Is anybody running their Mac(s) on a VPN?

[MattSh]

Virtual Private Network. Not HotSpot Shield, Spotflux, or the like.

Just want to see if anybody here is familiar before I explain what I'd like to do...

[cbayer]

1. I am using a VPN through HotSpot Shield intermittently.

I am in Mexico and can't get some things if it looks like my IP is out of the country.

OTOH, the VPN interferes with some site's functionality.

Since you specifically said not HotSpot Shield, I'm not sure I can help you.

[MattSh]

2. The thing with HotSpot Shield, at least the free version...

is that it's an all or nothing thing.

I'd like to have some sites always connect via a USA IP. And some to always connect via a local IP here in Europe. I don't want to be swapping back and forth 10 times a day. Plus if you're signed in to a few websites at once, the switch is likely to log you out.

HotSpot Shield (free) doesn't have that capability, plus it's an enormous hit on connection speed.

[cbayer]

3. We bought it for a year.

I don't have a way to tell it to go on for certain sites and not for others, but it's really easy to turn off and on and it's very obvious if it's on or not.

It will automatically reconnect if you change router, but otherwise will stay off until you tell it to come back on.

It's very fast and has been very effective for certain things.

[CloudWatcher]

11. Routes

I don't use VPN much anymore, but I suspect what you're talking about is having control over your routes.

Internet traffic is a packet "store and forward" system where each node really only has to know how to get packets to the next hop on the journey to the packet's eventual destination.

Most end-users of the Internet have all of their traffic go to a single destination .. their "default route." This is normally a router run by your ISP. Then that router forwards the traffic onward ... hopefully to a node that is one hop closer to the correct destination. The nodes in the "middle" of the internet do a lot of work to update their routing tables so they know how to properly forward traffic, but most user's are blissfully unaware of the details and can just send everything to their ISP.

But ... when using VPN, all your Internet traffic is bundled up and directed to the VPN server, where it then is unwrapped and sent on to the intended destination.

What you could do (with work) is to change your local routing table so that traffic to "some sites" goes out normally (i.e. not using your VPN service), and traffic to "other sites" goes out to your VPN.

This is really independent of the VPN service. It's a function of how the IP layer (of your computer) determines how to send packets out of your machine.

And you can control this by customizing the routing table entries in your OS ... by adding entries for the sites you care about ... to make sure packets for them go to either your ISP (normally) or through your VPN.

And of course this can get pretty complicated very quickly. I don't know if any VPN software tries to make this easy for people (nor have I been looking... so it might exist). If you're still interested ... and the idea of manipulating your routing table doesn't scare you off ... let me know (with email) and I can try and explain more about just what is involved.

But ... I suspect a better solution would be to have a second device (and older mac, or an iPad, iPhone, whatever) and use one computer with VPN all the time, and the other one without VPN.

Good luck

[winstars]

4. TunnelBear works great...

Its not free but you can watch BBC etc shows whilst in US and your Netflix, HBO GO when overseas. I think its $50 per year unlimited but worth it.

It DOES mess with my Apple Mail when its on. So if I have been using it to watch movies etc and want to check my email, I have to shut it down and sometime even quit Mail and restart it to get inbound mail. (outbound too I suppose)

I am in Paris right now and if I try my Netflix I get the "not available in your country" notice...
I launch TunnelBear and boom, then I am in like Flynn...

[RocRizzo55]

8. Not so true

A VPN will not stop viruses and malware. You still need this protection on a Mac. Yes, they do get viruses and malware. Far fewer than PCs, but it still happens, and the best way to avert it is with some good anti-virus/anti-malware software.
Believe me, I have been a computer tech for more than 25 years!

[RocRizzo55]

7. I have been using a VPN for years

It NEVER failed me. Not on a Mac, PC, Linux, or anything else.

[Lulu KC]

12. Yes, Tunnel Bear

Love it. No problems. (EDIT: Just noticed this post is from 2014! NVM!)