Using a VPN increases security, but that does come at the cost of raw connection performance. In this article, we have curated the key topics to consider if you are experiencing a slower-than-expected VPN connection that you can use to optimise your VPN connection performance.
While you expect the best connection performance from the server nearest to your physical location, it might be congested with many users. Therefore, it pays to check the connection speed to several server locations. To quickly carry out some basic speed checks on a server location, you can use speedtest.net by Oklua.
Antivirus programs, file-sharing clients, and other VPNs competing for the same system resources are typical applications that might interfere with VPN connections. We recommend temporarily turning off these applications to rule out any interference with your connection speed. Once tested, re-enable the application, and if there is an issue, please call us to discuss how best to overcome it.
There are several VPN protocols (L2TP, OpenVPN, IPSec, TLS/SSL, IKEv2 and NordLynx), and each offers a different approach to handling the connection: packet size, data integrity and encryption, which may affect the performance of the connection. Take time to try different protocols to see which is best for you. Call us if you are unsure how to change your VPN application's protocol.
Custom DNS, like Cloudflare's or OpenDNS, might give you a better speed and overall browsing experience. Try setting the following DNS addresses on your device:
DNS1: 208.67.222.222
DNS2: 208.67.220.220
When IPv6 is enabled, it can drastically slow down your VPN connection speed, cause instability and possibly restrict your ability to connect to a VPN server. So, disabling IPv6 is a good idea.
Please check out the following for more detailed information on changing your DNS settings or disabling IPv6.
Rebooting your machine after changing your network configuration is always a good idea. If you are still having issues, please contact us.