How to Manually Create a VPN Connection in Windows 11

Windows 11 makes it easy to configure VPN manually. Here are the steps to create a VPN connection in Windows 11 (with pictures).

VPNs have a lot of use cases, be it for regular home users or professionals. In general, VPNs provide a private and secure connection between your computer and the destination. In the process of providing a private and secure connection, your existing network is hidden and encrypted. This means VPNs give you anonymity and privacy.

A few of the core use cases for using a VPN are creating a secure and private connection between computers, accessing geo-restricted websites, avoiding online censorship, preventing online tracking, increasing privacy through anonymity, and accessing organizational resources in a company or institution, etc. For example, most companies and organizations require you to use a specific VPN connection to connect and access their resources when working from home. Typically, the system administrator will give you the VPN connection details to configure a VPN in Windows 11.

For the most part, the best VPN services for Windows provide their homegrown application to connect to the VPN. However, if the VPN service has no dedicated application or it is not working for whatever reason, you can manually configure a VPN in Windows 11 with just a few clicks. All you have to do is filling the VPN details. Windows 11 will configure the VPN for you. After that, you can connect to that VPN with a single click as and when needed. For instance, most companies give the VPN details and ask you to configure the built-in VPN functionality to create a new VPN connection in Windows 11.

So, without much delay, let me show you how to create a new VPN connection in Windows 11 and manually configure a VPN connection in Windows 11.

Jump to:

• Supported VPN protocols
• Requirements
• Create a VPN connection
• Connect to VPN
• Disconnect from VPN
• Delete a VPN

Supported VPN protocols in Windows 11

There are a lot of VPN protocols out there. Each protocol has its way of encrypting and making a VPN connection. Out of the box, Windows 11 supports all major VPN protocols. Depending on what protocol the VPN service is using, you might have to configure it a bit differently. The good thing is, you don’t need to configure any protocol-related settings manually. All you have to do is select the protocol type from a pre-defined list, and Windows will do everything else.

Here is a list of all the VPN protocols supported by Windows 11.

• IKEv2
• SSTP (Secure Socket Tunneling Protocol)
• L2TP/IPsec (with a certificate or pre-shared key)
• PPTP (Point to Point Tunneling Protocol)

If you are wondering, your VPN provider will tell you explicitly which protocol they are using. Alternatively, you can also ask them about the VPN protocol details. This makes it easy to configure the VPN connection in Windows 11.

If a VPN service doesn’t support one of these protocols, you have to use a third-party application to make a VPN connection. For example, if your VPN uses OpenVPN or WireGuard protocol, you must use a third-party application. Windows 11 doesn’t natively support OpenVPN or WireGuard protocols, as of writing this.

Requirements

Before you can create a new VPN connection in Windows 11, you need a few details. They are as follows:

• VPN domain name or IP address
• VPN protocol (should support one of the above-listed protocols).
• Sign-in information

Once you have these details, proceed with the below steps to manually configure a VPN in Windows 11.

Create a VPN connection in Windows 11

You can create a new VPN connection in Windows 11 from the Network page in the Settings app. Make sure you have the above-mentioned required VPN details and follow the below steps.

1. Press “Start key + I” to open Settings.
2. Click on “Network & Internet” on the sidebar.
3. Click on the “VPN” option.
4. Press the “Add a VPN” button.
5. Select “Windows (built-in)” as the “VPN provider.”
6. Set a name of your choice in the “Connection name” field.
7. Type the VPN’s domain or IP address in the “Server name or address” field.
8. Select the “VPN type.” You can also leave it “Automatic.”
9. Choose an authentication method from the “Type of sign-in info” dropdown menu.
10. Enter the username and password. If the sign-in method is different, you might see other fields.
11. Select the “Remember my sign-in info” checkbox.
12. Click the “Save” button.
13. Close the Settings app.
14. With that, you’ve configured a new VPN in Windows 11.

Let us see the same steps in a bit more detail:

First, use the “Start key + I” shortcut or right-click the Start menu and select “Settings” to open the Windows 11 Settings app. Next, select “Network & Internet” on the sidebar and click on the “VPN” option. This is where you can create and manage VPN connections in Windows 11.

Once you are here, press the “Add a VPN” button next to “VPN Connections.” This will trigger the VPN creation wizard.

Since we are using the built-in VPN functionality, select “Windows (built-in)” from the “VPN Connections” dropdown menu.

After that, set a name for the new VPN connection in the “Connection name” field. You can name the connection anything you want. This name will appear both in the Settings app and Quick Settings panel. For instance, I set the title as “WindowsLoop.”

Type the server’s domain name or IP address in the “Server name and address” field. You can get these details from the VPN provider. This is how Windows will know to which VPN it should connect. You can think of it as your home address.

Now, select the protocol supported by your VPN service from the “VPN Type” dropdown menu. You also set it to “Automatic” as long as the VPN supports the protocols mentioned above. You can get the protocol details from your VPN provider. Remember that Windows 11 must support the protocol.

For example, I know my VPN provider uses PPTP protocol. So, I manually selected that protocol from the “VPN Type” protocol.

Next, choose the type of authentication method specified by your VPN provider. Generally, almost all VPN providers use the username and password sign-in method. So, select the “User name and password” option from the “Type of sign-in info” dropdown menu.

Important note: If you choose another sign-in method, the next couple of fields will be different. Follow the wizard to configure the sign-in details.

Type the username and password in the appropriate fields.

(Optional) After that, select the “Remember my sign-in information” checkbox. That way, you don’t have to enter the sign-in details every time you connect.

Finally, click the “Save” button to save the VPN connection details.

That is it. With that, you’ve successfully configured a VPN connection in Windows 11.

Connect to a VPN network in Windows 11

After creating a VPN connection, you can connect to that VPN network directly from the Quick Settings panel. Here is how to do it.

1. Click the network icon on the taskbar.
2. Press the “VPN” button in the Quick Settings panel.
3. Click on the VPN network.
4. Press the “Connect” button.
5. Windows will connect to the VPN network.

Detailed steps:

First, click on the network icon on the taskbar to open the Quick Settings panel

Next, click on the “VPN” button in the Quick Settings panel.

Note: If you cannot see the “VPN” button, click on the “Edit” icon at the bottom and pin the “VPN” button.

The above action will show all the registered VPNs on your computer. Click on the VPN connection and then press the “Connect” button.

As soon as you do that, Windows will try to make a connection.

If everything goes well, the VPN connection will be successful. In that case, the VPN button will appear solid in the Quick Settings panel.

You can also verify the VPN connection by checking your public IP address. It should show the VPNs IP address instead of your actual public IP address. Search for “What is my IP address” in your favorite search engine (Google, Bing, etc.).

Disconnect from a VPN network in Windows 11

You can disconnect from a VPN connection in Windows 11 from the Quick Settings panel. Here is how.

1. Click the network icon on the taskbar.
2. Press the “VPN” button in the Quick Settings panel.
3. Click on the VPN network.
4. Press the “Disconnect” button.
5. Windows will disconnect from the VPN network.

Note: If you cannot see the “VPN” button, click on the “Edit” icon at the bottom and pin the “VPN” button.

Delete a VPN in Windows 11

When you no longer need a VPN connection, you should consider deleting it from Windows. That way, you can be sure that no one uses it and also reduce clutter in case of multiple VPN connections. Here is how to remove a VPN in Windows 11.

1. Open the Windows 11 Settings app.
2. Click on “Network & Internet” on the sidebar.
3. Select the “VPN” option in the main panel.
4. Click on the VPN connection you want to delete.
5. Press the “Remove” button.
6. Press the “Confirm” button when prompted.
7. Close the Settings app.
8. With that, you have deleted the VPN in Windows 11.

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That is it. It is that simple to configure a VPN in Windows 11.

I hope this simple guide helped you.

If you are stuck or need some help, comment below, and I will try to help as much as possible.