Internet is increasingly censored, the right to access some information is clearly limited even in countries like ours and freedom of expression is put to the test, fortunately there are tools that can guarantee free navigation, in this guide we will explain how I2P works.
I2P is an open source software, the first version was launched back in 2003, initially there were many bugs, resolved over time, until you get to the current version fully functional, which allows you to create an anonymous network.
The network created allows exchanging data and messages and browsing protected by different levels of cryptography, also offers a level of anonymous communication peer-to-peer to access any internet service and the most famous applications.
The services of I2P
On I2P there are forums, websites, applications for chatting, email, p2p, blogs and much more, including gates to access Freenet and Tor.
The email can be used by using a web browser or through POP3 and SMTP of mail clients, using software such as Thunderbird and Outlook.
In the installation package there is a web server, Jetty, which allows you to create your own site within I2P.
I2PTunnel is an application built into I2P that allows TCP/IP applications to communicate over I2P through access to a specific port on localhost.
Any Bittorrent client can be used by configuring it with the browser and downloading the .torrent file; in addition I2P has an application called I2P snark that allows you to do file sharing, but it is not the only one, there are also other clinets such as Azureus, Gnutella and iMule.
After explaining what are the packages contained in it, let’s explain how I2P works.
How does I2P work?
Installing I2P is very simple, first you need to download the package from this link, check if there is Java on your computer and proceed with the installation. We specify that I2P is compatible with Linux, MacOS and Windows.
After starting I2P we will immediately realize that we are in a fairly intuitive environment, the initial configuration is very simple, immediately you can start browsing anonymously within the network or to the external Web, while for use an IRC client requires a minimum configuration, even if I2P has already set up two internal IRC servers that can be used immediately. Building a website, sharing files via I2PSnark and creating an e-mail account are very simple.
To access the I2P Router Console you can use any browser using the 7657 port of the localhost, the console can be managed through a graphical interface with the ability to choose a language among seven included in the settings.
Whether at the first connection or if it has not been started for a long time, it takes about five minutes for I2P to reestablish relationships with some routers on the network to use it again.
All the contents that travel on the network are protected by various layers of cryptography, so the sender and the recipient of the data packets do not know each other and are not known by third parties.
The type of performance varies depending on the number of connected routers; it is possible to continue browsing normally on the internet even after starting I2P, so if you want to visit sites without protection and at the same time use I2P to reach obscured information, it is definitely possible.
I2P has a very high number of connected routers, more than Tor and Freenet, the network performance is better the more people who join it dedicate bandwidth to upload.
How I2P works and how to configure it correctly
After seeing how I2P works, let’s see how to configure it to work properly on any operating system.
After downloading the .exe file, installing it and then clicking on I2P router Console, the Browser will start, in the control panel page, let’s change the proxy by spitting the “Manual proxy configuration” item and setting it like this: HTTP: 127.0.0.1 – Port: 4444.
At this point we add the exception in the Firewall for I2P otherwise it will not work, then we do the same for the router.
Click on the message “Blocked by the Firewall”, note the UDP port, while for the TCP we leave the check “Use the same port”.
We enter the router settings by writing in the browser 192.168.1.1, then click on Configure and in UDP and TCP we add port 4444 and confirm in both cases.
We save all changes and restart, let’s connect again to the I2P Router Console, we should find the word OK, which will be the pass to start using the program.
I2P is a software which really helps to provide the best connectivity. As this modern age is very much affected and crazy about the internet, so the I2P is really helpful for the internet users to get connectivity.
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