I'll speak for the P2P question and say that Mullvad
supports port forwarding right off the bat. I currently have an open port for use with Soulseek and it works just fine for sharing my own files, though it is only using OpenVPN for now. I don't remember if I was able to get a WireGuard one working last time I tried but I'll probably have a look some other time.
Port forwarding is a bit too techy for me, but elsewhere WireGuard works very well. Supposed to be a bit faster, a bit more secure. Mullvad have some good blog posts to read if one is curious. Just found this one -
Multihop with WireGuard
mullvad.net
Multihop can be used for many different reasons, for example, increasing your privacy or improving latency/performance due to sub-optimal ISP peering. Each WireGuard® server is connected to all the other WireGuard servers through WireGuard tunnels. This means you can multihop from one server to another.
Not sure if it works on windows, it does on Linux. Not used it myself. I just use the normal WireGuard implementation in windows 7. Btw, Mullvad no longer supports windows 7, though the app still works. You will need to use it either on windows 10 now or greater or Linux. I'll probably try that multi-hop thing in Linux.
This advanced terminal-only Linux guide will teach you how to use the WireGuard protocol to connect to Mullvad.
mullvad.net
Using Mullvad with anything but their client IF you want to have more than a couple VPN options is kind of a pain in the balls. Their client is barebones but mostly pretty decent... except that it only support program based split tunneling rather than port based as God intended.
No idea on P2P. Seedboxes are generally a better option if you're willing to pay.
When you set Mullvad up to block the internet as a kind of "Kill Switch", it really does work. It does this by removing any capability to connect to the internet, unless you are using the client. Problem is, you can't connect to the internet, because any capability to connect to the internet has been removed unless you use Mullvad, without fucking about with involved Network Settings and re-jigging the adapters/sockets. It's a PITA.
It's actually easier to uninstall Mullvad, restart the machine and re-jig things from there. But that presents its own problems as well. Or maybe I'm just a fucking moron.
It used to be that the Killswitch thing didn't really work and you had leaks, but they changed all that a while back. Problem is it's a bit too efficient. I wouldn't like to use another VPN alongside Mullvad on this box because, well...
Funny thing is, you can still Ping google at 8.8.8.8 or wtf and it does have a signal, you just don't have internet. Not advanced enough to figure this out.
If you are on a windows box, then open a command prompt and type in:
ping 8.8.8.8
This will ping Google's servers and let you know if you are 'live'.
But if Mullvad is not started, you will not be able to use a browser to connect to the internet. Somewhere along a deeper layer of the OSI Stack it is still working though, as can be seen by pinging whatever IP you choose and it returning a result. HTTP and all that probably, fucked if I know.
en.wikipedia.org
Mullvad is very good for Killswitching your internet, but you have to enable it in the advanced section it is not enabled by default (last version I used).
Also make sure to do a check at
https://mullvad.net/en/check/
This will let you know if WebRTC is enabled and if you have any DNS leaks and whether that particular assigned IP is blacklisted (that is why you get a shit load of captchas).
I'm going to be getting a second VPN soon for this box, but I'm not looking forward to setting it up with how brutal and barebones Mullvad is with how it goes about Killswitching. Good news is that it does work very well.
These are another couple of nifty commands to type in to your command prompt if you want more info on network/adapter/socket/ip activity and are just generally troubleshooting -
netstat /a
ipconfig /all
I mean... kinda?
VPNs aren't impossible to break, but they are annoying to glowies. Who do you trust more not to sell you out: Your VPN provider or your ISP/shitposting forum? Your VPN provider MIGHT sell you out. Your ISP/shitposting forum will DEFINITELY sell you out. (No offense to Fearless Leader. A court order is a court order.) Traffic analysis vulnerability is true, but if you have that level of end to end visibility, you can sometimes even break TOR if you're really determined.
A reputable VPN is good enough for most people.
Only use a VPN as an annoyance to those wanting to track you. Don't be evil. If you don't want to get caught, don't do it.
My VPN isn't to do illegal shit, it's to obfuscate my internet usage from prying eyes that are sold that data at every twist and turn. It just presents another hurdle for them and if you aren't doing bad shit, but still use it correctly, it can give decent rewards. It's not a panacea.
Mullvad might sell shit, they might have a back door, there may even be other backdoors they are unaware of in certain protocols they use. It's a trust based system, and you take things on balance. If you trust no one, none of the time, then don't use the fucking internet.
For anyone who cares, ProtonVPN actually implemented beta support for WireGuard. Finally, my biggest issue with ProtonVPN is now addressed. Now let's see how well this baby stacks up against Mullvad.
I have heard some not great things about Proton. I know they sold a lot of people out at the drop of a hat (whiff of a court order) and that many people I respect advise against using them. But maybe I got that wrong. It's not a company I would advise people to use. Though I use a couple of their 'free' email addresses. VPN is another matter.
Surfshark -
https://surfshark.com/
I have heard great things about. But I also forget from where. They might be shit. Use your discretion, do your own homework. I'll probably try them out as a second VPN on the windows 7 box to transition from Mullvad. I also use other VPN's but not gonna PL more.
Btw, Mullvad support is short and terse but does exist. You can even send them money to pay for your account in cash to their offices in Sweden and they will credit your account (you create an anonymous ID on your computer and then slip it in on a bit of paper with the money - or something like that). Crypto does seem a good way to go and a good reason to try it out.
You can even set up Virtual Machines in windows of Linux Distros and then install the Mullvad client on there and get discrete IP addresses, all on the one box. I think they allow a max of 3 connections though that might be 5 now, not sure. It's a good robust solution if you have a bit of trust and know what you are doing. It's a few bucks a month so it doesn't break the bank either. It's handy to have an account if you mess with different OS like windows 7 and windows 10 and various distros of Linux.
