As of version pia-v83-installer-linux.sh, released some major changes have been made and these are now considered old versions that will become obsolete. This is however how to install older versions of their software.
And they have changed from .sh to .run-files.
So what is the difference?
sh file executes a shell-script file in a new shell process, while .run is an executable file typically used for Linux program installers, containing program data and instructions for making the installation. These are often used for distributing device drivers and software applications.
However, fair warning, be careful when executing RUN files since they contain executable code.
A note on Debian 8: Never versions than pia--v69-installer-linux.sh hasn't been successfully installed, on Debian 8 Jessie. pia--v0.82-installer-linux.sh was not successfully installed on Debian 8.7 Jessie either.
Operating system: Debian 9.xx Stable:
Software: PIA's APP for Linux V0.83, released in January, 2019.
First download the app here.
Unpack the pia-v83-installer-linux.tar.gz, using you're preferred method. Nautilus, right click and extract the file or use a terminal window.
Terminal window:
cd downloads
Press Enter,
chmod +x pia-v83-installer-linux.sh
Press Enter,
./pia-v83-installer-linux.sh
Press Enter and enter your password ( required )
Wait for the installation to complete, then look for the Private Internet Access logo and click it to run the app. You will be met by a popup screen, showing the changelog.
Changes made to the Linux app:
-
Updated OpenVPN to 2.4.6
-
Updated OpenSSL to 1.1.0h
-
Added support to AES-128-GCM and AES-256-GCM cipher algorithms
-
Set AES-128-GCM as the default encryption cipher
-
Added translations for new region names
-
Updated nwjs to 0.32.1 nightly (fixes keyboard navigation issue)
-
Fixed a bug that prevented the client from trying to reconnect
-
Fixed a bug where latency for auto region would sometimes be inaccurate
-
Linux: Fixed a bug that prevented killswitch operating when UFW is enabled
-
Linux: Fixed a bug where DNS would leak on Ubuntu 18.10
-
Linux: Implemented work-around for installation issues on some systems
NOTE: Regarding issues with earlier versions, first problem was the constant disconnections of the VPN, no matter what encryption, UDP/TCP or port, so like many others I removed the app and setup OpenVPN manually with PIA's VPN, downloading their .ovpn files etc: and it worked really great, except for one thing. I recently started to discover DNS leaks, so here is what we are going to do first before we dig into the system files and start to change things manually.
Security for web browser Firefox has however not changed:
Assuming you are using Firefox ESR or Quantum, in the addres field type:
about:config
Press Enter and this message will show up, click I accept the risk !
IMPORTANT:
Search for: media.peerconnection.enabled and doubleclick on it so it changes from True to False. Then search for network.proxy.socks_remote_dns and set it to True. Close the Tab, Then geo.enabled, set it to false, done !
If your DNS is leaking, when running the online tests from listed sites, have a look at our FAQ.
Next step is to test for DNS Leaks: