How to Install NordVPN on Ubuntu for Total Online Privacy

Hey there! Looking to lock down your online privacy by installing NordVPN on your Ubuntu device? You‘ve come to the right place.

As an experienced IT security professional, I‘m going to walk you through the entire process from start to finish. I‘ll provide plenty of details, insights, and tips so you can get NordVPN up and running smoothly.

Installing a VPN like NordVPN is one of the best ways to protect your privacy and security when browsing the internet. It encrypts all your traffic and hides your IP address so you can enjoy safe, anonymous web access.

I‘ll also troubleshoot common issues that can come up during installation so you don‘t get stuck.

By the end of this guide, you‘ll have NordVPN configured on your Ubuntu system and secured with rock-solid encryption. So let‘s get started!

Why You Should Use NordVPN on Ubuntu

Before we dive in, let me quickly explain why using NordVPN is so important if you care about your privacy.

When you browse the web normally, your ISP, government, hacker, or other spy can see everything you‘re doing. They can log which sites you visit, track your location, secretly modify traffic, and more.

But with NordVPN, all your traffic is encrypted and routed through a remote server run by NordVPN. This means:

• Your real IP address and location are hidden from websites.
• Your ISP can‘t see which sites you visit or throttle your connection.
• Public WiFi snooping is prevented.
• Advertisers and spies can‘t monitor your activity across sites.
• Restricted content and censored sites can be accessed.

NordVPN has over 5200 high-speed servers located in 60 countries worldwide. This gives you many options to route your traffic.

Their service uses military-grade encryption protocols for maximum security, including 256-bit AES encryption. And NordVPN maintains a strict no-logging policy for customer data.

Bottom line – NordVPN provides the gold standard for VPN services today. Installing it is the single best step you can take to cover your tracks online and surf with total privacy on Ubuntu.

Okay, let‘s get your system prepped for installing NordVPN!

Pre-Installation: Ensure Your Ubuntu Version is Compatible

Before we install anything, you need to check that your Ubuntu version will work with NordVPN. Otherwise, you may run into technical headaches down the road.

NordVPN provides official support for Ubuntu 14.04 and all newer versions, including the latest Ubuntu 18.04 LTS release.

So before going further:

1. Click on the Ubuntu icon in the upper-left corner of your screen.
2. Select "About This Computer" from the dropdown menu.
3. Look at the version number listed.

As long as you‘re running Ubuntu 14.04 or newer, you‘re good to proceed. If your Ubuntu release is older than 14.04, I‘d recommend upgrading to maintain compatibility with NordVPN.

You can update to a newer Ubuntu version by following these instructions. Just be sure to backup any important data first!

Okay, with that out of the way, we can move on to the NordVPN installation process…

Step 1: Sign Up for a NordVPN Account

Naturally, you‘ll need a NordVPN account subscription to use their service. So visit the NordVPN website and purchase a plan:

• Go to the NordVPN website.
• Click on pricing to view available subscription plans.

  

• The longer term plans offer the best rates. I suggest going with a 1 or 2 year plan.
• Select your preferred subscription length.
• Provide your email address and choose a password.
• Enter your payment details to complete signup.

Once your purchase is confirmed, you‘ll receive a welcome email from NordVPN with instructions to finish setting up your account.

But don‘t worry about that for now. We need to get their app installed on your Ubuntu system first.

Step 2: Download and Install the NordVPN Linux Application

One of the great things about NordVPN is they provide an official Linux app to simplify the setup process.

The app handles all the complex VPN configurations for you in the background. All you have to do is login and click to connect.

Here‘s how to grab the Linux app and get it installed on your Ubuntu desktop:

1. Open a Terminal window on your Ubuntu desktop. You can launch Terminal by hitting Ctrl+Alt+T on your keyboard.
2. Paste the following command into the Terminal. This downloads the installer script from NordVPN:

   sh <(curl -sSf https://downloads.nordcdn.com/apps/linux/install.sh)

3. Press Enter to run the command. It will start downloading and installing the NordVPN app.
4. When prompted, enter your sudo password to grant admin access so the app can be installed.

   

5. Grab a cup of coffee while the installation completes. It may take a few minutes depending on your internet speed.
6. Once finished, you can close and re-open the Terminal for the changes to take effect. The NordVPN app is now installed!

This handles all the heavy lifting of getting their VPN client on your Ubuntu desktop. Next we‘ll perform some quick additional configuration.

Step 3: Run Post-Install Commands

After installing the NordVPN Linux app, two quick commands need to be run to finish the setup:

1. Open a new Terminal and run this first command:

   sudo usermod -aG nordvpn $USER  

   This grants the proper permissions to the NordVPN app so it can modify configurations.

2. Next, run this command:

   sudo reboot

   Rebooting the system allows the permission changes to fully take effect.

Once your Ubuntu desktop finishes restarting, the NordVPN application will be ready to use!

Now we just need to activate your account in the app…

Step 4: Log In and Activate Your NordVPN Account

Your NordVPN app is installed but it doesn‘t know your account details yet. Time to fix that:

1. Launch a new Terminal window on your Ubuntu desktop.
2. Run the command nordvpn login.

   This will prompt you to enter your NordVPN username and password.

3. Type in the credentials you set when signing up for your NordVPN account.

   

4. Next, run nordvpn settings to configure the app settings:
   • Technology – Choose the VPN protocol, either OpenVPN UDP or TCP. Use UDP for faster speeds. Use TCP for more reliability.
   • Obfuscate – Toggle on if you need to evade firewalls or bypass VPN blocking.
   • Notify – Turn notifications on or off as desired.
   • Auto-connect – Enable auto-connect to automatically launch the VPN when your system starts.
   • Kill Switch – Shut down internet access if the VPN connection drops as a safety precaution.
5. Run nordvpn set autoconnect on to enable auto-connect. Now NordVPN will start up automatically each time you boot Ubuntu.
6. Run nordvpn set killswitch on to activate the kill switch. This prevents data leaks if your VPN is disrupted.

Your NordVPN application is fully activated and configured!

Now let‘s get you connected to a VPN server…

Step 5: Connect to a VPN Server Location

With the app ready to go, choosing and connecting to a VPN server is a cinch:

1. Run nordvpn countries to view all available VPN server locations you can connect to.

   The full country name and server load percentages will be shown.

2. Find a country you want to route your traffic through. Make a note of the full server name (like us2381.nordvpn.com).
3. Run nordvpn connect us2381.nordvpn.com using your desired server.

   For example:

   nordvpn connect us2381.nordvpn.com

4. Press Enter. It will take a few seconds to establish the secure VPN connection.

Once successfully connected, your internet traffic will be encrypted and hidden from prying eyes!

The NordVPN app runs quietly in the background to keep you protected.

To disconnect, enter nordvpn disconnect in the Terminal. You can always connect again later.

Some other handy commands include:

• nordvpn status – Check current VPN status.
• nordvpn settings – Adjust app settings.
• nordvpn whitelist – Manage whitelisted apps that bypass the VPN.

And that covers the full installation process! With just those few simple steps, you‘ll be browsing privately and securely.

Next, let me cover how to remove NordVPN if you ever decide to in the future.

Uninstalling the NordVPN App

If you want to uninstall the NordVPN app from your Ubuntu system at any point, it‘s a quick 2-step process:

1. Open a new Terminal window.
2. Run:

   sudo /usr/local/nordvpn/uninstall.sh

This is the official NordVPN uninstaller script. It will completely remove the app and all associated files from your Ubuntu machine.

After uninstalling, your system will revert to direct unencrypted internet access until you install a VPN again.

Okay, let‘s move on to troubleshooting some common NordVPN issues…

Troubleshooting: Fixing NordVPN Installation Problems

Sometimes little hiccups can pop up when installing or running NordVPN. Here are some common problems and how to resolve them:

Curl not found error

If you get a "curl: command not found" error when trying to install NordVPN, it means you don‘t have curl installed on your Ubuntu system.

• To fix this:
  1. Run sudo apt install curl to download curl.
  2. Then re-run the NordVPN install command:

     sh <(curl -sSf https://downloads.nordcdn.com/apps/linux/install.sh)

Can‘t login – authentication failed

Don‘t panic if you get an authentication error when trying to login to NordVPN. This usually means you just mistyped your username or password.

• To fix:
  1. Run nordvpn logout to clear any stale credentials.
  2. Next run nordvpn login and carefully re-enter your info.

Connection issues or slow speeds

VPN connections can sometimes struggle or become slow for various reasons. A few things to try:

• Reboot your Ubuntu device and reconnect to refresh the VPN.
• Try switching protocols in nordvpn settings – UDP is faster, TCP more reliable.
• Connect to a different VPN server location that may have less traffic.
• Temporarily disable your firewalls and anti-virus software, which can interfere with VPNs.
• Contact your ISP to ensure they aren‘t throttling VPN traffic, which is common.

App crashes or won‘t open

If the NordVPN app is crashing frequently or won‘t open at all, it‘s likely a corrupted installation.

• To fix this:
  1. Fully uninstall NordVPN with sudo /usr/local/nordvpn/uninstall.sh.
  2. Reboot your machine.
  3. Reinstall NordVPN from scratch using the installation steps above.

This will refresh the app files and settings, clearing out any problems.

Still having issues? You can contact NordVPN‘s customer support for troubleshooting help. Their chat support agents are quite knowledgeable.

Okay, let‘s wrap things up!

Usage Tips for Running NordVPN On Your Ubuntu Device

Once you have NordVPN up and running, here are some power user tips for using it:

• Run nordvpn autoconnect on so you automatically connect to the VPN on bootup every time. No need to manually connect each session.
• Keep Kill Switch enabled in the app settings! This prevents data leaks if your VPN connection drops unexpectedly.
• If you need to bypass the VPN for certain apps or sites, add exceptions in nordvpn whitelist.
• Change protocols in nordvpn settings if you ever experience speed issues. UDP is faster while TCP is more reliable.
• Connecting to less crowded servers often provides faster speeds. Sort countries by server load in nordvpn countries.
• Run nordvpn status to quickly check your VPN connection status at any time.
• Try out NordVPN‘s specialty servers like P2P, Double VPN, Obfuscated, etc.
• Be sure your Ubuntu system stays up to date with the latest patches and security fixes for optimal safety.

And a bonus pro tip – always browse safely by never downloading suspicious files or clicking risky links! A VPN will protect your traffic, but not your system from malware.

Final Thoughts on Installing NordVPN on Ubuntu

That wraps up this complete step-by-step guide to installing NordVPN on your Ubuntu device!

To summarize, we covered:

• Checking your Ubuntu version for compatibility.
• Signing up for a NordVPN account.
• Downloading and installing the NordVPN Linux app.
• Running post-installation commands.
• Activating your NordVPN account credentials in the app.
• Connecting to VPN servers with rock-solid encryption.
• Fixing common installation problems.
• Uninstalling if ever necessary.
• Tips for seamless VPN usage!

I hope you found my detailed walkthrough helpful for getting up and running with NordVPN on your Ubuntu system. Their service is the gold standard for privacy and security.

You can now browse the web anonymously, access restricted content, use public WiFi safely, and shield your traffic from prying eyes.

Let me know if any other VPN questions come up! I‘m always happy to provide more tips and advice. Stay safe out there!