If you have a Raspberry Pi on hand, it will be quiet fun to make a VPN (virtual private network) using your Rasp Pi and PC. In this article, I will guide you on the basics of how to create VPN using Raspberry Pi. If you are new to the concept of VPN, it is a private network that helps to channel your internet traffic through, by hiding your original ISP network. So basically, a VPN adds security and privacy to your original network and tunnels the traffic through a new gateway IP address provided by the VPN. For example, if you are browsing from New York city, and you use a VPN which provides a gateway in London, you can actually use that gateway in London as your VPN.

Corporates always use their own VPN’s to transfer sensitive data and information over the internet. Nowadays, personal internet activity has also seen a surge in the use of VPNs. Let’s see what are the benefits of using a VPN.

  • Encrypt your data – A VPN will protect data transfers over a public WiFi network.
  • Hide/Change your IP address – A VPN always hides your real IP address, and uses a different IP address (based on the gateway used).
  • Mask your location – If you don’t want to be traced, you can mask your location using a VPN.
  • Access blocked websites – If your ISP has blocked some particular websites, you can access them using a VPN.

Every one of us may know how to access a VPN using VPN providers. This article is all about the DIY version, setting up a VPN yourself using your home internet connection. There are different ways to set up a VPN server using your home internet, you can follow this guide to learn about all the ways possible. In this article, we focus on setting up a VPN using Raspberry Pi.

How to setup a VPN using Raspberry Pi?

You can create a home VPN using Open VPN and Raspberry Pi. OpenVPN is an open source VPN, which you can setup in other hardwares like Raspberry Pi or some other routers. So let’s get started.

Please be noted, when you setup using an OpenVPN and home internet connection, you wont be able to mask your location to an overseas country. You will still be on the radar of prying eyes. However, an extra security layer will be added when you use public WiFi.

To set this up, you need a Raspberry Pi with all basic essentials like a power supply and an SD card. You dont need any special operating system, but the default Raspbian is more than enough. You have to do the basic setup of Raspberry Pi as always.

STEP 1: Install OpenVPN with PiVPN

OpenVPN, as you already know now is an open source VPN platform, that lets you setup a VPN in other hardwares. You can insall the linux server of OpenVPN in your Raspberry Pi and tweak the configuration files manually. Instead of doing this tedious job, you can use an alternative PiVPN – that helps you setup OpenVPN configuration with the help of an easy to use wizard.

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