Why Wont My VPN Work

Switch To A Lighter VPN Protocol

If youre using a protocol like OpenVPN which is very resource-intensive, your VPN connection can go down especially if your CPU cant handle the encryption.

Before picking a different protocol, you can try using OpenVPN over UDP. But if the problem persists, try other protocols like SoftEther, L2TP/IPSec, or IKEv2.

PPTP is also an option, but please keep in mind its not secure at all.

The Netflix Proxy Error

This is by far the most common problem youll encounter when using a VPN with Netflix. Heres what happens: Netflix detects that your traffic is coming from a VPN server. It then uses automated scripts to block the servers IP address and redirect all connections coming from it to the Netflix proxy error page.

This can happen after you log into your account, when you look up a title, when you hit Play on a title, while youre watching a movie or show, or when you access a Google link thats supposed to take you to a Netflix title .

Netflix has a dedicated support article for this error. Obviously, what they recommend is to disconnect from the VPN. But we have some better alternatives.

Solutions

Heres a list of tips you can try to get rid of the proxy error. We tested all of them and were able to bypass the error screen.

• Connect to a different server .
• Ask the VPN provider which server you need to use .
• Restart the VPN connection.
• Clear your browsers cache and cookies.
• Use your browsers incognito/private mode.
• Update the VPN app.
• Get a dedicated IP .

If you want to read more about the Netflix proxy error and the tips we mentioned here, just check out our full guide.

Manage Extensions In Chrome

The Chrome Web Store lists thousands of extensions in multiple categories, including accessibility, productivity, photo management, shopping, sports, and more. Here’s how to manage your Chrome extensions.

Don’t Miss: How To Change Your Ip Without VPN

How To Fix The Four Biggest Problems With VPN Connections

When they work, VPNs are great. When they don’t, you can go crazy trying to figure out what’s wrong. Here are four of the biggest trouble areas with VPN connections and how you can fix them.

Editor’s note: In the video, Brandon Vigliarolo uses Microsoft Windows Server 2016, and some of the steps and menus are different from the following tutorial by Brien Posey. This tip was first published in May 2003.

VPNs have gone from obscurity to being a common method of linking private networks together across the Internet. Although VPNs initially became popular because they free companies from the expense of connecting networks with dedicated leased lines, part of the reason that VPNs have become so accepted is that they tend to be very reliable. Even so, VPN connections do occasionally experience problems. Here are several techniques you can use to troubleshoot VPN connections.

There are four types of problems that tend to occur with VPN connections. These include:

• The VPN connection being rejected.
• The acceptance of an unauthorized connection.
• The inability to reach locations that lie beyond the VPN server.
• The inability to establish a tunnel.

Connect Using Different Ip Protocols

Most VPN providers allow you to connect through Transmission Control Protocol or User Datagram . The speed between these two IP protocols is different, so changing your IP protocol may result in improved speeds. The TCP is considered as more commonly accepted among VPN providers, but the UPD offers a faster and more stable connection.

Recommended Reading: Can You Get VPN On Apple TV

Solution: Use A Better VPN Thats Suitable For Streaming

If your VPN service has trouble with VPN blocks and is always spotted by advanced detection measures, you probably need to make the switch to a better provider.

With a premium VPN, you can get rid of the dreaded Netflix Streaming Error: You seem to be using an unblocker or proxy. Please turn off any of these services and try again.

Premium VPNs bypass Netflixs proxy detection

The most famous streaming platforms out there are notorious for their constant attempts at limiting VPN and proxy access as a result, getting past strict VPN blocks is no easy task.

You need one of the few VPN services that can be trusted to enable you to watch your favorite content online, without any restrictions in the way.

With a little research, you can easily find the perfect VPNs for Netflix that still work. But keep in mind that servers continue to be blacklisted as youre reading this so you may need to contact support for the right server or new additions that havent been announced yet.

For the ideal streaming VPN, we recommend taking a look at ExpressVPN. It offers some of the fastest speeds in our tests, along with valuable streaming-oriented features and extremely helpful live chat support. You can even use it to unblock content on devices that dont normally support a VPN! For more info and user reviews, check out our ExpressVPN review page.

Make Sure Your VPN Is Up To Date

Quality VPN providers work with developers to make sure that their version of the software matches the technological capabilities they have at their disposal. With that being said, your connection may lack stability if your version of the VPN software is not up-to-date. To make sure your VPN software is running smoothly, make the necessary updates; if possible, allow your software to update automatically. If not, make sure to check for available updates regularly.

The best way to make sure your VPN client software is up-to-date is to check the version youre using right now against the one that is displayed on the providers website. You can usually find the information in the About section of your VPN client software.

Also Check: Can I Use VPN On My Smart TV

Omegle Doesnt Work With VPN

You can connect with anyone around the world using Omegle. This is a totally new appealing way to meet new friends online. However, users can get banned sometimes, and some may find their VPN doesnt work with Omegle.

If youre facing issues with Omegle, youre in the right place. In this post, youll learn every possible way to resolve this issue in no time.

How To Fix VPN Not Connecting Properly

After you wonder Is my VPN working? and perform IP address and DNS leak tests, and find your VPN not working as it should, there are in fact lots of things you can do to fix it.

Lets start with a leaking IP address. The first suspicion here is that for some reason your VPN is not working properly. Try to check for updates and get the latest version, which could include fixing some bugs. Then restart the VPN app itself or even reinstall it altogether.

If nothing helps, it might be that you need to use a more robust and trustworthy VPN. Our choice would be ClearVPN.

ClearVPN is an effortless but powerful VPN app that does away with all the usual complexity in setting up a proper VPN connection, but at the same time provides unprecedented flexibility at the click of a button. Both ClearVPN for Mac and ClearVPN for iOS are part of the Setapp suite, available to you along with 200 other apps, for one monthly fee.;

The true power of ClearVPN is in its outstanding collection of shortcuts, which automatically configure the VPN settings for any given scenario, such as watching US Netflix, online gaming, masking your IP, blocking ads, protecting yourself from malware, and many others.

When you feel that your VPN connection is slow , the best thing you can do is change your destination server location. This is because your signal physically has to reach the destination server first, so if its half way across the world it will inevitably be slower than something nearby.

You May Like: Does Mcafee Livesafe Have VPN

Best Netflix VPN To Stream Despite The Block

This is where virtual private networks come in. The linked article has all the details, but in short, a VPN allows you to access the internet from a third-party server. This has two main benefits. First, a VPN makes your browsing more secure. More important to streaming, though, is that it can make you appear as if youre somewhere else geographically by spoofing IP addresses.

Using the last example, a Netflix subscriber from New York City who wants to watch The Americans without signing up to Amazon Prime Video can do so by connecting to a VPN server in Germany, which has all six seasons in its Netflix library. Its really as simple as that: open up your VPN, select a server in another country and say, bye-bye geoblock.

Thats how it should work, at least. The distributors we mentioned earlier most likely dont like people undermining the distribution agreements and allegedly began forcing Netflix to start blocking VPNs nobody seems to know exactly why the ban came into effect. Ever since then, VPN users have gotten the now-infamous Netflix error message.

That said, if a distributor makes a deal with two different streaming services to show a film in different countries, it doesnt want people to cross over willy-nilly. Its just bad for business, especially in the age of the streaming wars.;

Right now, there are dozens of major streaming sites competing with each other, and all of them seem intent on making sure you only watch certain shows on certain sites.

What Can I Do If My VPN Is Blocked At Work

First, ensure youre running the latest version of Hotspot Shield on your device.

Next, check to see if a password is required to access your office WIFI connection.

You’ll want to log in to the WiFi network first and Hotspot Shield second.

To pinpoint the cause, try using mobile data alone or a personal internet hotspot. If its against company policy to use a VPN, we recommend using mobile data or a personal internet hotspot instead anyway. If you’re not able to connect on any of these, skip to the related articles, linked below.;

Then, check that your IT department hasnt blocked VPNs on the network

If you work in a smaller company or are able to send a message directly to your office IT department, contact your Network Administrator and ask the following:

;;;*Ask this because two VPNs cant work well at the same time

;;;*Ask this because a firewall or antivirus program could be blocking VPN access

Read Also: How To Create Your Own VPN

Why Doesnt Amazon Prime Work When Im Using A VPN

Have you just bought a VPN subscription, or maybe you have had a VPN subscription for a long time, and now you wanted to use it to stream content on Amazon Prime or Amazon Instant Videos abroad? But, instead of getting access to the content you wanted to stream, you still get the error messages on Amazon Prime?

Can you imagine this, I am using a VPN and I am connected to a server in the USA. I have an American IP address, and everything should be just perfect. But, when I try to watch Amazon Prime using the VPN, I still see messages like this all over the place: This title isnt available in your location.

Now, what is the problem? Why doesnt the Amazon Instant videos and the Amazon Prime videos work if you have an American IP address, just like I have? Well, it might sound complicated, but having an American IP address isnt enough .

I Have Paid For My Subscription And Still Cant Use VPN

So youve made your payment, and the VPN doesnt work regardless? Congratulations, your problems solution is probably described here. Well begin with credit card payments. When using them, your payment processor may consider some of the payments suspicious. Either because of unusual volume of payments, or because of a strange amounts, or for any other reasons your processor ties up your money and begins an investigation that can last up to a couple days. To fix this, you can either contact your bank or your VPN provider, or just wait until the processor completes the investigation.

The second reason is a bit similar to the extent that it can also only be solved by contacting the VPN provider. You see, sometimes when paying for iOS/macOS versions of some VPN apps, the market may bug out and forget to inform your VPN provider. So, in this situation the only fix is to inform them yourself. Finally, the problem may reside in a simple fact that the system has not yet completed its whole settlement procedures yet. If thats the case, just wait a bit. And dont forget to restart the app, since they usually update the subscription information only after that.

Recommended Reading: Why Should I Use VPN On My Iphone

Solution 5 Reset Network Settings

If none of the previous steps worked for you, the problem might lie in the WLAN configuration on your device. Something might be wrong so we recommend resetting your router and resetting Network settings on your device.

Heres what you need to do:

Difficulty Establishing A Tunnel

If everything seems to be working well, but you can’t seem to establish a tunnel between the client and the server, there are two main possibilities of what could be causing the problem. The first possibility is that one or more of the routers involved is performing IP packet filtering. IP packet filtering could prevent IP tunnel traffic. I recommend checking the client, the server, and any machines in between for IP packet filters. You can do this by clicking the Advanced button on each machine’s TCP/IP Properties sheet, selecting the Options tab from the Advanced TCP/IP Settings Properties sheet, selecting TCP/IP Filtering, and clicking the Properties button.

The other possibility is that a proxy server is standing between the client and the VPN server. A proxy server performs NAT translation on all traffic flowing between the client and the Internet. This means that packets appear to be coming from the proxy server rather than from the client itself. In some cases, this interaction could prevent a tunnel from being established, especially if the VPN server is expecting the client to have a specific IP address. You must also keep in mind that a lot of older or low-end proxy servers don’t support the L2TP, IPSec, or PPTP protocols that are often used for VPN connections.

Don’t Miss: How To Connect Lg TV To VPN

Why Is My VPN Not Working And How Should I Fix It

If your VPN is not working properly, you can do several things: check your network settings, change your server, make sure the right ports are opened, disable the firewall, and reinstall your VPN software.

Lets dive into the details and discuss how you can fix your VPN client. These VPN troubleshooting tips also apply if you use Android or iPhone devices.

How Is The Bbc Iplayer Detecting VPN Use

So how does the BBC know you are streaming the iPlayer through a VPN? It all comes down to your IP address and probability.

The BBC iPlayer is meant to be used mostly from home and sometimes from a place of business. Anywhere a valid TV License exists. Most of those locations will have a single external IP, regardless of how many devices are connected to the internet.

Lets assume a home situation with a family of four where everyone streams content off the BBC iPlayer at the same time. Thats four connections from the same IP address talking to the iPlayer server for several hours each day.

From the BBCs point of view, that sounds entirely reasonable and is probably a fairly common usage pattern.

Now, what happens if you, I and a several hundred other people access the BBC iPlayer with a VPN servers IP ?

Its like were all roommates in a single house. It translates to hundreds of connections from the same source hitting the iPlayer server around the clock .

Does that sound like a typical iPlayer usage pattern? Not at all. And its something the BBC can easily detect.

Once enough time has passed to gather sufficient data , our VPN IP address is getting blacklisted and blocked from using the iPlayer.

The good news is, VPN providers are well aware of how their IPs are detected and banned by the BBC. Most services, after finding out a VPN server IP no longer works, will simply toss it and replace it with a new one that works.

Recommended Reading: How To Add VPN To Kodi Firestick