There are a few reasons why you may be having problems connecting to the NordVPN server network. While this doesn’t happen often (and, if it hasn’t yet, it may never happen to you), some people, especially when they start using NordVPN for the first time, experience connectivity problems.
NordVPN Connection Problems—Causes and Solutions
Connectivity problems can be caused by a few different things, such as—
- An issue with your account;
- The NordVPN app’s settings;
- A problem with the server or NordVPN network; or
- Your machine’s own network settings.
We are going to cover all these in this article and discuss how you can remedy a NordVPN connectivity problem.
NordVPN Not Connecting? Try These First
Before you scroll down and start trying out some of the more advanced and technical fixes, eliminate these potential causes first.
“Have you tried turning it off and back on again?”
We shouldn’t have to tell you that you should first restart your computer. We’re going to assume the following steps are for the people who have done this first.
1. Log out and log back in
The first thing you should do is try logging out and back into your account. Since you need a valid and active NordVPN account in-order to connect to and use the service, sometimes the two can become unhinged from one another which prevents server connections—logging out and back in again fixes this.
2. Try a few different NordVPN servers
Try connecting to several different countries and different locations within these countries to see which, if any, will work. If you are able to connect to all but one or two servers, it is likely there is a problem with the NordVPN server(s) you were trying to connect to.
A deep-rooted connectivity problem will stop you connecting to NordVPN across the board, not just one or two servers.
3. Try out NordVPN on a different device
If you cannot connect to any NordVPN servers on your original device, try it out on another such as your smartphone or tablet. NordVPN has native apps for both Android and iOS, meaning you can download the NordVPN app, sign in, and test it out in a matter of seconds.
If you are able to connect on a different device, chances are there is a problem with your first device. If you can’t then there may be an issue with your NordVPN account or home network.
4. Try a different connection method
Finally, you can try changing the protocol that NordVPN is using to connect to servers. Open up the app and navigate to ‘Settings’ and scroll down to ‘Show advanced settings’ at the bottom.
Once you are in advanced settings, look for ‘Protocol’ (the first option in the extended menu) and switch it to a different one (e.g. TCP to UDP) before trying to connect again.
Still Unable to Connect
If none of these have worked, there may be an underlying problem either with your account or the app you are using. There are two more things you can do before we dive into the more technical attempts at fixing NordVPN connectivity problems.
1. Check your account settings
Log in to the NordVPN website and head to ‘My Account’. Double check that you have an active subscription (we all make mistakes sometimes and forget to renew things or update payment information!) because if you don’t, you won’t be able to use the NordVPN service.
If you’re seeing red here, it means your subscription has expired and your NordVPN account is no longer active. Renew to regain access.
2. Reset the NordVPN app
Open up the NordVPN app (on a desktop) and click ‘Settings’ then scroll down to ‘Show advanced settings’ once again. This time, you will need to find ‘Diagnostics’ and then click ‘Run Diagnostics Tool’.
When you do this, a box will open with several options.
Click ‘Reset app’ and let it work its magic.
Once again, try connecting to NordVPN.
Is NordVPN Still Not Connecting?
If so, the problem is likely being caused by your own network settings rather than NordVPN. Luckily, there is only a couple of easy to fix problems that can cause NordVPN connection problems and we are going to hit them all at once using Windows command prompt.
It’s very easy to do and, don’t worry, it won’t harm your computer (even if command prompt does look a little bit intimidating!)
1. Open command prompt as an administrator
To do this, press your START key and type in “cmd” then right-click the “Command Prompt” app. A small menu will appear, press “Run as administrator”.
Command prompt looks like this—
2. Run commands to reset your network settings
When it launches, type in all of these commands one after the other.
netsh winsock reset
netsh interface ipv4 reset
netsh interface ipv6 reset
netsh winsock reset catalog
netsh int ipv4 reset reset.log
netsh int ipv6 reset reset.log
ipconfig /release
ipconfig /flushdns
ipconfig /renew
All these commands are 100 percent harmless and simply flush your network’s cache. You will see feedback like this—
It is all completely normal.
Make sure you type the commands in exactly as shown above so that they execute properly. When you have done all of that, restart your computer and try connecting to NordVPN again.
Still Having Problems? Time to Call Help
In the very unlikely (we want to say virtually impossible) likelihood that you still cannot connect to NordVPN after doing all of the above, we recommend running diagnostics again and sending them along to NordVPN.
Re-open NordVPN’s ‘Settings’ page and scroll back down to the ‘Run Diagnostics Tool’ section. When the window opens this time, click ‘Collect diagnostics’ and wait.
The diagnostics tool may take a few minutes to do its job.
When it has finished, NordVPN will give you a reference number that you can contact customer support with either through email or the live chat.
This reference number will enable NordVPN’s customer support team to find your diagnostics information that is automatically sent to NordVPN by the app and provide you with technical assistance.
We recommend contacting the live chat team first, this eliminates the need to wait around for an email response when your problem could be fixed there and then.
All of the fixes above, in total, takes less than 10 minutes to do on your own. Contacting help should be your last resort since it can take some time for the support team to get back to you (and you back to them, vice versa, etc.).
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