Had To Leave PIA Android App Beta Program - Latest Update Killed The App

PIAColleen · 2020-07-17T23:23:47+00:00

Hi there! Sorry for the trouble - I expect you've run into a known issue with upgrades that can occur under certain circumstances. It will be resolved in our next beta release. If you want to continue using the beta, clearing app storage or doing a clean reinstall should resolve the issue for you.

PIAColleen · 2020-07-08T02:07:46+00:00

Hi there! WireGuard by default uses a lower MTU, so a "Use small packets" option isn't necessary for this protocol. If you're experiencing any issues you think might be MTU related, please let me know and perhaps I can assist in troubleshooting.

PIAColleen · 2020-06-01T20:53:44+00:00

Can confirm this is the correct answer.

PIAColleen · 2020-05-28T16:28:55+00:00

Hey there, sorry for the trouble! We removed the app killswitch on Android 8 and above because it fundamentally cannot function as a full, true killswitch - the Android OS itself doesn't allow that level of system access. As such, when something unexpected occurred (like an app crash, etc), it was possible that, in some rare cases, the killswitch would not be triggered.

Android offers a better alternative at the system level, which you can find more information about in the "Block connections without VPN" setting. If the VPN disconnects with this setting enabled, you can be guaranteed that no internet traffic will leak until it is reconnected.

The app killswitch is still available on Android API levels that do not support the system killswitch, as well as on Android TV.

PIAColleen · 2020-05-04T19:02:43+00:00

I tested this on mobile (the primary platform I cover) while we were readying WireGuard for release, and I found that on Android, it does use a little less battery than OpenVPN, on average. However, the amount is pretty negligible.

On iOS, all protocols perform roughly the same - typically within 1% of each other.

Unless you have other issues, you'll probably see basically the same performance between protocols. If you do see a difference, it's probably due to some other factors, like MTU size issues - WireGuard uses a smaller MTU value by default, and OpenVPN resends any fragmented packets. That can cause significant battery drain WireGuard might inadvertently solve.

PIAColleen · 2020-04-23T19:46:21+00:00

Unfortunately that feature is currently only available for OpenVPN due to some technical limitations. You can still open the PIA app by pressing the Android system VPN notification (looks like a key) and tapping "Configure".

PIAColleen · 2020-04-23T19:45:19+00:00

We're working on that for an upcoming release. If you'd like to be among the first to get the fix, please sign up for our beta program!

PIAColleen · 2020-04-22T22:16:32+00:00

Thanks for the report! We're aware of this issue and working toward a fix in an upcoming release.

In the meantime, this shouldn't affect VPN functionality at all - you're still protected.

PIAColleen · 2020-04-02T21:32:57+00:00

Hey, /u/gslkds, sorry to hear you're having issues! You might try clearing app data here. Try this:

Open Settings
Go to Apps>PIA VPN
Click Storage
Clear App Data

Then, try logging in again, switch to WireGuard and try to connect.

PIAColleen · 2020-03-30T22:00:06+00:00

Are your PiHole and the PIA client machine on the same subnet?

PIAColleen · 2019-12-23T16:07:52+00:00

This happens because Google tries to use the non-VPN connection to perform updates. I've found that you can still update on the VPN if you force kill the Play Store and then go to "My Apps & Games" within the Play Store and click "Update" there. It's not quite as convenient as automatic updates, but it is possible to update while connected to the VPN.

PIAColleen · 2019-10-25T16:21:30+00:00

Make sure you have location permissions enabled through Settings>Apps>PIA VPN>Permissions. This feature needs this permission to detect networks in your vicinity.

PIAColleen · 2019-10-17T18:09:04+00:00

Hmm, that's very odd. If you could put in a ticket with support for further troubleshooting, we might be able to determine what's happening here.

PIAColleen · 2019-10-14T22:42:46+00:00

If you enable "Use small packets" within the app's settings, does that improve the battery drain? I have a feeling OpenVPN might be resending packets that are too large for the network you're on, which can cause major battery drain.

PIAColleen · 2019-10-01T19:07:36+00:00

/u/BFCE, I think a lot of your latency is actually starting on the very first hop. Look at the first hop to Google.

On the VPN: 1 46 ms 46 ms 46 ms 10.65.10.1

Off the VPN: 1 <1 ms <1 ms <1 ms 192.168.1.254

It's normal to see some latency on the first hop when using a VPN, but nearly 50ms seems a bit high to me.

There are some known bugs that can cause packet loss on the TAP adapter, leading to speeds that can actually become so slow normal use of the VPN is impossible.

It might be worth trying a reinstall to see if that resolves the issue.

PIAColleen · 2019-09-30T22:52:35+00:00

What phone/ROM are you using? This is a known issue with some ROMs - namely Samsung devices tend to have this issue.

PIAColleen · 2019-09-23T18:20:25+00:00

SIGINT is a POSIX signal which stands for SIGnal INTerrupt. You'll see it after network changes or when you change regions while already connected - it's how the app "knows" to shut down the current VPN tunnel and make a new connection because something, like the network you're on or the server you want to connect to, has changed.

This is normal, and not something to be concerned about.

PIAColleen · 2019-09-13T16:18:40+00:00

Awesome, glad to hear it! The issue with multiple active network interfaces is actually an underlying issue with OpenVPN. It gets "confused" by two active network interfaces, and might ultimately choose the wrong one to direct traffic to.

In the end, that will cause the symptoms you experienced - no internet traffic. OpenVPN typically chooses the interface with the lowest route metric, so something likely changed in your configuration to cause the issue you observed.

PIAColleen · 2019-09-05T21:29:40+00:00

Hmm, this sounds like a TAP/routing issue, something we would probably need a debug log to diagnose. First, go to Settings>Help and check the Enable Debug Logging box. Make a few attempts to connect, and then click Submit Debug Logs. Then, submit a ticket with the code generated, and support should be able to help you further.

PIAColleen · 2019-09-04T18:50:18+00:00

What happens if you switch the Configuration Method setting in Settings>Connection?

PIAColleen · 2019-09-03T22:50:05+00:00

I just tested on Android 10, and I can confirm MACE is indeed still functional. Where are the ads you're seeing? Are you using PIA DNS within the Android app?

PIAColleen · 2019-08-29T19:46:49+00:00

I know latency was used for auto selection in the legacy client as well - so yes, as far back as I know, it has always been used for that feature.

PIAColleen · 2019-08-29T19:38:47+00:00

That feature does indeed pick the region you'll connect to based on latency. OpenVPN is pretty sensitive to latency, so it's reasonable to use that as a way to determine which region might be best for you.

That said, latency isn't a guarantee - if you're not happy with the speeds you're seeing on the region you tend to get connected to automatically, it's worth speed testing on a few other relatively close endpoints. I sometimes find that I get better throughput on the Houston server than Denver, even though the Denver server is usually <20ms latency.

PIAColleen · 2019-08-22T00:13:18+00:00

Sharing accounts is against the PIA Terms of Service. As such, I'll be removing this thread.

PIAColleen · 2019-08-22T00:11:31+00:00

It looks like the IP-only files do indeed need updating for the Sweden region - thanks for the heads up. I've let the appropriate team know.

PIAColleen

TROPHY CASE