arjunrc

Here is what I use:

a) I have a NAS at home which is always on. I have openvpn running on it (SSL based VPN).

b) I use dyndns to assign a permanent hostname to my setup (I don't have a static IP)

b) On my mac, I use Tunnelbrick (openvpn client) and on my iPhone, I use the openvpn client

All free, of course.

Works very well for me.

star_world

^ This type of setup generally works extremely well. It takes a bit of initial setting up though, but, as you said it is free.

timfountain

I really like private internet access (https://www.privateinternetaccess.com/). All major and most minor OS's are supported, 336 servers worldwide in 9 countries for $40 per year and best of all.... no logging. I have not noticed any speed degradation....

ScottC

It never ceases to amaze me how many brand new members will sign up just to pimp VPN services. Never knew there was so much competition there.

gfunkdave

Nice setup. I have no NAS, but my router runs the free third party Tomato firmware, which includes an OpenVPN and PPTP server. ^

arjunrc

Ah that makes it much easier to manage. I had to go through more hoops, because my NAS did not natively support OpenVPN (ReadyNAS NV+) and I did not want to setup another computer for it. Many of the more modern NAS systems directly support OpenVPN (or, routers, that support Tomato/x-WRT etc).

But once done, its rock solid. I like OpenVPN because I can configure it anyway I want (for example, I don't want streaming videos to route through my VPN - performance issues, but regular browsing should be encrypted - so its split tunneling is useful and others). The only issue I faced (and subsequently solved) was when connecting to the VPN via 3G, specifically with ATT in the US (WiFi was never a problem anywhere) - in this setup, I would connect, but packets would not route. I figured using TCP instead of UDP and making some other tweaks made it work over all networks. Anyway, not as convenient as the web based VPN services, but much more configurable and free (well, discounting your own hacking time, which in my case is fun time)

gqZJzU4vusf0Z2,$d7

PPTP ? Very olde & very tired.

VPN's using PPTP ... are NOT a wise choice. The encryption
key-length is effectively (only) 56-bits. There is at least one
on-line cracksite that can recover PPTP keys in ~24 hours for
$200US.

I suggest choosing a VPN that uses IPsec or SSL.

> If you're looking for an ipad VPN then I know a good one.

OpenVPN is free in the App Store - a very good app.

arjunrc

Love your username ;-)

gqZJzU4vusf0Z2,$d7

> Love your username ;-)

Kind'a rolls right off the tongue, eh? <g>

ryandelmundo

For those that just need an occassional VPN, I highly recommend Tunnelbear (http://tunnelbear.com).

They give you a free 500mb a month, another GB if you send a twitter about them.

I don't need a full time VPN but sometimes things just don't work and TB does the trick.

Now if I could just remember to turn it off....(woosh goodbye free 500mb!)...

nmenaker

this is a nice deal. I've used this company since their alpha/beta days, but now they charge for the service. It's works on mac only, and your sub works across all ios devices as well and is easy to setup, activate and doesn't use much in the way of resources. Comes to about 5$ a month to use for a year.

this deal expires in a little over a week

https://stacksocial.com/sales/protec...-fi-with-cloak

bruceba

I agree about tunnelbear, I use it infrequently but it is good. I have forgot to turn it off as well

gqZJzU4vusf0Z2,$d7

Avoid VPN services built upon PPTP.

Recommend selecting a VPN service using IPsec, LT2P or SSL.

There is at least one cracksite that will recover PPTP keys in ~24 hours for $200US.

boberonicus

I have no experience with TorGuard, but using the coupon "SLICKDEALS50" will get you 50% off their VPN Service ($30 for 1-year plan). The link I've shown is tied to Slickdeals.net, but I don't make any money off of it.

haplology

How was the speed of Vypr? I've been using BoxVPN when overseas and seems pretty good. Not amazing - it certainly slows down the connections a bit, but usually good enough to stream Netflix.