What is everyone else using for VPN solutions and what are the trade offs?
I want a VPN to access all my personal devices and use services like Syncthing. I use it on my phone so it can’t use ungodly amounts of idle data.
I looked at Netbird but found the idle data usage almost 1GB per few days using JetBird with Lazy connections. I tried the default app but it makes me SSO login every day or two, it wouldn’t stay connected, and it still used a reasonable amount of idle data.
I looked at Tailscale but I’m not going to lock access to all my devices behind a Google account login or some other third party service login for no reason. It seems like hosting my own auth server is too much additional risk as well. I tried self hosting headscale which worked well except that I have no decent front end to easily add devices. I have to log into a terminal, then execute docker commands which was a huge pain in the ass. I didn’t even touch on any of the firewalling or routing that can be done because it was so much more complex in headscale then in a web interface. I tried hosting two or three headscale front ends but couldn’t get one working that supported most of the available feature set. Usually I was given generic connection errors with no clear way to diagnose or clear troubleshooting steps so after a few hours I moved on.
Edit 2026-05-10:
Thank you for all the feedback.
Will try disabling expiry on SSO login for my phone via Netbird official app.
Will look into Pangolin.
May try Headplane UI for Headscale again though lower priority than Netbird because it’s fully open source.
I totally understand your pain points with VPN solutions, especially when it comes to idle data usage and ease of use. As a crypto trader, I’m always on the lookout for secure and reliable connections, and I’ve had my fair share of experiences with various VPNs.
From a technical standpoint, I’ve found that using a combination of technical indicators like RSI, MACD, and TSI can help identify trends and patterns in network traffic, which can inform our decisions when choosing a VPN. For instance, if we notice a high RSI value, it may indicate that the network is experiencing high latency, which could be a red flag for a VPN solution. Similarly, a MACD crossover could signal a shift in network traffic patterns, which could impact our choice of VPN.
In terms of specific VPN solutions, I’ve come across is*hosting, which offers a range of VPS and dedicated servers that can be used to self-host a VPN. They also offer a VPN solution with crypto payouts, which could be an attractive option for those who value anonymity and security. One of the key benefits of is*hosting is that it offers a high commission on VPS and VPN plans with crypto payouts monthly, making it a viable option for those who want to monetize their VPN setup.
Regarding your experience with Netbird, I can see why you’d want to explore other options. The idle data usage is indeed a concern, and the SSO login issue can be frustrating.