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rlu929s

macrumors regular
Original poster
May 17, 2011
132
2
This with Air's. I imagine (like myself) you find yourself on public wifi a lot. What kind of VPN solutions do you use?

I've always used HotSpot VPN, but didn't know if there was a less costly option.
 

Airforcekid

macrumors 68000
Sep 29, 2008
1,707
680
United States of America
I reccomened witopia $69 a year for full 256 bit encryption $39 for 128. You can choose to login from anywhere in the world and my speed and ping time stays about the same. Great service overall!
 

Shadoobie

macrumors newbie
Jul 26, 2011
8
0
I use GoldenFrog's VyperVPN. It's one of the only ones I've found that lets you tunnel traffic from a router through a VPN instead of just one host.

Agreed on VyprVPN. You can also run Hamachi seamlessly through VyperVPN. I used HotSpot VPN for six years until I switched to VyprVPN. It's not the cheapest, but it is the fastest and most robust that I've found.
 

theRick119

macrumors member
Apr 27, 2008
83
1
VyprVPN sounds interesting. I will have check that out. I have used witopia which I thought was great. I have a personal server that I installed OpenVPN on so that is technically free for me at this point. Love it.
 

droo

macrumors member
May 1, 2011
33
13
I run openVPN on my QNAP NAS at home - I just VPN back to it when on public wifi; costs nothing !
 

rlu929s

macrumors regular
Original poster
May 17, 2011
132
2
I'm really liking Witopia. I think the $39.99 per year should suffice for my light use and needs.

How are the speeds on it?

I might also look into OpenVPN as free is good as well. Does that require you to have a static IP?
 

theRick119

macrumors member
Apr 27, 2008
83
1
For OpenVPN, I'd recommend a service (free) like dyndns. That will provide you with a free host name for your dynamic address.
 

Moohooya

macrumors newbie
Jul 11, 2010
26
10
I run openVPN on my QNAP NAS at home - I just VPN back to it when on public wifi; costs nothing !

Which VPN do you use on your QNAP NAS? I'd like to set up a VPN on my QNAP but I'm not sure how to go about doing this. Are there any instructions on the Web you followed?
 

tech324

macrumors 6502
Jul 25, 2010
274
0
I reccomened witopia $69 a year for full 256 bit encryption $39 for 128. You can choose to login from anywhere in the world and my speed and ping time stays about the same. Great service overall!

When I look at Witopia's web site, $39 a year does not give you SSL. You have to pay $60 or more to get SSL.
 

flynz4

macrumors 68040
Aug 9, 2009
3,242
126
Portland, OR
When I look at Witopia's web site, $39 a year does not give you SSL. You have to pay $60 or more to get SSL.

I bought the combo. I think it was $70/year. I use SSL for my MBA, and I use the PPTP for my iPhone and/or iPad. I only turn on the VPN when connected to public hotspots.

I previously (foolishly) had not worried about public hot spots. Once firesheep hit the news... I became enlightened. $70/year is cheap protection.

/Jim
 

CoachSteff

macrumors newbie
Aug 26, 2011
2
0
Brussels, BE
How do you run Hamachi through VyperVPN?

Agreed on VyprVPN. You can also run Hamachi seamlessly through VyperVPN. I used HotSpot VPN for six years until I switched to VyprVPN. It's not the cheapest, but it is the fastest and most robust that I've found.

I have a Mac mini that serves as a Hamachi VPN server. My MacBooks connect with it when I'm home or away, so I can access my files and stuff. But I would like that machine to route traffic then through VyperVPN. How can I do that?
 

Mactabulous

macrumors member
Dec 23, 2011
69
0
Which VPN do you use on your QNAP NAS? I'd like to set up a VPN on my QNAP but I'm not sure how to go about doing this. Are there any instructions on the Web you followed?

The NAS has it's own VPN server, it doesn't connect to any specific service (and to the best of my knowledge, it can't). I use the same procedure myself, in order to gain access to my shares when I'm away from home. However, you will not be concealed in the same manner as when using a third-party VPN service, as all traffic originates from your ISP when you connect to your own NAS (obviously). For privacy, you will need a third-party VPN provider, in order to obscure your IP/host.
 

BenTrovato

macrumors 68040
Jun 29, 2012
3,035
2,198
Canada
Witopia is nice since it works with os x, windows, and devices. Although lately it doesn't seem to be working in some public places and the speed tests have decreased quite a bit from last year. Started looking around at other providers.
 

musique

macrumors regular
Apr 10, 2009
222
5
Witopia recommended

There are probably many services that will suffice. Witopia is the only one I've used and I will be renewing my deal when my contract expires later this year. Although I've never had a problem with the service, on a few occasions I've had a technical question and I've found that their support is virtually immediate. Definitely worth the price for that alone.

Plus, when I first got Witopia, I tried using a few of the speed tests on the web and I could find no discernible difference between Comcast, my ISP, with Witopia and Comcast alone.

Good luck.
 

BenTrovato

macrumors 68040
Jun 29, 2012
3,035
2,198
Canada
Witopia is nice since it works with os x, windows, and devices. Although lately it doesn't seem to be working in some public places and the speed tests have decreased quite a bit from last year. Started looking around at other providers.

Just an update... really pleased with Witopia's support. Took about 10 email exchanges but they gave me a custom solution to connect in a spot where I had never been able to before. Really kind as well in their communication.

Speed has definitely slowed down since I originally signed up with them. Not that I am needing more bandwidth but just an observation... addicted to speedtesting. I'm still happy with them, hopefully the decline in speed is due to more subscribers and they will improve their infrastructure in the coming months.
 

TheRealDamager

macrumors 65816
Jan 5, 2011
1,043
11
Private Internet Access (privateinternetaccess.com) is another good one. Lots of access points and $39 per year. And no logs retained.
 

Kartram

macrumors newbie
Mar 22, 2013
15
0
I have never used a third party VPN service before. I have a router that has a VPN server and I use that to remotely login when i am in a public place. What are the advantages to using Witopia or similar service?
 

dyn

macrumors 68030
Aug 8, 2009
2,708
388
.nl
In terms of privacy and security: not much. You are still completely relying on a 3rd party. It's only a little bit more secure if you use a vpn that actually uses security (there are vpn's without it such as when using pptp) it will secure all of your connections so others on the same wifi network/ap can not eavesdrop. However, because you are using a 3rd party they'll be able to see all of your traffic.
If you want privacy and security then use secure connections to any of the services you use (aka use https when visiting websites, use ssl when connecting to the mailserver, etc.) and tunnel them over a vpn that you completely control. This approach means that you have to set up a vpn yourself which requires not only tools but also knowledge.

It just depends on how much security and privacy you want as well as how much you are willing to tinker with tech.
 
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