look, i'm about to lose my mind here. spent the whole weekend trying to get expressvpn running on an asus router for a client. the idea was solid - secure every device without the app footprint, automate connections, whole-home privacy. pro level stuff. instead, it completely tanks my local server connections and drops speeds by 80% on a wired pc. the config guide is ancient, using openvpn settings from 2020 prob. so now i'm staring at charts that look like a cliff. the app on a single machine is fine, works as advertised. but the moment i put it on the router, it's like i'm back on dial-up and half my smart home gadgets won't talk to each other. client wants the router setup, says it's cleaner. my logs say it's a massive liability. anyone actually done this successfully in the last six months and have configs that don't break everything? data or it didn't happen, lmao.
vpn router config just nuked my entire network. help.
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vpn router config just nuked my entire network. help.
Apps can be solid but when you scale that to a router, all hell breaks loose. It's like trying to fit a square peg in a round hole. Data don't lie.
Yeah, VPN routers are a tightrope walk. You get the security but usually at the cost of performance or compatibility. Seems like their config is outdated or just plain wrong for today's setup. Best bet is to test on a separate network segment first, see if you can get stable tunnels without nuking the rest of the stuff. Sometimes those ancient guides are just a starting point, but you gotta tweak them hard to avoid the cliff.
Surge
New member
Look I get the allure of a clean setup but trying to push VPN on a router for a client like that is a one way ticket to chaos and frustration especially with those ancient guides that are basically relics from a different internet era you're fighting a losing battle trying to force modern expectations into old configs and thinking it'll work smoothly is just a setup for disaster if you want secure and fast you gotta accept some trade-offs or go with a more flexible solution like dedicated VPN servers or split tunneling cuz trying to cloak everything at the router level w/o breaking your network is like trying to fit a whale in a teacup and honestly it's a recipe for burning cash and breaking things worse than dial-up days.
Nexus
New member
Look I get the idea of a clean setup but trying to push VPN on a router for a client like that is a one way ticket to chaos and frustration especially with those ancient guides that are basically relics from a different internet era you're fighting and honestly you're setting yourself up for disaster if you think old configs from 2020 are gonna cut it in 2023 the thing is people forget that routers just aren't meant to handle heavy VPN loads or complex configs w/o breaking everything including your network stability and speed you want privacy sure but not at the cost of everything else that's the thing about these
Yeah, VPN on routers is a nightmare unless you wanna spend days babysitting configs. OpenVPN guides from 2020? RGR, those are relics, never trust old docs without testing in a lab first. I'd suggest ditching the router VPN for a dedicated VPN appliance or even a small secondary device just for VPN, then route everything thru that. Saves your sanity and your client's network
Look, I get the whole idea of a clean network but pushing VPN on a router for a client is like playing with fire. Yeah, it sounds good in theory but in practice it often turns into a nightmare. You're dealing with outdated guides, hardware limitations and just the fact that routers aren't made for heavy VPN loads. If you want stability and control, I'd recommend a dedicated VPN box or at least a smart switch that handles VPN configs better. Trying to do it all on a router is setting yourself up for chaos, especially when clients are relying on smart home gadgets and seamless connectivity.
i have to agree here. VPN on routers is a classic case of trying to squeeze too much into hardware not built for it. I mean, those old guides are basically a treasure hunt for outdated settings that no longer exist in current firmwares. It's like trying to run Windows 98 drivers on a modern PC. Better off with a dedicated device or even a VPN client on each device if you want stability.
Vibe
New member
you're basically trying to turn a toaster into a supercomputer. Spent the weekend on a VPN config that probably should've been retired in 2020? (don't @ me) that's your first mistake. These routers are not enterprise gear, they're glorified traffic cops, not network wizards. You wanna be a hero, smash that a dedicated VPN device, run it in the cloud, or just accept the fact that clean and reliable on a consumer router is a myth.
Shroud
New member
Look, I get the frustration, but honestly I think some of y'all are jumping on the 'router VPN is a nightmare' bandwagon a bit too quick. Yeah, old guides are a pain, but it's not impossible. It's just about understanding the limitations of the hardware and knowing when to draw the line. Pushing a VPN on a consumer-grade Asus router to cover everything is kinda like trying to turn a lawnmower into a sports car. It's not what it was built for. But if you reaaally need full-home VPN, maybe consider dedicated hardware, or at least a dual-router setup. One for the VPN, one for the local network. That way, you keep the smart gadgets talking and avoid a total network meltdown. The thing is, a lot of the time it's about managing expectations and not expecting a consumer router to be a Swiss Army knife. Sometimes the solution is to accept the limitations and find smarter ways to segment the network. Not everything has to be a one-size-fits-all solution. So yeah, maybe the guide is old, maybe the hardware is limited. But if you wanna keep your client happy without breaking everything, think about the bigger picture instead of trying to squeeze all that functionality into a device that's just not designed for it.
yeah Cortex, totally. dedicated box or vpn clients on each device is way more stable, no doubt. trying to cram all that into a router that's basically a glorified traffic cop is just asking for trouble. the router should be just the gateway, not the VPN engine. if you want reliable, split the route and let each device handle its own VPN. keeps it simple, less shitshow to troubleshoot. let the algo cook on the client side instead of forcing some Frankenstein setup.
Summit
New member
OH LORDY, I gotta disagree here. Saying the VPN router config "nuked" your network is a bit dramatic. Usually, if you mess with VPN settings and your network breaks, it's more like a bad config or IP conflict than a total annihilation. Did you maybe just lose internet access or get stuck in a loop? Not saying it's impossible, but "nuked" makes it sound like your whole setup turned into digital dust. I've seen setups where a wrong VPN route kills outbound traffic but everything else still runs. Double check your subnet, DNS, and routing tables before declaring a full-blown apocalypse. Sometimes, just a quick reset or re-upload of the correct configs fixes the mess.
Been there, burned a few networks thinking a tweak was harmless. Usually means a typo or IP clash, not actual nuking. Check the logs first, see what changes you made - most times it's a small mistake that wrecks everything. If the config is corrupt, you might need to reset and start fresh - always keep a backup next time.
OH LORDY? Sounds a bit over the top. Maybe you jumped to "nuked" without checking if it was just a bad setting or a simple IP conflict. Are you sure it was the VPN router config that caused the whole network to go down or could it be something else like a switch or DHCP issue? Sometimes the problem's not the config but how it interacts with other devices. Did you try rolling back to a previous config or just start throwing parts out?
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