Virtual Private Network or a.k.a. VPN is not perfect just like many types of services or software out there. When utilizing a VPN connection, there could be some occasional issues that you can experience. And the one of the most frustrating problems for VPN is most likely the issue related to the slow connection.
There are some instances where your VPN can become super slow. And sometimes, you might not be able to connect to a particular server within the VPN. Not to mention that even if you’re connected to a VPN, your real IP address might still be revealed due to poor connection.
Well, for the most part, these issues happen in most virtual private network services. And depending on the service quality, it might be fixed fast by the service provider or you might just get left hanging. If you are a user of VPN services, you must be conscious that there are some factors that might cause your virtual private network performance issues.
Now, in this article we will share you why you have a slow VPN connection. In addition, we will also tell you the factors that are affecting your VPN speed. So without further ado, let’s dive in!
Limitations on Your VPN Usage
Even though prominent virtual private network services out there can provide you with no restrictions on your VPN usage, which include bandwidth limitations and speed limitations, certain VPN service providers can still give you such restrictions.
This is particularly true for virtual private network providers that offer free plans for their users. When you utilize the free version of their VPN, your private connection speed is normally restricted. And the amount of data that you are allowed to transfer is also normally restricted.
That’s why you shouldn’t be surprised if you experience a number of slowdown connection when using such free VPN service. The best way to solve this issue is to utilize on VPN services that doesn’t provide you with any kind of restrictions in maximum data transmission and speed on your virtual private network usage.
Conflict with Other Software or Applications
Your antimalware might interfere with the work of your virtual private network software if both need to utilize the same thing from your device.
For example, if your antimalware requires performing daily scanning as well as maintenance that needs constant internet connection and quite a large system resource, then for sure it would cause the virtual private network to temporarily slowdown in performance.
Now, if you’re looking for a smooth experience with your virtual private network connection, then it is a smart move to temporarily disable the antimalware you are using.
Low Quality Servers
This factor means the servers don’t have decent hardware specs. Also, low quality servers are not really made to operate well with high requests from VPN users. You see most free virtual private network services possess low-quality servers to significantly reduce their cost of operation.
In addition, free VPNs are normally rented from overseas. Furthermore, certain cheap virtual private network services also utilize low-quality servers in order to keep their price cheap so they can sell their services for cheap price as well.
Now, if your service provider is resorting to low quality servers, then the smartest way to solve the slow performance issue is to switch to another virtual private network to service provider that offers better server performance and reliability.
Interference with Internet Connection
Your internet connection can also produce some issues in your VPN performance. For example, if your internet signal got disrupted by nearby devices that are also transmitting similar wireless signal, then it could cause some issues with your network.
Now, if you keep it this way, then your virtual private network connection will also get disrupted. So, to solve this use, it’s crucial to check your internet connection speed without turning on the VPN, and check if there’s any slow performance in speed.
After that, you can restart your wireless device or router if you find any slow performance in your normal internet connection.
Server Overload
Server overload is the most typical reason for the slow performance of your VPN. When there are a whole bunch of users using the same VPN at the same time, there’s a huge probability that the server will get overloaded with too many requests from many users, which ultimately causes bad performance of the private network.
For the most part, such issue normally happens in free virtual private services, where there are a lot of people utilizing a restricted number of VPN at the same time. This is also the reason why we don’t suggest using a free virtual private network service if you’re looking for a reliable performance for your private network.
In addition, one good approach to solve server overload is normally switching to different servers and utilize one server that has less users.
Slow VPN Server Hosts and Limitations
Did you ever wonder how virtual private networks spread their network all over the globe? Well, they don’t really spread their network in a practical sense. What they do is they rent servers in certain countries and operate their virtual private network services on those particular servers.
Even though renting a server is incredibly time and cost-effective, it’s also actually restricting to a particular extent since the virtual private service network need to rely on the server infrastructure of the 3rd party host. You see, these servers usually come with their own respective processing and bandwidth limits, and this ultimately affects the server throughput.
In simpler terms, the more the number of users linking to a virtual private network, the slower it will become. In addition, certain servers are not designed to handle a lot of users while some are equipped for this very application. Also, keep in mind that the cloud host where your virtual private network lives also plays a vital role in deciding your virtual private network connection performance.
Speed Test Result and VPN
Speed tests results display the internet connection performance that we must receive on our device from the host servers of the speed test. It’s not crucial for this reported speed to be similar as the connection speed provided by your internet service provider.
It’s not really needed for this peed test to reflect a constant performance either. Your internet service provider is only a small organization on the web, and the sites you visit don’t actually lie inside your internet service provider’s network. On the flips side, these speed tests pick a server nearest to your internet service provider and provide a download speed results.
Even though this is pretty reliable for most parts in terms of internet service provider, it’s actually always not reliable when it comes to virtual private networks. Nonetheless, keep in mind that virtual private network, it is crucial to take a short overview of how your internet service provider works and how this factor can affect your speed tests results, and ultimately for your VPN.
Final Thoughts
So, those are the factors that are normally affecting your virtual private network performance. It is crucial to comprehend these factors, so that you can easily search for the best solution for your virtual private network issues whenever there is a slow performance.
Keep in mind that it is always advisable for you to utilize only a reliable and high-quality virtual private network service, and avoid those free VPN, that is if you want to get the best performance for your VPN.
And now you should understand the factors that contribute to slow virtual private network connections. Obviously, we can’t correct many of these issues since it is how the internet operates for everyone else all over the globe.
Of course, aside from the global aspects, a poor virtual private network client configuration and slow Wi-Fi network setup can also result in slow performance. These two factors are under your control, for the most part. And you can speed things like these in order to enhance the performance of your virtual private network to a particular extend.