A VPN server is a versatile tool, in many cases indispensable in today’s world. It can enhance your privacy and data security while the “side effect” of being able to access the internet from a different region opens up a host of useful applications such as accessing resources. blocked in your country or conduct market research of the specific region of your VPN server.
There are several ways to access a VPN server. First of all, you surely know that there are a lot of free and paid services that you can access by doing a search and you have certainly found these in case you have felt in need of a service before. VPN.
However, there is another way – in fact, you can build and configure your own VPN server using Linux VPS hosting. It is important to note right away that this method is not universal and has certain limitations, you will have to contact your VPN service provider to achieve some specific goals or to help your life. it’s easier for you, but the skill of building and configuring your own VPN will nonetheless be helpful.
Advantages of creating your own VPN server
Before diving into any topic, it’s important to figure out why. When we deal with a self-made VPN, we are avoiding a series of pitfalls that can appear on a commercial VPS. So consider the advantages provided by it.
cost effective
It is clear that by doing everything yourself, you will save money by not having to pay for the service in question. On the other hand, many popular VPN service providers offer slightly less flexible plans where you’ll end up paying a lot unless you go for an annual or even biennial plan. Hosting plans for VPNs are usually much more convenient from this point of view, and even the cheapest VPS will be more than enough. You can cancel your service at any time and renew it when you need to use it again, without being tied to a rigid annual plan.
More transparency
There are dozens, if not hundreds, of VPN service providers you can find on the web, and choosing between them can be daunting while the costs can vary. You won’t know for sure until you try them to see if their quality is enough for you. Otherwise, you won’t know exactly whether one or the other provider monitors your data or sells it to third parties.
With your own VPN server, you’ll know exactly what’s going on with your data since the server is yours, while performance will depend solely on the VPS you rent. That is to say, there are very few variables that can determine the quality of a service, so it is almost completely transparent to you.
Of course, with a little research, you can find a good and reliable VPN provider that offers services that are convenient for you and at a reasonable price, but does this research take a long time? than just doing everything yourself?
You have a VPS
Another benefit of using a VPS for a VPN is the fact that you have a VPS. And you can use this VPS for more than just VPN. If you are a regular user, you can use it as storage and for remote access to your files and applications. You can use it as a game server if you join and play games. And if you’re a website owner, you probably know what to do with it. In this case, the VPN can play a secondary role to your website, and using your VPS for the VPN would also be a sensible use of resources.
However, there are some downsides to a self-made VPN server.
- You are limited by region. If switching between different countries to access content available in different regions is what you need for a VPN, unfortunately creating a VPN with your own VPS is not for you. A VPS is located in a specific region, so your choice of VPN location will be limited by it. If you need a VPN for privacy reasons or you don’t need more than one location, creating your own VPN server is a very practical solution.
- You will have to spend time on it. While it may take you a few minutes to start using a ready-made service, your own VPN will require you to research the subject and follow the instructions carefully. However, the process itself is not really that difficult from a technical point of view, and gives you some valuable experience and some insight.
- You will have to fix everything yourself. On a commercial VPN service, everything is already configured while technical issues are resolved even without your involvement. In the worst case scenario, you will have to contact your carrier’s technical support team. Instead, if something happens to the VPN server you created, you’ll have to figure things out on your own as there won’t be any technical or support requirements. However, if something goes wrong with your server, your hosting provider’s support team will be available to help.
Build a VPN server on your Linux VPS
Now, let’s see how to actually install and configure your VPN service on a Linux VPS using Ubuntu.
- Check if the TUN/TAP adapter is enabled. It is a parameter that allows the establishment of a VPN connection. You will most likely find it in your dashboard. Alternatively, you can command this:
cat /dev/net/tun
If TUN/TAP is enabled, you will see the following message:cat: /dev/net/tun: File descriptor in bad state.
- Install OpenVPN. OpenVPN is an open source VPN technology widely used to create virtual private networks of businesses and individuals. The first step to installing OpenVPN is to install the OpenVPN access server package.
First, login to your VPS via SSH as the root user. Now, use the following commands:
apt update && apt -y install ca certificate wget net-tools gnupg
wget -qO – https://as-repository.openvpn.net/as-repo-public.gpg | add apt key –
echo “deb http://as-repository.openvpn.net/as/debian main focus”>/etc/apt/sources.list.d/openvpn-as-repo.list
apt update && apt -y install openvpn-as
Once installed, you will receive the admin UI address and the client UI address as well as the front end credentials that you will need for further configuration.
- Access the Admin UI using the credentials you just saw. Now go to User Management -> User Permissions and create a new user.
- After creating a new user, the OpenVPN connection configuration file required to connect to the VPN server can be downloaded by logging into the OpenVPN Access Server Client UI with credentials of the newly created user. Note that OpenVPN is cross-platform and you will be able to connect multiple devices using your connection profile file. However, the free version covers up to two devices, and for larger quantities you will have to pay extra.
Conclusion
A VPN is a versatile tool that is becoming increasingly useful in the modern world. However, you may not know that aside from the popular option of purchasing a pre-made VPN solution from a market provider, you can create your own VPN server using a VPS server, which has a lot of advantages. The points include being cheap and transparent, although requiring you to do a bunch of work. We hope that this article is all about, thank you for your interest! Take care!
Categories: How to
Source: vothisaucamau.edu.vn
