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I can’t connect from China on macOS

Introduction

The NordVPN macOS application is fully blocked in China. Therefore, you will need to connect via a manual IKEv2/IPsec connection method described in this article.

Before you start

  • Ensure you can log in to your Nord Account.
  • Make sure you can access your email account.

Here’s what to do

  1. Download the NordVPN IKEv2 certificate to your Mac.
  2. Open the certificate in the “Downloads” folder.
  3. Click “Add” in the “Add Certificates” window.
  4. Click “Login” under “Default Keychains.”
  5. In the “Keychain Access” window, search “nordvpn.”
  6. Find the NordVPN Root CA certificate, right-click it, and select “Get Info.”
  7. Click the arrow next to “Trust” to open the tab.
    NOTE: You will need to enter your Mac password to make these changes.
  8. Under “When using this certificate,” change “Extensible Authentication (EAP)” and “IP Security (IPsec)” to “Always Trust.” Everything else must be “No Value Specified.”
  9. Click on the Apple logo in the upper-left corner of the screen and select “System Settings.”
  10. In the system settings, click on “VPN.”
    NOTE: For macOS versions below 14, follow these steps instead of steps 10-12:
     
    1. Click “Network.”
    2. Click the + icon in the lower left-hand corner of the window.
    3. From the interface dropdown list, select “VPN.”
    4. For “VPN Type” select “IKEv2.”
    5. Input a name for the “Service Name” field and click “Create” once done.
       
  11. Click “Add VPN Configuration.”
  12. Select “IKEv2.”
  13. Fill in the “Server address” and “Remote ID” fields with the servers below:
    NOTE: The “Server address” field requires an IP such as 23.92.26.69, whereas the “Remote ID” field requires a hostname such as us5783.nordvpn.com. Make sure the IP matches the correct hostname.
     
    1. 23.92.26.69 - us5783.nordvpn.com
    2. 66.175.219.21 - us5783.nordvpn.com
    3. 172.104.110.252 - jp558.nordvpn.com
    4. 139.162.99.117 - jp560.nordvpn.com
    5. 50.116.9.72 - us5783.nordvpn.com
    6. 45.56.89.149 - us5783.nordvpn.com
       
  14. For the authentication fields, select “Username.”
  15. Fill in the authentication fields as follows:
     
    1. Log in to your Nord Account.
    2. Click “NordVPN” on the left side of the browser.
    3. Click on “Set up NordVPN manually.”
    4. Click "Service credentials."
    5. Click "Verify email." 
    6. You will receive a verification code in your registered email. Type the code in.
    7. Use the “Copy” button to copy the service credential username and paste it into the “Username” field.
    8. Use the “Copy” button to copy the service credential password and paste it into the “Password” field.
       
  16. Click “Create.”
  17. After completing the steps, your macOS device should be connected successfully.

Additional tips

  • Restart your device.
  • Try a different network.
  • Turn off any additional VPN services.
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