Configuring a VPN for your Xbox One provides you with enhanced privacy from your ISP monitoring your internet usage. If you select a VPN server in a different country, it can also allow you to connect to different online servers to play with your foreign friends.
Tip: Using a VPN will always increase your latency, ping, or delay to any game server, which can have a negative impact on multiplayer games. For the best performance, choose a VPN server close to you, a more distant VPN server will add more delay, especially if you’re then connecting back to a local server. If you notice jumps or hitches in the movement of other players or notice that you’re getting hit just after you’ve escaped around a corner from an enemy, this could be due to high ping. Try changing the VPN server you’re connected to, or if the issue persists, disconnecting from the VPN entirely.
Unfortunately, you can’t configure a VPN directly on your Xbox One, as it doesn’t support this. There are two other ways you can go about it. The first method involves configuring the VPN on your home router, while the second requires you to share a network connection from your computer.
Tip: To configure either of these options, you will need to have a subscription with a VPN provider that provides VPN configuration files or details.
Configure a VPN on your Router
To configure a VPN on your router, you need to sign into its web interface. To do so, enter its local IP address into your web browser. You can find the IP address of your router by running the “ipconfig” command in Command Prompt. To open Command Prompt, press the Windows key, type “cmd” and hit enter. Next type “ipconfig”, then look for the value of “Default Gateway” under the network adaptor that you use to connect to your home network.
Tip: Your default gateway or router’s IP address will most likely start with 192.168, have another number, and then end with a 1. for example, “192.168.0.1”. All IP addresses starting with 192.168 are reserved for private use, they can only be used on local networks and can’t be sent out to the internet.
Enter the IP address of your router into your web browser, it will connect to the web interface of the router. Here you will need to enter the admin password to sign in. Unless you changed the password, it will likely be written on a sticker somewhere on the router.
Once you’ve signed in, find the VPN settings. Depending on the brand of your router it may be located in different places. You may find it in the network settings or the “WAN” (Wide Area Network) settings.
Here you will need to manually enter the VPN configuration details as provided by your VPN provider. If you’re unsure what information goes where, your VPN provider or your router manufacturer may be able to offer you support.
Tip: Not all routers support this functionality, of those that do, few will support strong options such as OpenVPN support.
Once you’ve entered your details, save the changes, then check that the change has worked by browsing to whatismyipaddress.com from your Xbox One when it is connected to the router. You can also check your Xbox Live connection is working by going to System > Settings > General > Network settings > Test network connection.
Share a VPN from your Computer
If you’ve already got a VPN installed on your computer, either through the native windows VPN tool or from the VPN provider’s software, you can use the Settings app to share your VPN connection over a mobile hotspot.
You can open the Settings app to the correct page by pressing the Windows key, typing “Mobile hotspot settings”, and hitting enter.
On the mobile hotspot page, you need to ensure that the VPN connection is selected from the drop-down box. You can configure the name and password of the hotspot if you click the “Edit” button.
Once you’ve configured the hotspot, you can enable it by clicking the slider at the top, labelled “Share my Internet connection with other devices”, to the “On” position.
Once your Xbox One is connected, test your public IP address, by searching “What’s my IP” in a web browser. You can also check that your Xbox Live connection is working by going to System > Settings > General > Network settings > Test network connection.
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