Posts Tagged ‘Windows 7’

• What’s the difference between PPTP, L2TP, OpenVPN, and SOCKS when talking about VPNs?

  Date: 2012.09.21 | Category: VPN Blog | Response: 0

  Deciding on the type of “protocol” to use for your VPN is like choosing the best tasting ice cream: there are many choices, and some people prefer one choice over another.

  For VPNs, the 3 main choices are PPTP, L2TP, and OpenVPN. We also include SOCKS, but that is not really a VPN protocol. Some people also use SSTP too, but that is not being used so much these days (yet!). Then you also hear of “IPSec”, but that is really a marketing brand used by Cisco and other companies and really refers to L2TP.

  Did we confuse you yet?

  Yes, it can be a little confusing. So we will only concentrate on the differences between PPTP, L2TP, OpenVPN, and SOCKS. There is a good comparison chart on Kovurt.com, but here is our own chart too:

   

  VPN Protocols	PPTP	L2TP	SOCKS	OpenVPN
  Ease of Setup	Fast	Fast	Moderate	Moderate
  VPN Speed	Fast	Fast	Moderate	Moderate
  Security	Moderate	Very Good	Very Good	Best
  Stability	Good	Good	Better	Best
  Suggested Systems	iPhone, iPad, Mac, Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7	iPhone, iPad, Android, Mac	Mac, Ubuntu	Mac, Windows 7

  PPTP and L2TP do not require any software for you to install! So many people like to use them because you only need to enter your username and password once on your computer or phone, and in the future you can connect with a click of a button

  OpenVPN is a little more cumbersome because you must download software first to use it. Then you must install the software and maintain the software when there are upgrades. OpenVPN is a little more stable, but most people agree that PPTP and L2TP are just so much easier to use. Plus, PPTP and L2TP can be used on iPads, iPhones, and Android mobile phones, but OpenVPN can not be used on those devices (unless you “crack” them).

  So those are our thoughts on the differences. Please leave your comments below to let us know what you think.

• How to setup PPTP VPN on Windows 7

  Date: 2012.09.21 | Category: Windows 7: PPTP | Response: 0

  For our instructions and tutorial, we are using the VPN services from Kovurt.com. You can use any service you like, but we prefer Kovurt.

  After you confirmed your Kovurt subscription, we sent you an email. Inside that email you should see something like the following:

  ===============
  Your VPN Username: username
  Your VPN Password: password
  ===============

  The good news is that you do not need to install any more software! Everything you need is already on your computer. Follow the easy steps below to start using Kovurt VPN:

  First choose “Network and Sharing Center” from the Control Panel. Then choose “Set up a new connection or network”.
  

  Then select the “Connect to a workplace”.
  

  Next you should select “Use my Internet Connection (VPN).”
  

  Now you should enter the server address of your Kovurt account. You will see those details on the email we sent to you. For the “Destination name” box you can type “Kovurt”.
  

  Next you should enter your username and password – we sent you those details by email. Then click “Create”.
  

  Click the “Close” button to return to the “Network and Internet” screen.
  

  In the “Connect to a network” screen, you should see the Kovurt connection that you have just created.
  

  Right-click on the Kovurt connection document, and choose “Properties” from the menu.
  

  In the Kovurt Properties, you should select tab “Security”:
  1) click on the Type of VPN – “Point to Point Tunneling Protocol (PPTP)”
  2) click on the Data encryption – “”Optional encryption (connect even if no encryption)”
  3) select “Allow these protocols” and tick as shown in the following picture:
  

  Next select tab “Networking”: put the ticks as shown in the following picture and click “OK”:
  

  You are now finished! To connect/disconnect to Kovurt, right-click on the connection icon (viewable at Change adapter settings) and select connect/disconnect.