Guidance for VPN and Hub 5

[iwaddo]

I've looked through various posts on this forum about using VPN with the Hub 5 and was wondering if someone could direct me towards any knowledge articles posted by Virgin Media.  It seems that some users are having success whilst others are not.

My provided device is set to use 5Ghz first then to try 2.4Ghz. I do not have admin access to change this.

It seems to make sense to leave the wifi bands synchronised as I read splitting them can cause issues with other devices not being able to choose the best band as required. It is the default, so I assume it must be the default for a reason.

I found some suggestions about modem mode but I do not want buy a separate router.

There are some posts from 2021 where VM say they have fixed a known VPN issue but then there are some very recent posts, even earlier today, with others having the same problem.

Everything else in the house is working so I am looking for any guidance about VPN support but the knowledge base seems very lacking in content.

I guess the key question is whether or not using a VPN is supported and if so what has to be in place to make it work?

I am not particularly technical so just need things to work as they did with my previous provider.

Any help or guidance appreciated.

[legacy1]

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@iwaddo wrote:

I guess the key question is whether or not using a VPN is supported and if so what has to be in place to make it work?

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@iwaddo wrote:

I found some suggestions about modem mode but I do not want buy a separate router.

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Theirs your answer 

[iwaddo]

Thank you but I'm not really sure how that helps me.

As I said I'm not particularly technical. I am trying to ascertain why my VPN is not working when I can see in this forum others seem to be working.

Can anyone point me towards a definitive answer about whether VPN is supported?

Thank you for your support. 

[jpeg1]

Virgin don't provide official support for use of VPN, but users can often help you on here if you provide details.

The most reliable way to get it to work is using modem mode and your own router. 

[iwaddo]

I really never expected to have to buy my own router 😲

Hard to believe that Virgin do not recognise the number of people who are occasionally working at home.

Since I posted yesterday I've learnt that some of my colleagues are working fine with the Hub5 so not sure what the difference is.

Not sure if it helps anyone help me further but I have learnt that I am using an IPSEC VPN, always on.

Thank you for any continued support.

[legacy1]

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@iwaddo wrote:

I really never expected to have to buy my own router 😲

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Over 15 years ago or so you had to so what the big deal? Like OoO look VM does router mode dose not mean its any good or supported for what you want to use it for.

VM don't care if you work from home in which case they would like you to use their business package (not that they would support VPN any better) so in your case its a good thing there is modem mode that unless they go to the trouble of blocking protocols will work with any VPN.

[Megan_L]

Hi Iwaddo,

Thanks for posting about this on our forums, I am sorry you're having issues with your VPN whilst using our Hub 5. 

I can see you've already had lots of helpful posts from other users on the forums, it is correct that we don't support VPN's unfortunately. 

If you have any other issues with your internet we would be happy to help. 

Thanks,

Megan_L

[Adduxi]

Try setting the Hub 5 2.4Ghz band to a legacy setting as below

Access your Hub by navigating to 192.168.0.1
Login with the default login info (on base of Hub) unless you've already updated it.
Go to Advanced Settings > Wireless > Wireless signal
In the Wireless frequency 2.4GHz select Wireless mode > 802.11b/g/n/ax mixed
Select Apply changes

Try turning off the 5 Ghz band as a temporary measure for testing and see if that connects, and the same test with the 2.4 Ghz band.

Can you use a wired connection at all to rule out the Hub wifi?

[iwaddo]

@Megan_L

Thank you for your reply.

Support can mean so many things so I am interpreting your reply to mean you will not engage with a user to help them resolve VPN issues - to be honest, I do understand this stance, the combinations and complexities of all the different solutions must be endless.

Can I please ask two further questions?

Does Virgin Media proactively block 'some' VPN traffic?
Do you have a list of VPN solutions known to work and a list of VPN solutions known not to work?

I know of colleagues using the same VPN solution on the same windows devices that are working perfectly so I am desperately trying to work out why mine does not work.

Thank you for very much.

regards

[benisfroms]

Virgin Media generally supports the use of VPNs, and many users have successfully used VPNs with their Virgin Media connections. However, the specific experience can depend on the type of VPN and the devices involved. Leaving the WiFi bands synchronized is often a good practice, as it allows devices to choose the best band automatically. However, if you're facing issues with VPN connectivity, you might want to test the VPN on both 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands to see if there's any difference in performance.