So my mate just purchases NordVPN so he can use the campus internet instead of having to hotspot his NUC PC.
From what hes told me, everytime he connects to a VPN server, doesnt matter what region it will connect but wont hold connection and will disconnect from the server.
Any recommendations?
Apparently he has tried OpenVPN with both UDP and TCP and Nordlynx they don't connect.
Currently connected via WiFi connection in his dorm
Im assuming it might be a DNS thing?
Probably blocked. I remember when I was at uni, I ran a reverse shell to get access remotely but they closed it after a week.
My university (Swinburne) is very tight with their network security, I can't use alternative DNS or connect to any VPNs. I've even tried SSH tunnel back to my home network, doesn't work either, nor does even remote desktop to my home computer.
So this leaves me with no choice but to use mobile data if I wanted to access a file I've left on my home computer.
Maybe a YouTuber sponsoring nordvpn can help
So what's the point of paying for a VPN if anyone can just block them?
I've noticed the same without Amazon prime account. Even though I have the VPN set t the same country as my Prime subscription it still blocks me.
Its Uni's great firewall of China
Universities throttle or block VPN access on Campus Network
Have them check the uni Terms Of Service and find out whether the VPN traffic is permitted or excluded by the TOS.
If the traffic is excluded, trying to use it could be a great way of getting their account suspended.
If permitted, then a traffic capture from both ends will show what's gone wrong.
If they can't get a capture from the VPN provider end, the local capture may still show what's up.
I have used NordVPN in the past, they didn't use the OpenVPN 'keepalive' option at that time which meant that unused VPN connections would stop working (they would be 'up' but unable to pass traffic). Forcing traffic over the VPN every 60 seconds fixed that particular problem…
The firewall is probably nuking connections to TCP 443 and UDP 1194.
Try this if you're on education network:
Works on eduSTAR so maybe it'll work at Uni.
You're welcome.
Maybe the university blocks VPN or rate limits it (so they can manage student traffic better) - I don't really understand his reasoning though. If he wants to use the campus internet he shouldn't be using the VPN (otherwise he is just slowing down his connecting to go to Nord's crappy endpoints).