want to get started but finding the technical side really overwhelming

I'd really like to get started with this stuff but finding the technical requirement exhausting.

Trying to install privoxyvpn- "simply add the proxy to your browser and ensure the configuration is correct" (no help as to what this means, or how to do it and following the basic instructions just renders my browser unable to connect - googling the error message gives me replies like "simply make sure you read the logs" (no description of how to get to the logs or how to read them)

hearing I need a proxy and a reverse proxy, install SWAG — "first, point the A name at your server and the CNAME at the A and then install the SSL certificate - but be sure to pick between directories and subdomains if you have fewer than 20 domains in your account."

Like what the fuck does any of this mean?

Then I hear if I have a proxy it might interfere with the reverse proxy and both might interfere with the VPN and vice versa.

How does one even get started?

61 comments

OK, so, I attempted to bring some clarity to this discussion that seems like it's all over the place in terms of methodology and difficulty. Here is a breakdown as well as some instructions that should hopefully help OP out.
Running VPN on Router (suggested by ruplicant):
Veracity: Valid. Running a VPN on the router secures all devices on the network.
Complexity: High for a beginner. Requires a compatible router and understanding of router firmware.
Suitability for Beginners: Not ideal due to the technical complexity.
Setting Up Media Server on Raspberry Pi (suggested by ruplicant):
Veracity: Valid. Raspberry Pi can effectively run media servers like Plex or Jellyfin.
Complexity: Moderate. It requires some technical know-how for setup and maintenance.
Suitability for Beginners: Moderate. Good for those with some technical background.
Standard Computer Setup with Torrent Client and VLC (suggested by send_me_your_ink):
Veracity: Valid. This is a common method for downloading and viewing content.
Complexity: Low. Easy to set up and use.
Suitability for Beginners: High. Straightforward and less technically demanding.
Using Plex Over Jellyfin (suggested by Reverendender):
Veracity: Subjective. Both are valid, but Plex is often seen as more user-friendly.
Complexity: Low for Plex, moderate for Jellyfin.
Suitability for Beginners: Plex is more suitable due to its ease of use.
Based on this analysis, for a beginner user, the most straightforward and effective approach would be to use a standard computer setup with a VPN, a torrent client, and VLC media player for streaming. This setup minimizes technical complexity while providing a good balance of privacy and ease of use.
Step-by-Step Instructions for Beginners:
1. Set Up a VPN on Your Computer:
Choose a reputable VPN service (like Mullvad or ProtonVPN).
Download and install the VPN software on your computer.
Follow the software's instructions to connect to a VPN server.
2. Install a Torrent Client:
Download a user-friendly torrent client (e.g., qBittorrent, uTorrent).
Install the torrent client on your computer.
Configure the settings for privacy (like enabling a kill switch, if available).
3. Download and Install VLC Media Player:
Download VLC from its official website.
Install VLC, following the setup wizard.
4. Download Content:
Use the torrent client to find and download content.
Ensure your VPN is active whenever you are downloading.
5. Stream Content to Your TV:
If your TV supports casting (like with Chromecast), use VLC's streaming feature to cast content to your TV.
Alternatively, connect your computer to the TV via HDMI for direct playback.
6. Practice Good Security Habits:
Always keep your VPN active when downloading or streaming content.
Regularly update your software (VPN, torrent client, VLC) for security.
7. Optional: Explore Advanced Configurations Later:
As you become more comfortable, you might explore setting up a media server like Plex for a more integrated experience.
- This was it. This was the comment I needed to remove all excuses and get me going. I have officially raised sail.
  Thank you.
  
  Yarrrr!
  
  Always respect the codex matey
- thank you for this. my bed time now but I'll dig into this over thr next couple of days
  
  Anytime! On step 3 you can also just install plex or jellyfin on your computer instead of VLC. Easier IMHO
- Download a user-friendly torrent client (e.g., qBittorrent, uTorrent).
  Isn't uTorrent, like, malware or something?
- Great post, thanks for the effort!
  
  Maybe we can put together a wiki or something. No idea who the mods are though.
- I do not think so, (or else that is not a factor on a mac?). I run private internet Explorer (which I am dropping in favor of proton when my subscription runs out) and I have never done any kind of configuration like that on it, and have literally never had a problem.
what "stuff" are you talking about?
if you want to do some pirating you need a decent VPN, like Mullvad or Proton, that you run on your system (Android/Linux/Windows/iOS), not some random leaky and dubious browser add-on
dunno why dafuq you're mentioning configuring a webserver (with SWAG) to point the DNS records (A and CNAME). the VPN will act as a proxy for you. but maybe i'm just way out of my depth here...
it might help if first you tell us what exactly are tou trying to achieve
- high-level: in the USA, download TV and movies and watch them on the TV without having to connect a cable from my computer to my TV.
  I have mullvad on my phone, but when I installed it on my Pi it blocks all ssh connections (which was how I was using the pi), some googling told me this was expected behavior and I should configure my proxy/reverse proxy first with the VPN built in.
  the webserver, as I understood it, is so I can watch the movies when it's done, but again as I understand it, has to be configured alongside the VPN to let me in to watch stuff, but not show the government/police/whatever that I am watching stuff
  
  What your trying to do is a big overkill if you want only one device to connect to a VPN.
  Your VPN installed on your raspberry pi should have a "local network sharing" option. Based on some blogs mullvad had some issues with hostname and network shares (as of 07/2022) and you should try to connect via IP address if you're having trouble.
  Local network sharing only works on the same subnet (IP address of your computer, Pi, and TV should have the first 3 parts of the IP match, ex: 192.168.4.xxx not 192.168.x.xxx).
  If you're trying to SSH to the Pi when not connected to the same network it's going to be much more difficult.
  If all above fails, this GitHub issue suggests advanced split tunneling setup on the Pi so that it can listen for SSH locally.
  
  ok, maybe someone else might be able to help you properly, since i'm yet to do my planned Jellyfin home setup
  but it seems to me that maybe instead of running the VPN directly from you Pi, you should run it from you router, so your whole subnet is tunneled when going to the internet and inside your home you don't need those shenanigans to connect to the Pi
  if you did this, then you only need to install your mediaserver on the Pi (either Plex or Jellyfin, and although i haven't used any yet, Jellyfin seems to be the one not currently being shitified, and the complete FOSS route) and that will probably be a much easier installation
  
  Ok. I'm going to assume you have zero networking experience, and have one computer (a desktop/laptop). I'm also going to assume you are using some flavor of screen mirroring tech (eg a Chromecast) to wirelessly connect the
  Per your post the goal is to A) download items, B) store the items on local disk, C) display the items on your TV via some kind of wireless.
  I'm further going to assume we are strictly working with torrents.
  You will want to download two applications, 1) a torrent client (I'm not going to recommend one because Im not up to date on the differences), and VLC. You will also need whatever application your VPN requires but I think you have that configured.
  When downloading via a torrent you first turn on the VPN prior to downloading/seeding/etc. Once the torrent is finished, you can send you content to your TV via VLC (there is an option to use the TV as a renderer target).
  Some gotchas. Unless you configure your VPN to allow local traffic, all traffic goes via the VPN. This means that your computer is completely isolated from the rest of your Network (it's visible, but can not interact with any of it). If you want, I can go into the hows/why's of what's going on. For the Pi. Use it to learn and play with Linux for the time being - focus on getting comfortable with the shell and do not attempt to run a reverse proxy/web server unless you understand what's going on (this is to keep you safe).
  
  without having to connect a cable from my computer to my TV
  Honestly, just buy a Chromecast or something. Way less effort
  
  Buy a cheap Mi TV Stick 4K at AliExpress and install IPTV Smarters Pro(suggest you to pay the one-time fee) get a "trustworthy" IPTV provider and pay 1 year(or 2 years if they have that option) subscription(cheaper than pay it for month by month) install a VPN client on the TV Stick, and pirate all the way up to the sky mate.
  That's the paid option, if you want to do the shit but for free then you will have to mess around with your own private pirating media server but if you are not worried about paying for simplicity just go for that option, Live TV, Movies, TV Shows all in one from different platforms and with a decent all-in-one quality.
  Pray and luck.. 🙏🤞
  Edit: if you choose to go for the cheaper option of free pirating then I would suggest you to use an Orange Pi+Armbian instead of a Raspberry Pi and a good external USB 3.0 NVME SSD. Both can be bought at AliExpress at a reasonable price.
  Edit 2: If you don't give a flying fuck about live sports, XXX channels and PPV events maybe your best option would be going for the free pirating option.
- Yep, this. Then you need a torrent app of your choice (I use Transmission). Then stream it to your TV somehow; I use PLEX. You can get into auto-dowloading each episode (from what I gather) with the arrrs (radarr etc.) if you want. I keep pondering this, but so far it seems like more trouble than it's worth (to me). (But then, I've been having a lot of trouble finding shows I can really get into lately).
  
  I have it auto downloading through a rss feed from showrss.info. I don't use plex or jellyfin or the like. At one point I was running a media server on my pc but now my android TV with vlc is pulling straight from my nas. For now I am paying for a torrent friendly vps so I don't have to worry about whether or not I leak my ip address.
  
  this is what I'm trying to do. I've played around with the Arr apps and they work as far as I can tell - but don't want to use them until the network/VPN stuff is secure and safe
The first thing you need is your pirate ship and your crew. Pirates steal, so I recommend just going to a nearby port and cause a mutiny. You'll need a pirate crew for this, so you'll need to go to your local tavern and bribe a few scallywags with some coin and beer. Before you set of to see, I recommend you get up to date on your sea shantys and have a large stockpile of cannonballs. Have fun sailing the seas!
- set of to see
  
  sudo set of "see"
  Command not found
Thanks for asking, OP. I'm in a similar boat, except I don't even have a computer to get started with yet, only an old phone if I wanted to use that (not trying to do things on my daily). Thinking of buying a raspberry pi and diving in but dunno where to start.
Have plex and someone kind enough to share their library with me, but it doesn't have everything I want. Could be worse tho, I suppose.
- Theoretically (assuming it's an android) you could use an old phone. I know both mullvad and Proton have vpn clients for Android, and libretorrent works well. And you could plug in an external USB drive for more storage. And then use something like a Chromecast to send things to your tv
Hey OP. I'm a bit late to the party, but I figure I'll throw in my two cents.
Generally speaking, you're going to want a VPN (I suggest Mullvad), a torrent client (I suggest qBitTorrent), a NAS (for storing data), a movie server (Jellyfin is great), and something that can connect to your streaming server.
I suggest Mullvad as a VPN because 1. it's a no log service, 2. you can pay for your subscription using Monero (a type of private/anonymous crypto), and 3. it has a "Lockdown mode" which will block any traffic from your PC that isn't routed through your VPN preventing IP leaks.
I suggest qBitTorrent as a torrent client because it has an advanced setting that allows you to specify which network interface is used for torrenting. You'll want to set that to the virtual network that Mullvad creates so that even if for some reason your VPN goes down, your torrent client won't leak your IP.
For actually hosting movies you'll want to store them somewhere. Network attached storage is good for this. I built my own using a raspberry pi, and it's separate from my torrenting PC, but there's no reason you couldn't also configure your torrenting PC to also be a NAS. If you don't want to think too hard about a NAS, there are companies like Asustor make premade network storage.
For actually hosting movies you'll want something like Jellyfin running on a computer that has access to where your movies are stored. Again, Jellyfin can run on the same computer that's running your NAS, and your Torrent client. It can all be the same computer. This step may require some configuration on your part. You may want to give your Jellyfin server a static IP so that your devices will automatically reconnect if your router resets.
Finally, you'll want to actually watch your movies. I have Roku boxes in my house, so my setup for this was downloading the Jellyfin app, and then typing in the local IP address of my Jellyfin server. You don't necessarily need an external box for this, Android TVs can install the Jellyfin app.
And that's a kind of high level example setup. There's other things that you can do that'll make your setup more secure like properly configuring wireguard in mullvad to obfuscate your traffic so that your ISP won't know that you're torrenting through a VPN, or encrypting your NAS data, but that's something you should decide if it's worth doing.
If you want super easy then buy a GLInet portable router. Signup for a supported vpn and plug in the credentials in the portable router.
Install qbittorrent on your computer and then connect to the portable routers WiFi access point .
your whole connection should be tunneled through the vpn and you can download what you want.
Make sure you check your ip before doing anything and set a kill switch option in the router config.

61 comments

Step-by-Step Instructions for Beginners: