Using VPN with user multiple profiles

hello-gos

I would like to setup multiple profiles and have all of them use VPN.

I use mullvad so am limited to only 5 connections. 4 are used on other devices.

This needs to work when using mobile data as well so cannot rely on VPN WiFi router.

Currently it looks like I have to install and login to mullvad on each profile which counts as a separate device.

Please let me know if any suggestions.

Probably9857

hello-gos

Buy another Mullvad subscription?

Probably9857

hello-gos

Probably9857 Buy another Mullvad subscription?

I mean, there are other possibilities, but for someone who already has at least 5 internet-connected devices, the $5/month easy solution seems like it should be doable.

Edit: didn't see your "scalable" reply...

hello-gos

Probably9857 I'm looking for a more scalable solution.

tux_

hello-gos Use the VPN tunnel on an upstream router, so that it counts as a single device?

Probably9857

hello-gos I'm looking for a more scalable solution

tux_ Use the VPN tunnel on an upstream router

So this is the next option, but if you want it to work on mobile data, then that means also buying a mobile router.

Other options would be reusing subscriptions, putting profiles at rest when not in use, etc. Mullvad will let you choose which session to kill when you try to exceed the limit. You just have to remember that "crusty-parrot" is your laptop...

hello-gos

Probably9857 I mean that in worst case (30 profiles) I would need to buy 6 subscriptions just for one phone which is not reasonable.

hello-gos

Probably9857 Yes, could do that but what happens if the owner profile is disconnected for long periods? Do I miss os and app (installed and pushed from owner) updates?

Ideally, I would like to route all traffic through the same VPN connection on the phone itself. Is that possible somehow?

tux_

Probably9857 So this is the next option, but if you want it to work on mobile data, then that means also buying a mobile router.

Not necessarily. The idea is that your mobile devices (arbitrarily many of them) tunnel into the upstream machine using a VPN tunnel (managed by yourself), and the upstream machine itself is connected to Mullvad using the "VPN tunnel." From the point of view of the VPN provider, there is a single permanent connection that routes all the downstream traffic.

Probably9857

hello-gos worst case (30 profiles) I would need to buy 6 subscriptions just for one phone which is not reasonable

Agree that is not reasonable, but why would you need 30 profiles?!?

userofgos

hello-gos not necessarily. Currently there is a limit of 4 profiles running simultaneously (Owner + 3 User profiles). So you'll never be using 30 profiles all at the same time, and you have 1 profile to spare to add up to 5 active devices.

You can still have the MullvadVPN app installed on all profiled and just log in/out on other profiles as needed.

Or get 1 Proton VPN subscription and then you have a 15 device/profile limit (5 Mullvad + 10 Proton). Log in/out when needed.

Depending on how you designate User profiles (per persona), you could sign up for additional free Proton VPN accounts which allow you to use a limited amount of Proton servers (not sure what the device limit it)

Don't know why you'd use even 10 profiles multiple times in the same day - that just sounds like a nightmare of inconveniences imo.

de0u

hello-gos Ideally, I would like to route all traffic through the same VPN connection on the phone itself. Is that possible somehow?

It is not currently possible, has been requested multiple times, and does not appear to be in the works.

Probably9857

hello-gos what happens if the owner profile is disconnected for long periods? Do I miss os and app (installed and pushed from owner) updates?

You would. Probably best to keep owner connected all the time.

hello-gos Ideally, I would like to route all traffic through the same VPN connection on the phone itself. Is that possible somehow?

Not possible. If you want profiles to share a tunnel, it has to be running on some other device.

hello-gos

Probably9857 I understand, thanks for your input!

N1b

ProtonVPN allows for 10 devices and Windscribe has no defined limit. I prefer Mullvad and IVPN, but since your priority is to have more devices/profiles, these might be reasonable alternarives.

Probably9857

userofgos Currently there is a limit of 4 profiles running simultaneously (Owner + 3 User profiles)

GrapheneOS raises the limit on the number of secondary user profiles to 32 (31 + guest)

https://grapheneos.org/features#more-user-profiles

userofgos

Probably9857 yes I'm aware of that. What I was trying to say that there is a limit of having 1 profile running in foreground and 3 profiles running in background. :)

https://github.com/GrapheneOS/os-issue-tracker/issues/4258

The limit was raised based on total device memory.

Dumdum

@Probably9857 @userofgos
https://grapheneos.org/releases#2024111700

raise maximum running users from the standard 3 to 4 for 6GB memory, 6 for 8GB memory, 10 for 12GB memory and 14 for 16GB memory