The fact that VPN connections and private virtual networks are used everywhere today is probably not worth reminding. However, few people know how to disable VPN not only in different operating systems and applications, but also on different devices. That is why many users should fill such a knowledge gap. As an additional material, a solution will be presented to ensure the security of VPN connections, which can sometimes be useful.
How to disable VPN in different systems, applications and devices: general information
In general, if you look at it, almost all decisions to deactivate a VPN connection can be conditionally reduced to several basic methods.
So, for example, on any mobile device or in a Windows environment, just click on the disconnect button from the Network. For a more complete solution to the question of “how to disconnect a VPN”, you can use more cardinal methods related to removing a connection or a connection that was remembered by a mobile device. But these are only general principles. Next, consider the most common situations in which VPN deactivation may be required.
How to disable VPN on Windows systems in the tenth modification
And first of all, we will consider the method of deactivating the connection in stationary systems, and as an example we take the tenth modification, since its tools are much wider than the predecessor systems.
So, as already mentioned, the simplest thing is to click on the VPN connection icon in the system tray and select disconnect from the menu.
A similar result can be obtained if you enter either the network connection section in the classic “Control Panel” or use the corresponding options menu items for this.
But it also happens that disconnecting a VPN is not enough - you also need to get rid of the created connection. There is nothing easier. In the network connections section, when you call the context menu through RMB on the selected connection, you must use not disconnection, but deletion. Exactly the same actions are performed in VPN profiles.
Disabling VPN in browsers
As for browsers in which the VPN client is preinstalled, then everything is simple. For example, in the same Opera, the VPN icon is located to the left of the address bar in the main panel.
First, the client menu is called up with a left click, and then the activity slider is set to the off position.
How to disable VPN in Yandex browser? Nothing too complicated, either. The essence of the question is to deactivate the extensions and additions installed as a VPN client (Hola, ZenMate, etc.). Since they, like the client of "Opera", put their icons on the main panel, just click on them to change the status. To completely get rid of them, in the extensions section installed add-ons you just need to remove.
VPN deactivation on mobile devices
In mobile devices to create a VPN connection of this type, you can use either the built-in tools of the system itself or additional applets. Again, as in the case of Windows, you can limit yourself to the usual shutdown or deactivation of installed applications (or their complete removal).
This is all for general removal actions. Now let's see how to disable VPN on iPhone. First you need to enter the main settings section and select a network. In the next window, select the connection to be deleted, enter its settings and tap on the corresponding button.
On Android devices, when uninstalling, you can use the additional option “Forget this network” to get rid of all saved configuration data. This approach is applicable in situations when there are problems with virtual networks, in particular, with regard to connection errors.
DNS VPN Leak Prevention
How to disable VPN in different situations, figured out. Now a few words about one of the most important issues, which is not directly related to the topic under discussion, but plays a key role in ensuring the security of the created connections.
The problem here is that creating a VPN connection in Windows is easy. But there is no reason to hope that all encrypted traffic will be completely secure. The main problem is that the system activates Smart Multi-Homed Name Resolution technology, which uses all available network adapters installed in the system, which allows you to speed up DNS queries. It is precisely they that can be transmitted outside a secure connection.
The easiest method to disable this service is to use group policies (gpedit in the Run console). In the editor, you need to find the corresponding disconnect component, go into editing settings (double-click or RMB menu) and set the status to “Enabled”. Do not be confused, because here the included state in the parameters corresponds to the deactivation of the selected component. After that, you must save the changes and reboot.
Brief summary
In principle, questions about how to disable a VPN in completely different situations can be considered exhausted. By and large, everything that was written above can be put into one phrase: "You can either disconnect the VPN, but leave the connection intact for future use, or delete it completely."
As for disabling DNS leaks, knowledge of the algorithm for solving this problem is useful only if the VPN connection is not deleted, but will be used in the future. Agree, but many did not even know about this, but did not assume that such a function was activated by default in Windows. The idea seems to be quite good (query acceleration), but the implementation leaves much to be desired.