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Tell HN: Russia has started blocking OpenVPN/WireGuard connections

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Re: Tell HN: Russia has started blocking OpenVPN/WireGuard connections

#181

Post by cedws »

The_Colonel wrote: post #177
cedws wrote: post #109

It's worth mentioning that the Russian government has a plan to completely detach the country from the wider Internet. This system has already been tested and is available at the flick of a switch. Unfortunately, it's probably a matter of time until this system is activated for real and the Iron Curtain drops to the floor. Then Putin will find some way to blame the West and rally against us.

I don't believe that this is coming. It would have large economic costs (how to conduct international business with "friendly" countries? etc. etc.), would piss off a significant share of the population (e.g. online gamers) etc. It's just not worth it. For countries like Russia, the goal isn't necessarily to cut off all connections, the goal is to discourage it, make it expensive, annoying, slow, so that a large majo…

I don't know. People said the same thing about the invasion to begin with. That it would cause significant economic harm to Russia, cause civil unrest, and so on. Yet they did it and pulled through somehow.

I don't they'll hesitate to do it if they see the need to. Putin wants the Soviet times back at any cost. He has many strings he can pull if he feels threatened.

Re: Tell HN: Russia has started blocking OpenVPN/WireGuard connections

#182

Post by maximus-decimus »

cedws wrote: post #181
The_Colonel wrote: post #177

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't believe that this is coming. It would have large economic costs (how to conduct international business with "friendly" countries? etc. etc.), would piss off a significant share of the population (e.g. online gamers) etc. It's just not worth it. For countries like Russia, the goal isn't necessarily to cut off all connections, the goal is to discourage it, make it expensive, annoying, slow, so that a large majo…

I don't know. People said the same thing about the invasion to begin with. That it would cause significant economic harm to Russia, cause civil unrest, and so on. Yet they did it and pulled through somehow. I don't they'll hesitate to do it if they see the need to. Putin wants the Soviet times back at any cost. He has many strings he can pull if he feels threatened.

Bread and circuses. It's weird to say, but I do believe that banning circuses (the internet) would cause more problems than a conscription.

Re: Tell HN: Russia has started blocking OpenVPN/WireGuard connections

#183

Post by throwaway22048 »

ThePowerOfFuet wrote: post #124
circularfoyers wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Outline ( https://getoutline.org ) is even easier to deploy than Streisand in my experience and uses Shadowsocks.

>getoutline.org uses cookies from Google to deliver and enhance the quality of its services and to analyze traffic. Learn more. Doesn't even let me decline cookies not required for operation of the website, yet wants me to trust them with my data? gtfo.

Just decline them in your browser settings...?

Re: Tell HN: Russia has started blocking OpenVPN/WireGuard connections

#184

Post by abyrvalgg »

keddad wrote: post #9

I don't believe it is true. They might block commercial solutions, but i'm using Wiregiard with exit point in Netherlands right now, works fine (although on certain providers, I've seen some throttling, but that could just be coincidental) UPD: I asked some friends, some of them have faced probmes. I guess it is not protocol block, but instead combination of protocol and "suspicious" server. Mine has stuff other then…

The same for me. I use Wireguard to connect to VM in Netherlands and to VM in a local cloud. Didn't notice any problems.

Re: Tell HN: Russia has started blocking OpenVPN/WireGuard connections

#185

Post by [deleted] »

circularfoyers wrote: post #33
someotherperson wrote: post #16

Unfortunately, thanks to the Great Firewall of China, there has been a lot of resources put in to fingerprint VPNs and block them by state actors. Fortunately, however, there is equally years of some of the smartest minds on the planet working to bypass Chinese censorship, so there are some great OpenVPN alternatives. I really encourage you to look into something like Shadowsocks which Chinese people have found great…

Outline ( https://getoutline.org ) is even easier to deploy than Streisand in my experience and uses Shadowsocks.

[deleted]

Re: Tell HN: Russia has started blocking OpenVPN/WireGuard connections

#186

Post by cromka »

jmnicolas wrote: post #157
MrDisposable wrote: post #107

Russian here, living in Russia. My paid VPN provider stopped working months ago. Then my self-hosted Outline server stopped working. Then my self-hosted OpenVPN stopped working too. Both were hosten on Digital Ocean (Frankfurt). What currently works for me is self-hosted Outline running on an US server, but I suspect that won't last long. Looks like I have no choice but to learn how to self-host XRay. A smart friend…

Why do you host your VPN in "hostile" countries? Wouldn't it be better to host in Asia (Viet-Nam comes to mind) or Central / South America (Nicaragua etc)? Latency might suck but it would be better than no access.

Chances that “the baddies” have an informal Five Eyes alike agreement are pretty high, I’d say.

Re: Tell HN: Russia has started blocking OpenVPN/WireGuard connections

#187

Post by shebnik »

What is interesting is that since 2022 a lot of sites and host services decided to ban access from Russia. Quite often to a very simple things - nothing related to technology. And I don't remember anybody outside Russia found it crazy. (I am too lazy for VPN and accessed through web.archive.org to the most of the stuff). So, when Russia closes some access it is an attack on the freedom. And when West blocks access from Russia it is protection of the freedom :)

For example, I found about some 'world oldest tree' competition through the news that it banned trees from Russia. Curious enough, I found their site and.... it rejected me by IP.

Re: Tell HN: Russia has started blocking OpenVPN/WireGuard connections

#188

Post by libertine »

LudwigNagasena wrote: post #162
libertine wrote: post #126

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The idea that Western readers can clearly see the draconian overtones of tyranny seems laughable after the last several years. This is a very confusing statement... Why is it laughable to have an education system that teaches us history and critical thinking to see tyranny, even in our societies? Or now you're also on the boat that Stalin was a nice guy after all? > And let's not even mention the fact that Marxism,…

What does Stalin have to do with that? As far as I know, fascism is everywhere on the march. And it’s Trump who sets the pace, not Stalin. ( https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2024/jan/20/fascis... ) Also, it was Trudeau who froze protesters' banks accounts, not Stalin. It was Boris Johnson who partied during Covid lockdowns, not Stalin. It was Pedro Sánchez whose implementation of a state of alarm was deemed…

Ah, I thought you were speaking from a Historical perspective, not very recent events.

I will not dismiss some failures of character of some Western leaders, and questionable moments in modern democracies... but answering your question: in comparison to modern Russia, yes, those anecdotes are laughable.

None of the Western leaders has murdered or attempted to murder political opposition through several methods of assassination;

None of them has been on a rampage of oligarch executions to seize their assets and consolidate power;

None of the administrations arrests people for holding blank pieces of paper in front of their governance buildings;

In Western countries you don't have one, and only one press - the state press.

I mean I can go on with this list just to highlight the absurdity of thinking the sad anecdotes of the Western countries' governance remotely compares to the sht show of Russia. People live in misery there, by choice of governance.

In case you didn't realize, there's a genocide going on in Ukraine and it's being promoted in Russian state media.

Re: Tell HN: Russia has started blocking OpenVPN/WireGuard connections

#189

Post by MrDisposable »

jmnicolas wrote: post #157
MrDisposable wrote: post #107

Russian here, living in Russia. My paid VPN provider stopped working months ago. Then my self-hosted Outline server stopped working. Then my self-hosted OpenVPN stopped working too. Both were hosten on Digital Ocean (Frankfurt). What currently works for me is self-hosted Outline running on an US server, but I suspect that won't last long. Looks like I have no choice but to learn how to self-host XRay. A smart friend…

Why do you host your VPN in "hostile" countries? Wouldn't it be better to host in Asia (Viet-Nam comes to mind) or Central / South America (Nicaragua etc)? Latency might suck but it would be better than no access.

Just plain convenience and my laziness. Also, I'm not concerned about being prosecuted for the use of VPN (well, at least for now), I just want my Internet to work.

Re: Tell HN: Russia has started blocking OpenVPN/WireGuard connections

#190

Post by cassianoleal »

SpaghettiCthulu wrote: post #135
pinochet2021 wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Technically you are buying VPN services by giving your credit card :D use a dummy email -- if you feel so unsafe. At least Squarex is free right now so no credit card needed

You can pay for VPNs with crytocurrency instead

For Mullvad you can buy gift cards as well. Even if you pay for those with a credit card, there's no link between the payment and the contents of the gift card.
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