means the dns can’t find the vpnbook servers.
Server #1: euro1.vpnbook.com
Server #2: euro2.vpnbook.com
Let me know how you get on.
If the dns won’t find vpnbook, then a second stage solution will be to hard code the vpnbook server IP’s into your hosts file.
If we need to do that, I’ll talk you through it. I’d prefer to keep to automatic systems incase vpnbook change their IP address in future – as you’d need to manually update your hosts each time they change their ip.
hwy i connect just 1 time then dont connect any way pls help me
Hi lipon,
I need the error log for diagnostics.
Right click on the icon when it’s started to connect… then select view logs.
Cut and paste any errors you can see.
That way we can see exactly what’s going wrong for you.
hi i dont connect i am trying 100 time but it show me connection failed error 800
http://compnetworking.about.com/b/2006/05/28/about-vpn-error-800.htm
One of the most common errors encountered when working with a VPN is error 800 – “Unable to establish the VPN connection.” Unfortunately this error code doesn’t tell you anything of why the connection is actually failing. If you encounter it, check the following:
Are you using the correct VPN server name? The server administrator provides this name.
Is the Internet / network connection to the server functioning properly? You should ping the server is not sure.
Is your network firewall blocking VPN connections? Port 1723 must be opened and Protocol 47 must be enabled in the firewall configuration settings
Does the server have too many clients already connected (VPN server connection limit exceeded)? The server administrator can check this, but it is not a common problem.
can u help me woth team viwer pls
ahhah
Is that a good or bad ahhah???
thank u for answere my pm .thx
Hope it helps you. You’re using PPTP, which is weak, if you can master pptp, then move on to openvpn… I’d like you to be as safe as possible.
I want to use open VPN but am not computer liteate enough to understand some of what you tell folks. Can you possibly give us a step by step procedure so we don’t mess it up. I tried to get VPNboo to work and finally gave up because I could never get connected and didn’t understand why. In the examples, a user name and password is given. Are these live data items or do you provide your own?
Hi Dennis,
VPNBook are perfect for you to learn to how to use a vpn.
All their thousands of users use the same login id and password – so these will be the actual id/password that you’ll need to use.
Have a go at setting up the pptp on windows 7. I’m sure it will be much easier than you expect.
As long as you get a Romanian flag – you’re on the Romanian IP.
Once you’ve got the windows 7 pptp working… then try out the openVPN.
Using a VPN is something you can learn in bite sized pieces, you don’t have to learn it all at one go.
Let me know how you get on.
Unfortunately, I’m using Windows VISTA 32 bit OS. Do the setup instructions still apply?
April 2013 its stopped working , any one know why.
HI uwn,
Is it still down?
My question was going to be…I’ll be trying to connect via a Mac…I’m a white knuckler at these things… Assume it is done in a way I can turn it off and on easily, and also it won’t mess up my regular internet connection? pls and thanks for answer.
Hi foCL03.
VPNBook announced on their website that they’d reset their passwords.
Can you check that you’ve got the lastest one?
If you’re on an automated login, it’s easy to miss their updates
It’s working again , thank you for the information here that led me to the new password.
I believe what you said made a great deal of sense.
But, think on this, suppose you added a little information?
I mean, I don’t wish to tell you how to run your website, but what if you added something to possibly get a person’s attention?
I mean VPNBOOK – Free VPN – How to set up a VPN on Windows 7 | University of Wales, Newport:
Information Security and Privacy is a little vanilla.
You should peek at Yahoo’s front page and note how they create article headlines to get people to click. You might add a related video or a related picture or two to grab readers interested about everything’ve written.
In my opinion, it might make your blog a little bit more interesting.
Thanks for your advice, but my professors might get a bit uppity with me.
It’s for a dissertation, so it’s got to be very neutral… not that you can’t tell that I’m pro privacy and VPN’s
But it has to maintain the ethos of being
1. VERY precise
2. VERY exacting
3. To Degree standard
Even if the aim of my degree is to get everyone to be able to use VPN’s and that I go visual for that, it has be neutral. Hope that helps explain things.
Unable to download torrent since April 2013. Anyone can help?
Have you checked their latest password? I’m guessing you’re using VPNBook VPN’s. VPNBook updated their PPTP passwords in April, so check to ensure you have the latest.
If you’re not talking about VPN’s but torrenting, then my answer changes.
Torrenting is a bit like getting a date.
If there are 10 females to one male – you’ll get a date. This is like 10 seeders and 1 peer – it’s your lucky day.
If there is 1 female and 10 other male – you’re going to have a tough time getting that date. That’s like 1 seeder and 10 peers.. no dating to be had.
So check the ratio’s… if you should be getting dates, then it’s likely to be a technical issues. Otherwise…. go somewhere else for your dating.
Thanks uwnthesis.
I’ve checked their latest password and I able to access blocked website at my school.
For torrenting…I’m still unable to connect to seeders when I was connected to VPNBook VPN’s. The torrent have good amount of seeds. Without VPN, I’m able to download at 1-10KB/s since my ISP throttle torrent traffic. Before they changed their password..I’m able to download at max speed (300KB/s). As you said,it might be a technical issues.
Sorry for my poor English.
Hi VPN,
VPNbook have a notice on their site, that they’re at capacity at the moment.
So it looks like they’re scaling back on p2p protocols – which are eating up all their bandwidth.
What is the difference between which port I use (why does this matter)? What makes port 53 virtually bulletproof? What is the difference between udp and tcp? And does it matter if vpnbook uses google dns? I keep getting Google dns when I go to dnsleaktest :/ what kind of information can google get about me through this?
Hi Bob,
Yes, the ports matter a lot.
The global DNS system works on UDP port 53. Therefore the firewalls can’t block port 53, without blocking the Internet.
This allows us to bypass firewall restrictions.
Port 80 – is your HTTP or webtraffic port. So if they allow Web traffic, then they can’t block this port.
UDP and TCP.
UDP is like your paperboy – he stuffs the newspaper through your front door. If he’s late and it’s the wrong house he’s delivered too, well that’s just tough as he was late for school and being late is more important.
TCP is recorded delivery, like UPS or DHL. It has tracking ID’s, sequence numbers, and it wants a signature for delivery… and it keep trying to deliver the packet. It’s good for email and stuff that must be signed in as delivered.
UDP is fast and furious… but might get delivered to the wrong house, it’s great for Video, or Skype applications. where jitter or a blurry picture is okay, as long as it keeps up in real time.
This Google DNS is a new development. I’ll go check it out.
You don’t want Google involved in any stage – as they store and track your IP.
Google were called “an endemic threat to privacy” by Privacy interntional.
Ok thanks I wasnt sure if it was just me or not. Do you have any reccomendations for what I should do? VPNbook was the perfect solution (free, no logs, in romania, etc. etc. etc.)
does it matter if I am using google chrome or not while using a vpn?
Google data retention works across 60 different services.
It catalogues your IP, browsing habits, cookies and their version of anonymised means after 2 years, they swap around the last octet of the IP.
Seriously, use nothing related to Google for the following reasons
1. Data collection
2. Data Retention
3. Data Resale
4. Data Aggregation (ie an X-Ray of your life).
So the decision is yours… but I won’t touch Google with a bargepole.
Privacy International called them “an endemic risk to privacy”.
So what do we do seeing as google has their dns all overvpnbook?