How does VPN work?

Tech Department from http://ip-locations.org/ explains how does VPN work.

Once you start the VPN client and connect to the VPN server, the client will begin encrypting all traffic you send to the server. Once the client establishes a connection to the server, your IP address will be replaced with the server address

The server then decrypts all the data it receives from you, and forwards your connection requests to the site you want to see. Once the server receives the requested data (such as a web page), it encrypts the data and forwards it to the client. When the VPN client on your device receives traffic, it decrypts it for you.

Want to learn more about how VPNs work? Then take a look at our comprehensive guide on the subject.

What is a VPN server?

A VPN server is a physical or virtual device that VPN services use to provide their services to users. They do this by installing a VPN program on the server. Some VPN vendors have their own physical servers, but most of them rent servers with a good level of security in proven data centers. Physical VPN servers are a bit more popular than virtual servers, and when properly configured they can be just as secure.

What is a VPN client?

A VPN client is software that is installed on a device and used to connect to a VPN server. They are responsible for encrypting the traffic that you send to the server and decrypting all the data that you receive from the server. Most VPN clients also have additional features, such as allowing you to switch between VPN protocols, select different ports and enable/disable additional features (such as Kill Switch emergency disconnection).

It is important to distinguish between built-in VPN clients and third-party clients. The former are native software, which can be built into your operating system by default (e.g. VPN client in Windows 10). The second option is the software that you receive from VPN service providers.