What should I use to run a VPN server?

Question

I live in a location which many websites don't recognise, and when multiplayer gaming I find that I am constantly matched with players from the United States instead of with players nearer to me (geographically). I found that when using free VPN services, I no longer have this problem and are matched with players much nearer to me.

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Due to free VPNs being unreliable (bandwidth monitoring, constantly changing passwords, etc.), I have decided to purchase hardware or rent a VPS.

This is a list of possible hardware/VPSes I have found:

• Raspberry Pi- Small, uses hardly any power;
• VPS (512MB RAM, single CPU core, 1TB bandwidth, 30GB SSD);
• Dedicated server (2GB RAM, 500GB HDD, 2 CPU cores (4 threads))

The Raspberry Pi is a decent option, but I doubt any provider would be willing to co-locate such a small device. The VPS is again a good option, but doesn't have much in the way of resources but is the cheapest option. The dedicated server I think is too much for what I need it for (an application to route my Internet connection through), but it could be a viable option if I wanted to host something else on it too.

I'd like the option of hosting a small website on the server (along with the VPN application), so simply going for a paid VPN service isn't an option here.

What amount of resources would a VPN application use; I already know about Internet, but what about RAM usage?

What is the best option here, or perhaps I should choose something else?

Answer 1

I ended up going with the VPS with 512MB RAM, single CPU core, 1TB bandwidth, and 30GB SSD.

This is because:

• It was the cheapest option (even cheaper than purchasing a paid VPN service!);
• It has a Gigabit connection, whereas the dedicated server does not;
• VPN does not use much in the way of resources, besides Internet (it wouldn't have made sense to go for the dedicated server). This meant that some resources were left to run a small website on the VPS.

I couldn't find a provider that would co-locate a Raspberry Pi unfortunately, and co-locating it wouldn't have made financial sense as co-location costs ~£60/month (for a 1U server) and for that money I could've rented the dedicated server for over a year.

There was also the option of switching ISP to one that told me (when I queried about the problem) their Internet connections are recognised as coming from the United Kingdom (incorrectly). However this would've meant I would spend a total of £70 simply moving ISP (plus another £40/month for rental).

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Raspberry Pi

Small, but efficient. Would easily be able to run a VPN service with room to spare for running a (very) small website. High co-location cost.

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VPS

Cheap, but good reviews of the company behind it. Would run a VPN service & a small website, but would have trouble running anything else. Would be solid & dependable.

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Dedicated Server

Looks cheap, but is actually the average price for such a server when setup & other costs are added. Would run a VPN service like a knife going through butter, and any other programs I would've liked to have run (even a small gameserver). However if only used for VPN, its specifications could be too much on the beefy side. Company itself also has mixed reviews.