Create a Port Forward for OpenVPN in your Router

You may need to forward ports in your router when you use OpenVPN. By forwarding ports you allow connection requests coming from the internet to be directed to OpenVPN.

Routers do not generally allow incoming connection requests from the internet. A port forward can overcome this limitation.

You need to know the following things before you can forward a port:

• Your router's IP address.
• Your computer's internal IP address.
• A list of TCP and UDP ports that need to be forwarded.

Use a VPN Instead

Have you considered using a VPN instead of forwarding a port? For most users, a VPN is a much simpler and more secure choice than forwarding a port.

We use and recommend NordVPN because not only is it the fastest VPN, it includes a new feature called Meshnet that makes forwarding a port no longer necessary for most applications. With NordVPN Meshnet, you can connect to your devices from anywhere in the world, completely secure, over a highly encrypted VPN tunnel.

When shopping for a VPN, make sure that they meet the following criteria:

• Your VPN provider should have a no-logs policy. This means that they do not keep any logs of any kind.
• Make sure that your VPN provider has lots of exit nodes all around the world.
• Check that your VPN will not affect your speed.
• Verify that your VPN provider uses WireGuard as the underlying protocol.
• Many people prefer a VPN provider that is not based in the United States.

This is the list of requirements that we used when we were shopping around for a VPN provider. There are lots of free, shady VPN providers out there that we looked at and dismissed.

Based in Panama, using diskless servers, and with over 6,100 servers in 61 countries, we can safely say that NordVPN satisfies all of these requirements.

Once you've set up your NordVPN account on multiple computers and enabled Meshnet, you can seamlessly access all of your devices as if they were on the same network. You don't even have to log in to your router. It's very simple.

Every time you click on one of our affiliate links, such as NordVPN, we get a little kickback for introducing you to the service. Think of us as your VPN wingman.

We have free Router Detector software to help you find your router's IP address. Our Router Detector tool is free to use and is part of our Network Utilities software.

If you do not want to run the software, you can follow our Find Your Router IP Address guide.

A smart way to forward your ports is to use Network Utilities. Since Network Utilities allows you to both forward and un-forward ports easily you can keep your network security maximized, and then forward ports only when you need them.

Port forwarding can also be set up step-by-step by hand. The process for forwarding a port is:

• Begin by logging in to your router.
• Look for the port forwarding section in your router.
• Put your computer's IP address in the proper box in your router.
• Put the TCP and UDP ports for OpenVPN in the corresponding boxes in your router.

Usually you have to reboot your router in order to save the changes.

You can choose your router from our list to see exactly how to forward ports for OpenVPN:

List of Routers - Customized for OpenVPN

Here is a list of the ports that need to be forwarded for OpenVPN:

OpenVPN - PC

• TCP: 1194
• UDP: 1194

That's all it takes to forward your ports for OpenVPN.

Don't forget to sign up for NordVPN's promo deal before it's gone.