SwissVPN connection through OpenVPN

As an alternative to the standard PPTP VPN connection, SwissVPN now operates a service using OpenVPN. While PPTP is still the recommended protocol, OpenVPN may be able to pass through firewalls and proxy servers where PPTP cannot get through.

The OpenVPN configuration for SwissVPN only requires outbound TCP connections on port 443 to be allowed (and a working DNS service, of course).

The following instructions explain how to install OpenVPN on a Windows XP, Vista or 7 machine. OpenVPN is also available for many other operating systems (including Mac OS X and Linux); you should only need the configuration file and CA certificate (see step 5 below).

Mac users: try Tunnelblick (free) or Viscosity ($9). Both are graphical OpenVPN clients for Mac OS X and can work with the configuration file/CA certificate linked in step 5 below.

  1. Download the latest OpenVPN version from the 2.1 branch (2.1.1 at the time of this writing). Important: OpenVPN 2.0 will not work!
  2. Start the setup program.
  3. Install OpenVPN with the default settings (just keep pressing "Next" and leave any installation options at the defaults). When Windows asks whether you want to install the "TAP-Win32 Adapter V9", choose "Install" or "Continue Anyway".
  4. Restart your computer.
  5. Download the SwissVPN OpenVPN configuration file and the CA certificate and save them in C:\Program Files\OpenVPN\config
  6. On Vista/7: right-click on OpenVPN GUI (Start > Programs > OpenVPN > OpenVPN GUI). Choose "Properties" and tab "Compatibility." Check "Run this program as an administrator."
  7. Start the OpenVPN GUI (Start > Programs > OpenVPN > OpenVPN GUI).
  8. A new icon will appear in the system tray – right-click it.
  9. If you need to use a proxy to access the Internet, choose "Proxy Settings" and enter the details of your proxy server.
  10. Choose "Connect" from the OpenVPN GUI menu (or simply double-click the icon).
  11. Enter your SwissVPN username and password in the dialog box and click OK.

    Note: the username/password cannot be saved at this time (because the official OpenVPN binaries for Windows are built without the --enable-password-save option).
  12. If the connection is successful, the icon will turn green and all connections to the Internet will use your SwissVPN tunnel.
  13. To disconnect, right-click the tray icon and choose "Disconnect".

If you would like to leave feedback about this service, please fill out the support form (including your OpenVPN connection log if necessary).