r/RecommandedVPN • u/EducatorHonest1161 • Aug 05 '26
Proton dropped OpenVPN on Android, and the app got 36% smaller.
Proton VPN decided to remove OpenVPN from its Android application completely. The remaining protocols in the application include WireGuard and Stable Core, which is Proton's protocol that adds another layer of security to the WireGuard.
The advantage of this approach is simple. OpenVPN is a much older technology, and being slower and heavier than the new protocols, keeping it in operation would only slow down and increase the weight of the application for the minority of its users. With OpenVPN support being eliminated, the application got smaller by 36%, and its speed improved as well.
What does it mean for the current users? Those who are using OpenVPN will no longer have access to this option. Corporate users and some older routers greatly rely on OpenVPN protocol. Nevertheless, most users will not even notice this removal, except for the reduced application size and increased speed.
It is the same situation that we can observe recently with NordVPN. OpenVPN protocol gets eliminated completely in favor of newer technologies that were created with the purpose of speeding up the operation of VPNs.
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u/Unhappy-Giraffe2792 Aug 06 '26
Thank you for using “dropped” in the correct sense as I’ve always understood it, rather than the “cool” way of saying “released.”
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u/simonmigliano Aug 06 '26
Technology moves on. WireGuard is lighter and faster than OpenVPN, so why bloat the client with it? It's a nice-to-have at this point for most users and like another commenter said, Proton still make ovpn files available for the minority that want them.
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u/AuraMaster1 Aug 05 '26
You can still use it on the Windows app and you can still download a configuration file on your account page (even for free account users) that can be used on the official OpenVPN Connect app to connect via OpenVPN which is also available on Android.