NordVPN for Windows: Release notes

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  We’ve made under-the-hood tweaks to the NordLynx adapter. It now waits patiently after you disconnect from the VPN, so you’ll enjoy an even faster connection next time.
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  Our server list is more consistent across all screens.
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  New animations and illustrations on the login screen bring a warmer touch.

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  New: You asked – we heard! You can now choose where your files land when using Meshnet’s file transfer. Pick your preferred downloads folder for easier access.
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  Our NordLynx protocol, which powers Meshnet, just got a speed boost! For those curious about the magic – we switched it from WireGuard in Go to WireGuardNT.
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  Kill Switch will cut the traffic from your apps even when the VPN is just paused. Because “paused” sounds way too much like “potential risk.”
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  We’ve revamped the feature names and categories in Threat Protection Pro, making it cleaner, simpler, and easier to navigate.

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  We’ve aligned the online and offline statuses for Meshnet devices across all app views. Yes, perfection is possible.
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  Fixed: “Weekly connection time” inaccurately reported time after an unexpected computer shutdown. We’ve recalibrated it – now it sticks firmly to reality.

This update may not bring visible changes, and that’s okay. We’ve been tweaking things under the hood to ensure your NordVPN app runs smoother than ever. It’s the invisible work that often makes the biggest difference.

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  The app is now better at detecting when your internet connection drops. If this happens while you’re using the VPN, our app will now automatically try to reconnect.
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  File sharing in Meshnet just leveled up. Drag files straight onto a peer device, and they’ll be sent instantly. Whether you’re on the dashboard or the “File transfers” tab, sharing is just a drag away.
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  We improved the uniqueness of device identifiers in Meshnet. Now even cloned virtual machines are treated as different devices.

We’ve tinkered with the internal workings and polished some rough edges. The result? An app that’s better than ever before.

What you’ve known and trusted as Threat Protection has evolved into Threat Protection Pro. With its strong anti-malware features, this advanced cybersecurity product performs far beyond its original capabilities. Threat Protection Pro, now included in all plans above Basic, neutralizes a broad range of cyber threats, from web trackers to phishing attempts.

If you’re on the Basic plan, don’t worry – you’ll continue to enjoy the light version of Threat Protection, now simply named Threat Protection. It uses DNS filtering to block intrusive ads and unsafe sites.

A few fixes here and there to ensure your VPN app works as expected.

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  We’ve introduced three new statuses to our Meshnet file sharing feature to keep you better informed about the progress of your file transfers. “Finalizing” will show up when you’re finishing the transfer of the big files. When we’re checking files before resuming interrupted transfers, “Verifying” comes into play. “Queued” means your file is waiting its turn in line.
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  A variety of fixes and improvements that might not make headlines but will definitely make your NordVPN experience smoother.

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  We’ve added more virtual location markers throughout the app. You’ll find these handy markers on the map, in your recent connections, and in the “Auto-connect” settings.
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  After a bit of a journey, DNS filtering landed in the “Connections” settings, ready to fend off unwanted content. Now available for everyone with a Basic subscription.

Meshnet boasts new improvements:

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  You can now completely remove any device from Meshnet.
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  No more switching between tabs – personal and external devices are shown together.
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  New color cues help you easily distinguish between online and offline devices.
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  And the cherry on top – you can send files to offline devices directly from the dashboard. Your files will be delivered once the devices go back online.

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  We’ve clearly marked virtual servers in our country list. This means you know exactly what kind of connection you’re getting – be it a virtual location for a challenging region or a direct line to a physical server.
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  File protection’s activity feed is now cleaner and more focused. Safe files will pass through silently. But, if we detect malware or that sneaky double extension trick, we’ll be sure to let you know.
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  We’ve refined our alerts for vulnerable apps to better describe what spotted vulnerabilities mean and how you can handle the risks.

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  The file sharing feature now lives in its own dedicated space, accessible directly from the sidebar. No more hunting through Meshnet tabs and menus.

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  We’ve refined our VPN service for faster connections and reduced CPU usage.
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  We heard your feedback! So we’ve made our vulnerability alerts more direct and informative. The feature card will clearly highlight when a risky app is detected on your device.
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  The green bubble signaling active Threat Protection Pro features briefly vanished but has now returned. No need for detective work.

We’ve been mostly testing our engines, conducting performance tests, and tinkering around with the app to ensure that your NordVPN journey is as smooth as possible.

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  We’ve given Threat Protection Pro a new identity! It’s now part of the “Web protection” arsenal and called “DNS filtering.” Expect the same robust protection against online threats but with a new name that better reflects its defense capabilities.
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  We believe in making things easy for you. That’s why we’ve updated our “Report a problem” feature. Select a topic, and we’ll tailor the questions to solve your problem faster.

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  Clarity over quantity in recent connections: Now you’ll see the latest three but in more detail. Depending on your selection, we’ll specify the country, city, or server category right next to the flag.
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  We’ve also fixed some pesky bugs to make your experience smoother.

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  New in Threat Protection Pro: vulnerability detection. How does it work? We regularly check the database of known vulnerabilities to make sure that your installed apps aren’t there. If we detect a vulnerable app on your computer, we’ll notify you immediately. If Threat Protection Pro is included in your plan, you can start using the vulnerability detection feature by going to Threat Protection Pro and turning it on.
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  The “Quick Connect on app launch” and “Auto-connect on all networks” settings were about the same thing, so we’ve removed the first one. If you had it enabled, we’ve enabled the “Auto-connect on all networks” for you instead.
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  We’re keeping security on point with the OpenVPN update.
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  Smoother file sharing over Meshnet: You can send files to an offline device, and we’ll deliver them once it’s back online. Also, if a sender or recipient goes offline while a file transfer is in progress, the transfer will resume once the needed device is online.

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  Stability improvements for Threat Protection Pro.
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  We’ve updated the “Devices” section in the connection card by adding statuses and other useful details.
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  Meshnet is now compatible with VPN connections over the OpenVPN protocol.

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  New option for the app appearance: Set it to “System” for the app to adjust to your Windows theme automatically.
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  File sharing works regardless of the “Remote access” permission status.
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  Your current device is now listed among your personal devices in Meshnet.
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  A bunch of pesky bugs won’t be bugging you anymore.

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  We’ve given a speed boost for connections between peer devices in Meshnet.
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  While routing traffic through a Windows device, you can access its local network whether it’s connected to VPN or not.
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  The app is a little less RAM-hungry now.
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  Fixed: The map zooms in correctly again when you connect to VPN for the first time.

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  When adding, rearranging, or removing custom DNS servers, we’ll ask you to reconnect to VPN to apply changes.
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  File sharing via Meshnet works regardless of the remote access permission status.
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  The app is now available in Polish.
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  Fixed: Zooming into the map is smooth again.
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  Fixed: We’ve got rid of the bug, which was randomly preventing the app from launching.

We’re bringing NordVPN closer to people all over the world. This time, we’ve added two new languages: Dutch and Swedish.

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  The app is now available in Brazilian Portuguese.
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  You may need to restart your app or PC to complete the update. If that happens, you’ll see a message in Settings.
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  We’ll notify you if a file transfer was not received or only some of the files were downloaded.
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  We’ve added links to how-to articles in Meshnet so you can get timely answers to your questions.

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  You probably enjoy the time looking at the NordVPN logo while waiting for the app to start up. Who wouldn’t, right? However, we’ve shortened this waiting time as the app now launches faster. We continue working on this, so expect even more speed in the future.
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  We’ll notify you when the files someone sent you over Meshnet finish downloading.
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  Threat Protection Pro and Meshnet got that extra stability push.

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  Need a break from Threat Protection Pro? Pause web protection and file protection for 5 minutes, 30 minutes, or 2 hours.
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  For even smoother file sharing over Meshnet, you can now set transfers from a specific device to be accepted automatically. This way, we won’t ask you to approve each transfer – files will start downloading automatically.
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  Under-the-hood improvements that will connect you to VPN even faster.
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  Fixed: The bug that trapped some of our users in the login screen is gone now.
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  We solved a part of the cases of users unexpectedly losing their internet connection, and we’re in the process of solving the remaining ones.

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  Zoom in, zoom out. The map zooming is way smoother now.
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  In web protection, we’ve relocated the list of domains you choose to exclude from threat blocking. It now has a separate tab – “Excluded domains.” This way, you’ll have a clear view of the web protection activity and the domains you have excluded.

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  We’ve redesigned the Threat Protection Pro experience! Threat Protection Pro is now divided into “Web protection” and “File protection” for more clarity and convenience.
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  The automatic VPN protocol selection is even smarter now. Choose the “Auto (Recommended)” option for your protocol settings for the best VPN performance.
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  Fixed: The issue of Threat Protection Pro suddenly causing high CPU usage and network problems (*ouch*) has been solved.

Threat Protection Pro now detects files with double extensions!

Imagine that somebody sends you a file named KEYBOARD-CAT.GIF.exe. At first glance, you would probably expect nothing more than the classic internet meme of an orange tabby cat in a shirt playing a keyboard. However, it may be a virus masqueraded with double extensions: the fake .GIF and the actual .exe. That’s what cyber attackers do.

Threat Protection Pro fends off malicious files immediately. If a file with double extensions looks safe after our scans, we’ll notify you so you can handle it with caution.

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  We’ve revamped the Internet Kill Switch by splitting it into two options. The first one (and the default one) disables internet access if a VPN connection drops unexpectedly. The second one disables the internet even when you disconnect from VPN manually, which means you only have VPN-protected internet access. Choose the option that meets your online protection needs!
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  As the holidays are fast approaching, we’ve been working on our app’s naughty-or-nice score. A bunch of mischievous bugs have been dispatched with a mission of no return.

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  Back by popular demand – the option to maximize the app.
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  New option for auto-connect: Now, you can set VPN to auto-connect on mobile networks only. You can also make a setting combo: auto-connect on mobile and Wi-Fi networks, on mobile networks and Ethernet, or stay connected to VPN at all times.
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  A few ghoulish bugs are nothing but a distant memory. It’s Spooktober, after all.

Spoiler alert: many exciting things ahead!

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  New app design – totally refreshed look and feel! All to make your NordVPN experience more delightful.
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  Dark mode. Now you can choose what makes your eyes happier.
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  There’s a newbie in the left sidebar hood – Dark Web Monitor. We’ve moved it to make it quicker for you to see leaks and take action to protect your accounts.
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  We’ve revamped the auto-connect setup for clarity. No muss, no fuss..
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  More languages: You can now use the app in Italian and Korean.

New convenient functions have come to Meshnet:

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  Each device now shows whether it’s online or offline, which is handy when you’re picking a device to route all your traffic through.
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  You can start routing traffic through another computer straight from the list of your linked devices.
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  When routing traffic through a linked computer, you’ll have access to its local network devices instead of yours – if the linked computer has granted this permission to you. And the other way around: you can allow or block access to your local network for each device that’s routing traffic through your computer.

Don’t have the NordVPN app yet? Download it now.