How to Set Up a VPN on Your Router
Virtual private networks (VPNs) are one of the best ways to make your internet connection to become more private and secure. They keep people away from snooping on your connection and stop potentially disastrous hacks.
But turning on the VPN application every time that you get on the internet is a pain. And PC- or phone-based applications would not protect your other devices, such as your smart TV or your gaming console. The solution to that is to set up a VPN on your router.
How Do I Set up a VPN Connection on My Router?
However, not all network routers work together with DD-WRT or Tomato, and neither do all VPNs. You will need to check the compatibility list of your router firmware and installation instructions for your VPN subscription package
Below are the steps to do that
Step 1: Set up a VPN Router With a New Device Firmware
Check the compatibility lists of DD-WRT and Tomato to check if any of them are supported on your router.
If your router is supported, follow the instructions to install the firmware on it.
The exact method that you will use for flashing the firmware depends on which firmware that you choose and your router model. As such, we will avoid discussing the specifics here.
Step 2: Get Your VPN’s Server Information
Before you jump into the new firmware of your router, you’ll need to get some specific information on your VPN.
Your best option here is to run a search for on google for “how to set up [your VPN] [your firmware].” So you might search for something like “how to set up IPVanish DD-WRT.”
Several popular VPNs would have tutorials for getting their VPN installed on different types of routers.
You will find out that the configuration is a bunch of numbers and URLs. This, for example, is the information that is provided by NordVPN review for installing their VPN on DD-WRT:
Server IP/Name = us936.nordvpn.com
Port = 1194
Tunnel Device = TUN
Tunnel Protocol = UDP
Encryption Cipher = AES-256-CBC
Hash Algorithm = SHA-512 (Note: Older NordVPN servers use SHA-1 instead. If SHA-512 does not work, select SHA-1.)
User Pass Authentication = Enable
Username, Password = [Your NordVPN credentials]
Advanced Options = Enable (this will enable additional options)
TLS Cipher = None
LZO Compression = Yes
NAT = Enable
At the very least, you will need the server URL or the server IP address and your user credentials. Most of the time, you will be able to get all the information that you need from your VPN provider’s website.
You might also be able to just download a VPN configuration file that contains the settings you’ll need. This will make the entire process a lot easier.
Step 3: Configure Your VPN Router
After you would have found the information that you need to activate the VPN, go to your router firmware to set it up.
In DD-WRT, click on Services > VPN and click on the Start OpenVPN Client to turn it on.
In Tomato, look for the VPN Tunneling in the left sidebar, and choose OpenVPN Client that is under it. Find everything that you need in the Basic tab that is under Client 1.
Enter the information that you have gathered when following step 2. If your VPN provider needs additional credentials or activation, add those where appropriate.
For example, ExpressVPN might tell you to enter the specific information into the Tomato’s custom configuration box:
That’s why it is so important to find the instructions from your VPN provider on how to set up their VPN.
Once you have copied all the information into the firmware of your router, you should be connected! Use an IP address-checking tool to ensure that your IP address is protected from the DNS leak.
