How to Install ProtonVPN in Linux

A virtual private network, or VPN, turns a public internet connection into a private network, offering you online privacy and anonymity. A VPN hides your internet protocol (IP) address, making your online actions almost untraceable. VPN services, in particular, allow private and encrypted connections, which provide greater anonymity than even a secured Wi-Fi hotspot.

You should utilize a virtual private network (VPN) when accessing the internet from a public area such as a coffee shop, hotel lobby, or any other facility that offers free public Wi-Fi (VPN).

Create an Account on ProtonVPN Website:

You must create a ProtonVPN account before you can proceed. You can do so by visiting ProtonVPN’s official website and navigating to the ‘Pricing’ section. Basically, ProtonVPN comes with 4 basic plans which are namely Free, Basic, Plus, and Visionary. In this article, we are going to use basically the “FREE” plan which gives you free access to VPN Services for 7 days. 

For creating an account on ProtonVPN you just need to follow the following steps:

Step 1: Visit the ProtonVPN’s Official Website

 

Step 2: Then click on the Sign Up option if you do not have a previous ProtonVPN account and then choose your Pricing Plan otherwise you can go for the login option :

 

Step 3: Then create your account by filling in your username, password, and email address.

 

Step 4: Then copy-paste your username and password somewhere else because you need to use them in the further process of ProtonVPN installation and configuration 

 

Steps to install ProtonVPN in Linux Operating System:

Step 1: Run the following command to install OpenVPN 

sudo apt update

sudo apt install openvpn dialog python3-pip python3-setuptools

 

Step 2: Then, using the pip package manager, install ProtonVPN CLI.

sudo pip3 install protonvpn-cli

 

Now OpenVPN and ProtonVPN CLI is installed.

Steps for Setting up ProtonVPN in Linux:

After the installation of ProtonVPN Packages, the Configuration of ProtonVPN is the Next Step.

Step 1: To do this you need to run the following command

sudo protonvpn init

This command let you in some of the configuration steps. First, you need to provide your username and password for authentication purposes.

 

Step 2: Then select Your Plan:

 

Step 3: Then Choose Preferred Protocol here we chose UDP. 

 

Step 4: Then Press Y for Confirmation i.e all the information is correct.

 

Disable IPv6 in Linux

To avoid IPv6 leaks we need to disable IPv6 because ProtonVPN doesn’t support IPv6. To do this open the /etc/sysctl.conf config file.

sudo vim  /etc/sysctl.conf

After executing this command you need to append the following lines to the very end of sysctl.config file.

net.ipv6.conf.all.disable_ipv6 = 1 
net.ipv6.conf.default.disable_ipv6 = 1 
net.ipv6.conf.lo.disable_ipv6 = 1 
net.ipv6.conf.tun0.disable_ipv6 = 1

 

Save these changes.

To check these changes you need to run the following command in the Terminal.

sudo sysctl -p

To make, the Connection runs the following command.

sudo protonvpn connect

Then Select the Country to which you want to connect your IP.

 

Then Pick the Server location. choose the server which has a minimum load for better speed.

 

Then select a Protocol (TCP, UDP).

 

After all these steps you are now connected to the ProtonVPN.

For Disabling ProtonVPN, enter the following command:

sudo protonvpn disconnect