NordVPN for Linux: Release notes

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  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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  Several weird and rare bugs popped in for a surprise visit. We’ve taken care of them – end of story.
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  We’ve upgraded the library that powers file sharing via Meshnet. Keep the app up to date on all peer devices to avoid compatibility issues when sending files.

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  As quantum computing advances, so do our measures to protect your data. You can now enable post-quantum encryption against the cyber threats of the future. It’s always better to be prepared than to wish you were. Or, as they say: “Be quantum-proof.” Use the command: nordvpn set pq on.
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  Now even more devices can run NordVPN. We’ve added support for ARM64 and ARMHF architecture in the Snap package.
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  Performance has been optimized, bugs were kicked out, and stability is reinforced.

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

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  Fixed: Rumor has it that some of you had trouble routing traffic from your Windows PC to a Linux device. That was never our intention, so we’ve sorted it out.
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  Fixed: The tray icon used to disappear after you logged out and back into the system. We’ve fixed it – now it stays.
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  Fixed: Sometimes the app would throw a confusing error when you tried to connect to a dedicated IP. We’ve tweaked the app logic to select the right server from your purchased list or show you a clear message if you’re not subscribed.
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  Fixed: Using a Linux device as a VPN gateway previously let LAN traffic through. Fun, right? But not very private. So now, LAN traffic won’t get to the internet by default. If you want to route it through your VPN-connect device, just turn on LAN discovery or allowlist specific subnets or IP addresses.
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  We’ve also improved how subnet allowlisting works. Accessing an allowlisted subnet or IP no longer requires LAN discovery to be active.
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  A few other little bugs have been wiped out.

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  Sometimes, less is more. You can now disable virtual locations using the command nordvpn set virtual-location disable. If you change your mind, run nordvpn set virtual-location enable.
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  Several weird and rare bugs popped in for a surprise visit. We’ve taken care of them – end of story.

We’ve addressed potential security vulnerabilities in this release. Update now for the safest version.

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  Introducing our latest companion – the notification tray. This handy addition will give you real-time updates on your VPN connection status
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  Fixed: We’ve gotten rid of the bug that prevented Kill Switch from disabling internet access for Meshnet peers routing traffic through your device. Now when your VPN connection drops and Kill Switch is enabled, it securely blocks internet access for these connections.

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  Fixed: We found that DNS configurations went off track when LAN discovery was enabled. Good news – the bug is no more.
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  Fixed: On some systems, the resolvectl command didn’t function properly. The app runs smoothly again.

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  Fixed: Routing through Meshnet devices connected to an OpenVPN server used to mean a trip to no-internet land. Not anymore.
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  Fixed: We’ve refined help-related messages. They’re now more accurate, guiding you without the guesswork.
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  We’ve made other tweaks and fixes to make your NordVPN experience smoother, faster, and more reliable.

A sneaky little bug related to IPv6 settings crept into our last release, leading to some unexpected connectivity challenges. But worry not! We’ve caught the culprit and fixed the issue.

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  With this update, NordVPN better aligns with your custom DNS preferences. If you’ve set your /etc/resolv.conf file to read-only, we will keep your DNS settings unchanged.
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  As always, we’ve been on a bug hunt, making sure your NordVPN experience is as smooth as possible.

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  New: Now you can personalize your Meshnet devices with custom nicknames, making them easier to identify and remember.
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  Clear your file sharing history using the command nordvpn fileshare clear – because who says you can’t rewrite a bit of your digital past?
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  File sharing refinements and a few other improvements here and there.

A selection of minor tweaks and fixes under the hood to make the NordVPN app work better for you. Because routine maintenance is just as important as a new shiny feature.

We’ve given a speed boost for connections between peer devices in Meshnet.

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  We’ve improved our “Help” articles on logging in and file sharing, as well as the Meshnet documentation.
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  Fixed: The issue of Meshnet sometimes causing high CPU usage has been solved.
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  Other minor fixes and improvements.

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  New setting: local network discovery. Turn it on when you need to access your local network while connected to a VPN, routing traffic through a Meshnet device, or having Kill Switch enabled.
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  IP and port allowlisting improvements.

Fixed: A bug that slipped into the previous release and showed irrelevant messages is gone now.

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  Autocompletion now works with file sharing commands.
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  You can accept and decline file transfers from notifications.
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  For seamless file sharing with peers you trust, use the auto-accept setting to always accept transfers from a specific peer. We won’t ask you to approve each transfer – files will start downloading automatically.
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  Under-the-hood file sharing upgrades for faster transfers, lower latency, and tighter security.
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  Improvements in VPN performance: The auto-connect bug is fixed, and random logouts should no longer interrupt your connection.
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  Fixed: Port/subnet whitelisting works as expected again.

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  We improved how command line parameters are handled to avoid connection errors caused by typing in all caps.
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  Thanks to the community of our eagle-eyed contributors, we’ve removed a bunch of typos.
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  Arguments in our help texts now follow the POSIX.1-2017 standard.
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  We implemented a security upgrade for the connections over the OpenVPN protocol.
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  Peers without an IP address will now be skipped when managing Meshnet configuration.
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  We fixed a bug that prevented sharing files over Meshnet.

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  Logging in with a username and password is no longer available in the terminal as we’ve switched to more secure login options.
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  Thanks to the community of our eagle-eyed contributors, we’ve removed a bunch of typos.

Improvements in file sharing over Meshnet:

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  Notifications will inform you about the file transfer status.
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  Transfers containing no files will be rejected automatically.
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  Error messages have been updated for more clarity and precision.
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  Fixed: We’ll show the correct status for transfers canceled by the sender.

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  Fixed: A curious case of connections to OpenVPN servers failing on Fedora came to our attention. We put on our detective hats and solved the mystery.

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  Autosuggest now displays countries and groups.
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  We’ve added filters for the mesh peer list command. Explore all the options using nordvpn mesh peer list --help
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  Meshnet invitations now contain settings for traffic routing.
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  We’ve improved how auto-connect and obfuscation features interact.
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  Minor bug fixes here and there.

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  Fixed: We’ve eliminated a bug causing Meshnet connectivity issues.

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  Connections via Meshnet are faster now!
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  We improved how invitations to link devices are displayed.
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  Performance improvements beneath the surface.

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  Fixed: It appears our app is not the morning type as it would crash after the computer had resumed from sleep mode. We took the strongest measures – code and coffee – to fix the situation, and they helped.
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  A few security upgrades.

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  Fixed: Rumor has it that some new users have found the Meshnet feature missing. We’ve checked – nothing paranormal here. Meshnet is available for everyone again.

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  We’ve been laying the groundwork for speed and latency improvements in Meshnet.
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  Fixed: We now show a correct status when you’re routing traffic through a peer device and a relevant error message if the traffic routing fails. No more miscommunication here.
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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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  The application now works with older distributions.
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  Minor security upgrades.

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  New in Meshnet: 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. Use the ‘nordvpn mesh peer local’ command to control this permission.
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  You can now log in by using a token generated in your Nord Account. See --token option innordvpn login --help.
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  Added the routing setting. See nordvpn set routing --help.
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  Added the fwmark setting. See nordvpn set fwmark --help.
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  Fixed: The app version is now displayed properly in the manual page.
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  Fixed: The app no longer gets stuck in the ‘connecting’ state when you’re offline and the set protocol is OpenVPN.
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  Fixed: Meshnet now works on PureOS.
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  Minor fixes in Meshnet.

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  Fixed: Some users had an issue with the app freezing at random. Rumor has it, some were even confronted with the never-ending spinner. The bug causing the trouble is fixed now, and the app is set to run smoothly without awkward silent interruptions.
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  Better: When opened, the app will now greet you with a list of useful commands displayed in the terminal.

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  NordLynx is now the default VPN protocol in our Linux app.
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  We made changes in firewall handling. Now we filter packets by firewall marks instead of IP addresses of VPN servers.
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  A few performance improvements are in place.

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  We switched from destination-based to policy-based traffic routing.
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  Fixed: A bug that slipped into the previous release and prevented OpenVPN from working on any devices except ones with the AMD64 architecture.

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  A selection of minor tweaks and fixes under the hood to make the NordVPN app work better for you. Because routine maintenance is just as important as a new shiny feature.

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  Better: We’ve improved our messaging for better guidance in cases of an unsuccessful login.
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  Fixed: Connecting to a specific server by using tags works smoothly again.

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  Now our app versions are listed in chronological order instead of alphabetically in package managers.
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  Fixed: We solved a bug that has slipped into the previous release and got in your way when trying to use the nordvpn connect [country] [city] command.
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  Fixed: There were a few unexpected errors in our app for the Fedora distribution, but not anymore.

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  Fixed: The server search by group works smoothly again.
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  Fixed: We’ve found the culprit behind unexpected app crashes during updates, so there should be no more interruptions.
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  Fixed: The app no longer acts mysteriously and shows up in the Ubuntu Software Updater with the correct name and icon now.

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  Our app for Linux joins the rest of NordVPN apps with the login flow via Nord Account. It’s the platform that unifies all Nord services and eliminates the need for multiple accounts and passwords. It also lets you add an extra layer of security to your account with multi-factor authentication. To log in with Nord Account, use the command nordvpn login - -nordaccount. We’ll take you to your browser for login and then bring you back to the app. Smooth. You can still log in with the nordvpn login command, so choose the way which works better for you.
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  A few performance and security improvements are in place.

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  We did some under-the-hood work to make connecting to VPN even faster.
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  Fixed: If you’ve noticed that auto-completion for commands stopped working, you’re not imagining things. We kind of lost it on the Z-shell Linux because of a pesky bug that slipped into the previous release. Now commands can be smoothly auto-completed again!
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  Fixed: We solved the case of the app sometimes displaying an incorrect error message after unsuccessful login.

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  NordVPN now supports IPv6 on Linux. To enable it, use the command nordvpn set ipv6 on.
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  Now there’s one more way to check which NordVPN version you’re running – simply type nordvpn version. Commands nordvpn --version and nordvpn -v still work too.

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  As suggested by our user community, we’re switching from the default Linux password entry to something more user-friendly: from now on, when you type your password to log in, we’ll hide each symbol under an asterisk (*) so you can see that you’re actually typing.

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  Fixed: A bug that slipped into the previous release to hinder installing and updating NordVPN on some RPM-based distributions is now gone.

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  Fixed: the app will no longer randomly say that your account has expired when it’s not the case.

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  Improved application logs handling: Instead of a file, which sometimes may take up more space than desired, logs are now provided as standard output to give you more control.
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  Fixed: There was a bug of a rare kind that would make every single connection fail, and only a system restart could stop this vicious cycle. The bug is no more.

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  Don’t wait until you disconnect – rate your VPN connection anytime it’s active. Give feedback about your current connection by using the nordvpn rate command.
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  Besides resetting to default settings, the nordvpn set defaults command now also stops VPN connection.
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  Fixed: Auto-completion for commands works smoothly again.

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  New command: Type nordvpn whitelist remove all to clear all items in the whitelist.
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  New command: nordvpn set firewall on/off. It lets you choose whether the app should set up a firewall or not.
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  If you stop a daemon process, Kill Switch also stops working. This helps to avoid losing internet connection unexpectedly.
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  Fixed: Auto-connect works more smoothly now.
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  Fixed: We fixed the connection issues on network restart.
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  Fixed: Sometimes, VPN wouldn’t disconnect properly when logging out, but no more.
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  And more minor yet important improvements and bug fixes for your better experience with NordVPN.

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  Fixed: NordVPN runs smoothly again on Ubuntu 18.04.
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  Minor improvements in security and performance.

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  Bug fixes and improvements.

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  Bug fixes and improvements.

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  Fixed: Account and login commands not working when Kill Switch is on.

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  Fixed: NordLynx connection is restored after waking up from system suspension.

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  Fixed: Incorrectly showing expired account error.

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  Fixed: Whitelist is less strict and allows ports to be used in both directions.

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  Fixed: Firewall not working properly on older distros such as Ubuntu 14.04.

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  Fixed: Whitelist does not create routes anymore.

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  What’s better: Kill Switch and Whitelist work nicely together now.
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  What’s fixed: We got rid of a bug that sometimes prevented auto-connect from working as it should.

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  NordLynx is now even faster to connect to a VPN server.
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  Improved VPN performance in obfuscated mode.

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  Fixed: Kill Switch now works as smoothly with NordLynx as it does with OpenVPN. If you enable Kill Switch while connected to a NordLynx server, it won’t interrupt your current connection.
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  Fixed: In case your connection to a NordLynx server fails, the app will now show a correct message informing about the failed connection.

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  Sometimes, a slow internet connection would prevent users from connecting to VPN successfully. We increased the timeout for API requests to make VPN experience smoother regardless of the internet quality.

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  Now you can restore default settings by using the ‘nordvpn set defaults’ command.
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  Access resources (computers, printers, TVs – you name it) while using VPN – now no matter on what network you’re on. Use the ‘nordvpn whitelist add subnet’ command to specify subnet addresses.

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  If you ever want to create a new NordVPN account, you can do it right in the app – use the command `nordvpn register`.
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  Fixed: Autocompletion – the magic that cuts down key presses and saves you from typos in commands – wasn’t working properly in some distributions. Now it’s working completely fine.

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  Introducing the revamped internet Kill Switch for ultra security: when enabled, it will block your device from accessing the internet when you’re not connected to VPN.
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  Wrong commands happen. If you changed your mind after entering nordvpn connect [country/city/group/server], you can cancel the VPN connection attempt with Ctrl+C and start over.
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  Updated OpenVPN binaries to 2.4.8.

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  We made it easier for you to try NordLynx – the solution for a fast, secure, and private VPN connection. To start using NordLynx, you no longer have to download the WireGuard® package. Use the command nordvpn set technology nordlynx – and that’s it!
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  The nordvpn settings command shows the VPN technology you’re currently using: OpenVPN or NordLynx.
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  Here’s a little time-saver: when you’re connected to VPN and want to switch to another server or location, you can do it without disconnecting first.
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  When connecting to group servers, you can specify the location, for example, nordvpn connect --group p2p Canada.
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  Oh, and we almost forgot – a bunch of various fixes and improvements to make the app run smoother.

WireGuard® is a registered trademark of Jason A. Donenfeld.

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