A VPN (Virtual Private Network) wraps traffic in encryption and sends it through a tunnel to another network.

Common uses

1. Remote access — reach your home LAN from elsewhere as if you were on Wi‑Fi at home
2. Privacy — commercial VPMs hide your public IP from the local network
3. App-specific egress — one app or container uses a different exit IP (e.g. for privacy or policy)

Homelab tip: if a container must only use VPN, configure a kill switch — if the tunnel drops, traffic stops instead of leaking your home IP.

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