Tethering

[mysticroots 1]

Does anyone know if using a vpn will bypass the tethering limit (2gb of 'unlimted data') on the UK Three mobile network?I want to upgrade my phone however i use it for tethering daily and will blow through that limit in a single day. Thanks

[OpenSourcerer 1435]

No matter if you are connected to a proxy service or not: You cause traffic. OpenVPN doesn't open up a new internet connection, it uses yours and helps you encrypt it when it passes the ISP (and other entities). Traffic is traffic.

[rainmakerraw 94]

No matter if you are connected to a proxy service or not: You cause traffic. OpenVPN doesn't open up a new internet connection, it uses yours and helps you encrypt it when it passes the ISP (and other entities). Traffic is traffic.

 

Maybe I'm tired because I've not slept yet. However I think you've missed the OP's point. 

 

Three UK offer unlimited data from the handset. In the OP's case (i.e. his particular tariff) he is restricted to 2GB of data for tethered devices. He's asking whether using OpenVPN will disguise the fact the data is from tethered devices, rather than the handset directly, which would allow him to sneakily use unlimited tethered data. 

 

Personally I don't know the answer, but it's definitely worth a shot!

[OpenSourcerer 1435]

Yep, I missed the point. Thank you, rainmakerraw, for clarification.

To answer this question then, we'd need information on how Three UK tells normal and tethered traffic apart; how do they detect tethering?

[axman1432 2]

Im not sure how the networks and carriers in the UK differentiate tethered from non-tethered traffic, but T-mobile USA sniffs the user agent to differentiate the client using the network connection.  I'm not sure if you are using android or ios, but on android people have had luck with using TrevE mod tether app and a VPN connection.  The guide below is for the Galaxy S4 and uses another VPN, but it should get you moving in the right direction.

 

http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2273401

https://code.google.com/p/wifi-tether-treve-mod/

 

NB: If you have unlimited data (for use on your phone) this will allow you to "tap" into that and use it on other devices, but it will not allow you to bypass data caps that most cell plans have.

 

Hope this helps!

[psikey 1]

I'm using the £23/month Three One plan 30day rolling "SIM only" that still allows unlimited tethering (as does the 12 month one at £20/month). Can't you swap to that or are you wanting a discounted phone with a new long term contract?

 

I used 180GB myself last month over Three 3G (mostly Netflix streams to be honest but a bit of Torrenting too). I only went to using it as I can't get much over 1MB download speed on my landline while I can hit 18MB/2MB over the Three 3G network which is not much less (for download) then the EE 4G SIM I tested (EE upload speed far higher at over 15MB). The landline is now cancelled so I'm actually also saving money with the Three SIM.