Troubleshooting VPN Connection Failures on Android Tablets

Android tablets have a small bug that causes them to fail to connect to a VPN after being set up, resulting in the failure to bypass internet restrictions.

I encountered this problem yesterday and searched online for a long time without finding a solution. In the end, I solved it using a crooked trick.

Using the built-in VPN won't work (the specific reason is probably a system issue, and this problem only exists on tablets; it seems to be possible after Android 3.0). Using software-based VPNs works on the same principle, so it won't work either.

Since that's the case, let's try my unorthodox method. The principle is simple: let the computer access the internet and set up a VPN, then share the network with the tablet, allowing it to use the computer's VPN. The specific steps are as follows:

1. Get your computer online and use a static IP address, such as 192.168.0.100 (this IP address is for the tablet to use the computer's VPN network instead of the router's network). Then, set up a VPN on your computer and connect (you can find free VPNs online).

2. Enable Wi-Fi sharing. For detailed instructions, please refer to my previous blog post: How to share your laptop's WLAN network with your mobile phone.

3. Right-click the VPN, select Properties, click Sharing, share the network with Wi-Fi, and restart your computer to share the network.

4. Connect your tablet to your computer's Wi-Fi network.

I tried it myself and succeeded!