How to install a VPN on Ubuntu

Our app officially supports Ubuntu 20.04 LTS. Users of our old community Linux app are advised to uninstall it before installing the new app. Instructions for doing this can be found in the notes section at the end of this article.

1. Get the DEB setup package for the ProtonVPN repository

Download the ProtonVPN DEB package

2. Install the ProtonVPN repo

Double-click downloaded DEB package to install the repo using your default package manager. 

3. Update the apt-get package list

Open Terminal and enter the command:

sudo apt-get update

4. Install the ProtonVPN Linux app

Last step! Enter:

sudo apt-get install protonvpn

Linux system tray icon

Our Linux app can show a system tray icon that stays active when you close the main ProtonVPN window and allows you to easily Quick Connect or Disconnect.

To install the system tray icon, open Terminal and enter:

sudo apt install gnome-shell-extension-appindicator gir1.2-appindicator3-0.1

You might be asked to select your default displays manager. If you are unsure which it is, enter the following command into a new terminal window to find out:

grep '/usr/s\?bin' /etc/systemd/system/display-manager.service

Restart your system.

Once installed, simply log in with your Proton account credentials. If you do not yet have an account, you can sign up for a Free ProtonVPN plan for Linux.

ProtonVPN is now ready to use.

Learn how to use the ProtonVPN Linux app

Notes

1. Uninstall the official app

To uninstall the official app:

sudo apt-get autoremove protonvpn

Remove any leftover files:

rm -rf ~/.cache/protonvpn

And

rm -rf ~/.config/protonvpn

2. Uninstall the older community ProtonVPN app

To uninstall the older community ProtonVPN app, run:

protonvpn configure

Select option 7) Purge Configuration. Then uninstall through the package manager you used for installation. If the package is installed system-wide, use the command:

sudo pip3 uninstall protonvpn-cli

If not, then use:

pip3 uninstall protonvpn-cli

3. Disable Kill Switch if you have uninstalled the app

The Kill Switch can be easily disabled from within the official Linux app, but this will not be possible if you uninstalled the app first without disabling the Kill Switch. This may result in your system being unable to access the internet. To remove the Kill Switch after the app has been uninstalled:

a) Identify ProtonVPN connection names by running the command:

nmcli connection show --active

This will display a list of all your system’s active connections.

b) Look for any connections with the pvpn- This usually includes pvpn-killswitch and pvpn-ipv6leak-protection, and may include pvpn-routed-killswitch. Delete all these connections using the following command:

nmcli connection delete [connection name]

For example:

nmcli connection delete pvpn-killswitch

c) Re-run the following command to verify that ProtonVPN connections have been deleted:

nmcli connection show --active

If any ProtonVPN connections remain, delete them as described above.

4. Required dependencies

Our Linux app needs one of the following dependencies installed in order to work. Installing both of these dependencies is not recommended as it may cause problems:

• KWallet or
• Gnome-keyring

Note that most distros come pre-installed with one of these dependencies, so usually no additional configuration is required. Also required is:

• systemd

5. Try out the early release version of this app

The early access version of our Linux app gives you access to new features before they are released publicly, but it is still in development. By using the early access version and sharing your feedback, you can help us find and address bugs. If you would like to install the early access version instead of the stable release of this app, please see here.