At my workplace, simply connecting to the WiFi isn’t sufficient. You need to configure it by changing the WiFi proxy setting to a particular designated server.
When I install a VPN app on my Android, or use the chrome extension Hola on the computer, I am unable to access the internet.
Now, I’ve identified 2 possible reasons:
Having a VPN overrides the proxy setting and thus internet access is cut off.
Having a VPN DOESN’T override the proxy, traffic is routed to the proxy server before going to the VPN server. However, the network is configured to block VPN traffic.
I’ve been trying to find information on this and I found a few articles that suggest it’s #1. But I can’t be sure.
It’s actually a third. The VPN prevents access to the proxy server, but depending on how you’ve configured the proxy. It is still looking for it and failing. I can’t help you fix this or bypass it as depending on interpretations of the rules you could be a bad guy.
It’s fine, I’ll just switch to mobile data for blocked sites. I’m asking more out of curiosity than need.
Wait… If the VPN is preventing access to the proxy, isn’t it reason #1? That the VPN is prioritized over the proxy, and so traffic is routed to the VPN?
Ah I see. Thanks! I think I have the mental image figured out.
The network is actually not connected to the Internet but rather only one server - the proxy. So whatever requests (e.g. google.com) is routed to the proxy server, which retrieves the data and transmits it back to the device.
Thus VPNs don’t work because in order to connect to the VPN servers, internet access is required. But the network can only connect to a single server - the proxy.