If you are worry about your online security and you want to maintain it, you need to use a VPN. In this article we are going to talk about the ways you can set up VPN at home.
How to Set Up a VPN at Home?
1. Use Third-Party Software for this Aim
If you are wondering how to create and set up a VPN, the easiest and quickest way for doing it, is to use the software that comes with your VPN subscriptions.
By purchasing a personal VPN service from a company like ExpressVPN, they will give you the link of their software to download. Actually when you visit your VPN provider’s website, it will provides links for you to download it for all your devices like your desktop, smartphone and any other devices.
After downloading the software, it’s time to install it like any other piece of software. After completing the installation process, you should register by entering VPN username and after that you will be allowed to start using it.
Most of these kind of software have an option to select a server from locations around the world. Also, you can connect or disconnect from a server, toggle automatic connections on or off, and there are some other features like a kill switch.
2. Set Up a VPN at home by Using a VPN-Support Router
When your network is used by lot of people in your home, it would be so difficult for you to install VPN software on any individual devices. No worries, you have a better choice and that is to set up a VPN at home by installing software onto your router.
Setting up VPN on your router has many advantages and you there might be many reasons behind it. One of the main advantages of this method is that forgetting about which what device you use, your VPN will encrypt any traffics that passes over your network. Internet of Things (IoT) devices will be protected with it.
Purchasing one of the best VPN router that have software support for VPNs would be the easiest way to get VPN software on your router at home.
For using your home VPN, you should enter its IP address and log into your router. You should find the option which is saying VPN or something like that and then add in your VPN username and password. From here, you should be able to enable your VPN across your whole network.
3. Install VPN Software on Your Router in order to Set Up VPN at Home
But what should you do when you you are happy with your router and you don’t want to change it with a new one for setting up your VPN? There’s nothing to be worry about. In fact, in such situations you can still have VPN software onto your router. But no matter if it takes a little more work.
There are two popular options for you in order to add VPN to your router and they are DD-WRT which can turn your router into a super-router and Tomato.
You can use both of them and both are open source and can give your router all kinds off new capabilities. Of new capabilities, we can mention monitoring bandwidth usage, increased wireless coverage, and better security. Now we are going to see how you can use the software for adding a VPN to your router.
Upgrading the Router’s Firmware
At first, you should see if your router model is supported by DD-WRT or Tomato. After you checked it and you saw that it is supported by one of them, you can decide which firmware to download for your router from the relevant website. Here it’s time for you to be sure that your computer is connected to your router with Ethernet cable rather than Wi-Fi. Therefore you can still connect to the router at the moment you change the settings.
Now, you need to open up the web interface to your router. The only thing you need to do is to type your router’s IP address. But if you don’t know it, use the ipconfig command in order to view your IP address. Then you are able to log in to your router by using your username and password.
Based on the model of your router, you should find a menu option which saying something like Administration. After finding it, choose this option and search for another option that says Upgrade Firmware or Upload Firmware. By using this option you can upload the new firmware which you have just downloaded.
When the firmware upgrading process is finished, you should restart your router. If you want to be certain the old settings are cleared, you need to turn off the router and before turning it on again wait for 30 seconds.
After it restarts, you should go back to the web interface by typing the IP address into your browser again. Here you need to set a password and username and your new software is ready for using.
Setting Up It on an Upgraded Router
In order to use the VPN on your upgraded firmware, you will need to know your VPN provider’s settings. Usually, you can find these settings on your VPN provider’s website.
In your router firmware, you should go to VPN Tunneling in Tomato or Services >> VPN on DD-WRT. Now you turn on OpenVPN Client and add the information you got from your VPN provider. Here, you should save your changes and your VPN should be up and running for your whole network.
4. Set Up Your Own VPN Server
At last, you could create your own VPN server if you really want to have more control over your VPN. You can create a VPN on Windows if you have an old PC you’re not using any more, or you could use a Raspberry Pi. To create your own VPN server, you can install software called OpenVPN.
The downside to this method is that the device will need to be on all the time for your VPN to function. The upside is that you don’t have to pay a subscription to a VPN provider and you know that you are in complete control of your data.
For creating a VPN server you will need to download the OpenVPN software and install it on your chosen device. There’s an installer available for Windows users, but if you are using a Raspberry Pi and having difficulties with installation, you can try an installer script like PiVPN.
That way, you can configure your VPN by following the instructions on the OpenVPN website.
Alternatively, another option is to use a software bundle for VPN hosting such as Algo VPN hosted on a Virtual Machine on a cloud provider like DigitalOcean.
Closing It Out
The methods which we have mentioned above will let you to set up your own personal VPN at home. The best and easiest way for you is purchasing a VPN subscription and use the software from your VPN provider for accessing the VPN. But if you are looking for more control, your choice is installing a VPN on your router or hosting your own VPN server for this aim.
If you still think that you don’t need to use a VPN, read our article to be convinced that you should always be using a VPN.
