7 Most Common VPN Protocols Explained
By: Jessica Robert
Tags: Vpn Protocol, Openvpn, Wireguard, Pptp, VPN

A VPN Protocol is the collection of processes, which VPN service uses to make you secure virtually. There are numerous sorts of VPN protocols to practice; each protocol has its own benefits. Before knowing each protocol, must to be inform about what are the fundamentals of VPN.

Encryption

You should know that messages are passing through the Internet in the form of data packets. If data packets just put concisely, then it is easy to read by snoop or hackers. All data packets you want to make private and secure, then you have to converted into deciphers.

Through encryption, a VPN encrypts the whole of your data packets, then entrenches, compresses and send them. According to the encryption process, the only VPN server can decrypt or encrypts your data packets. By this method, if hackers will crack your data packet from the tunnel but unfortunately, they will not break or read the encrypted data.

VPN Tunnel

VPN Tunnel is an object to keep secure your messages to transfer from side to side between your device and the VPN server.

These data packets contain information they are carrying and extra data like protocol such as HTTP or HTTPS, even the device and website IP Address as well.

Unfortunately, if you do not use a VPN, the communications between your device and the website will not be private and secure. Even, IP address of your device and website will be visible, which means you will compromise with online privacy.

VPN Protocols

Now the time is to know about different VPN protocols with their pros and cons and secondly, you have to know that which protocol is fit for your need. Let start with world famous and most popular VPN protocol, OpenVPN.

OpenVPN

OpenVPN is an open source VPN protocol, which is develop by Open Source Software. OpenVPN is a free and alternate protocol of the SSTP, which is own by Microsoft. The major benefit of OpenVPN from other than is absolutely, free and it compatible with number of operating systems such as Windows, Mac, and Linux and it is well suited with some IP phones as well.

One thing is similar in both OpenVPN and SSTP, which is OpenSSL encryption level that surpasses of L2TP because of that reason it works on Layer 2 and Layer 3 as well. OpenVPN has also a number of features like transporting Ethernet frames, NETBIOS functionality, and IPX packets.

As compare to PPTP, OpenVPN can run on any port. It can also operates on both network protocol like UDP and TCP, which means the system administrator, will not block it. Furthermore, OpenVPN is relatively steady and fast, even when the connection is drop, but your online privacy and security will upheld.

PPTP

The PPTP is consider the most popular and common VPN protocol. One of the reasons that it be likely to a most popular because it supported on mostly devices. Different firewalls are identifying PPTP including ISA Server, Cisco PIX, and Sonic Wall. Furthermore, various type of people refer to use PPTP because it is easy to set up and offer fastest speed.

PPTP uses 128-bit key encryption for data security that is why it consider as a weaker protocol as compare to other in terms of security. Beforehand, PPTP has also agonized by different weaknesses like clear-text authentication and this is the main reason that people can avoid to use PPTP for confidential business information.

If you are using it where you just need a good speed like online streaming except data security, then PPTP is a good option. You have to know that a common issue with PPTP is connection stability. When you are surfing a website as an anonymous and unfortunately, your VPN connection is drop, you cannot imagine that your real IP address and your location will be expose with no warning. You should also know that a network administrator could obstruct the PPTP ports easily.

L2TP

The L2TP is also known as Layer 2 Tunneling Protocol and Microsoft and Cisco developed it, with the aim of instituting a VPN protocol for high-level security. Because L2TP used in combination with the IPSec protocol, which provides strong security than PPTP. IPSec is offering an improved security because of its uses more secure encryption algorithms as well as it needs a pre-shared key for more security. For encryption, it uses 168-bit keys with double authentication, and 3 DES encryption algorithm. Therefore, L2TP offers greater security to stop hackers from conceding a system and this is why it is slower in speed as compare t PPTP.

One of the major advantage of L2TP protocol is that available on different devices and operating systems such as Windows and Mac. You can also use it on numerous tablets and smart devices without any additional software.

IKEV2

The IKEv2 is also called as Internet Key Exchange version 2 protocol. Two great company develops it such as Microsoft and Cisco. It is a latest version of IKEv1 but it is not broadly supported. It was create for mobiles and smart devices to sustain the VPN connection when you are switching your internet connection from Wi-Fi to mobile network.

IKEv2 integrated with IPSec to encrypt the whole communications and secure your personal data. Another good reason to choose is speed that it is one of the fastest VPN protocols for mobile devices. Therefore, when you are looking a good protocol with fastest speeds, online security and also stability then IKEv2 is a good option.

SSTP

The SSTP is known as secure socket tunneling protocol, which is a best protocol to setback VPN blocking. It can use a TCP 443 port, which is usually use by most websites. Microsoft develops it and it is compatible with Windows only and have a built in way out for government peeping.

SSL

SSL is a protocol, which works through your web browser. When you open a website URL that starts with HTTPS:// instead of HTTP://, which means you are visiting the site through SSL protocol. The major variance between SSL and other VPN protocols is it works automatically on your browser without having an additional software. It is also compatible with every operating system and devices.

WireGuard

WireGuard is also free and open-source that presently works in the kernel of Linux. The good thing of this protocol is design with small number of lines of codes, which make it simple to maintain, east to configure, and using stouter encryption algorithms to make secure user data from prying eyes.

On the other side, WireGuard is still under development and not any VPN provider offering it yet. Another bad thing is that the existing design needs the VPN service to keep log of IP address of each users, which is against the no log policy.