Hotspot Shield with Ubuntu

Posted Tue, 2009-02-10 by Markus Thielmann

Hotspot Shield is a free VPN service with a Microsoft Windows and MacOSX client. Recently, AnchorFree Inc released an iPhone VPN service too. Based on this service, it's possible to use Hotspot Shield with Ubuntu.

This might be of some interest for user who are not located in the USA. Since Hotspot Shield offers a US-based endpoint, you might want to use it for services currently unreachable due to geolocation measures.

The service uses L2TP (without IPSEC). Funny enough, this seems to be the worst supported protocol on Ubuntu, when it comes to easy configuration. Neither Network-Manager, nor KVpnc do support a simple setup.

If you're willing to use the terminal and a text editor, here's how you do it:

Before you configure your local computer, visit the Hotspot Shield for iPhone Website. Click on "Get Account ID" and save the information you're getting. In fact, you'll only need you username/password and the server IP. Don't forget to replace these credentials while editing the xl2tpd config as follows:

1) Install xl2tpd

sudo apt-get install xl2tpd

2) Edit /etc/xl2tpd/xl2tpd.conf and add

[lac hotspotshield]
lns = HotSpotShieldServerIP
require chap = yes
refuse pap = yes
require authentication = yes
; Name should be the same as the username in the PPP authentication!
name = YourHotSpotShieldUsername
ppp debug = yes
pppoptfile = /etc/ppp/options.l2tpd.client
length bit = yes

3) Create /etc/ppp/options.l2tpd.client with the following content

ipcp-accept-local
ipcp-accept-remote
refuse-eap
noccp
noauth
crtscts
idle 1800
mtu 1410
mru 1410
nodefaultroute
debug
lock
connect-delay 5000

4) Edit /etc/xl2tpd/l2tp-secrets, /etc/ppp/chap-secrets and /etc/ppp/pap-secrets, add

"YourHotSpotShieldUsername" HotSpotShieldServerIP "YourHotSpotShieldUsername"

5) Start the deamon

sudo /etc/init.d/xl2tpd start

6) Connect to HotSpot Shield

sudo su
echo "c hotspotshield" > /var/run/xl2tpd/l2tp-control
route add -net 0.0.0.0 dev ppp0

7) Disconnect from HotSpot Shield

sudo su
echo "c hotspotshield" > /var/run/xl2tpd/l2tp-control

If you're running AdBlock Plus, you might notice some empty space on top of every page you're visiting. That's the HotSpot Shield advertising bar, which shows random commercial to finance their service. So either disable Firefox to allow AnchorFree to continue the service, or add "http://box.anchorfree.net/*" to your rule set.

Markus Thielmann's blog

Comments

I'v got this error after

by simon - 2009-03-20

I'v got this error after running xl2tpd -D :

xl2tpd[29609]: init_network: Unable to bind socket: Address already in use. Terminating.

Stop xl2tpd (sudo

by Kam - 2009-03-20

Stop xl2tpd (sudo /etc/init.d/xl2tpd stop) then run daemon again (xl2tpd -D).

xl2tpd[10891]: setsockopt

by Anonymous - 2009-03-21

xl2tpd[10891]: setsockopt recvref: Protocol not available
xl2tpd[10891]: L2TP kernel support not detected.
xl2tpd[10891]: open_controlfd: Unable to open /var/run/xl2tpd/l2tp-control for reading.

I have the same error, any

by Anonymous - 2009-09-15

I have the same error, any luck on how to fix it?

when i connect to hotspot

by Anonymous - 2009-03-20

when i connect to hotspot shield it gives me :

sumerian@sumerian-laptop:~$ sudo su
[sudo] password for sumerian:
root@sumerian-laptop:/home/sumerian# sudo /etc/init.d/xl2tpd start
Starting xl2tpd: root@sumerian-laptop:/home/sumerian# sudo su
root@sumerian-laptop:/home/sumerian# echo "c hotspotshield" > /var/run/xl2tpd/l2tp-control
root@sumerian-laptop:/home/sumerian# route add -net 0.0.0.0 dev ppp0
SIOCADDRT: No such device
root@sumerian-laptop:/home/sumerian#

xl2tpd -D:

root@sumerian-laptop:/home/sumerian# sudo /etc/init.d/xl2tpd stop
Stopping xl2tpd: xl2tpd.
root@sumerian-laptop:/home/sumerian# xl2tpd -D
xl2tpd[12702]: setsockopt recvref: Protocol not available
xl2tpd[12702]: L2TP kernel support not detected.
xl2tpd[12702]: xl2tpd version xl2tpd-1.2.0 started on sumerian-laptop PID:12702
xl2tpd[12702]: Written by Mark Spencer, Copyright (C) 1998, Adtran, Inc.
xl2tpd[12702]: Forked by Scott Balmos and David Stipp, (C) 2001
xl2tpd[12702]: Inherited by Jeff McAdams, (C) 2002
xl2tpd[12702]: Forked again by Xelerance (www.xelerance.com) (C) 2006
xl2tpd[12702]: Listening on IP address 0.0.0.0, port 1701

Hotspot Shield DOES use

by Kam - 2009-03-22

Hotspot Shield DOES use IPsec

http://insidethebrackets.blogspot.com/2008/12/use-hotspot-shield-in-vist...

I tried configuring with Kvpnc with no luck. Can anyone tackle this.

Actually HsS doesn't use

by Eduardo von Ristow - 2009-03-26

Actually HsS doesn't use IPSEC, that link just shows a way to bypass Vista's vpn client limitations, that are the same as those in kVPNc: both don't support L2TP tunnels without IPSEC.

I trying to mix Makus xl2tp configurations with kvnpc, still no luck. The response is:

debug: l2tpd is connecting to host 64.55.144.10...
debug: [l2tpd] xl2tpd[5086]: Connecting to host 64.55.144.10, port 1701
debug: [l2tpd] xl2tpd[5086]: udp_xmit failed with err=-1:Network is unreachable

Regards

Aparrently the folks from

by Eduardo von Ristow - 2009-03-31

Aparrently the folks from Hotspot Shield are filtering non iPhone connections, the same problem is happening with 64 bits Vista and WinXP users.

That's just sad.

Regards.

Unable to connect. What could

by Remy - 2009-04-17

Unable to connect.

What could be the problem.

xl2tpd -D

xl2tpd[9716]: setsockopt recvref: Protocol not available
xl2tpd[9716]: L2TP kernel support not detected.
xl2tpd[9716]: xl2tpd version xl2tpd-1.2.0 started on remy-desktop PID:9716
xl2tpd[9716]: Written by Mark Spencer, Copyright (C) 1998, Adtran, Inc.
xl2tpd[9716]: Forked by Scott Balmos and David Stipp, (C) 2001
xl2tpd[9716]: Inherited by Jeff McAdams, (C) 2002
xl2tpd[9716]: Forked again by Xelerance (www.xelerance.com) (C) 2006
xl2tpd[9716]: Listening on IP address 0.0.0.0, port 1701

Same issue, just gets stuck

by Anon - 2009-05-01

Same issue, just gets stuck there

xl2tpd -D

Any help os

by Anonymous - 2009-06-06

Any help os appreciated,

root@jimmy-laptop:/home/jimmy# sudo su
root@jimmy-laptop:/home/jimmy# echo "c hotspotshield" > /var/run/xl2tpd/l2tp-control
root@jimmy-laptop:/home/jimmy# route add -net 0.0.0.0 dev ppp0
SIOCADDRT: No such device

root@jimmy-laptop:/home/jimmy

by Anonymous - 2009-06-06

root@jimmy-laptop:/home/jimmy# xl2tpd -D
xl2tpd[13446]: setsockopt recvref: Protocol not available
xl2tpd[13446]: L2TP kernel support not detected.
xl2tpd[13446]: xl2tpd version xl2tpd-1.2.0 started on jimmy-laptop PID:13446
xl2tpd[13446]: Written by Mark Spencer, Copyright (C) 1998, Adtran, Inc.
xl2tpd[13446]: Forked by Scott Balmos and David Stipp, (C) 2001
xl2tpd[13446]: Inherited by Jeff McAdams, (C) 2002
xl2tpd[13446]: Forked again by Xelerance (www.xelerance.com) (C) 2006
xl2tpd[13446]: Listening on IP address 0.0.0.0, port 1701

How do I get the needed info

by Anonymous - 2009-06-07

How do I get the needed info on entry 5:
"YourHotSpotShieldUsername" HotSpotShieldServerIP "YourHotSpotShieldUsername"

With the download file being a .exe file I am unable to even open it in ubuntu.

Many thanks.

Ok After working all night ,

by Anonymous - 2009-06-23

After working all night , I did it , It work now.

Markus Great tut, here are my comments (flow them and it will work)

1.After xl2tpd load "/etc/init.d/xl2tpd start" You need to run this command so pppd will load up.

I did try to do:
sudo echo "c hotspotshield" > /var/run/xl2tpd/l2tp-control

It didn't work.

You must be root "sudo su" and then run this command.

2. its good to load "xl2ptd -D" before "/etc/init.d/xl2tpd start" like markus say.

3. after pppd load ok , you can add pppd as default gw with this command:

route -host [HotSpotShieldServerIP] gw [gw ip] -dev [nic]
route del default gw
route add default gw -dev ppp0

Enjoy
Gadi

Hey Anonymous. Thank you very

by Anonymous - 2009-06-25

Hey Anonymous. Thank you very much. All my hopes are put on you... Could you be more specific? How can I know fi pppd loaded ok or not?
When I try: route -host [HotSpotShieldServerIP] gw [gw ip] -dev [nic]
I get:
root@5920G:/home/isidro# route -host 64.55.144.10 gw 192.168.1.1 -dev 8gil94
route: opción incorrecta -- 'd'
Uso: route [-nNvee] [-FC] [] Muestra las tablas de ruteado del núcleo
route [-v] [-FC] {add|del|flush} ... Modifica la tabla de ruteado para AF

route {-h|--help} [] Sintaxis detallada de uso para el AF indicado.
route {-V|--version} Muestra la/el versión/autor y sale.

-v, --verbose descripción amplia
-n, --numeric no se resolverán nombres
-e, --extend muestra otra/más información
-F, --fib muestra la base de información hacia adelante (predeterminado)
-C, --cache muestra la caché de ruteado en vez de la FIB

=Use '-A ' o '--'; por defecto: inet
Lista de posibles familias de direcciones (que soportan el ruteado):
inet (DARPA Internet) inet6 (IPv6) ax25 (AMPR AX.25)
netrom (AMPR NET/ROM) ipx (Novell IPX) ddp (Appletalk DDP)
x25 (CCITT X.25)
I'm sorry for the spanish, It says that -d is an incorrect option. What is this -dev [nic]? The username we get from hotspot shield?
I'm sorry but I'm really lost... Just starting with linux and also my english is bad...
Thanks to everybody.

Hi All, I forgot: Try

by Anonymous - 2009-07-05

Hi All,

I forgot:

Try this:

Liunx# route add -host 64.55.144.10 gw 192.168.1.1 -dev 8gil94

Update me.

Gadi

Over here I get this error

by Daniel AJ - 2009-06-27

Over here I get this error message:

xl2tpd[8162]: setsockopt recvref: Protocol not available
xl2tpd[8162]: L2TP kernel support not detected.

I'm running Ubuntu 9.04. How can I extend my system/kernel to make it work? I've only found Russian and Chinese forums dealing with that issue, but I can't comprehend the answers.

TiA!

Hi Markus, after

by chuxxsss - 2009-06-29

Hi Markus,
after running xlt2tpd -D
I get
xl2tpd[23114]: parse_config: line 78: Unknown field 'refusepap'
xl2tpd[23114]: init: Unable to load config file

Do you know what I have done wrong?
I did find the line
4) Edit /etc/xl2tpd/l2tp-secrets, /etc/ppp/chap-secrets and /etc/ppp/pap-secrets, add
"YourHotSpotShieldUsername" HotSpotShieldServerIP "YourHotSpotShieldUsername"
confusing as I through I must add to each file
YourHotSpotShieldUsername IPaddress YourHotSpotShieldUsername

Traffic blocked? Now, for

by Daniel AJ - 2009-07-06

Traffic blocked?

Now, for whatever reasong, I don't get a local error message any more. But I can't get a connection - not traffic coming through. Is Anchorfree blocking non-iPhone-traffic?

i cant edit the file and add

by marmoulak - 2009-09-13

i cant edit the file and add ( on the 2nd step) it says i don have the permission to do so :S although i am the admin. can anyone help me on this plz

press Alt+F2 type gksudo

by Abdul - 2009-11-15

press Alt+F2
type gksudo nautilus /etc/xl2tpd/
now you have full control of the files under this folder

I had the same error, but

by Randy - 2009-09-22

I had the same error, but found it was a configuration problem caused by a merry maids santa monica found on a hotspot shield.

Ok can whoever has it working

by Anonymous - 2009-10-03

Ok can whoever has it working post an entry on a blog about what steps they took exactly? I think this is kind of messy reading through all the comments

Ok, so I made it past the

by Anonymous - 2009-10-03

Ok, so I made it past the install command in terminal, then every time i typed in [lac hotspotshield], it said "[lac" was not a valid command or something like that, so after a bit i gave up, only to find all embedded videos online no longer function, straight through from youtube shit to megavideo. I wish I hadn't closed terminal after I gave up so I could have paste the whole thing in here for a look over, but I'm pretty confused. I reloaded flash in terminal and it said I already had the most up to date version, I removed the xl2tpd in terminal, still all videos are blank. Somebody please help me out because the only thing I did on my machine between working and non-working net videos was that terminal command.

Thanks,
Justin

I attempted to do this but

by Kalvster - 2009-10-24

I attempted to do this but unfortunately was unsuccessful.

You can read about it here:
http://www.kalvster.com/tools/ubuntu-hotspot-shield.html

I've got the same error as

by Kai - 2010-03-23

I've got the same error as everyone here, is there really no fix?

Hi everyone, I read all the

by Ramziiss - 2010-04-01

Hi everyone,
I read all the comments and followed all the instructions but still couldn't get it working, if unlike myself anyone got it working, please please please list the full commands to type so everybody gets out of this page happy and not confused.

Hi everyone, I read all the

by Ramziiss - 2010-04-01

Hey i don't

by Anonymous - 2010-04-08

Hey i don't understand....like half of it.. new to ubuntu.anywayz

on the second step, when you wrote "add", does that mean on the bottom of the page just copy and paste all that into bottom of the page of the xl2tpd.conf?

3rd step, create as in.. new page, then copy and paste all that without any changes and the file name save as "option.l2tpd.client"?

4th step
can you be more specific please? do u need the quotation marks?, is there a specific place where i write all that on each file? or do i just write it as it is
"hotspot name" hotspot ip "hotspotname" <-- just write your info down on the bottom of the page as it is.?? im really confused..sorry >< new to this scene

Dear Markus, thanks for

by UbuntuBaby - 2010-04-13

Dear Markus,
thanks for this.

if hotspot shield is rather hard to set up, could you tell me what the easiest, most user-friendly way to mask one's ip when using Ubuntu?

If you could also send a reply via email (aside from posting your answer here), that would be appreciated.

Thanks.