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How to install NymVPN on any Linux distribution?

Updated

This article explains how to install NymVPN on any Linux distribution, including how to correctly install the required NymVPN daemon (nym-vpnd) when using Flatpak or AppImage.

NymVPN on Linux is composed of two separate components:

  1. NymVPN app: the graphical desktop application
  2. NymVPN daemon: a background service (nym-vpnd) that handles VPN networking

The app cannot function without the daemon.

Installation method   App installed   Daemon installed

Ubuntu / Debian (APT)

✅

✅

Arch Linux (AUR)

✅

✅

Flatpak

✅

❌ (manual install required)

AppImage

✅

❌ (manual install required)

Universal install script

✅

✅

Ubuntu and Debian-based distributions

Recommended for Ubuntu, Debian, Linux Mint, Pop!_OS, and related systems.

Step 1: Download the Nym repository setup package

curl -fsSL -o /tmp/nym-repo-setup.deb \
  "https://apt-ppa.nym.com/nym-repo-setup.deb"

Step 2: Install the repository

sudo dpkg -i /tmp/nym-repo-setup.deb
sudo apt update
sudo apt install nym-vpn-app

Step 3: Install NymVPN

sudo apt install nym-vpn-app

This installs both the NymVPN app and the daemon, and configures the system service automatically.

Arch Linux and Arch-based distributions

NymVPN is available via the Arch User Repository (AUR).

Option a: Install prebuilt binaries (recommended)

yay -S nym-vpnd-bin nym-vpn-app-bin

Option b: Build from source

yay -S nym-vpnd nym-vpn-app

Enable and start the daemon (run once)

sudo systemctl enable --now nym-vpnd.service

Universal installer script (other Linux distributions)

For unsupported distributions (for example Fedora), use the universal installer script.

Install

curl -SsL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/nymtech/nym-vpn-client/refs/heads/develop/.pkg/linux/install | bash

Uninstall

curl -SsL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/nymtech/nym-vpn-client/refs/heads/develop/.pkg/linux/install | bash -s uninstall

Flatpak installation (any Linux distribution)

Flatpak is supported on most Linux distributions and installs only the NymVPN app.

⚠️ Important: Flatpak does not install the required daemon. You must install nym-vpnd separately using the methods described later in this article.

Step 1: Set up flathub

Follow the instructions for your distribution:

https://flathub.org/setup

Step 2: Install the NymVPN app

flatpak install flathub net.nymtech.NymVPN

Alternatively, install via the Flathub website:

https://flathub.org/apps/net.nymtech.NymVPN

AppImage installation (any Linux distribution)

AppImage provides a portable version of the NymVPN app only. Use the commands below to proceed with installation

  1. Download the latest AppImage from the app release:

    NymVPN_<VERSION>_x64.AppImage

  2. Make it executable:

    chmod +x NymVPN_<VERSION>_x64.AppImage

  3. Run the app:

    ./NymVPN_<VERSION>_x64.AppImage
⚠️ Important: You must install nym-vpnd separately using one of the methods below.

Installing the NymVPN daemon (Nym-vpnd) for Flatpak or AppImage

The daemon is distributed as part of the NymVPN Core release, separate from the app. Core releases are published here:

https://github.com/nymtech/nym-vpn-client/releases

You can install the daemon using one of the methods below.

Method 1 (recommended): Install the daemon via .deb Package

Recommended for Debian/Ubuntu-based systems, even when using Flatpak or AppImage for the app.

  1. Download the daemon package from the latest core release:

    nym-vpnd_<VERSION>_amd64.deb

  2. Install it:

    sudo dpkg -i nym-vpnd_<VERSION>_amd64.deb

  3. Enable and start the daemon:

    sudo systemctl enable --now nym-vpnd.service

The Flatpak or AppImage app will automatically connect to the running daemon.

Method 2: Install the daemon from the core tarball (any Linux)

Use this method if your distribution does not support .deb packages.

  1. Download the Linux core archive from the latest core release:

    nym-vpn-core-v<VERSION>_linux_x86_64.tar.gz

  2. Extract the archive:

    tar -xvf nym-vpn-core-v<VERSION>_linux_x86_64.tar.gz
cd nym-vpn-core-v<VERSION>

  3. Install the daemon binary:

    sudo install -m 755 nym-vpnd /usr/local/bin/nym-vpnd

  4. Create a systemd service file:

    [Unit]
Description=NymVPN Daemon
After=network.target

[Service]
ExecStart=/usr/local/bin/nym-vpnd
Restart=on-failure

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target

    Save as:

    /etc/systemd/system/nym-vpnd.service

  5. Enable and start the daemon:

    sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable --now nym-vpnd.service

Troubleshooting notes

  • If you see a "lock error IO error", another instance of NymVPN may already be running
  • Flatpak and AppImage require the daemon to be running

  • Verify daemon status with:

    systemctl status nym-vpnd

Still need help with NymVPN setup on Linux?

Still unable to connect? Contact the Nym support team and we'll help.

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