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IPVanish not connecting? Well, as with almost any VPN, it isn’t perfect, and every now and then, users run into connectivity issues.
Sometimes, the connectivity issues may be related to your location or ISP. In this case, you could have more luck with another similar service, such as NordVPN.
If you’re an IPVanish user and you can’t connect, don’t worry. This article will run through why you might be struggling to connect and how to work around the problem in 2021.
4 reasons why you can’t connect to IPVanish
IPVanish is well-thought-of in VPN circles, and it’s a hugely popular provider, so there are few chronic connection issues to worry about. Still, customers do sometimes struggle to get online. Here are 4 most common issues which come up when you can’t connect to IPVanish:
- Basic internet connection problems. Much of the time, when IPVanish won’t connect, the VPN itself isn’t at fault. Instead, the user’s web connection is to blame. So try turning your router on and off, and disconnecting a couple of times. Then test the connection without IPVanish turned on.
- IPVanish server problems. On its website, IPVanish admits that some customers encounter glitchy servers, and may need to try alternative locations to find the best connection. This is a feature of almost all VPNs, and definitely not specific to IPVanish.
- Protocol problems. If it’s not the server or your web connection, the fault could lie in the protocol you are using to create the IPVanish VPN tunnel. See below for a quick guide to changing protocols.
- DNS problems. As noted above, DNS issues can make websites totally inaccessible. In this case, you may need to use IPVanish to set up 3rd party DNS.
What to do when IPVanish won’t connect
1. How to change protocols on IPVanish
Sometimes, protocols are the prime reason for IPVanish not connecting. Thankfully, it’s relatively easy to switch between protocols via the IPVanish client. Here’s how it’s done for Windows users:
- Open the IPVanish client and enter your login details
- Click “Settings” under the cogwheel icon on the left
- Choose the tab “Connection”
- This menu will show a drop-down list of protocols, including OpenVPN, IKEv2, L2TP/IPSec, and others. The protocol selection depends on your device and OS. Click on the toggle and scroll down the list to change your current selection
2. Change your computer’s User Account Control settings
User Account Control (UAC) is a Windows feature that regularly interrupts VPN connectivity and is easy to turn off. Here’s how to do that on Windows 10:
- Click “Start” and type “Control Panel” to access this app
- In the “Control Panel” search field at the top right corner, type “UAC” and click the result
- On the “User Account Control Settings” screen, choose the option to “Never notify” and press OK
- Restart Windows and try to log onto IPVanish
3. How to ping an IPVanish server
Another option is to find out whether your computer can communicate with IPVanish servers. If not, the problem probably lies with your connection. Here’s how to do so:
- Head to the Windows Start Menu
- Type “Command Prompt” and open it
- At the prompt, type “ping” followed by the IP address of the server you’d like to connect to, i.e. “ping 123.123.123.123” and hit Enter
4. How to install TAP device
It’s pretty common to experience TAP driver issues that arise because of software conflicts or driver signing issues. One of the more popular cases is when you install multiple VPN tools, which in turn make multiple TAP driver installations. The quickest solution is this:
- Open the IPVanish client and enter your login details
- Click “Settings” under the cogwheel icon on the left
- Choose the tab “Connection”
- At the bottom, you’ll find “Install/Repair OpenVPN Driver” button. Click it
- After the message about successful installation, restart IPVanish client and try again
If this didn’t help or if IPVanish was unable to reinstall the TAP drivers on its own, you can follow our advice on manually reinstalling TAP device.
Final thoughts
If you try a few servers and can’t log on, or none of the protocols works, double-check your time and date – and try turning your router on and off.
If none of that works, don’t give up hope. IPVanish has an excellent reputation for customer support, and you can get in touch with their team via their 24/7 live chat.
Above all, don’t panic if IPVanish won’t connect. In 99% of cases, there’s a simple technical fix that requires a few mouse clicks to execute – allowing everyone to enjoy privacy and security without stressing about how to get online.
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Hi, is this VPN working in Windows 10 and Office 365 -65 bit?
Yes, it works on 64-bit Windows 10. There’s no standalone app for Office 365, but the VPN connection covers all apps on the OS, including Office.
When servers are placed at different locations without proper monitoring, it is possible to experience connections issues, that’s why it’s always fine to have different locations in mind when working with a VPN.
Been using IPVanish for a few months and I didn’t encounter any problem until yesterday when it just wouldn’t connect. Turns out it was a glitchy server so I’m not very upset since this can happen with other VPNs as well.
Connectivity issues was my main challenge while using ipvanish. At some point I felt my device had weak reception to network. It got so worse that I couldn’t place what was exactly wrong. At last a friend suggested I try another VPN… Boom! That was the end
Landed here while looking for solutions connection problem with IPVanish. Thank you fora step-by-step guidance on how to tackle the issue. I’ll update here if I am able to get it sorted out
Planning to get IP Vanish and this will come in handy in the event of a failure but hoping that it doesn’t happen. However being a big believer of Murphy’s law, whatever that may be go wrong will go wrong. So here’s to being prepared instead.