What is OpenVPN/IKEv2 and how to use them?

Unfortunately, privacy, confidentiality and anonymity are liberties and fundamental rights that users cannot take for granted online. In fact, most of the web services, available platforms and related third parties want to obtain browsing and even personal information to profit or for advertising purposes. This is when a VPN like ProtonVPN based on OpenVPN and IKEv2 protocols becomes quite useful.

Learn more about ProtonVPN as powerful solution to keep privacy and security online, by encrypting traffic and connection following the OpenVPN/IKEv2 instructions and GUI.

ProtonVPN and OpenVPN/IKEv2 protocols and GUIs

ProtonVPN is a secured and highly advanced VPN platform that protects user´s traffic, IP address, browsing history and general personal information online. To avoid tracking, monitoring, unauthorized access and surveillance, the VPN encrypt connection from a point-to-point perspective by using different protocols.

Two of these protocols in which ProtonVPN is based upon are OpenVPN and IKEv2, as the most common and reliable. Such platforms provide the most stable, secure and fast set of instructions and cryptographic algorithms. AES, OpenSSL and TLS are some examples.

While OpenVPN and IKEv2 are two different VPN protocols, ProtonVPN combines them into one and this allow users to take advantage of them at the same time. This means that either users want to utilize OpenVPN interface or IKEv2 GUI, they will be able to through compatible credentials.

How to use ProtonVPN through OpenVPN/IKEv2?

ProtonVPN gives you the possibility of securing your connection through compatible third party VPN clients, directing the traffic to its servers. Learn how to do it using the OpenVPN platform, which is the same familiar protocol ProtonVPN is based on. Follow this steps:

• Click here to download the OpenVPN software on your computer. Install and run the program.

• Now, open session like you normally would in ProtonVPN. Access the URL address https://protonvpn.com and click on “Login” on the top right corner.

• You need to download the corresponding configuration files. In this way, OpenVPN knows how to redirect traffic to ProtonVPN servers. To download this information, click on “OpenVPN/IKEv2” in the main menu on the left.

• Now, in “Select platform” click on “Windows”. Then, in “Select protocol” click on “TCP” and in “Select config file and download” click on “Standard server configs”

• Scroll down a bit and click on “Download” selecting the server located in country of your choice. A small file should have been downloaded to your computer.

• Copy the downloaded file into the OpenVPN directory in your computer: C:/programfiles/OpenVPN/config/.

• Now that the ProtonVPN configuration file is copied in the right directory, run the OpenVPN program in your computer. By doing so, the GUI will require credentials immediately. 

• These credentials will also redirect traffic and are provided by ProtonVPN. Click on “OpenVPN/IKEv2” on your dashboard and copy the credentials on the right clicking on the clipboard icon.

• Paste the credentials into the corresponding fields in OpenVPN and click on “OK”.

• OpenVPN should show us by now that connection was successful to the ProtonVPN servers. It is recommended using ProtonVPN applications when available.