If all else fails, get back to your VPN provider, explain what the problem is, tell them everything you've tried, and ask for more advice. We'll assume you've already turned it off and on again, so after that, check whether there's a firmware update, which might improve performance and stability. If the disconnects are at home, your router might be the issue. Is there anything which might regularly be connecting to the internet, or carrying out heavy-duty background tasks requiring a lot of system resources? Turn them off, just temporarily, look for any changes. Look at the other apps installed on your device. (Though beware, this might turn off the kill switch and anything else you tweaked back in step #1. If you're using Windows, uninstall and reinstall the app it to ensure you're using the default settings. If you've had no success with our advice so far, there are some general troubleshooting tips which just might help.Ĭheck that you have the latest version of your VPN app. If it doesn't seem to make any difference, turn battery saving back on.) (This will reduce your battery life, a little, so don't forget that you've made this change. Switch to the All Apps view, find your VPN app in the list and set it to 'not optimized.' (Yes, that means more of a drain on your battery, but you're disabling it for the VPN only: your device will still apply battery saving to everything else.)īattery settings vary a little between devices, but generally you'll go to Settings, App & Notifications, Special Access, Ignore battery optimization. To test this, turn off battery saving for your VPN app. These try to limit app use of system resources, and if they're too aggressive, your VPN app may lose its connection. If your Android VPN drops frequently on an Android device, but works well on other platforms, this could be caused by your device's battery-saving strategies. Disable battery saving for your Android VPN app Make a note of the original setting, and if this doesn't make a significant difference, change it back. Keep in mind that changing VPN protocol away from the default can seriously cut your connection speed. If that doesn't apply to you, try other protocols in this order, where available (you might have to choose UDP or TCP by checking a box outside of the protocol list.) Select the provider's own custom protocol first, if it has one ( ExpressVPN has Lightway, NordVPN has NordLynx, Hotspot Shield uses Catapult Hydra.) If there's no Automatic setting (or you're using it already), choose a protocol manually. That allows the app to decide the protocol it thinks will work best for your network. If your VPN app has an Automatic protocol setting, choose that first. There are several common protocols, each with their own advantages and disadvantages, and some are significantly better than others at avoiding dropped connections. (Image credit: OpenVPN) Change your VPN protocolĪ VPN protocol defines how your device connects to the VPN server. Although, again, there are some steps you can take to reduce drops. Underpowered and overloaded servers will never deliver the stability you'll get from a quality provider. If you don't have much (or any) choice of location, perhaps because this is a free VPN, that may be the real cost of using the service. Report the issue to your VPN, just in case - it might be just the push they need to investigate. If this consistently resolves the problem, it might be a sign that your nearest VPN servers are having some technical troubles. Ideally, this should be whichever location is geographically closest to you, after whatever the app is choosing right now. Try connecting to a different VPN location. If you're having these problems on a Wi-Fi network you control, our Ultimate Guide to Boosting Wi-Fi has a lengthy list of tips you can use to improve performance all round.īut if your issues are with other networks, applying a few carefully-chosen VPN tweaks could still make a big difference. If the network where you're seeing disconnects is slower than you expect, perhaps has a wider range in results, that's also a sign that you're more likely to see disconnects. Try connecting to the VPN via other networks - a friend's house, public Wi-Fi - and look for changes.Ĭheck your internet speed at, or another favorite benchmarking site. VPN connection drops can often be a sign of general network problems, rather than any issue with your device or the VPN. (Image credit: Shutterstock) Try different networks
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