Eddie Android edition 2.0 beta released

[Staff 9972]

Hello!
 
We're glad to inform you that we are opening the beta testing phase of our free and open source software Eddie for Android version 2.0.

Version 2.0 is a quantum leap when compared to 1.0. It tries to meet most, if not all, of our community requirements and keeps the promises we made: swift and full AirVPN integration as well as Android TV extended compatibility.
 
As usual Eddie is free and open source software released under GPLv3.
 
Note that on 11-20-18 a new version (2.0 beta 2) has been released.
Note that on 11-21-18 a new version (2.0 beta 3) has been released.

 

Note that on 11-23-18 version 2.0 stable has been released, so this topic was locked. Please continue here:

https://airvpn.org/topic/30774-eddie-android-edition-20-released/
 
You can participate to the beta testing by joining the beta community in the Google Play Store here:
https://play.google.com/apps/testing/org.airvpn.eddie
 
You can also download the Eddie Android 2.0 beta 3 apk directly from our repository:
https://eddie.website/repository/eddie/android/2.0beta3/org.airvpn.eddie.apk
 
The application is fully localized and we look for translators, especially for translations into simplified and traditional Chinese. Korean, Japanese, and many other languages are welcome. If you wish to translate (from English) please contact info@airvpn.org for every detail.
 
Eddie Android 2.0 adds tons of new features while keeping all the appreciated old ones:

• Free and open source OpenVPN GUI based on OpenVPN 3
• The only Android application officially developed by AirVPN
• Robust, best effort prevention of traffic leaks outside the VPN tunnel
• Battery-conscious application
• Low RAM footprint
• Ergonomic and friendly interface
• Ability to start and connect the application at device boot
• Option to define which apps must have traffic inside or outside the VPN tunnel through white and black list
• Localization in English, French, Italian, Spanish. Turkish

New features:

• Full integration with AirVPN
• Enhanced security thanks to locally stored encrypted data through master password
• Quick one-tap connection and smart, fully automated server selection
• Smart server selection with custom settings
• Manual server selection
• Smart attempts to bypass OpenVPN blocks featuring protocol and server fail-over
• Full Android TV compatibility including D-Pad support. Mouse emulation is not required.
• Enhancements aimed to increase accessibility and comfort to visually impaired persons
• AirVPN servers sorting options
• Customizable "Favorite" and "Forbidden" servers
• OpenVPN mimetype support to import profiles from external applications
• Localization in German, Portuguese and Russian

If you test this new version, do not hesitate to report bugs, problems, considerations and any other feedback in this thread. You will help us reach a stable version more quickly. Please remember to report all the device information (brand, model, Android version, environment) as well as the log taken after the problem is occurred (when and if possible).
 
 

Changelog 2.0 Beta 3 (VC 12) - Release date: 21 November 2018 by ProMIND

QuickConnectionFragment.java

- [ProMIND] Changed connection requirements for auto connection mode. IPv4 is now the minimum requirement.
- [ProMIND] Show a disconnection dialog in case user cancels the connection procedure
- [ProMIND] Notify user in case a favorite server is about to be connected
- [ProMIND] Connection progress dialog is now properly dismissed at the end of server list connection

Changelog 2.0 Beta 2 (VC 11) - Release date: 20 November 2018 by ProMIND

- [giganerd] Added German localization
- [giganerd] Added Russian localization
- [morvotron] Added Portuguese localization
- [ProMIND] Added accessibility support to spinners and buttons without text

OpenVPNTunnel.java
- [ProMIND] onEvent() now properly manages TCP errors in Quick Connection mode and avoids connection cycling when VPN is connected

SettingsActivity.java
- [ProMIND] Added setting and functionality for allowing quick connection to connect local (same country) servers

AirVPNServerProvider.java

- [ProMIND] Changed selection algorithm in order to include local (same country) servers when requested

QuickConnectionFragment.java

- [ProMIND] Quick connection button can now be used to disconnect any VPN connection

Changelog 2.0 (VC 10) - Release date: 14 November 2018 by ProMIND

- [ProMIND] Added classes for AirVPN connection, management and integration with AirVPN servers.
- [ProMIND] Added classes for AirVPN user login, logout and profiles.
- [ProMIND] Quick connection to AirVPN. Full connection support with determination of best server, protocol and mode, including server failover.
- [ProMIND] Server connection to AirVPN compliant to AirVPN server list. Creation of favorite and forbidden lists.
- [ProMIND] New user interface design
- [ProMIND] Full Android TV support, including Storage Access Framework (Android SAF, when available) and full support for d-pad navigation.
- [ProMIND] OpenVPN mimetype support. Import OpenVPN profiles from external applications.

Native Library 1.3.1

- [ProMIND] Added new APIs for system information
- [ProMIND] Updated boost library to 1.68.0
- [ProMIND] Updated to latest OpenVPN3 release
 

 
 
 
Kind regards & datalove
AirVPN Staff

[OpenSourcerer 1435]

W.O.A.H. This is the definition of quantum leap for sure. Looks fresh and in line with Eddie on PC. Testing as I write.

[Guest]

Good work as always, although I do have a concern that maybe the staff can give more info.

 

org/airvpn/eddie/AirVPNUser.java:276

                EddieLogger.info("Requesting user IP and country to AirVPN ipleak.net via secure connection");

                HttpURLConnection httpURLConnection = (HttpURLConnection) new URL("https://ipleak.net/xml/").openConnection();


                EddieLogger.info("AirVPN ipleak.net: User IP is %s", AirVPNUser.userIP);

                EddieLogger.info("AirVPN ipleak.net: User country is %s", AirVPNUser.userCountry);

I haven't been able to tell if this is done before or after the connection, the closest I got was

 if (userIpCountryStatus == UserIpCountryStatus.NOT_SET && this.supportTools.isNetworkConnectionRunning()) {

            new getUserLocation().execute(new Void[0]);

  }

Which happens inside

public AirVPNUser(Context c) {}

Which is called a few times (searching for new AirVPNUser):

ConnectAirVPNServerFragment.java:858

MainActivity.java:253

QuickConnectFragment.java:396

SettingsActivity.java:182

When does this request to IPleaks get made? And is it strictly required for operation? I understand the use (to check users IP after connection), but runs the risk of sending a users real IP to your site.

[zombie1982 5]

Hi, please could you add the ability to route all connected hotspot clients through the vpn tunnel ?
I need to use an extra app called VPNHotspot with root privileges after connecting

[Staff 9972]

 

When does this request to IPleaks get made? And is it strictly required for operation? I understand the use (to check users IP after connection), but runs the risk of sending a users real IP to your site.

 

Hello!

 

They are made each time the application wants to estimate which country you are in. It uses a service that's inside the AirVPN infrastructure (ipleak.net), through HTTPS. It does not use external services or GPS or any geo-location method which is anyway available in an Android device.

 

The procedure is part of the smart connection feature in automated mode. We are in an environment where many limitations must be taken into consideration: battery life, high latency networks, networks which block ICMP and more.

 

For example, relying on hundreds and hundreds of pings to determine the lowest round trip times between VPN servers and your node would be an unreliable, battery unconscious and, in many cases, intolerably slow operation.

 

Allowing the application to get the geo-location information (it only needs the country information) will make automatic connections remarkably more accurate. It is a quick, battery conscious, privacy aware procedure. It does not send to AirVPN infrastructure any information that AirVPN servers (including ipleak.net) already receive every time you connect.

 

Kind regards

[OpenSourcerer 1435]

Hi, please could you add the ability to route all connected hotspot clients through the vpn tunnel ?

I need to use an extra app called VPNHotspot with root privileges after connecting

 

This would require Eddie to use root as well since, as I answered you once, VPNService does not support routing tethered clients.

It sure is something to consider, though there are some who don't like the idea of a rooted device for security reasons.

[kah0922 4]

Even though I live in the U.S., Eddie refuses to auto-connect to a U.S. server. And if I blacklist every non-U.S. server, or add every U.S. server to my favorites, it says "End of Server List Reached",

 

Also, what is VPN locking and how do I get rid of it?

[Staff 9972]

Even though I live in the U.S., Eddie refuses to auto-connect to a U.S. server. And if I blacklist every non-U.S. server, or add every U.S. server to my favorites, it says "End of Server List Reached",

 

Hello!

 

The "quick connect" feature respects the so called "golden rule" that claims that you should never connect to a VPN server located in your own jurisdiction. Currently you will need to manually select either a server from the global servers list, a server from the favorite servers list, or import the proper profile from the Configuration Generator to connect to a server located in your own country (or the country Eddie thinks you are in).

 

This is a feature which can of course be changed. Send us your feedback, what do you guys and gals think about it?

 

Also, what is VPN locking and how do I get rid of it?

 

A key part of leak prevention best effort is the ability to intercept, before it's too late, certain network statūs or OpenVPN error conditions. Every condition which is going to cause a traffic leak outside the VPN tunnel will trigger a proper action to prevent it. When possible, Eddie will restore the tunnel flow. In various error conditions that's never possible and you will have to intervene manually, so you can take care to stop programs whose traffic must not be leaked before removing the lock.

 

"Better safe than sorry" is Eddie Android founding philosophy. In an environment where the running application has limited privileges, you can't rely on a set of firewall rules or on permanent previous default gateway removal, so the task to prevent traffic leaks is challenging and requires some peculiar measures which are unnecessary in a desktop environment.

 

Kind regards

[Guest]

 

Hello!

 

The "quick connect" feature respects the so called "golden rule" that claims that you should never connect to a VPN server located in your own jurisdiction. Currently you will need to manually select either a server from the global servers list, a server from the favorite servers list, or import the proper profile from the Configuration Generator to connect to a server located in your own country (or the country Eddie thinks you are in).

 

Even though I live in the U.S., Eddie refuses to auto-connect to a U.S. server. And if I blacklist every non-U.S. server, or add every U.S. server to my favorites, it says "End of Server List Reached",

 

This is a feature which can of course be changed. Send us your feedback, what do you guys and gals think about it?

 

Honestly, I'm intrigued to hear about such a 'rule' because it doesn't seem to make sense in any way. A lot of services use IP normalizing as a basic security feature. That is, if you usually use $IP from $country it'll flag when you try to use a different IP; usually, these days, requests can be made in the background even whilst a connection is taking place (for example, on $platform before network lock is active a request or two can slip by without you knowing).

 

User preference must always be respected; if I want US only then I only ever want US only, even if I am located there, and there could be good reasons why connecting elsewhere could be a disaster (again, how certain applications respond to suddenly getting a ping from an IP in a country you've never used) which may result in triggers being activated.

 

Just try using AirVPN going from US -> Japan -> Spain and so on logging into various accounts (banking, social media, etc) and see what the effects are.

 

+1 for removing this 'feature' which in my opinion has no basis and respect to what users may want, an algorithm isn't better than I am at deciding things.

[OpenSourcerer 1435]

I'd say make it a setting in Preferences.

 

Sent via Tapatalk.

[Staff 9972]

Honestly, I'm intrigued to hear about such a 'rule' because it doesn't seem to make sense in any way.

 

It makes tons of sense, trust us, we have so many years of experience about it. The jurisdiction separation makes important distinctions in legal and illegal traffic wiretapping. If you live in a country controlled by a regime which is not friendly toward human rights,  the rule is even more important. Anyway it's important in general because the coordinated, legal wiretapping in different jurisdictions require at least the intervention of a magistrate and international cooperation and leaves significant less room to arbitrary wiretapping; while illegal wiretapping might have more issues in breaking physical access into machines in different countries, or more issues in traffic correlation.

 

Kind regards

[Guest]

 

Honestly, I'm intrigued to hear about such a 'rule' because it doesn't seem to make sense in any way.

 

It makes tons of sense, trust us, we have so many years of experience about it. The jurisdiction separation makes important distinctions in legal and illegal traffic wiretapping. If you live in a country controlled by a regime which is not friendly toward human rights,  the rule is even more important. Anyway it's important in general because the coordinated, legal wiretapping in different jurisdictions require at least the intervention of a magistrate and international cooperation and leaves significant less room to arbitrary wiretapping; while illegal wiretapping might have more issues in breaking physical access into machines in different countries, or more issues in traffic correlation.

 

Kind regards

 

I don't doubt that, but the user specified 

if I blacklist every non-U.S. server, or add every U.S. server to my favorites, it says "End of Server List Reached"

which seems to suggest you're overriding the users desires, they can have reasons to only connect to a particular country (as I said, they may get warnings connecting to a different country) or perhaps avoid connecting to a particular country. I think an option to control this would be desirable. The user is always right so if they want US inside the US then that's what they should get.

 

Just sounds a bit user hostile to me and unexpected from the users perspective. Maybe show a big warning sign "we do not recommend connecting to this server, read more here".

[kah0922 4]

Hi, several services I use like music on YouTube are geolocked to the U.S., so I'd like to have the ability for Eddie to automaticly select a U.S. server even though I live in the U.S.

Also my internet speeds here are bad. I don't need forced extra latency from connecting to another server in a different country when there's several servers close to in the state I live in.

 

Also, Android has a built in VPN killswitch with the always on vpn and block connections not using vpn option. All VPN locking does for me is disconnect me from the internet if I'm not hovering over my phone.

[Staff 9972]

Also, Android has a built in VPN killswitch with the always on vpn and block connections not using vpn option. All VPN locking does for me is disconnect me from the internet if I'm not hovering over my phone.

 

Hello!

 

If you blindly trust the feature you mention, in the "Settings" you can tell Eddie to not pause VPN while screen is off (battery will have a shorter life), disable the persistent notification and disable the persistent tun interface.

 

Kind regards

[kah0922 4]

 

Also, Android has a built in VPN killswitch with the always on vpn and block connections not using vpn option. All VPN locking does for me is disconnect me from the internet if I'm not hovering over my phone.

 

Hello!

 

If you blindly trust the feature you mention, in the "Settings" you can tell Eddie to not pause VPN while screen is off (battery will have a shorter life), disable the persistent notification and disable the persistent tun interface.

 

Kind regards

 

I already have the VPN set not to turn off on screen turn off.

 

Looking at the log, I keep getting "OpenVPN3 KEEPALIVE_TIMEOUT: Eddie Library Session invalidated: KEEPALIVE_TIMEOUT"

[Staff 9972]

Looking at the log, I keep getting "OpenVPN3 KEEPALIVE_TIMEOUT: Eddie Library Session invalidated: KEEPALIVE_TIMEOUT"

 

 

Hello,

 

it is a real disconnection. Eddie should enter the lock state and the device should have no traffic. Operator's manual intervention is required, thus option to stop in good time any program whose traffic must not be leaked is available. Do you experience something different?

 

KEEPALIVE_TIMEOUT is triggered (with AirVPN and most of other OpenVPN based services) when no reply to any in-tunnel ping is received for 60 seconds. An in-tunnel ping is sent every 10 seconds.

 

If you experience frequent timeouts of the above kind, try to get a stronger mobile signal and test different servers in various locations.

 

Kind regards

[kah0922 4]

I don't experience that with any of my other devices or with OpenVPN for Android. I'm on WiFi and the servers I have selected all do this, and these are pretty close to where I live.

 

This only happens when the screen is turned off.

[Kenwell 9]

Hi Team,.

 

Some Q,s / remarks.

• Why a masterkey to connect?
• Why not use the same button for quick connect and disconnect. With kind of warning for disconnect.
• Button “quick connect “color is a bit dull, as in colorless. Red and green will be more understandable.
• Possibility to keep log files and delete when needed after connections or disconnections are made.
• Some kind of timer to see how long I’m connected on startpage.
• Version number at startpage?

my 2 cents.

[Staff 9972]

I don't experience that with any of my other devices

 

Hello!

 

In the other devices do you run Eddie as well?

 

 

or with OpenVPN for Android.

 

In OpenVPN for Android do you run OpenVPN 2.5 or OpenVPN 3 library as engine?

 

 

I'm on WiFi and the servers I have selected all do this, and these are pretty close to where I live.

 

Can you name such servers to let us test (in private, if you don't want to report here)?

 

 

This only happens when the screen is turned off.

 

Is the "persistent notification" option enabled? If it's disabled Android can suddenly stop the VPN connection in various circumstances.

 

Kind regards

[Staff 9972]

 

Hi Team,.

 

Some Q,s / remarks.

• Why a masterkey to connect?

 

Hello!

 

It is a very essential security feature which protects all of your AirVPN data (username, password, certificates, keys...).

 

 

 

• Some kind of timer to see how long I’m connected on startpage.

 

 

Eddie makes every effort to save battery and what you suggest is somehow problematic because it may decrease battery life. Currently Eddie is the only OpenVPN based application which ensures a longer than "OpenVPN for Android" and "openvpn-connect" battery life, therefore we are hesitant to add any non-strictly essential feature which would potentially drain more energy per time unit.

 

 

 

• Why not use the same button for quick connect and disconnect. With kind of warning for disconnect.
• Button “quick connect “color is a bit dull, as in colorless. Red and green will be more understandable.
• Possibility to keep log files and delete when needed after connections or disconnections are made.
• Version number at startpage?

my 2 cents.

 

Thank you very much! Your suggestions will be kept in due consideration.

 

Kind regards

[kah0922 4]

 

I don't experience that with any of my other devices

 

Hello!

 

In the other devices do you run Eddie as well?

 

 

>or with OpenVPN for Android.

 

In OpenVPN for Android do you run OpenVPN 2.5 or OpenVPN 3 library as engine?

 

 

I'm on WiFi and the servers I have selected all do this, and these are pretty close to where I live.

 

Can you name such servers to let us test (in private, if you don't want to report here)?

 

 

This only happens when the screen is turned off.

 

Is the "persistent notification" option enabled? If it's disabled Android can suddenly stop the VPN connection in various circumstances.

 

Kind regards

 

I run Eddie on my Windows PCs, and I have ran it on OpenSUSE Tumbleweed as well. I used the OpenVPN3 backend on OpenVPN for Android, and never experienced the issues I'm having with Eddie. Persistent Notifications are still on, and the issue happens on any server I pick, whether in the US a couple miles from me, or in a completely different country. I don't think the location of the server has anything to do with the issues I am having.

[Staff 9972]

Hello!
 
We are very glad to inform you that Eddie Android edition 2.0 beta 2 is now available.

 

Please test it and stress it as much as you can! New features now meet latest users requirements.

 

Your feedback will be enormously appreciated as usual.

 

Quick additions/changes summary (please see the changelog for more detailed information):

• Enhancements aimed to increase accessibility and comfort to visually impaired persons
• German, Portuguese and Russian localizations
• Option to change "Quick connect" logic according to users feedback
• "Quick connect" button can be used to disconnect from VPN
• Some bugs have been fixed

All new features and changes when compared to version 1.0 can be found on the first message of this thread:

https://airvpn.org/topic/30421-eddie-android-edition-20-beta-released

 

Kind regards


 
Changelog 2.0 Beta 2 (VC 11) - Release date: 20 November 2018 by ProMIND

- [giganerd] Added German localization
- [giganerd] Added Russian localization
- [morvotron] Added Portuguese localization
- [ProMIND] Added accessibility support to spinners and buttons without text

OpenVPNTunnel.java

• [ProMIND] onEvent() now properly manages TCP errors in Quick Connection mode and avoids connection cycling when VPN is connected

 

SettingsActivity.java

• [ProMIND] Added setting and functionality for allowing quick connection to connect local (same country) servers

AirVPNServerProvider.java

• [ProMIND] Changed selection algorithm in order to include local (same country) servers when requested

QuickConnectionFragment.java

• [ProMIND] Quick connection button can now be used to disconnect any VPN connection

[OpenSourcerer 1435]

There is a functional issue with quick connect:

 

I added one server to the list of favorites. When tapping the quick connect button, it logs me in. A second tap tells me the end of the server list was reached, the button turns blue and connecting is not possible at all. Only force-closing the app fixes it.

 

Looking through all the strings in the app I've also found a few smaller issues in both of my translations. They are already fixed in code.

 

Maybe a clarification to the quick connect thing: I'm located in Germany (of course ) and I added Kitalpha (CH) to rule out the golden rule discussed a few posts prior. I also tried disabling it.

Edited ... by giganerd

[Staff 9972]

There is a functional issue with quick connect:

 

I added one server to the list of favorites. When tapping the quick connect button, it logs me in. A second tap tells me the end of the server list was reached, the button turns blue and connecting is not possible at all. Only force-closing the app fixes it.

 

 

 

Hello!

 

Bug confirmed (with Kitalpha and any server not supporting IPv6 yet). It will be fixed in beta 3, scheduled to be released very soon.

 

Kind regards

[Staff 9972]

Hello!
 
We are very glad to inform you that Eddie Android edition 2.0 beta 3 is now available.
 
Please test it and stress it as much as you can! Changes include new logic for "quick connect" function and a couple of bug fixes.
 
Your feedback will be enormously appreciated as usual.

We are looking for translators into traditional and simplified Chinese and several other languages. If you're interested please free to contact us at info@airvpn.org

 

Currently the application features English, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish and Turkish localizations.
 

 

Changelog 2.0 Beta 3 (VC 12) - Release date: 21 November 2018 by ProMIND

QuickConnectionFragment.java

- [ProMIND] Changed connection requirements for auto connection mode. IPv4 is now the minimum requirement.
- [ProMIND] Show a disconnection dialog in case user cancels the connection procedure
- [ProMIND] Notify user in case a favorite server is about to be connected
- [ProMIND] Connection progress dialog is now properly dismissed at the end of server list connection
 
 
All new features and changes when compared to version 1.0 can be found on the first message of this thread:
https://airvpn.org/topic/30421-eddie-android-edition-20-beta-released
 
Kind regards