Algo VPN is a set of Ansible scripts that simplifies the setup of a personal IPSEC VPN. It contains the most secure defaults available, works with common cloud providers, and does not require client software on most devices.
* Does not claim to protect you from the [FSB](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_Security_Service), [MSS](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ministry_of_State_Security_(China)), [DGSE](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Directorate-General_for_External_Security), or [FSM](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flying_Spaghetti_Monster)
1. Setup an account on a cloud hosting provider. Algo supports [DigitalOcean](https://www.digitalocean.com/) (most user friendly), [Amazon EC2](https://aws.amazon.com/), [Google Compute Engine](https://cloud.google.com/compute/), and [Microsoft Azure](https://azure.microsoft.com/).
3. Install Algo's core dependencies for your operating system. To do this, open the Terminal app and `cd` into the directory where you downloaded Algo, then run:
4. Install Algo's remaining dependencies for your operating system. Using the same terminal window as the previous step and run the command below. If you're on macOS, this may prompt you to install `cc` which you should accept.
5. Open `config.cfg` in your favorite text editor. Specify the users you wish to create in the `users` list.
6. Start the deployment. Return to your terminal. In the Algo directory, run `./algo` and follow the instructions. There are several optional features available. None are required for a fully functional VPN server. These optional features are described in greater detail in [ROLES.md](docs/ROLES.md).
That's it! You will get the message below when the server deployment process completes. You now have an Algo server on the internet. Take note of the p12 (user certificate) password in case you need it later.
You can now setup clients to connect it, e.g. your iPhone or laptop. Proceed to [Configure the VPN Clients](https://github.com/trailofbits/algo#configure-the-vpn-clients) below.
Note: If you want to run Algo again at any point in the future, you must first "reactivate" the dependencies for it. To reactivate them, open your terminal, use `cd` to navigate to the directory with Algo, then run `source env/bin/activate`.
Advanced users who want to install Algo on top of a server they already own or want to script the deployment of Algo onto a network of servers, please see the [Advanced Usage](/docs/ADVANCED.md) documentation.
Certificates and configuration files that users will need are placed in the `configs` directory. Make sure to secure these files since many contain private keys. All files are prefixed with the IP address of your new Algo VPN server.
Find the corresponding mobileconfig (Apple Profile) for each user and send it to them over AirDrop or other secure means. Apple Configuration Profiles are all-in-one configuration files for iOS and macOS devices. On macOS, double-clicking a profile to install it will fully configure the VPN. On iOS, users are prompted to install the profile as soon as the AirDrop is accepted.
You need to install the [StrongSwan VPN Client for Android 4 and newer](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.strongswan.android) because no version of Android supports IKEv2. Import the corresponding user.p12 certificate to your device. See the [Android setup instructions](/docs/ANDROID.md) for more detailed steps.
Copy the CA certificate, user certificate, and the user PowerShell script to the client computer. Import the CA certificate to the local machine Trusted Root certificate store. Then, run the included PowerShell script to import the user certificate, set up a VPN connection, and activate stronger ciphers on it.
If you want to perform these steps by hand, you will need to import the user certificate to the Personal certificate store, add an IKEv2 connection in the network settings, then activate stronger ciphers on it via the following PowerShell script:
Install strongSwan, then copy the included user_ipsec.conf, user_ipsec.secrets, user.crt (user certificate), and user.key (private key) files to your client device. These may require some customization based on your exact use case. These files were originally generated with a point-to-point OpenWRT-based VPN in mind.
If you turned on the optional SSH tunneling role, then local user accounts will be created for each user in `config.cfg` and an SSH authorized_key files for them will be in the `configs` directory (user.ssh.pem). SSH user accounts do not have shell access, cannot authenticate with a password, and only have limited tunneling options (e.g., `ssh -N` is required). This is done to ensure that SSH users have the least access required to tunnel through the server and can perform no other actions.
Use the example command below to start an SSH tunnel by replacing `user` and `ip` with your own. Once the tunnel is setup, you can configure a browser or other application to use 127.0.0.1:1080 as a SOCKS proxy to route traffic through the Algo server.
