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How to connect to Surfshark in countries with internet restrictions on Windows

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In this tutorial, you will learn how to install the OpenVPN GUI app on your device. This app is an alternative way of connecting to Surfshark servers that will come in handy if the Surfshark VPN for Windows app can not be installed on your Windows device or it does not perform as expected. 


You will learn how to:


You will need a device running a Windows operating system and an active Surfshark subscription. If you don’t have the subscription yet, you can get it here.

 

Get your credentials

 

You will need Surfshark service credentials in order to connect to the VPN using a manual OpenVPN connection. Do not confuse these with your regular credentials, namely your email address and your password.


Here is how you can get your Surfshark credentials:

  1. Go to this page. This is the page where all the details required for manual connection are stored.

    If you can not open that page, try this one instead.

    You may be asked to log in before proceeding to this page. In that case, enter your registered email address and your password, then click Log in.

  2. Switch to the Credentials tab. You will find the Surfshark service credentials there.

    mceclip1.png

    It is a good idea to keep this page open for now. You will need these credentials a bit later.




Download configuration files

Every server has an IP address that you will need to use to connect to the specific VPN location. If you wish to connect to the US, you will need an IP address for the US. If you prefer connecting to Australia, use the IP address for Australia.

To get the IP addresses for connecting, click here, and download your preferred configuration file.

 

  1. Select the OpenVPN tab.

    mceclip1.png

  2. Lastly, click on the Locations tab and hit the Download button next to your desired server.

    mceclip2.png

Download the app

Once you have your credentials and configuration files in place, you can install the OpenVPN GUI app.

  1. Download the OpenVPN GUI app from here.

  2. You should now find the installation file in the Downloads folder of your device.

    Downloded_installation_package_1.png

 

Install the app

 

  1. Double-click the downloaded installation file.

    Downloaded_installation_package.png

  2. Allow the app to make changes. This is necessary because the OpenVPN app needs permission to manage network and VPN settings.

    Click Yes.

    install_the_app.png

  3. Press Next to start the installation. 

    proceed_with_the_setup_wizard.png

  4. Click I Agree.

    Agree_with_ToS.png

  5. Leave the default components checked and proceed further by clicking Next.

    choose_prerequisites.png

  6. Choose the path where the OpenVPN GUI app should be installed.

    You can just leave the default path and click Install.

    choose_the_installation_path.png

  7. Wait until the installation is complete. Then click Next.

    proceed_further.png

  8. Once the installation is complete, click Finish.

    finish_the_installation.png



Connect to the VPN

 

When you install the OpenVPN GUI app on your device, you can use it to connect to Surfshark VPN servers.

  1. Locate the OpenVPN GUI icon on your desktop and double-click on it.

    Find_the_OpenVPN_icon_on_your_desktop.png

  2. The app will start in the system tray.

    Click the white arrow and you will see the OpenVPN icon (computer with a lock) there.

    find_the_OpenVPN_tray_icon.png

  3. You will now need to import the downloaded configuration files. To do this, right-click on the OpenVPN in your system tray and press Import file...

    import_configuration_files.png

  4. Navigate to the folder where your configuration files were saved. These are the ones that you downloaded on the “Download configuration files” section of this article. It’s most likely that they were saved in your Downloads folder, so you may want to take a look there.

    Choose the configuration file that you downloaded and click Open.

    choose_configuration_files_and_click_Open.png

  5. Once the file is imported, you will find it in the OpenVPN GUI app.

    Right-click on the OpenVPN GUI icon again. Then move the cursor on the name of the imported configuration file. That will open a menu with actions that you can do with this file. Choose to Connect.

    Connect_to_the_selected_server.png

  6. Enter the Surfshark service credentials. These are the ones that you collected on the “Get your credentials" section of this guide.

    Click OK.

    Enter_credentials_and_connect.png

  7. If the connection is successful, the connection window will disappear and the OpenVPN GUI icon will turn green.

    icon_turns_green.png

  8. To disconnect from the server, right-click on the OpenVPN GUI icon, move the cursor to the configuration file that is currently being used and choose to Disconnect.

    disconnect.png

  9. If you wish to connect to a different location, download the configuration for that server and repeat the "Connect to the VPN" part of this guide.


Congratulations - you have successfully installed and configured the OpenVPN GUI app! As long as you’re connected, your location is private and your sensitive data is secure.

 


You may also be interested in:

  1. How to make sure if my connection was successful?
  2. How to enable 2FA on your Surfshark account?
  3. How to fix connection issues on Windows?
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