# VPN Tunnels based on PIA stop working **URL:** \ **Category:** VPN, DNS, Leaks\ **Created:** [July 31, 2026, 8:23am UTC](https://forum.gl-inet.com/t/vpn-tunnels-based-on-pia-stop-working/70257 "2026-07-31T08:23:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![WizMeister](https://forum-assets.gl-inet.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/w/ad7895/32.png) [@WizMeister](https://forum.gl-inet.com/u/WizMeister)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2026, 8:23am UTC](https://forum.gl-inet.com/t/vpn-tunnels-based-on-pia-stop-working/70257/1 "2026-07-31T08:23:50Z")
We have set up a VPN tunnel that forwards traffic through a specific PIA country (set up via the gl-inet PIA menu). When that server gets stale, the tunnel stops working, and we have to enter the PIA menu, refresh the servers and then go the tunnel, disable it, configure the new server of that particular country and re-enable the tunnel. Is this an expected behavior? Because it doesn’t look very intuitive tbh. ---
**Author:** ![will.qiu](https://forum-assets.gl-inet.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/w/b38774/32.png) [@will.qiu](https://forum.gl-inet.com/u/will.qiu)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2026, 9:30am UTC](https://forum.gl-inet.com/t/vpn-tunnels-based-on-pia-stop-working/70257/2 "2026-08-04T09:30:21Z")
Hi, Thank you for your feedback. Yes, this should be the expected behavior at the moment. We will discuss this with our team and see whether we can optimize this behavior in future versions. ---
**Author:** ![WizMeister](https://forum-assets.gl-inet.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/w/ad7895/32.png) [@WizMeister](https://forum.gl-inet.com/u/WizMeister)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2026, 9:55am UTC](https://forum.gl-inet.com/t/vpn-tunnels-based-on-pia-stop-working/70257/5 "2026-08-04T09:55:19Z")
Having the user just select a country in the tunnel settings would be great. This way when servers update they will auto recover from the chosen VPN location ---
**Author:** ![WizMeister](https://forum-assets.gl-inet.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/w/ad7895/32.png) [@WizMeister](https://forum.gl-inet.com/u/WizMeister)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2026, 10:07am UTC](https://forum.gl-inet.com/t/vpn-tunnels-based-on-pia-stop-working/70257/7 "2026-09-02T10:07:14Z")
Have you discussed with your team about this? ---
**Author:** ![will.qiu](https://forum-assets.gl-inet.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/w/b38774/32.png) [@will.qiu](https://forum.gl-inet.com/u/will.qiu)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2026, 10:19am UTC](https://forum.gl-inet.com/t/vpn-tunnels-based-on-pia-stop-working/70257/8 "2026-09-02T10:19:21Z")
Yes, we have discussed this with our team. We understand that manually refreshing the server list and reconfiguring the tunnel is inconvenient. However, this change requires further evaluation and development, so it cannot be implemented immediately, and we cannot confirm a timeline at this stage. Thank you for your patience and for explaining the use case clearly. ---
**Author:** ![winegeek](https://forum-assets.gl-inet.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/w/c67d28/32.png) [@winegeek](https://forum.gl-inet.com/u/winegeek)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2026, 7:19pm UTC](https://forum.gl-inet.com/t/vpn-tunnels-based-on-pia-stop-working/70257/9 "2026-10-01T19:19:54Z")
I have the AX1800 router. The built in router web interface for PIA (Private Internet Access) can select from the list of retrieved PIA servers but most of the servers in the US (United States) can not be loaded. Via the “Update Servers” function, I tried to load all 55 US servers but only 2 show (after a long wait): US Baltimore and US Idaho. Can this be investigated? ---
**Author:** ![AI\_bot](https://forum-assets.gl-inet.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/a/ecccb3/32.png) [@AI\_bot](https://forum.gl-inet.com/u/AI_bot)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2026, 7:20pm UTC](https://forum.gl-inet.com/t/vpn-tunnels-based-on-pia-stop-working/70257/10 "2026-10-01T19:20:21Z")
Please try selecting **one missing US location only** and run **Update Servers** again. If that location appears individually, the issue is likely with the bulk retrieval timing out; if it still does not appear, it points to a location-list or PIA API compatibility issue. Please also provide the exact model shown in **System → Overview** (for example, GL-AX1800 or GL-AXT1800), the firmware version, and whether this is the PIA WireGuard or OpenVPN client. These details determine which integration and firmware branch need to be checked. Do not post your PIA credentials. > **This reply was generated by AI. Please verify its accuracy.** > > GL.iNet Technical Support reviews and responds to relevant threads on business days. Please allow time for a staff response. ---
**Author:** ![winegeek](https://forum-assets.gl-inet.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/w/c67d28/32.png) [@winegeek](https://forum.gl-inet.com/u/winegeek)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2026, 7:28pm UTC](https://forum.gl-inet.com/t/vpn-tunnels-based-on-pia-stop-working/70257/11 "2026-10-01T19:28:13Z")
GL-AX1800 firmware 4.8.3 I will try 4.8.4 beta ---
**Author:** ![charles2](https://forum-assets.gl-inet.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/c/9dc877/32.png) [@charles2](https://forum.gl-inet.com/u/charles2)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2026, 8:17am UTC](https://forum.gl-inet.com/t/vpn-tunnels-based-on-pia-stop-working/70257/13 "2026-10-10T08:17:22Z")
Hi, Thank you for your feedback. We have also tested the PIA server update feature on a GL-AX1800 and were able to retrieve multiple server configurations, although the number varied slightly between attempts. ![image](https://forum-static.gl-inet.com/original/3X/c/6/c6e858665527d1b7026007bf3e5a9f17fe8693ff.png) ![image](https://forum-static.gl-inet.com/original/3X/b/1/b123ab176086f915e3b8c6a697e153ce2f38d8a0.png) To help us narrow down the issue, could you please check the following? 1. When you open **Server Select** , are all the expected US server locations listed? Or do only US Baltimore and US Idaho appear after clicking **Update Servers**? If possible, please share screenshots of the Server Select page and the resulting configuration list. 2. Could you try selecting only a few US servers (including one or two that previously failed), then update the configurations to see whether they can be retrieved successfully? 3. If possible, could you try connecting your GL-AX1800 to a different Internet source (such as using a mobile phone's hotspot as the router's WAN connection), then run **Update Servers** again to check whether the same issue occurs? ---
**Author:** ![winegeek](https://forum-assets.gl-inet.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/w/c67d28/32.png) [@winegeek](https://forum.gl-inet.com/u/winegeek)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2026, 12:05pm UTC](https://forum.gl-inet.com/t/vpn-tunnels-based-on-pia-stop-working/70257/14 "2026-11-06T12:05:48Z")
Apologies for the delay in reply. The router web UI seems to reliably updating the PIA server list. The problem I had experience previously had persisted for a few days which prompted my original post. Thanks for the reply. You may close if desired.