VPN programs for PPC Linux

[Roland]

What VPN programs are there available for PPC Linux (Fienix/Ubuntu)? My primary interest would be to 'spoof' different countries. Is there anything from the Fienix depot which would do the job?

On the Intel side I have already tested F-Secure Freedome (commercial, only for Win/Mac) which works very well. There are also some Firefox Plugins for that purpose, but are they available for any browser on our Fienix or Ubuntu 16?

[Roland]

What VPN programs are there available for PPC Linux (Fienix/Ubuntu)? My primary interest would be to 'spoof' different countries. Is there anything from the Fienix depot which would do the job?

On the Intel side I have already tested F-Secure Freedome (commercial, only for Win/Mac) which works very well. There are also some Firefox Plugins for that purpose, but are they available for any browser on our Fienix or Ubuntu 16?

I'm surpriced that there has not appeared any answer to this question... Is it REALLY so that there is not ANY VPN solution for PPC Linux??? This is nowadays so commonly used feature, though.

[caseycullen]

What VPN programs are there available for PPC Linux (Fienix/Ubuntu)? My primary interest would be to 'spoof' different countries. Is there anything from the Fienix depot which would do the job?

On the Intel side I have already tested F-Secure Freedome (commercial, only for Win/Mac) which works very well. There are also some Firefox Plugins for that purpose, but are they available for any browser on our Fienix or Ubuntu 16?

I'm surpriced that there has not appeared any answer to this question... Is it REALLY so that there is not ANY VPN solution for PPC Linux??? This is nowadays so commonly used feature, though.

Browser VPN add-ons aren't actually a VPN, they just force the browser to connect through a proxy server. This is no different than setting a proxy server in the browser Preferences. Keep in mind there are security risks involved with proxy connections, whether through an add-on or not. You're basically trusting the proxy admin not to spy on your browsing habits.
Actual VPN is much more secure than using a proxy for browsing. I'll see if I can add OpenVPN or OpenConnect to Fienix.

[Roland]

Browser VPN add-ons aren't actually a VPN, they just force the browser to connect through a proxy server. This is no different than setting a proxy server in the browser Preferences. Keep in mind there are security risks involved with proxy connections, whether through an add-on or not. You're basically trusting the proxy admin not to spy on your browsing habits.

Actual VPN is much more secure than using a proxy for browsing. I'll see if I can add OpenVPN or OpenConnect to Fienix.

You are reading my thoughts...! I just got from Wicknix a tip to install first OpenVPN, but I noticed it is not available for Fienix. I was just about to ask you to add these to the Fienix repo:

openvpn
network-manager-openvpn
network-manager-openvpn-gnome

For me the only need for VPN is to avoid some artificial georestrictions of videostreams. I do not have any need for secure data transfer itself. How difficult would it be to define a proxy to do the same as the CyberGhost plugin does? It is a reliable service (asks minimal privileges) and the free connection (spoofing Germany) has been enough for me.

For Ubuntu 16.04 I was able to install 'openvpn' and 'network-manager-openvpn' , but have not yet quite figured out how should I continue from that... Free VPN which Wicknix uses seems to be currently available only for certain countries, not for the whole EU.

[caseycullen]

You are reading my thoughts...! I just got from Wicknix a tip to install first OpenVPN, but I noticed it is not available for Fienix. I was just about to ask you to add these to the Fienix repo:

openvpn
network-manager-openvpn
network-manager-openvpn-gnome

For me the only need for VPN is to avoid some artificial georestrictions of videostreams. I do not have any need for secure data transfer itself. How difficult would it be to define a proxy to do the same as the CyberGhost plugin does? It is a reliable service (asks minimal privileges) and the free connection (spoofing Germany) has been enough for me.

For Ubuntu 16.04 I was able to install 'openvpn' and 'network-manager-openvpn' , but have not yet quite figured out how should I continue from that... Free VPN which Wicknix uses seems to be currently available only for certain countries, not for the whole EU.

I've confirmed that both OpenVPN and OpenConnect run fine with Fienix. I'll add them to the repo along with the next update, which will be within the next couple of days.
If you want to try a proxy, just enter the proxy address and port from http://free-proxy.cz/en/proxylist/count ... l/ping/all into the browser proxy preferences, its under Connection or Network I believe. It's not as convenient as toggling an add-on on and off but it does the same thing.
-Casey

[Roland]

I've confirmed that both OpenVPN and OpenConnect run fine with Fienix. I'll add them to the repo along with the next update, which will be within the next couple of days.
If you want to try a proxy, just enter the proxy address and port from http://free-proxy.cz/en/proxylist/count ... l/ping/all into the browser proxy preferences, its under Connection or Network I believe. It's not as convenient as toggling an add-on on and off but it does the same thing.

Thank you!-) I hope the OpenVPN is a newer version than that for Ubuntu 16.04, as there the network-manager-openvpn did not seem have the option to use directly a configuration file.

I tested some of those German proxies, and they seemed to work what comes to the geolocation... But there is still something 'unorthodox' in using them as I had to 'prove' that I'm not a robot when opening videos from one Youtube portal. With Firefox VPN-plugins this does not happen. I did not yet test any livestream but I think it is better to use them with an OpenVPN connection.

[caseycullen]

Thank you!-) I hope the OpenVPN is a newer version than that for Ubuntu 16.04, as there the network-manager-openvpn did not seem have the option to use directly a configuration file.

I tested some of those German proxies, and they seemed to work what comes to the geolocation... But there is still something 'unorthodox' in using them as I had to 'prove' that I'm not a robot when opening videos from one Youtube portal. With Firefox VPN-plugins this does not happen. I did not yet test any livestream but I think it is better to use them with an OpenVPN connection.

OpenVPN and OpenConnect are available in the new repository. OpenVPN is version 2.4.7, I think Ubuntu xenial uses 2.3.10. Let me know how it goes.
-Casey

[Roland]

OpenVPN and OpenConnect are available in the new repository. OpenVPN is version 2.4.7, I think Ubuntu xenial uses 2.3.10. Let me know how it goes.

Thanks! I was able to install both of them, and the respective plugins for Network Connections prefs. But there is now one problem... The 'network-manger-openvpn-g' (Gnome) is needed also! Without it, OpenVPN prefs lack the most important tab ("VPN"), and without it you cannot configure the connection (User, Password, Gateway and certificates are defined there)! So, would it be possible to add also that to the deposit...?

I checked this with an Ubuntu18 distro, which originally had that 'VPN' tab in OpenVPN prefs. When I removed the 'network-manger-openvpn-g' installation, the 'VPN' tab also disappeared!

[caseycullen]

OpenVPN and OpenConnect are available in the new repository. OpenVPN is version 2.4.7, I think Ubuntu xenial uses 2.3.10. Let me know how it goes.

Thanks! I was able to install both of them, and the respective plugins for Network Connections prefs. But there is now one problem... The 'network-manger-openvpn-g' (Gnome) is needed also! Without it, OpenVPN prefs lack the most important tab ("VPN"), and without it you cannot configure the connection (User, Password, Gateway and certificates are defined there)! So, would it be possible to add also that to the deposit...?

I checked this with an Ubuntu18 distro, which originally had that 'VPN' tab in OpenVPN prefs. When I removed the 'network-manger-openvpn-g' installation, the 'VPN' tab also disappeared!

Please try to install network-manager-openvpn-gnome. Does that take care of it? Or do you also need to install network-manager-gnome (also added). Let me know; perhaps I'll create a metapackage so it's easier for everyone to install everything they need.

UPDATE: I installed network-manager-gnome and network-manager-openvpn-gnome to get an "Advanced Networking Configuration" option in my control center. This appears to be what you were referring to. Please confirm.

Thanks!!!
-Casey

[Roland]

Please try to install network-manager-openvpn-gnome. Does that take care of it? Or do you also need to install network-manager-gnome (also added). Let me know; perhaps I'll create a metapackage so it's easier for everyone to install everything they need.

I had already network-manager-gnome installed. I now installed "network-manager-openvpn-gnome" (was it in the depot already yesterday? How did I not notice it...), and it did the job. Thanks!!-)

UPDATE: I installed network-manager-gnome and network-manager-openvpn-gnome to get an "Advanced Networking Configuration" option in my control center. This appears to be what you were referring to. Please confirm.

I was referring to the next step, when you are configuring the created OpenVPN connection. You can see the 'VPN' tab there after installing "network-manager-openvpn-gnome":