Due to the economic sanctions imposed by Western countries against Russia, the use of many Internet services in Crimea has become impossible. This includes such popular things as, for example, Google Play, Steam, Google Admob and many others. But the blockage can be overcome. There are several ways to bypass blocking. The most popular of these are the use of the Tor anonymous network and virtual private networks (VPNs). In this article, we will look at a way to bypass blocking using an example of a device running Android OS using a VPN. This method is also applicable to all popular operating systems and devices (Windows, Mac, iOS).
Necessary
- - a computer with an Internet connection;
- - tablet or smartphone.
Instructions
Step 1
To set up a VPN connection on an Android mobile device, you can use the operating system tools, or you can use special applications. First, let's configure VPN using standard system tools. To do this, first of all, set a password for unlocking the screen at startup, if it is not worth it.
Now go to the settings, then - "Wireless networks", then - "More …", and then we find the item "VPN". Click VPN, and then the "add" button (or "plus" - the appearance may differ slightly depending on the version of Android and installed user interface skins).
Step 2
A window will open with the settings for a new VPN connection. Think of a name for it, for example, "Vpn Krim", and enter it in the "Network name" field. Specify the network type - "L2TP / IPSec PSK".
Now open the vpngate.net website. Before you will be a list of servers that provide a free VPN service. Take any of the addresses and paste it into the "Server Address" field. You can write both the IP address and its letter designation. You can use any other server providing this service.
Now in the "IPSec Shared Key" field, write "vpn". Check the "Advanced" checkbox (new fields will appear) and enter "0.0.0.0/0" in the "Forwarding routes" field.
Click "Save".
Step 3
There is now a new network "Vpn Krim" on the VPN list. Click on it. You will be prompted for a username and password. Enter "vpn" in both fields and check the "Save credentials" box, and then click "Connect". After some time, the device will connect to the VPN, which will be indicated by the key icon in the notification bar.
If you cannot connect, there are several possible reasons for this.
- Incorrectly entered key, forwarding routes or server address. Check it all again.
- DNS errors. Try to enter its IP address instead of the text name of the server.
- The server you selected is not available. Use any other server from the above site.
- Some devices block L2TP / IPsec packets. In this case, you will not be able to use this method. Try using the "OpenVPN Connect" program - go to the next step.
Step 4
If the previous steps did not help, then find the "OpenVPN Connect" application on the network, download and install it.
(If you are using Windows or Mac operating system, you can download the application directly from the official website at
Now you need to load profiles with settings. You can download them right there on the site vpngate.net: in the table column "OpenVPN Windows, Mac, iPhone, Android" select the required profile and click the link "OpenVPN Config file". A new page will open, select any of the two profiles. Click on the link, the file with the ".ovpn" extension is downloaded. This file needs to be downloaded to your device.
Step 5
Open the downloaded profile file *.ovpn using the file manager. The device does not yet know what kind of file it is, and will offer to select an application with which it will open the file ("Open with …"). We look in the list and select the "OpenVPN Connect" application.
The application will determine that the file contains VPN connection settings. Click "Accept".
A message will appear stating that the profile has been imported successfully. Click the "Connect" button.
We put a tick that we trust the application, we confirm.
If the connection is successful, the already familiar key icon and the "OpenVPN Connect" application icon will appear. When you click on this icon, information about the VPN server used, the number of transmitted and received packets and the duration of the communication session will appear.
If the connection fails after several attempts, download and import the profile of the other server.
