How VPN works on iPhone. Fast VPN on iPhone and MAC - instructions. What to do if the VPN icon disappears

VPN (virtual private network or “virtual private network”) is a kind of private encrypted tunnel that the user can set up over the “regular” Internet. IN lately This type of connection is becoming increasingly popular. Let's look at how to create a VPN on iPhone using internal settings or third-party applications.

Pros and cons of connecting to a VPN

Connection with using VPN It is not for nothing that it has become widespread in Russia and abroad. The user receives an encrypted channel at his disposal, and this provides additional data security and anonymity on the Internet. VPN can provide additional protection for your passwords and payment card data. An important factor is access to blocked sites. If any resource has been blocked by Roskomnadzor, then by setting up a VPN, you can access it absolutely legally. Here is a partial list of features that a VPN offers:

bypassing a ban in a game or on a website;
access to sites and resources blocked at the state level;
access to sites blocked by the employer at the local network level (just do not install a VPN on your work computer, otherwise the IT department employees will have questions for you);
free access to foreign online stores (many of them, having determined the user’s location as Russia, send him to the local version of the site, the assortment of which may differ);
protection from wiretapping by, for example, a system administrator at work.

True, this technology also has a number of disadvantages, among which the largest is the reduced connection speed. The more complex the encryption, the slower the data is transferred. However, this parameter varies among different VPN services. However, don't forget that fast connection is a synonym for weak encryption. If the service offers you maximum speed data transfer, then most likely it is not capable of reliably protecting your personal data. But it is great for gaining access to blocked resources.

Most services with truly strong encryption are generally paid. On the other hand, VPN is a relatively cheap way to protect data, which does not even require the purchase of special equipment.

How to set up a VPN on iOS

You can set up a VPN connection not only on your computer, but also on mobile devices under iOS control: iPhone and iPad. Moreover, setting up on a tablet is no different from a similar procedure on a smartphone.

Setup without third-party applications

iOS offers the user the option to manually set the VPN configuration. To do this you need:

Go to “Settings” - “General” - VPN (iOS 11 and above) or “Settings” - “Network” - “More” - VPN (iOS up to 11).
The location of these VPN settings varies depending on different versions iOS
Tap “Add VPN Configuration...”. A window with numerous settings will open.
You will see a window with several lines of settings
The first line is the connection type. Let's choose L2TP (iOS 11 and higher) or L2TP/IPsec.
L2TP is great for connecting iOS devices
You can enter arbitrary words in the “Description” field.
Go to the “Server” field. To find out suitable server, let's turn to the resource. On the website you will find a table with a large number available servers. We are interested in those that have a checkmark in the “L2TP/IPsec Windows, Mac, iPhone, Android No client required” column. Choose any one you like.
There are hundreds of free VPN servers on the site
In the second column you will see the server's IP address (in the format 111.111.111.11). Rewrite it in the “Server” field.
In the “Account” field, enter the three letters vpn. Definitely small.
Similarly, fill in “Password” and “Shared key” - also vpn.
Password and login are set by server owners
Tap Done at the top right of the screen.
Now in general settings VPN, move the “Status” slider to the “Connected” state. You may have to wait a while for the connection to complete - the lengthy process is easily explained by the remoteness of the servers.
The closer the physical location of the server, the faster the connection will occur.

Due to what VPNGate offers free servers from enthusiasts, count on high quality no need to connect. Moreover, sometimes the setup with the first available IP does not work - perhaps the server administrator has already restricted access to it or changed the login and password for logging in. If you don't succeed the first time, just try another server from the resource.

Using third party applications

Applications from third-party developers provide a simpler, faster and more stable connection. If you don’t want to go through the hassle of manual configuration, then try downloading a similar utility to the AppStore.

TunnelBear is one of the most best apps to set up a VPN connection, available in the AppStore.

When you first open the application, you will have to register. "Bear" does not support login through Google, Facebook and other services - you will have to enter your e-mail and come up with a separate password for the application. After this, the developers will send you a confirmation email email. However, there is one small catch with this... To successfully verify your email, you need to already have a device with a VPN connected - for example, a computer or another smartphone. The fact is that the “bear” server is blocked, and access to it can only be obtained through such a tunnel connection.

If you manage to confirm your email, then TunnelBear will let you through. If not, he will growl and tell you to check your incoming emails again.

Immediately after the first successful download, the “bear” will offer you a short training

The interface is a world map on which you can see the location of the bear. Enable VPN done by simply touching the switch at the top of the screen. At the bottom you can configure the physical location of the server. If you change the country, the virtual bear will growl and dig a tunnel across half the planet. Looks funny.

In all countries where you can connect, you will see pipes sticking out of the ground - a bit like Mario

A convenient feature is constant monitoring of the remaining traffic. At the bottom of the screen, the app indicates how much data is left for the month. IN free version 500MB available monthly. You can use unlimited VPN from Mishka for 699 rubles per month. In this case, you can connect up to 5 devices - for example, use it with the whole family.

You can subscribe for either a month or a year

Betternet

One of the best free applications to set up a VPN - Betternet. Immediately after the first launch, the application will offer a trial version of a premium subscription for seven days. But we will refuse - we will immediately check the quality of the free connection. To select this option, tap Use free with ads on last page"training"

To opt out of the trial version, you need to scroll down the window a little

Setting up a VPN through Betternet is amazingly simple - tap Install Profile, then Allow when a window pops up notifying the user that the app wants to access the VPN's configurations. Ready!

If you accidentally miss, it's okay - the application will prompt you to try again

The profile is installed automatically. When the VPN is connected, the character on the screen lights up blue. If you touch the Disconnect button, the connection will be interrupted and the picture will turn gray.

The application interface is not overloaded with details and looks very nice

The user can change the country by tapping Select Location. However, this feature is only available to premium subscribers. But for the average user it is not needed. A monthly subscription for a premium account costs a little more than that of a “bear” - 750 rubles. Betternet Premium also supports connecting up to five devices.

Unlike all other VPN services, free Betternet does not limit traffic, but connection speed. Therefore, you can sit in it as long as you like, but the speed of loading pages and data will be a C grade.

Windscribe VPN

Windscribe offers quite a lot of traffic when connected - 2 GB without specifying an e-mail during registration (for real indoor anonymous users) and 10 GB if you indicate your email.

The developers are very sensitive to user safety - even e-mail is optional

The application, like others, will request access to VPN configurations. Then it will set up the connection itself and even select the optimal location. Below you can see all available countries for connection. Many will open only after a premium subscription, but the basic minimum is also in the free version. It is very convenient that the connection quality is also displayed here - you can independently determine where it is better to connect.

You can change the location if you wish - this option is available both in the free version and in a paid subscription

As in TunnelBear, here we see a counter of the remaining traffic at the bottom. Price unlimited connection the same as the “bear” - 699 rubles per month. With a premium subscription, a static IP option is also available.

I was very pleased with the connection speed, especially compared to the free Betternet. True, I had to choose a different location than the application initially suggested. After changing the country to Germany, the Internet became almost as fast as without a VPN.

Speedify

The Speedify app can provide you with a really fast VPN connection. It connects you to several servers at the same time to kind of combine the connection speed. True, the application itself is somewhat complicated compared to all the previous ones considered.

Either the application has a lot of settings, or the design is not the simplest, but compared to other VPN applications, Speedify is not simple

Right after opening it for the first time, Speedify will connect you to the nearest server. This is a little pointless for those who want to use a VPN for anonymity and security on the Internet - for example, it calculated my location right away. It's kind of unpleasant. Let's try to change the country.

By touching the first line “Connected” we get to the server settings. Here you can select your country. The list is quite large, and the locations are sorted in descending order of connection quality. This is probably quite convenient.

The number of countries is not limited for the free version, unlike Windscribe

The free account offers 5 GB of traffic monthly. Speedify Premium Subscription with unlimited use traffic costs 599 rubles per month. The function of connecting five devices to one premium account is also available here.

You can buy a year of subscription at once - it will be half the price

One of the nice additions is the ability to add commands for Siri.

You can now ask Siri to connect to a VPN

It is worth noting that this application is the heaviest of all those reviewed. Sometimes when opening it freezes for 10-20 seconds, showing white screen and a loading ring.

I don't have an old iPhone model, but the app still freezes

What to do if the VPN is broken

When you are connected to a VPN, this is indicated by an icon at the top right of the screen.

It is located next to the battery indicator and alarm clock (if installed)

If the VPN icon disappears, the connection has been interrupted. What can you do in this case if you connected through the application:

go to the application and check that the connection is established. If this is not the case, tap the Connect button. The VPN icon should appear;
check your iPhone settings. Go to the VPN menu and make sure that the “Status” switch is set to the “Connected” position, and below there is a checkmark next to the configuration, which has the same name as the access application;
in the same window, make sure that the “Status” switch in the “Personal VPN” section is also set to “Connected”. Some applications, such as TunnelBear and Windscribe, use this type of connection.

If all this does not help, try reinstalling the application.

If you connected through manual configuration settings, then you should double-check it. The administrator may have closed this server and restricted access to it. Try using a different IP address, which can be found on VPNGate. Don't forget that all these servers are run by enthusiasts for free. They can restrict access at any time, causing you to lose your VPN badge.

Setting up a VPN connection is a simple operation that will allow you to access private resources and protect your privacy on the Internet. Thanks to the enthusiasm of developers, today we have a lot of convenient applications that can implement such a function.

Apple makes it easy to set up a VPN with an iOS client that supports L2TP, PPTP and IPSec. If your company has a private intranet that you need to access on the go, or if you're traveling the world and want to make your iPhone think it's still in your country (or another country), a VPN has you covered.

A Virtual Private Network or VPN is a service that creates a direct connection from your computer/phone to another network. Some businesses have an internal intranet that can only be accessed while on site. VPN can create secure connection, redirecting the connection to that location.

It is often used when logging into public Wi-Fi. It will redirect you to a different endpoint so you won't see who is using the public network.

It is also regularly used to bypass website blocking. This is useful if you want to access content that is prohibited in your country.

Before you start

You can use a VPN service such as , or . All you need to get started with one of these services is download the app on your iPhone or iPad.

You can also configure your VPN client manually.

Before you begin, you will need information such as server address, username, and password. If you do not have this information, contact system administrator or technical support your company or contact your VPN service for assistance.

How to Set Up a VPN Service on Your iPhone or iPad

The easiest way to set up a VPN for iOS on your iPhone or iPad is with an app like , or . Download one of these great apps, install it on your iOS device and open it.

After registering or logging into your account you will be asked to give permission to add a VPN configuration on your iPhone. Click " Allow» Set up a VPN on your iPhone automatically.

You will then be asked to enter your password or ID to give permission to change your VPN settings. Enter your password or use Touch ID.

Once the VPN is enabled, you can select and connect it at any time without opening the app (use the app to change the location and adjust other settings).

Open settings from the main screen.
Click " General».
Click VPN.
If you have more than one, select VPN client,which you want to use.
Turn it on.

When you're done using the VPN, follow the instructions above to turn it off. Don't forget to turn it off, especially if you have limited traffic.

Free VPN for iOS, easy way to set up

Luckily, our favorite iOS VPN services offer standalone iPhone apps to save you the hassle, so you won't need the instructions in this guide. and is great for more advanced users, while paid.

With all three apps, you won't have to fiddle with VPN settings—just open the app, log in, and connect to the country of your choice. It's much easier.

VPN on iPhone/iPad - anonymity and access to content!

How to Set Up a VPN on Your iPhone or iPad Manually

Using your login information, you can manually set up a VPN for iOS client on your iPhone or iPad.

When you're done using the VPN, go to Settings > VPN to turn it off. To enable VPN again in the future. Go to Settings > VPN and turn it on.

What is a VPN? How to set up a VPN on iOS

Connecting and disconnecting VPN for iOS

Once you've set up your VPN, you can open the Settings window and toggle the VPN slider at the top of the screen to connect to or disconnect from the VPN. When you connect to the VPN, the "VPN" icon will appear at the top of the screen in a bar.

If you've set up multiple VPNs on your iPhone or iPad, you can switch between them by going to Settings > General > VPN—the same screen where you added that VPN.

Connecting to OpenVPN

Although Apple hasn't directly added OpenVPN support to iOS. Like Android, iOS supports third-party applications to implement and operate VPN. This means that you can connect absolutely any type of VPN from your iPhone or iPad, as long as the app has third party application, which can connect to it.

In the case of OpenVPN, there is an official application that you can install. Install the application, launch it and use it to connect to the OpenVPN VPN.

To set up a VPN server in the OpenVPN Connect app, you will have to import a profile - this is the .ovpn file. If you want to do it manually, you can connect your iPhone or iPad to your computer, open iTunes and select the connected device. In the Applications section, you will be able to copy the .ovpn file and its associated certificate and key files into the OpenVPN application. you can connect to VPN from the app.

The OpenVPN Connect app and similar apps are not "just an app" that you use. They provide a system-level VPN connection, so all apps on your device will connect through the VPN - just like VPN connections you connect to in the usual way from the built-in settings application.

This is for the home user. Large organizations centrally managing iPhone or iPad deployments will want to avoid configuring each device and specify a VPN server through configuration profiles or a management server mobile devices. Provide a configuration profile file with all the VPN settings specified in it, and users can download and install this configuration profile to instantly get the appropriate VPN settings configured on their devices.

Now, when in many regions of Russia one or another popular Internet service can be turned off at any time, VPN is gaining particular popularity. However, not all users know what it is and how to encrypt their connection on an iPhone or iPad. But sometimes it is simply necessary.

First, let's figure out what is meant by VPN. This is a technology for protecting your Internet connection, which works on a fairly simple principle: your device makes a request to connect to a VPN server, and only then you get online, due to which all traffic goes through the VPN. Roughly speaking, this is a kind of intermediary between you and World Wide Web, which in addition provides an IP address, masking the real location of the user.

There are quite a few ways to install a VPN on an iPhone or iPad, but today we will look at one of the simplest and most common - installing a special application from a VPN service.

One of these programs may already be familiar to some of our readers - TunnelBear. Install it for free on your iOS device using the link below, register and receive 500 MB per month for your travels on the Internet. For publishing on Twitter, the service will give you a bonus one gigabyte.

After downloading the application, you will be asked to install a TunnelBear profile, and after that you can use the utility to your heart's content. Simply select the country whose server you want to use and connect to it. For an additional fee, you can expand the number of gigabytes available for surfing the Internet.

Name:
Publisher/Developer:
Price: For free
In-app purchases: Yes
Compatibility: Universal application
Link: Install

Other useful program for VPN on iOS - Cloak. The installation procedure is exactly the same: download the application (free) from , install the profile and add a new VPN configuration. Free trial period for 30 days, but if you wish, you can choose one of the tariff plans without gigabyte limits.

You will know that VPN is enabled on your iPhone or iPad by the corresponding icon on top panel.

Name: Cloak - Super Simple VPN
Publisher/Developer: Bourgeois Bits LLC
Price: For free
In-app purchases: Yes
Compatibility: Universal application
Link: Install

If you are often on public Wi-Fi networks, using a VPN becomes a real necessity. Therefore, these utilities will be useful to any user of iOS gadgets who spends a significant amount of time on the Internet.

VPN or Virtual Private Network is a way to organize virtual computer networks over real ones. VPNs are used to solve a variety of problems. For example, using a VPN, you can create a single computer network for several departments of the same company. But for most ordinary users VPN is primarily a way to bypass various blocks.

From of this material you can learn how to set up a VPN on your iPhone or iPad. The material will be relevant for almost all iPad and iPhone models. Including iPhone 4, 4s, 5, 5s, 6, 6s and 7.

After we get into the application, we simply click on the “Enable protection” button.

After this simple procedure, your iPhone or iPad will connect to the VPN and start working through it.

How to disable VPN on iPhone

If you enabled VPN on your iPhone using the settings, then to disable it, just go to the settings again and click on the VPN switch. However, it is not necessary to delete the created connection.

If you connected to the VPN using an application, then you need to disconnect through it. In this case, disabling through the settings will not work.

VPN services for iPhone

Setting up VPN on iPhone and iPad is quite simple. To do this, just create a new configuration and activate the switch in the main settings menu. But, you may have a question, where can I get the server addresses that need to be entered when creating the configuration?

For this you will need VPN service. You need to choose from the services available on the network, register on its website and pay the subscription cost. After paying for your subscription you will receive detailed instructions connection, the server addresses will be indicated there, as well as other information that may be needed when creating a configuration in iPhone settings or iPad.

Typically, subscriptions to such services are paid monthly, but if you renew for a longer period, you will receive a significant discount. Also, in some cases, the service provides a test period, during which you can check everything completely free of charge.

is a well-known VPN service in the West with a large server base and high speed connections. NordVPN positions itself as the most secure VPN. To ensure protection, the most safe ways connections and no logs are kept. In addition, the service protects users from leaks of DNS queries and IP addresses. A proprietary application is provided to set up the connection on the iPhone. A monthly subscription here costs about $12, but if you pay for a year in advance, the price will be significantly less. Refunds available (within 30 days).

In addition to the instructions in the article, I offer a review of an interesting VPN client.

What is a VPN and what is it for?

My goal is not to fully describe how a VPN works, but I will still provide a brief educational program.

The essence of a VPN comes down to the following: you are provided with a VPN server somewhere on the network (accordingly, you get some kind of IP). Your traffic goes to it in the form of an unreadable message... On the VPN server, the traffic is decrypted and the request is transmitted to the site. The site provides a response and transmits it to the VPN server. The server again sends the information to you in encrypted form.

Reasons to use a VPN may be the following:

1. You have been banned by IP on some site, but you want to have access to it. A VPN bypasses this limitation.

2. You work in an unprotected Wi-Fi networks With valuable information(enter passwords from emails, from the same Odnoklassniki;)). VPN allows you to better protect your traffic from interception.

3. You want to bypass the corporate firewall. ;)

4. You want to anonymously access some sites.

General VPN setup on iPad

Go to iOS: Settings -> General -> Network -> VPN.

As you can see in the screenshot, I already have two VPN profiles configured. I just need to slide the switch to the ON position. The VPN item in the settings appears after at least one VPN configuration appears.

If you need to add a VPN, click “Add VPN configuration”. A settings window will appear - here you need to enter your parameters.

Don't be alarmed - now there will be terms that explain this sign. In fact, the setup will be much easier for us later. We're talking now about manual setting VPN. If you don’t want to fill your head with terms, feel free to scroll to the review of the VPN Express program.

What is L2TP, PPTP, IPSec

L2TP(English: Layer 2 Tunneling Protocol - second level tunneling protocol) - in computer networks a tunnel protocol used to support virtual private networks. The main advantage of L2TP is that this protocol allows you to create a tunnel not only in IP networks, but also in such as ATM, X.25 and Frame Relay.

PPTP(English: Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol) is a point-to-point tunnel protocol that allows a computer to establish a secure connection with a server by creating a special tunnel in a standard, unsecured network. PPTP wraps (encapsulates) PPP frames into IP packets for transmission over a global IP network such as the Internet. PPTP can also be used to establish a tunnel between two local networks. PPTP uses an additional TCP connection to maintain the tunnel.

IPSec(short for IP Security) - a set of protocols to ensure the protection of data transmitted over the Internet protocol IP, allowing authentication and/or encryption of IP packets. IPsec also includes protocols for secure key exchange over the Internet. Mainly used for organizing VPN connections.

In all tabs:

Description– the name of our VPN connections, which will be displayed in the settings.

Server– VPN server address. Issued by the service provider.

Account– issued by the supplier when ordering the service. Usually, when registering with a service provider, we come up with an account and password ourselves.

RSA SecureID– RSA SecurID two-factor authentication is based on what you know (password or PIN) and what you have (key), thus providing a much stronger level of user authentication than reusable passwords. Determined by service provider.

Password– account password.

Shared Key– a pre-shared authentication key that allows for connection and exchange of encryption keys during a communication session.

In general, as we see, everything is “neglected”. :) You need to know a lot, but what to do if you need a VPN for one or another of the reasons mentioned above, but you don’t want to deal with all this? Exit – VPN Express

I really liked the VPN Express program. Apparently, they made it for people, since there are several points that make it stand out from others.

1. Everyone who registers in the program is given 300 megabytes of traffic for free, which is enough to test the VPN.

2. There is a VPN auto-configuration feature. Just click on your account in the program:

A window appears informing you that a profile will be installed on the system. Click “Install”.

That's it - the VPN is configured. Just select a profile in the settings ( Settings->VPN) and switch VPN to use it. While using VPN in left top corner you can see the connection icon.

Sooner or later, 300 megabytes will run out and here the program offers quite flexible tariff plans. You can buy a VPN for either a month or 100 gigabytes, for example. Tariff plans look at the screenshots below:

Those who have paid have the opportunity to choose during auto-configuration whether to use a server in America or Europe.

If you look at the reviews in App Store, then you can see another category of people who have found VPN useful – travelers. So in China or Turkey, some sites (Youtube or Facebook) are closed. VPNs allow you to brilliantly bypass these restrictions.

VPN Express also has convenient statistics on the traffic used.

Well, and finally one more useful advice:

In order to remove VPN on iPad, you need to go to Settings->General -> Profiles. Next, select your VPN and click the red “Delete” button.

Conclusion: VPN Express is a convenient and useful program. :) Everything is done so conveniently that anyone can understand its intricacies.