VPN question

[fostes]

I have PI4 2gb.
I want to have vpn and adblock.
But, i also game online, will this vpn be good for online gaming?

[wildfire]

But, i also game online, will this vpn be good for online gaming?

That would depend on the game and platform. eg. The Steam platform expressly forbids the use of VPN's whilst gaming, primarily due to local censorship in some jurisdictions and price variations in geographic areas.

[fostes]

I want to use Pi as a VPN.
If i use as a free VPN, whats the difference versus paid VPN?
I read that free vpn cant choose other country, the what the benefits is of that vpn?

[wildfire]

I read that free vpn cant choose other country, the what the benefits is of that vpn?

That would be a question you take up with your gaming platform, I know in the case of steam a lot of cheaters tried to get VAC (Valve Anti Cheat) bans overturned because it couldn't possibly have been their IP using the account (all attempts failed ). VAC bans are only overturned if there was an issue with the detection system.

Steam (and I'm sure most/all other gaming platforms) don't take too kindly to users attempting to mask their IP's.

[jbudd]

I want to use Pi as a VPN.
If i use as a free VPN, whats the difference versus paid VPN?
I read that free vpn cant choose other country, the what the benefits is of that vpn?

What do you mean by using the Pi as a VPN?

You can run VPN software such as PiVPN on the Pi. That lets you connect securely with your phone or laptop from outside your home, a coffee shop for instance. Your data is sent encrypted to the Pi and then on to the internet via your ISP.

Or you can use an on-line VPN such as NordVPN. Advantages: You may be able to pretend to be in a different country, your ISP may not be able to see your data or sites you visit. Disadvantages: it might not work for gaming. If you don't trust your ISP with your data, why would you trust some VPN provider, especially one you aren't paying?

[fostes]

I want something like: OpenVpn, PiVpn,...
To my raspberry pi became pi hole and vpn.
But, if this not soo good, why some people do this?

[neilgl]

It is good. I use OpenVPN on a pi4. Excellent.

[jbudd]

PiHole and PiVPN work very well together.

Together they enhance your privacy and security online and don't cost you anything.

I think they are the best use for a raspberry pi.

[Spile]

I think you need to consider the reasons why you need a vpn. There are two very distinct reasons broadly masking your outgoing traffic and possibly location or adding to the security of devices you are exposing to the internet such as a NAS or ip camera.

[HvdW]

The combination PiHole and PiVPN using WireGuard is top of the line.
It bans ads, allows you to connect safely to the internet from anywhere of that you are 'inside' your own raspberry once you're connected.
You can work on your home automation as if your at home without having to open a port like 80 or 8080.
You can access your data server you can wake on LAN your home computer.
Your home network is wide open, just for you, through an encrypted tunnel.
And all the while ads are banned.

[fostes]

Thanks, but what about speed?
My network speed is 80mbps right now. And what about ping for games? What about Ping?
So, Pihole and freeVpn is not a option? If i can choose another location, why some people choise free?
What i want is:
1. Unlock all websites worldwide (USA in the most cases)
2. More securely network
3. No ads on any device on my network (pc, phones,...)
4. To be good for gaming
Again, sorry for my nonperfect english.

[HvdW]

I'd say: go for it.
Install PiHole first and then PiVPN.
PiVPN with Wireguard will be integrated automagically when you do so.
Then open port 52820 on your router and redirect all DNS requests through your raspberry.
(It's well documented in PiHole and PiVPN sites)
I wouldn't be surprised if you can play all your games behind this encrypted adblocking setup on your raspberry.

You can test the setup with DNS Benchmark wich you can find on Steve Gibson's site.

[fostes]

Thanks, i am still curious so i will read a lot untill i will be i am sure i am ready.
But, still, what i will get if i just get free vpn? Whats are the benefits?

[neilgl]

The benefits are that it is free and you control it.