I was thinking of getting a NextDNS paid plan. However, I already have Proton VPN. Is this overkill? Will DNS or VPN get messed up if I put both at the same time on computer or mobile devices?
On Which OS are you referring to?
NextDNS and ProtonVPN can work together on macOS last time I checked. But not on iOS as far as I remember.
Is it overkill? It depends on what you’re trying to accomplish. If you are only trying to block ads in the browser, I would simply stick with uBlock origin instead and their many filter lists. But if you want to block more things and track more things, only then NextDNS with a VPN on desktop makes sense.
Again, it depends on what you’re trying to do and accomplish at large.
Thanks. I’d be using it more for MacOS and iPad/ios, with some PC use as well. Not necessarily for ads, more for privacy reasons and trackers, and trying to circumvent websites that block VPNs.
are you using the paid version of ProtonVPN? Its comes with NetShield. If that is not enough for you, using another DNS alongside Proton is acceptable.
There a some risks with using a custom DNS instead of the VPN provided one.
Using custom DNS isn’t unsafe in itself, but we can’t guarantee that it will be as secure as Proton VPN’s DNS service.
Our DNS service resolves queries through our encrypted VPN tunnel, adhering to our strict no-logs policy. Custom DNS queries don’t pass through the VPN tunnel, and their overall safety depends entirely on the resolver you choose. You also won’t be able to enable NetShield ad-blocker while using custom DNS.
So if you use custom DNS, it’s really important to choose a resolver you trust.
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Dude, then I would simply recommend using a VPN without any custom DNS. Stick with the built in VPN DNS and the experience would be a lot smoother long term.
I would not personally recommend a custom DNS in this case for you. So, yes - it will be overkill.
And as for websites that may be blocked - it is also important to choose the right country to connect to for your needs. EU countries/Switzerland and Canada seem to have the most open internet even compared to USA. FYI.
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I do have the Proton paid plan and use Netshield. However, it breaks several sites I frequent, so I’ve been trying to find workarounds that keep me as private as possible.
Another option, instead of changing your whole networks DNS is just change the DNS provider for one browser. You can enable the DoH settings and then change to a third party provider.
Then when you want to get around NetShield you can use that.