So I successfully set up PiVPN on my Raspberry Pi 400. I now have my own VPN server - woo hoo! I had a friend from another country connect successfully, showing my IP address. I wanted to see what happened when I cut the power to the Rasb Pi - to see if the computer and PiVPN would start back up when I plugged it back in. To my surprise, both the computer and the PiVPN ran when I plugged the Pi back in. I only unplugged it for about 10 seconds. Is this normal? I was considering a battery backup but maybe I don’t need one?
Pivpn is normally configured to start on boot so I’m not surprised it worked.
Obvs, yanking out the power isn’t the best and you do risk a corrupt disk at some point but providing you have a reasonably reliable power supply an battery backup seems overkill. Worst case you will have to reimage the SD card and reinstall it.
My pivpn (running on an original pi 1 model b, 256mb) is just left on all the time.
Get a UPS for anything critical like a VPN server.
I check VPN operation by using “whatismyip.com” (or any equivalent tool) to see if it reports my Pi IP address when I’m remote somewhere. PiVPN works well for me and is reliable. However, the transfer rate is limited to your ISPs upload speed, which is usually limited but sufficient. Have fun!
Thanks for your reply. How do I know if PiVPN is running on the Pi or not? Is it just perpetually running when the Pi is on or do I have to ‘open’ the PiVPN application somehow?
Also, how likely or unlikely is data leakage or true IP/location discovery?
Agreed. I have two on the way. Thanks!
Its configured to start at boot. If the Pi is on and running, pivpn is running. If youre interested, have a look at ‘systemd’ this will be how pivpn is started up (although you don’t need to worry about it).
$ pivpn -d
[...]
:::: Self check ::::
:: [OK] IP forwarding is enabled
:: [OK] Iptables MASQUERADE rule set
:: [OK] OpenVPN is running
:: [OK] OpenVPN is enabled (it will automatically start on reboot)
:: [OK] OpenVPN is listening on port 1194/udp
=============================================
[...]
No idea… pivpn is essentially a packaged up version of OpenVPN (plus some other tools), try searching for answers on that.
Going by Apples recent track history - it is quite possible for operating system functionality to bypass the VPN or for it not to fully work.
To be fair (and I’m a heavy Apple user), Windows and Linux have had similar reports but Apple bugs me in this area…
If it’s system level trackers you are bothered about then there is always a risk.
If it’s porn you are bothered about then there is less.
Apple VPN ‘leaks’:
DNS leak checker (may not catch 100% of leaks - use at your own risk):
https://surfshark.com/dns-leak-test
If your life / liberty is at risk by using a VPN then please please please do not rely on a home solution not installed by a professional and check everything you can do.
(No disrespect to the OP meant here - VPNs are NOT 100% secure due to the underlying OS services but commercially driven adverts make out like they are)