Every device · Advanced
Every device: travel router
One small router that puts every device on its Wi-Fi on your private address. The most convenient setup once it's done, and the most technical to set up.
- Advanced
- OpenWrt / GL.iNet
- SOCKS5 or HTTP
Before you start: grab your details
Log in to your IDNI account, open My Services, and click your Private Address. You'll see your address (IP), port numbers, username and password. Keep that page open.
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Before you buy
Most home and hotel routers can't do this. Their settings don't have a place for a proxy. And most travel routers' built-in "VPN client" only works with VPN services, not with a private address like yours.
The exception is routers running OpenWrt, a free router system popular with tinkerers. With the right add-on, an OpenWrt router can send every device on its Wi-Fi (laptop, phone, tablet, TV, even a work laptop you can't change) through your private address.
This is the advanced option. It takes an hour or so the first time and some patience. If you're not comfortable with router settings, use the Every app guide on each device instead. That's easier and works just as well for one or two devices.
Why use a travel router
A GL.iNet travel router is our recommendation if you want the "set it once" setup. It's pocket-sized, connects to hotel or apartment Wi-Fi, and makes your own private Wi-Fi network that all your devices join. Your devices see the same familiar network in every country, so nothing needs changing when you move.
- + Covers devices you can't configure (smart TVs, game consoles, some work laptops).
- + Same setup in every hotel and Airbnb.
- − Needs technical setup the first time, and community add-ons can need re-installing after a firmware update.
High-level setup
Get a router that runs OpenWrt
GL.iNet travel routers (for example the pocket-sized Beryl AX or Slate models) run a version of OpenWrt and have an Advanced settings button that opens the full OpenWrt control panel (called LuCI).
Install a proxy add-on
Add a package that can send the whole network through a SOCKS5 or HTTP proxy. Popular community choices are PassWall, OpenClash and the older redsocks. These are community projects, not official GL.iNet features, and you install them yourself through LuCI.
Add your IDNI address
In the add-on, create a new node or server: type SOCKS5, address YOUR-IP, port YOUR-SOCKS-PORT, username YOUR-USERNAME, password YOUR-PASSWORD.
Switch it on for the whole network
Select that node as the main (TCP) route and turn the add-on on. Set DNS to go through the proxy so websites don't see your local provider.
Connect your devices and check
Join your devices to the travel router's Wi-Fi. Each one should now pass the 30-second check with no setup on the device.
Exact menus depend on your router model, firmware version and add-on. Follow the add-on's own instructions for installing it. If you get stuck, contact us with your router model and we'll point you in the right direction.
Tips
Use the same address every day. That steadiness is the whole point. Banks and online accounts are calmer when they see the same private address day after day. Switching it on and off a lot, or mixing it with a VPN, looks less like the usual you.
Good to know: IDNI changes where you appear to be. It isn't encryption like a VPN. Websites with the padlock (HTTPS) still protect what you send, which is almost all of them.