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EI

EI March 22, 2025, 12:14 a.m.

Need urgent help: Anyone know the best vpn for downloading large files discreetly?

Sup fellow internet peeps! Kinda stuck in a weird spot with my work situation rn.

Started freelancing recently and my clients keep dropping these MASSIVE video files on me (like 10-30GB each, not even kidding). Whenever I try downloading this stuff, my internet crawls slower than my grandma on Sunday. Pretty obvious my ISP is throttling tf outta me during peak hours cuz netflix/youtube work fine, but the moment I start a big download... RIP connection.

Been looking for best vpn for downloading these chonky bois without my internet provider being all up in my business. Tried a couple free options but they're straight garbage - either die mid-download or move at actual snail pace. Not doing anything sketchy btw, just tryna make a living without waiting 84 years for work files.

Anyone here actually solved this problem irl? Been searching forums for days and getting nowhere. Would pay absolutely anything at this point to make this headache go away.

htctolic

htctolic March 22, 2025, 1:03 p.m.

Just know that with free vpns YOU'RE the product. They cap speeds intentionally + sell your traffic patterns to marketers. Some even hijack your connection as exit nodes for other users. No wonder downloads dying on you

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makkejiob

makkejiob March 22, 2025, 8:38 p.m.

VPN only masks content, not behavior patterns. Your isp sees "encrypted connection using 15GB constantly for 3 hours" and throttles anyway. Bandwidth hogs get flagged regardless of encryption type

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hellion

hellion March 23, 2025, 7:19 p.m.

Before blaming isp, double-check those file hosts ur clients using. Some intentionally throttle download speeds hoping you'll buy their premium tier garbage

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android~~$€.up

android~~$€.up March 24, 2025, 9:22 p.m.

opened beer with my neighbor (works at local isp lol) and he straight told me they prioritize traffic differently depending on account type. might be worth calling to "upgrade" to small business plan

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Mipjlaobh

Mipjlaobh March 25, 2025, 4:50 p.m.

Dealing with exact same bs when working with 4k footage. Tested like 5 different services and weirdly nordvpn handled large file transfers better than others i tried. Their specialty servers made noticeable difference when downloading raw video

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*Sandy_A.k.A_So*

*Sandy_A.k.A_So* March 26, 2025, 11:06 a.m.

Might sound obvious but tried different times of day yet? ISPS throttle hardest during peak hours (7-11pm). Schedule big transfers for 3am and watch how magically your "slow connection" hits full speed

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alvikyr

alvikyr March 26, 2025, 11:51 p.m.

tried this and my downloads kept failing halfway through. nothing more soul-crushing than waking up to see 89% complete...and then error message. automatic restarts just triggered account flags

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lilbrandy99

lilbrandy99 March 27, 2025, 12:02 a.m.

Crazy workaround that saved my freelance gig: bought second internet connection (cheapest plan from different company) and use download manager that combines connections. Not cheap but effective af

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RoboSt-DroS

RoboSt-DroS March 28, 2025, 6 p.m.

What you're experiencing is likely traffic shaping algorithms at work. These systems deprioritize sustained high-bandwidth usage regardless of content and can adapt to typical VPN traffic patterns within minutes of connection

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catc040

catc040 March 31, 2025, 3:43 p.m.

Connecting to vpn across ocean = guaranteed sluggish speeds. Always pick servers geographically close to either you OR file source, never random

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'kdbc

'kdbc April 3, 2025, 11:14 p.m.

Switched career from video editing to coding partly because of this exact nightmare. No vpn solution ever fixed it completely. Some file types/sizes just fundamentally broken on residential connections

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3991

3991 April 8, 2025, 8:01 p.m.

ACTUAL SOLUTION FROM IT PROFESSIONAL: split your workflow. Use cheap cloud virtual machine (linode/digitalocean) to download files at gigabit speeds, then pull completed files from your VM at whatever rate your ISP allows. $5/month fixes everything

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