VPN for Windows: install NvoVPN in 4 steps, plus manual AmneziaWG setup
Download the NvoVPN app for Windows 10 or 11, get past the blue SmartScreen window, sign in and press the shield. What is different in Russia, and how to connect with an AmneziaWG file instead of the app.
A VPN for a Windows PC from NvoVPN is an ordinary app: download it, install it, sign in with your website account and press the shield. The whole thing takes about three minutes, and there is nothing to configure. Below are the four steps with what Windows shows you along the way, an explanation of the blue warning window, and a manual setup with a file for anyone the app does not suit. If you are in Russia, there is a separate block below — everything there works the same way.
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Download the installer
Click Download for Windows — the file
NvoVPN-Windows.exe(about 107 MB) starts downloading. Your browser saves it to the Downloads folder; in Chrome and Edge it also shows up at the bottom of the window or in the downloads list at the top right. Reading this on your phone? Open the apps page on the computer itself, so you do not have to send the file over. -
Get past the blue Windows window
When the installer starts, Windows shows a blue window that says "Windows protected your PC". Click "More info" — a "Run anyway" button appears at the bottom. Click it. On some Windows 11 builds the button is simply called "Run". Why this window shows up — we explain right after the steps.
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Install and sign in
The installer does everything itself: click "Next" until the end and the app opens on its own. Sign in the same way as on the website: "Sign in with Google", "Sign in with Apple", or email and password. No password? Click "I have a login code" and enter the six digits from your account, Connection tab — the code is valid for 10 minutes.
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Press the shield
Just once. A server is picked for you — the nearest and least loaded one. When the shield turns green, your internet is already going through the VPN. Check it on the "What is my IP" page: it should show the server's address, not your provider's. Press the shield again to disconnect.
Why the blue window?
It is the SmartScreen filter — a built-in Windows protection. It shows this warning for any new program that only a few people have downloaded so far. It is not a virus alert: SmartScreen has not found anything wrong, it simply does not know this file yet. The "Run anyway" button starts the installer as normal.
No button? Close the window, right-click the downloaded file → "Properties" → tick "Unblock" at the bottom of the "General" tab → "OK", then run the file again.
Are you in Russia? A VPN for a computer installs the same way — no extra setup
Downloading with the button on this page, installing and signing in from Russia all work with no extra setup. The app picks its own server and route out of your network, and switches on stealth mode by itself if the network throttles VPN traffic. Stealth mode disguises the connection as an ordinary website; there is nothing to turn on by hand.
Option 1 — the app, same as everyone else
Download the installer with the button below or the link from our email, then follow steps 1–4 above. There is nothing extra to turn on.
Download for WindowsOption 2 — manually, with a configuration file
If you cannot install the app, get a file from your account — but in Russia you need the AmneziaWG version of the file specifically: plain WireGuard is throttled there. How to do this is under "Manual setup" below.
What you need
- Windows 10 or Windows 11, 64-bit. The app does not support old 32-bit systems.
- An NvoVPN account — the same one you use on the website. Do not have one yet? Sign up: you only need an email address, no card required.
- About 110 MB of disk space for the installer, and a couple of minutes.
If Windows will not let you connect
- Antivirus or firewall. Third-party security software sometimes blocks the new network adapter. Add NvoVPN to the exceptions, or turn off protection while you test — if that fixes it, you have found the cause.
- The shield never turns green. Disconnect and connect again, then try another server. Still no luck? See the breakdown in "What to do if the VPN will not connect".
- Connected, but websites will not open. This is usually DNS — the service that turns website names into addresses. Reconnect or choose another server. Check that a second VPN is not running — two tunnels at once get in each other's way.
- After a big Windows update. Updates from 2024–2025 sometimes broke virtual network adapters. Reinstall the app and the driver is set up again.
Manual setup: AmneziaWG without our app
You need a configuration file when the app cannot be installed: a restricted work PC, a client you prefer, or a laptop with no rights to install software. NvoVPN runs on the AmneziaWG protocol — WireGuard with traffic obfuscation — so a plain WireGuard client only works where VPNs are not throttled.
- Open your account → "Connection" → the "Manual" tab. Choose a server (the recommended one is marked), name the device, for example "Work laptop", and click "Create".
- Download the
.conffile with the button next to the new configuration. A QR code and text are there too — handy for a phone. - Install the AmneziaWG client for Windows — it is published in the releases of the amneziawg-windows-client project on GitHub (do not confuse it with the library of the same name without the word "client").
- In the client, click Add Tunnel, choose the downloaded file and click Activate.
FAQ
Windows has a built-in VPN — why not just use that? The built-in Windows client only speaks older protocols like L2TP and IKEv2, which are easy to detect and block. You cannot set up AmneziaWG or stealth mode through it.
Does a VPN slow the internet down? AmneziaWG encryption is very light, and the nearest server is picked for you, so for everyday use there is almost no difference. If speed drops, try another server in the same country — the load on them varies.
Can the VPN turn on automatically when Windows starts? Yes: "Settings" → "Application" → "Autostart" (the app starts with the system) and "Auto-connect" (it brings the tunnel up right away). "Start minimized" is in the same place, so the window does not pop up.
How many computers can I connect? Up to five devices at once on one subscription: PC, laptop, phone and tablet in any combination.
Do I need a VPN on a laptop in a café or hotel? That is exactly where it helps most: on public Wi-Fi your traffic is visible to the network owner, but not through the tunnel. Connect before you open email or online banking.
Related guides: What to do if the VPN will not connect · Kill Switch: what it is and how to turn it on · AmneziaWG vs WireGuard: what is the difference
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