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macOS: Hummingbird 1.1.1 released

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Hello!

We're very glad to inform you that we have just released Hummingbird 1.1.1 for macOS (High Sierra or higher version required).
UPDATE: Apple M1 native version is available too.
 

Main features

 
  • Lightweight and stand alone binary
  • No heavy framework required, no GUI
  • Small RAM footprint
  • Lightning fast
  • Up to 100% higher throughput than OpenVPN 2.5
  • Based on OpenVPN 3 library fork by AirVPN
  • Robust leaks prevention through Network Lock based on pf - working perfectly on Big Sur too
  • Proper handling of DNS push by VPN servers
 

What's new



Remarkably higher performance



Hummingbird 1.1.1 is based on the latest OpenVPN AirVPN library version 3.6.6 linked against OpenSSL, and not mbedTLS anymore. OpenSSL latest versions in macOS have reached higher performance than mbedTLS both in encryption and decryption based on AES and CHACHA20-POLY1305 ciphers.

By relying on OpenSSL and thanks to highly optimized compilation as usual, Hummingbird on macOS is now able to beat OpenVPN 2 performance as well as previous Hummingbird 1.1.0 performance. According to our tests performed on macOS Catalina and Mojave, and keeping AES-256-GCM as Data Channel cipher, throughput increases up to 100%. Comparisons have been performed against Eddie 2.19.6 + OpenVPN 2.5, Tunnelblick + OpenVPN 2.4.9 and Hummingbird 1.1.0. All the tests consistently show a great performance boost, starting from +30% and peaking to +100%.

Therefore, we strongly recommend that you test Hummingbird 1.1.1 even if you run Eddie. Remember that you can run Hummingbird through Eddie comfortably and quickly by setting the proper option.
 

New OpenVPN 3 library features


Starting from version 1..1..1, Hummingbird is linked against a new version of our OpenVPN 3 library which supports directive data-ciphers: it can be used consistently with OpenVPN 2.5 syntax in OpenVPN profiles.

The directive allows OpenVPN 3 based software to negotiate a common Data Channel cipher with the OpenVPN server,, updating therefore our library to ncp-like negotiation with OpenVPN 2 branch.

The new library also includes a different handling of IV_CIPHERS variable, fixing OpenVPN main branch issues causing a plethora of problems with OpenVPN 2.5. The implementation, at the same time, takes care of full backward compatibility with OpenVPN versions older than 2.5.

ncp-disable directive, which to date has never been implemented in the main  branch, is still supported, in order to further enhance backward compatibility with both OpenVPN profiles and servers, as well as connection flexibility with servers running older than 2.5 OpenVPN versions.
 

Please note that if you enforce a specific Data Channel cipher by means of Hummingbird line option, the enforced Data Channel cipher will override data-ciphers profile directive.

 

Changelog 3.6.6 AirVPN  by ProMIND


- [ProMIND] [2020/11/02] openvpn/ssl/proto.hpp: IV_CIPHERS is set to the overridden cipher only
                         (both from client and/or OpenVPN profile) in order to properly work
                         with OpenVPN 2.5 IV_CIPHERS specifications. The old method of cipher
                         overriding by means of negotiable crypto parameters is still supported
                         in order to maintain compatibility with OpenVPN < 2.5.0
- [ProMIND] [2020/11/24] added "data-ciphers" directive to profile config .ovpn files in order
                         to comply to OpenVPN 2.5 negotiable data cipher specifications. In case
                         "data-ciphers" is found in the .ovpn files IV_CIPHERS is assigned to the
                         algorithms found in "data-ciphers". In this specific case, "cipher"
                         directive is used as a fallback cipher and, if not already specified in
                         "data-ciphers", is appended to IV_CIPHERS

Download

 

Hummingbird for macOS is distributed in notarized and plain versions, both for Intel and M1 processors: Check the download page: https://airvpn.org/macos/hummingbird/
 

The difference is about how the package is seen by macOS security and it is therefore up to the user to pick the distribution file suiting his or her needs best. The notarized version is compliant to macOS software security scheme and runs "out-of-the-box", whereas the plain version needs to be explicitly granted permission to run by the user in macOS security & privacy settings. Please note that both versions ensure the same functionality in connecting a VPN server, it is however up to the user to decide whether using the signed and notarized version or not.


Jump to the manual: https://airvpn.org/hummingbird/readme


Kind regards & datalove
AirVPN Staff

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v 1.1.1 beta 2 was running smooth. With the current version I get
 

. 2021.01.12 12:48:20 - Eddie version: 2.19.6 / macos_x64, System: MacOS, Name: macOS 10.15.7, Version: 10.15.7 (Build 19H15), Mono/.Net: v4.0.30319
. 2021.01.12 12:48:20 - Command line arguments (0):
. 2021.01.12 12:48:22 - Profile path: /Users/inet/.config/eddie/default.profile
. 2021.01.12 12:48:22 - Reading options from /Users/inet/.config/eddie/default.profile
. 2021.01.12 12:48:23 - Tun Driver - Expected
. 2021.01.12 12:48:23 - OpenVPN - Version: 3.3.2 - Hummingbird - AirVPN OpenVPN 3 Client 1.1.1 - 7 January 2020 (/usr/local/bin/hummingbird)
. 2021.01.12 12:48:23 - SSH - Version: OpenSSH_8.1p1, LibreSSL 2.7.3 (/usr/bin/ssh)
. 2021.01.12 12:48:23 - SSL - Version: stunnel 5.56 (/Applications/Eddie.app/Contents/MacOS/stunnel)
. 2021.01.12 12:48:23 - Recovery. Unexpected crash?
. 2021.01.12 12:48:23 - Routes, added a new route, 62.102.148.187 for gateway 10.11.166.1
. 2021.01.12 12:48:23 - Routes, added a new route, 185.206.225.51 for gateway 10.16.246.1
. 2021.01.12 12:48:23 - Routes, added a new route, 2001:ac8:38:3:7b25:8919:4d97:4e23 for gateway fde6:7a:7d20:cf6::1
. 2021.01.12 12:48:23 - Routes, removed an existing route, 185.156.175.51 for gateway 10.11.87.1
. 2021.01.12 12:48:23 - Routes, removed an existing route, 2001:ac8:28:5:6fae:73b:958e:2b90 for gateway fde6:7a:7d20:757::1
. 2021.01.12 12:48:23 - Routes, added a new route, 185.156.175.51 for gateway 10.11.71.1
. 2021.01.12 12:48:24 - Routes, added a new route, 2001:ac8:28:5:6fae:73b:958e:2b90 for gateway fde6:7a:7d20:747::1
. 2021.01.12 12:48:24 - Routes, removed an existing route, 79.142.69.160 for gateway 10.9.219.1
. 2021.01.12 12:48:24 - Routes, removed an existing route, 2a00:7145:c1:1:ae29:727:2b87:f64 for gateway fde6:7a:7d20:5db::1
. 2021.01.12 12:48:24 - Routes, added a new route, 46.19.137.116 for gateway 10.32.51.1
. 2021.01.12 12:48:24 - Routes, added a new route, 2a02:29b8:dc01:1859:13d0:9e6d:32a2:625e for gateway fde6:7a:7d20:1c33::1
. 2021.01.12 12:48:24 - Routes, removed an existing route, 46.19.137.116 for gateway 10.32.63.1
. 2021.01.12 12:48:24 - Routes, removed an existing route, 2a02:29b8:dc01:1859:13d0:9e6d:32a2:625e for gateway fde6:7a:7d20:1c3f::1
! 2021.01.12 12:48:24 - Activation of Network Lock - macOS - PF
I 2021.01.12 12:48:26 - Ready
. 2021.01.12 12:48:26 - Collect information about AirVPN ..., 1° try failed (Fetch url error:Couldn't connect to server)
. 2021.01.12 12:48:26 - Collect information about AirVPN ..., 2° try failed (Fetch url error:Couldn't connect to server)
. 2021.01.12 12:48:26 - Collect information about AirVPN ..., 3° try failed (Fetch url error:Couldn't connect to server)
. 2021.01.12 12:48:26 - Collect information about AirVPN ..., 4° try failed (Fetch url error:Couldn't connect to server)
. 2021.01.12 12:48:26 - Cannot retrieve information about AirVPN: Fetch url error:Couldn't connect to server
I 2021.01.12 12:57:57 - Session starting.
I 2021.01.12 12:57:57 - Checking authorization ...
. 2021.01.12 12:57:58 - IPv6 disabled on network adapter (Polar Ignite)
. 2021.01.12 12:57:58 - IPv6 disabled on network adapter (Thunderbolt Bridge)
. 2021.01.12 12:57:58 - IPv6 disabled on network adapter (Wi-Fi)
. 2021.01.12 12:57:58 - IPv6 disabled on network adapter (Bluetooth PAN)
! 2021.01.12 12:57:58 - Connecting to Gemini (Norway, Oslo)
. 2021.01.12 12:57:58 - Hummingbird > Hummingbird - AirVPN OpenVPN 3 Client 1.1.1 - 7 January 2020
. 2021.01.12 12:57:58 - Hummingbird > System and service manager in use is launchd
E 2021.01.12 12:57:58 - Hummingbird > ERROR: profile Eddie2.19.6 not found
! 2021.01.12 12:57:59 - Disconnecting
. 2021.01.12 12:57:59 - Connection terminated.
. 2021.01.12 12:57:59 - IPv6 restored on network adapter (Polar Ignite)
. 2021.01.12 12:57:59 - IPv6 restored on network adapter (Thunderbolt Bridge)
. 2021.01.12 12:57:59 - IPv6 restored on network adapter (Wi-Fi)
. 2021.01.12 12:57:59 - IPv6 restored on network adapter (Bluetooth PAN)
I 2021.01.12 12:58:01 - Cancel requested.
! 2021.01.12 12:58:01 - Session terminated.
I 2021.01.12 12:58:38 - Session starting.
I 2021.01.12 12:58:38 - Checking authorization ...
. 2021.01.12 12:58:39 - IPv6 disabled on network adapter (Polar Ignite)
. 2021.01.12 12:58:39 - IPv6 disabled on network adapter (Thunderbolt Bridge)
. 2021.01.12 12:58:39 - IPv6 disabled on network adapter (Wi-Fi)
. 2021.01.12 12:58:39 - IPv6 disabled on network adapter (Bluetooth PAN)
! 2021.01.12 12:58:39 - Connecting to Cepheus (Norway, Oslo)
. 2021.01.12 12:58:39 - Hummingbird > Hummingbird - AirVPN OpenVPN 3 Client 1.1.1 - 7 January 2020
. 2021.01.12 12:58:39 - Hummingbird > System and service manager in use is launchd
E 2021.01.12 12:58:39 - Hummingbird > ERROR: profile Eddie2.19.6 not found
! 2021.01.12 12:58:39 - Disconnecting
. 2021.01.12 12:58:39 - Connection terminated.
. 2021.01.12 12:58:39 - IPv6 restored on network adapter (Polar Ignite)
. 2021.01.12 12:58:39 - IPv6 restored on network adapter (Thunderbolt Bridge)
. 2021.01.12 12:58:40 - IPv6 restored on network adapter (Wi-Fi)
. 2021.01.12 12:58:40 - IPv6 restored on network adapter (Bluetooth PAN)
I 2021.01.12 12:58:43 - Checking authorization ...
. 2021.01.12 12:58:44 - IPv6 disabled on network adapter (Polar Ignite)
. 2021.01.12 12:58:44 - IPv6 disabled on network adapter (Thunderbolt Bridge)
. 2021.01.12 12:58:44 - IPv6 disabled on network adapter (Wi-Fi)
. 2021.01.12 12:58:44 - IPv6 disabled on network adapter (Bluetooth PAN)
! 2021.01.12 12:58:44 - Connecting to Cepheus (Norway, Oslo)
. 2021.01.12 12:58:44 - Hummingbird > Hummingbird - AirVPN OpenVPN 3 Client 1.1.1 - 7 January 2020
. 2021.01.12 12:58:44 - Hummingbird > System and service manager in use is launchd
E 2021.01.12 12:58:44 - Hummingbird > ERROR: profile Eddie2.19.6 not found
! 2021.01.12 12:58:44 - Disconnecting
. 2021.01.12 12:58:44 - Connection terminated.
. 2021.01.12 12:58:44 - IPv6 restored on network adapter (Polar Ignite)
. 2021.01.12 12:58:44 - IPv6 restored on network adapter (Thunderbolt Bridge)
. 2021.01.12 12:58:44 - IPv6 restored on network adapter (Wi-Fi)
. 2021.01.12 12:58:44 - IPv6 restored on network adapter (Bluetooth PAN)
I 2021.01.12 12:58:46 - Cancel requested.
! 2021.01.12 12:58:46 - Session terminated.

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@Maggie144

Hello!

It's an Eddie bug which has been patched on the fly, can you please re-download the package for Mac when version 2.19.7 is available? It will be released soon. In the meantime, to get higher performance with HB 1.1.1, you can run it directly. Anyway Eddie 2.19.7 will be released very soon.

EDIT: you can download now Eddie 2.19.7 featuring the fix. In https://airvpn.org/macos click "Other versions" then select "Experimental". The download page will then point to Eddie 2.19.7. Download and install as usual.

Kind regards
 

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Hello, just two question for the moment... ;·)
In this announcement it says "High Sierra or higher required", but on the download section says "Mojave or higher required". Which one is correct? Hopefully the first one.

And also in the announcement it says that one can run Hummingbird through Eddie, is there a documentation for it? 

Thanks.

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@Searching

Hello!

Hummingbird 1.1.0 requires macOS Mojave or higher version, while 1.1.1 requires High Sierra or higher version. We will fix the error in the download page.

There is no documentation to run Hummingbird from Eddie but it's very simple to do that. From Eddie main window select "Preferences" > "Advanced" and tick "Use Hummingbird". Eddie 2.19.7 or higher version is required (do not try with older versions because they can't launch Hummingbird 1.1.1 properly).

See here to download Eddie latest beta release:
https://airvpn.org/forums/topic/46329-eddie-desktop-219beta-released/

Kind regards
 

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Hello,

Thanks for the reply and clarification. Also many thanks for supporting an "old" (only three years) OS as High Sierra. I guess that a lot of user like me that can't, don't want or don't need to update to the "latest and greatest" will appreciate AirVPN giving support to our OS. It is nice to see that we can still use the best VPN technology you have to offer, please keep it that way for the next couple of years at least ;·)

On another side, for non techie people like me, is it safe to update to the latest beta of Eddie to try Hummingbird and if we encounter any problem roll back to the "old" stable Eddie, or there are things that we have to be aware while rolling back?
Or we just wait until the new stable Eddie release is out?

Thanks in advance for your answer and support.

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@Searching
 
Quote

On another side, for non techie people like me, is it safe to update to the latest beta of Eddie to try Hummingbird and if we encounter any problem roll back to the "old" stable Eddie, or there are things that we have to be aware while rolling back?
Or we just wait until the new stable Eddie release is out?


Hello!

You can safely test Eddie 2.19.7 as no critical problems have been reported so far. If you experience any problem, you can easily roll back to some previous Eddie release. If that's necessary, remember to roll back to Hummingbird 1.1.0 too. If you need a link to re-download older Hummingbird version just ask us.

Kind regards

 

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@Searching
 
Quote

On another side, for non techie people like me, is it safe to update to the latest beta of Eddie to try Hummingbird and if we encounter any problem roll back to the "old" stable Eddie, or there are things that we have to be aware while rolling back?
Or we just wait until the new stable Eddie release is out?


Hello!

You can safely test Eddie 2.19.7 as no critical problems have been reported so far. If you experience any problem, you can easily roll back to some previous Eddie release. If that's necessary, remember to roll back to Hummingbird 1.1.0 too. If you need a link to re-download older Hummingbird version just ask us.

Kind regards

 

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Posted ... (edited)

Hi,

I've been a long term Eddie user and recently tried out Hummingbird on my Mac (Catalina 10.15.7 - very soon Big Sur on a new M1 Macbook).

The issue I have with V1.1.1 (or maybe Hummingbird in general) is that after some time, the connection on my machine just stops or rather "freezes". It feels a bit that the connection is running into a timeout and I will then need to STRG +C to stop and restart Hummingbird to open up a new connection. After some time, connection just stops again. Rinse and repeat.

This does not happen all the time though, sometimes I can have the connection up with Hummingbird four hours, while some other day this happens after an hour or so.

A couple of notes:

  • I am using Hummingbird with a UDP / Port 443 .ovpn Profile from the Config Generator. Basically everything else (Cipher, etc. default).
  • I have been using it with the "-i" Option since I want to use my local system DNS - because I have a PiHole (DNS sinkhole for Ads) running in my LAN. It seemed to happen more frequently when using it with "-i" than without (using Air DNS) - but I'm not sure how related this is.

Now when I have to cancel the connection with STRG +C, I noticed the following error messages in the log output and would love to hear some comments if and how they relate to this issue:
Fri Jan 15 13:47:58.478 2021 ERROR: RESOLVE_ERROR
Fri Jan 15 13:47:58.478 2021 Transport Error: DNS resolve error on 'ch.vpn.airdns.org' for UDP session: Host not found (authoritative)
Fri Jan 15 13:47:58.478 2021 Client terminated, restarting in 2000 ms...
Fri Jan 15 13:48:00.476 2021 EVENT: RECONNECTING
Fri Jan 15 13:48:00.476 2021 ERROR: N_RECONNECT
Fri Jan 15 13:48:00.478 2021 EVENT: RESOLVE
Fri Jan 15 13:48:00.479 2021 Setting up network filter and lock
Fri Jan 15 13:48:00.479 2021 Allowing system DNS 192.168.178.29 to pass through the network filter

Another session terminated:
Fri Jan 15 14:11:07.776 2021 ERROR: NETWORK_SEND_ERROR
Fri Jan 15 14:11:07.776 2021 UDP send exception: send: Can't assign requested address
Fri Jan 15 14:11:07.776 2021 ERROR: NETWORK_SEND_ERROR
Fri Jan 15 14:11:07.776 2021 ERROR: KEEPALIVE_TIMEOUT
Fri Jan 15 14:11:07.776 2021 Session invalidated: KEEPALIVE_TIMEOUT
Fri Jan 15 14:11:07.776 2021 Client terminated, restarting in 2000 ms...
Fri Jan 15 14:11:10.069 2021 DSDict: updated Setup:/Network/Service/EF6BA305-626D-4E21-84A7-436548303CC8/DNS
Fri Jan 15 14:11:10.069 2021 DSDict: removed State:/Network/Service/OpenVPNConnect/Info
Fri Jan 15 14:11:10.069 2021 MacDNS: RESETDNS 19.6.0

And another one:
Fri Jan 15 16:52:23.307 2021 Network filter and lock successfully activated
Fri Jan 15 16:52:23.308 2021 ERROR: RESOLVE_ERROR
Fri Jan 15 16:52:23.308 2021 Transport Error: DNS resolve error on 'ch.vpn.airdns.org' for UDP session: Host not found (authoritative)
Fri Jan 15 16:52:23.308 2021 Client terminated, restarting in 2000 ms...
Fri Jan 15 16:52:25.307 2021 EVENT: RECONNECTING
Fri Jan 15 16:52:25.307 2021 ERROR: N_RECONNECT
Fri Jan 15 16:52:25.307 2021 EVENT: RESOLVE
Fri Jan 15 16:52:25.307 2021 Setting up network filter and lock
Fri Jan 15 16:52:25.307 2021 Allowing system DNS 192.168.178.29 to pass through the network filter
No ALTQ support in kernel

When the connection goes bad, this is what the stats say after I interrupted the Hummingbird session before starting a new connection:
STATS:
  BYTES_IN : 1044785
  BYTES_OUT : 361819
  PACKETS_IN : 2030
  PACKETS_OUT : 2461
  TUN_BYTES_IN : 302020
  TUN_BYTES_OUT : 993638
  TUN_PACKETS_IN : 2390
  TUN_PACKETS_OUT : 1958
  NETWORK_SEND_ERROR : 2
  RESOLVE_ERROR : 1
  KEEPALIVE_TIMEOUT : 1
  N_RECONNECT : 2

And another thing - not sure if I picked this up wrong from the documentation or the release notes: somewhere it is mentioned that specifically for Hummingbird a OpenVPN V3 Config file is needed, but the Config generator only lists >2.5 for macOS. Is the >2.5 Option correct (see attached screenshot) or is there a specific V3 config available which I missed?

I would really like to use Hummingbird but of course the connection needs to be stable.

Many thanks and keep up the good work!
 

Config Generator - AirVPN.png

Edited ... by spinmaster
Cleaned up formatting

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@spinmaster

Hello and thank you!

The name resolution problem seems related to your system DNS, Can you tell us whether you see the names resolution error only when a re-connection is attempted?

In the Configuration Generator, selecting "OpenVPN >= 2.5" is fine for Hummingbird 1.1.1, because our AirVPN OpenVPN 3 library supports all the needed directives and works in an OpenVPN 2.5 compatible mode for cipher negotiation.

Can you please test OpenVPN 2.5 or OpenVPN 2.4.9 with Tunnelblick and check whether you get more, less or the same stability than you have with Hummingbird? The KEEPALIVE_TIMEOUT is an ordinary error caused by connection drop (your node and the VPN server can't communicate with each other for more than a minute).

Kind regards
 

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