We’ve talked about VPNs a lot and deciding whether a commercial service is best for you or if you should roll your own DIY VPN server really comes down to what you need in terms of network POPs, ease of administration, fancy apps/controls, etc.  One thing that should not be a deciding factor is difficulty in setting up the server, because long-time LowEndTalk vet @Nyr released his awesome OpenVPN Road Warrior script 9 years ago.

With a single copy/paste, you can get your VPN server setup and rolling.

OpenVPN:

wget https://git.io/vpn -O openvpn-install.sh && bash openvpn-install.sh

WireGuard:

wget https://git.io/wireguard -O wireguard-install.sh && bash wireguard-install.sh

We wrote a step-by-step on using this script for OpenVPN including client-side config for both Windows and Mac last year.

I can personally testify that this script does exactly what it claims: run it once, answer questions or accept defaults, and you’re done.  I’ve used the OpenVPN version for years and it produces a client.ovpn file that you can import into your client-side VPN and that’s all there is to it.

Recently I commented about a minor problem I had using the script (that turned out to be the fault of my macOS VPN client, Viscosity).  @Nyr jumped in, got a fix going with Viscosity, and put a workaround in his installer.  Awesome!  Thanks @Nyr for the great work on this and continuing support.

raindog308

Raindog308 is a longtime LowEndTalk community administrator, technical writer, and self-described techno polymath. With deep roots in the *nix world, he has a passion for systems both modern and vintage, ranging from Unix, Perl, Python, and Golang to shell scripting and mainframe-era operating systems like MVS. He’s equally comfortable with relational database systems, having spent years working with Oracle, PostgreSQL, and MySQL.

As an avid user of LowEndBox providers, Raindog runs an empire of LEBs, from tiny boxes for VPNs, to mid-sized instances for application hosting, and heavyweight servers for data storage and complex databases. He brings both technical rigor and real-world experience to every piece he writes.

Beyond the command line, Raindog is a lover of German Shepherds, high-quality knives, target shooting, theology, tabletop RPGs, and hiking in deep, quiet forests.

His goal with every article is to help users, from beginners to seasoned sysadmins, get more value, performance, and enjoyment out of their infrastructure.

You can find him daily in the forums at LowEndTalk under the handle @raindog308.