ExpressVPN down in China - What to use now?

[sthubbar]

Last few days ExpressVPN hasn's been working. An email to their support received the following automated reply:

*** NOTE FOR CUSTOMERS IN CHINA***

As of December 5 2012, customers in some regions of China are experiencing problems connecting to ExpressVPN. If you're in China and are using our Windows or Mac apps, please try the following:

1) Switch the ExpressVPN app to the "TCP" Option and connect to the "Los Angeles best for Asia" or "Silicon Valley" locations. See below for detailed steps.

2) If that doesn't work, try using our alternate connection methods called SSTP or L2TP. See below for detailed steps.

Good news is it is a global problem and not just my connection.

SSTP, L2TP, and PPTP just aren't very reliable, nor do they work very well through corporate HTTP proxies.

I originally started with Witopia and cancelled because they admit that they filter their user's traffic. Then was on StrongVPN, and still have an account, though their VPN also goes down with any regular use.

I can build my own, though a friend just told me that his private OpenVPN is also showing problems.

Does anyone have a less popular, though reliable, SSL based VPN, ideally OpenVPN based?

[Kenny同志]

Use the latest versions of Goagent. They are fast, reliable, and free.

To get the best Internet-surfing experience, make sure you're using the latest versions of the software, which is updated frequently.

Its only drawback I've found so far, which occurred about two months ago, is that you’ll not be able to open, among others, almost all of China’s popular news sites, say 鳳凰網, 新華網，新浪網，騰訊網，and 網易, while using it. They can be accessed after you uncheck “use a proxy server for this connection” under proxy settings in Internet Properties.

[ChTTay]

Is this an issue with many VPN's in China now/at the moment?

Mine stopped working for no reason I can find ... then I signed up to another for a day which also didn't work.

Same thing?

[liuzhou]

Is this an issue with many VPN's in China now/at the moment?

Yes.

Use the latest versions of Goagent. They are fast, reliable, and free.

And usually blocked.

[roddy]

Persuade Imron to start a small, low-profile VPN company. It'll cost more, but he'll be good to you.

[Kenny同志]

Use the latest versions of Goagent. They are fast, reliable, and free.

And usually blocked.

柳州同志：

The site for downloading the program is often blocked but not the program itself. It's much more reliable than most free programs of its kind. The key to accessing those blocked sites with ease is to use its latest versions.

[imron]

Persuade Imron to start a small, low-profile VPN company

Or you know, just use the low-profile, low-cost solution I've been recommending for years. Except I recall from a previous thread that this is not suitable for sthubbar's situation.

[liuzhou]

Thank you. I am aware of the difference between a download site and the program I download.

The program is frequently blocked or to be more precise the servers it uses are blocked. It is totally non-functional right now. All servers are failing one after the other.

And yes, I am using the latest version.

I only use it for experimental reasons, but find it one of the least reliable of the free options.

(By the way, how do you download the latest version of the program if the download site is blocked and the previous versions no longer work? You need to use something else!)

[Kenny同志]

I am watching youtube videos via its latest version. Would you like me to send it to you?

[roddy]

"I am using the latest version."

"how do you download the latest version of the program?"

Dunno, how did you do it?

[liuzhou]

As I have already pointed out, I have the latest version. Downloaded it about an hour or so ago. It doesn't work. Every server fails.

Don't make the classic mistake of assuming that if something is true in one part of China, then it is true for all of China.

And remember, everything could be blocked tomorrow. Even Imron's solution. ExpressVPN were asking to be blocked by advertising so much.

"I am using the latest version."

"how do you download the latest version of the program?"

Dunno, how did you do it?

By using another method. Which means I didn't need to download it at all. I was just experimenting.

[roddy]

Don't make the classic mistake of assuming that if something is true in one part of China, then it is true for all of China.

I don't think he is. I think he's saying it's worth trying, in case it works, which, as it works for him, is reasonable. I think you're making the classical mistake of assuming that if someone suggests something they're assuming that because it's true in one part of China, then it is true for all of China.

[liuzhou]

I think he's saying it's worth trying, in case it works

No. I don't think so. He is saying categorically that it DOES work and implying that I am doing something wrong. There is nothing tentative about the posts.

[imron]

And remember, everything could be blocked tomorrow. Even Imron's solution.

True. Like the time they shut down all the Internet in Xinjiang.

[liuzhou]

Or the day(s) in April this year when they shut down all the international internet in China.

http://liuzhou.co.uk/wordpress/2012/04/12/internet-breakdown-was-tested-first-in-guangxi/

[Kenny同志]

To answer your question in #8, I usually download its latest versions once they come out via its older version, which by then doesn’t function well, but through which I can still access the download page, though I have to refresh the page a few times sometimes. If I fail to do that, I usually turn to a tech-savvy friend for help.

I certainly had reason to doubt you because your assertion that “I only use it for experimental reasons, but find it one of the least reliable of the free options.” is way unfair. The fact is that I’ve been using the program for months and for most of the time it works fine. I am afraid that you jumped to conclusion too quickly.

I wanted to post a screenshot to show you that Goagent did work but I wasn’t able to and was told that “You have exceeded your allotted disk space for attachments.”

[Kenny同志]

Thanks for making the point, Roddy.

[imron]

Or the day(s) in April this year when they shut down all the international internet in China.

That would do it too. Basically, playing havoc with the Internet and shutting off (or fundamentally breaking) any encrypted access to the outside world is (currently) the only effective way to block the solution I use. If that starts to happen on a regular/permanent basis, you've probably got bigger troubles than a broken VPN.

[liuzhou]

I do not doubt that it works for you.

I'm just telling you that it doesn't work here. I could also upload screenshots showing it doesn't work here. But do you really want to look at a long list of addresses followed by "failed"?

(If you have used up your disk space here, you can upload to any of the many free photo hosting services then link to your photo.)

[liuzhou]

Basically, playing havoc with the Internet and shutting off all access to the outside world is the only effective way to block the solution I use.

From what I remember of your description of your method, surely just blocking your website (through which I understand you access the rest of the universe) would be enough to cut you off.

Or maybe I got it wrong again.