Help Firewall and VPN won't turn on on Samsung Galaxy J7 Sky Pro. Please help.

[spre248]

I had a Unimax U504TL smartphone and used a free firewall called Firewall No Root by Protectstar Inc. on from the play store. The firewall would turn on just fine when I turned on the phone and tapped it to turn it on. It wouldn't turn on automatically with the phone like it said it would for some reason, but the other firewall I tried wouldn't let me access the internet at all so I just used that one for protection.

When I started to use my Samsung Galaxy J7 Sky Pro with the same firewall for some reason even though that is a better phone, the firewall wouldn't turn on. When I turn it on and tap the on button it reverts right back to off and doesn't turn on at all no matter how many times I tap. The app starts up with the phone but does the same thing where on reverts to off.

I tried a couple other firewalls and they did the same thing as No Root and neither started up with the phone. I saw nothing in the firewall settings that looked to fix this. The same thing also is happening with my NordVPN. I bought a license and can login on the phone, but no matter how much I tap the VPN won't connect. It works on my desktop computer, but It reverts back to disconnected as soon I tap on the phone. Is there a setting I can try in the phone settings to fix this and let the firewall and VPN work? I thought maybe something was blocking it since it worked on my Unimax but not on the Samsung. Thanks for your help.

PS: I didn't try to turn on both at the same time so there is no conflict there if it helps.

Here is the link to firewall if it helps: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.protectstar.firewall

And NordVPN
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.nordvpn.android

 

[mikedt]

PS: I didn't try to turn on both at the same time so there is no conflict there if it helps.

Here is the link to firewall if it helps: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.protectstar.firewall

Well that one has many 1 star reviews claiming it doesn't work, amongst other issues. And when I tried it, it wouldn't connect for me either.

And NordVPN
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.nordvpn.android

I know Nord works no problems here in China, to tunnel through the GFW. It could be a particular protocol on one phone that's not working. Go into the Nord settings and check the protocol options.

I'm using Astrill and Express VPNs myself, and have no problems with these.

 

[Dannydet]

You should try no root firewall instead...
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=app.greyshirts.firewall
Very popular and supported.

 

[svim]

You simply cannot have both a firewall app and VPN app running at the same time, at least with an unrooted Android device. Your VPN app is of course just that, a VPN service. But on an unrooted phone, any non-root firewall app has to rely upon a workaround to function. This typically involves using a local VPN service that's running within the installed Android operating system on your phone. (Or in other words, it's not VPN service that ties into servers on the Internet, it's a local only, internal VPN service.) An Android firewall app will use this local VPN service as its filter to function, basically data packets just get redirected through it before going out into the Internet. The issue being, you can only have one VPN service running on your Android phone so you need to pick one or the other.

The same local VPN service workaround applies with a lot of ad-blocking apps too. And this is in no way a recommendation but if you were to root your phone, using a root-required firewall app will be using the integral firewall service that's already within the Android operating system so there's no need to use a VPN. (non-root apps don't have access to system-level services as they get installed as only user-level apps.)

 

[spre248]

Thanks guys for all your replies and information.

To mikedt, NordVPN still didn't work when changing the protocols at first. I tried all 4 and different servers and it still didn't work. However I tried to uninstall a few other apps I wasn't using (Melon VPN, VPN Melon & Packe Save) and also the Protectstar Firewall I mentioned in my original post. I don't think Protectstar firewall is an issue since it worked on the Unimax but I uninstalled it anyway.

After uninstalling those, I tried NordVPN again and it worked fine! I also tested the No Root firewall mentioned Dannydet mentioned and it also worked. Am I to guess one of those other apps was conflicting with the VPN and firewall and preventing them from working?

To svim about not using a Firewall and VPN at the same time, another user on another forum said on your home (on wifi) you have 2 firewalls between you and the internet before anything you even add. He said I could use a VPN only and be fine. Based on your info and what he said, is it true that me using just a VPN would be enough to protect me? For now I wanted to keep using NordVPN.

 

[mikedt]

To svim about not using a Firewall and VPN at the same time, another user on another forum said on your home (on wifi) you have 2 firewalls between you and the internet before anything you even add. He said I could use a VPN only and be fine. Based on your info and what he said, is it true that me using just a VPN would be enough to protect me? For now I wanted to keep using NordVPN.

Here's the thing, a VPN is NOT a firewall, although some VPN services may have firewall type features. All a VPN does it provides an encrypted path into a remote server, which can be anywhere, which then goes out onto the public internet.

A firewall basically blocks things, like certain websites, e.g. where I am has the Great FireWall of China. And I use a VPN to tunnel through the GFW, and so can access the sites I want, like Google, YouTube, BBC, Wikipedia, etc. Firewalls are often used by govt, enterprises, and academic organisations to protect their local networks from external attacks, and to keep users from things their admin prohibits.

On unrooted Android devices, firewall type apps have to operate as a locally looped VPN on the device itself, e.g. ad blockers. So if you try to use an actual VPN app at the same time, it won't work.

 

[spre248]

Here's the thing, a VPN is NOT a firewall, although some VPN services may have firewall type features. All a VPN does it provides an encrypted path into a remote server, which can be anywhere, which then goes out onto the public internet.

A firewall basically blocks things, like certain websites, e.g. where I am has the Great FireWall of China. And I use a VPN to tunnel through the GFW, and so can access the sites I want, like Google, YouTube, BBC, Wikipedia, etc. Firewalls are often used by govt, enterprises, and academic organisations to protect their local networks from external attacks, and to keep users from things their admin prohibits.

On unrooted Android devices, firewall type apps have to operate as a locally looped VPN on the device itself, e.g. ad blockers. So if you try to use an actual VPN app at the same time, it won't work.

I apologize in advance if I lack understanding on anything or struggle to understand what you guys say on the forum. I'm not very technical and am not good with smartphones. I'm not really clear on what I need to protect the phone based on what you are saying. I thought a VPN and firewall would protect me on a mobile device. What do I need to put on the phone to protect it properly? I use a desktop computer at home and from what I've heard a firewall and antivirus/malware keep a person safe. Can I use the No Root Firewall and my Avast antivirus (it's the free version) to keep me safe and then only use the VPN to keep my browsing info shielded from hackers, etc?

 

[puppykickr]

Ditch the Avast.
As others here will tell you, no virus protection is needed on Android.

Although similar, phones and computers are different.

If a phone is not rooted, it is exceedingly difficult for it to be hacked.

Viruses do not even exist for phones the way we think of them on computers.

All those apps do on Android is slow the device down, run the battery down faster, and actually make the user more vulnerable.
The peace of mind is false.

A firewall is great for at home or a trusted Wi-Fi source.
It can block ads, and even block internet altogether from certain apps.
There is a newer version that can even block individual parts of the web just for individual apps.

A VPN is better when using a public Wi-Fi hotspot, or at a hotel, restaurant, the library, etc.
This encrypts your online data, keeping it safe from hackers and other spying entities.

 

[spre248]

Ditch the Avast.
As others here will tell you, no virus protection is needed on Android.

Although similar, phones and computers are different.

If a phone is not rooted, it is exceedingly difficult for it to be hacked.

Viruses do not even exist for phones the way we think of them on computers.

All those apps do on Android is slow the device down, run the battery down faster, and actually make the user more vulnerable.
The peace of mind is false.

A firewall is great for at home or a trusted Wi-Fi source.
It can block ads, and even block internet altogether from certain apps.
There is a newer version that can even block individual parts of the web just for individual apps.

A VPN is better when using a public Wi-Fi hotspot, or at a hotel, restaurant, the library, etc.
This encrypts your online data, keeping it safe from hackers and other spying entities.

Thanks a lot puppykickr for your advice. I appreciate it and will apply it when I use my phone.