wiki:GettingHelp

Version 3 (modified by Samuli Seppänen, 13 years ago) (diff)

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Introduction

There are many ways to get help with the using and/or developing OpenVPN. In all channels it's requested that try to solve your problem yourself first. Nobody likes people who ask to be fed with a spoon. That said, the idea behind the support channels is to help people, so if you've done some research yourself and hit a blockage, please don't hesitate to ask for help. Nobody excepts that you know everything (including the solution) before asking a question.

Also, please familiarize yourself with Netiquette and Chatiquette before asking questions to guarantee best results. A common error people not familiar with IRC make is to leave soon, only minutes after asking their question. So, please keep your IRC client open for hours (or even days) and monitor it, because it's possible that the only person that can help you is on entirely different timezone and/or unavailable at the moment.

If you're looking for help with developing OpenVPN (OSS), please start by reading this article.

OpenVPN (OSS) user support

Documentation

You should always do some research first before asking any questions. There are two good places to look:

If you need to dig really deep (i.e. nobody can help you), also take a look at these:

If you think you've found a new bug, please read this article.

User IRC channel

The user IRC channel (#openvpn on irc.freenode.net) is probably the easiest way to get help with generic OpenVPN (OSS) questions. For support with commercial products take a look below.

User support forums

User support forums are the second-easiest way to get help with OpenVPN (OSS). To use the forums you need to create an account first. Please select the correct forum board and ask your question.

User mailing list

The traditional way to get support with OpenVPN (OSS) is the openvpn-users mailinglist. You need to subscribe to it before sending in any questions.

Posts to this mailinglist are archived here.

Access Server user support

Access Server IRC channel

If you're using Access Server or some other OpenVPN Technologies, Inc product, you should use #openvpn-as channel on irc.freenode.net for real-time support. If you're looking for official support, please type !staff and !hours to the chat window before asking questions. If not, you can ask your question anytime and with any luck, a fellow user may be able to help you out.

Access server forum boards

User support forums are also used for Access server support: just post your question to the appropriate Access server forum board. To use the forums you need to create an account first.

OpenVPN (OSS) developer support

Developer IRC channel

The developer IRC channel (#openvpn-devel at irc.freenode.net) is most straightforward way to contact the developers. At the moment (8th Aug 2011) most active developers are in Europe, so the best time to talk to them is between 9-22 (9AM-10PM) UTC. Most of the discussion on the IRC is informal, but we do have scheduled IRC meetings, too.

NOTE: Starting late July 2011 joining the #openvpn-devel channel is only possible if you must be logged in using a registered Freenode nickname and password. Instructions for registering are available here.

Developer mailing list

The openvpn-devel mailinglist is the main communication channel for OpenVPN (OSS) developers. If you subscribe to it, you will be able to follow the development process very closely. All other, important things (e.g. IRC meetings and meeting summaries) will be announced on the mailinglist.

Posts to this mailinglist are archived here.