Layer 2 virtual networking
Not a typical VPN.Your own network.
More than an exit IP. A private virtual Ethernet network connects your approved devices to a cloud gateway allocated to your account—not a shared public exit.
Layer 2 networking. Device-level access. Infrastructure built to disappear.
No browsing-content logs. Clear data boundaries.Designed to be retired—not left running forever.
Per account and region—not per device or dedicated physical hardware. Allocation is not an independent isolation certification.
Advanced by architecture
A virtual network.
Not just a tunnel.
A typical consumer VPN connects you to an exit server. UltimateVPN starts with a Layer 2 virtual Ethernet network, then adds device-level admission and an account-private gateway for internet access.
Many accounts.
One shared gateway.
Your traffic exits alongside other customers’ traffic.
Your virtual network.
Your allocated gateway.
Approved devices and a regional gateway on a private Layer 2 network.
Layer 2 inside. Routed internet access outside.
Virtual Ethernet carries traffic between network members. Your gateway handles Layer 3 IP forwarding to the internet. The controller manages the network; it is not the internet exit.
One network. Four managed capabilities.
Explore the networking, access and infrastructure controls behind your private path.
Layer 2 virtual Ethernet
Encrypted peer transport + controller-managed networks
UltimateVPN’s Ethernet virtualization connects approved devices and your gateway on a private virtual network. The controller manages membership and network configuration; the gateway routes internet-bound IP traffic.
Why it mattersA managed private network, not just a connection to an exit server. UltimateVPN handles network admission, regional gateway provisioning and managed routes for you.
Device-scoped credentials
Browser approval + revocable device tokens
Approve an installation in your browser. Each device receives its own credential, stored as a hash on the server and checked for expiration and revocation.
Why it mattersControl each installation’s access instead of handing every device a copy of your account password.
Renewable connection leases
Heartbeats + time-bounded admission
A paired device and an active connection are different things. Heartbeats renew a short-lived lease; expired leases no longer qualify as live connections.
Why it mattersConnection admission follows current activity and account limits, not a permanent list of paired devices. Lease expiry is not a gateway-deletion guarantee.
Verified gateway software
Signed release manifests + SHA-256 digests
Gateway bootstrap checks a release-manifest signature, then verifies the downloaded gateway agent against its published digest before installation.
Why it mattersChecks what is being installed, rather than trusting a download location alone. Artifact integrity is not an independent security or privacy audit.
Better for account-level control—not every threat model. Shared exits can offer a larger anonymity set. Cloud hardware can still be shared; account allocation is not independently certified isolation. These security primitives are not exclusive to UltimateVPN.
Implementation boundaries remain. These mechanisms are present in the deployed control-plane and gateway code. Cleanup is asynchronous; no fixed deletion time is promised.
Architecture references: Virtual Ethernet layer reference (opens in a new tab) · How an internet exit gateway works (opens in a new tab).
Compare the architecture with other VPNsInfrastructure with an exit plan
Built for the connection.
Not for forever.
An always-on shared pool stays put when you leave. Our architecture gives your account’s gateway a beginning, a purpose and an end.
Lifecycle Diagram
01 / REQUEST
Ask for a private path
An approved desktop requests a gateway in a region.
02 / ALLOCATE
Create or reuse
The service provisions a cloud gateway or reuses your account’s existing one.
03 / CONNECT
Your gateway. Your devices.
Your account’s devices connect through that allocated gateway.
04 / RETIRE
Retire the infrastructure
The target lifecycle queues deletion after the last live lease, with retries for failed cleanup.
The shared-pool alternative: the same shared infrastructure keeps running before, during and after your connection.
Live Service
Account-scoped provisioning, gateway termination, idle-timeout cleanup and full native account-to-tunnel delivery.
Cleanup is asynchronous. No fixed deletion time, fresh-IP or physical-erasure guarantee.
Privacy is the point
Your browsing is not
our business.
No browsing-history or traffic-content logs. No advertising networks. And no pretending that running an account-based service means retaining absolutely no data.
Not collected or stored
Under our published privacy policy
- Browsing destinations and browsing history
- DNS queries and traffic content
Needed to run your service
With retention boundaries in the policy
- Account, authentication and approved-device records
- Live leases, account-linked gateway records and transfer totals
- Billing references, support, security and audit records
- Website and control-plane operational logs, which may contain IP addresses
Disposable infrastructure is not universal erasure. Ending a connection does not erase account or billing records, or prove deletion from every provider system or backup. Our no-logging policy has not had an independent audit.
Private does not mean untraceable. A private exit separates your gateway from other accounts; a shared exit offers a larger anonymity set. Websites, account logins, fingerprints and cloud providers remain part of your privacy threat model.
Compare architecture. Not slogans.
Not all VPNs are built
the same way.
No-logs is not unique to us. Account-scoped cloud allocation is our starting point; the last-lease disposable lifecycle is the next release boundary. Both are shown honestly below.
Compare one question at a time. Every answer keeps its provider in view.
Network and gateway model
- UltimateVPN
- Layer 2 virtual network + account-private regional gateway
- Mullvad
- Shared VPN exit IP
- Proton VPN
- Shared public VPN servers
- NordVPN
- Shared VPN exit IP
Customer-linked infrastructure lifecycle
- UltimateVPN
- Idle-cleanup mechanisms live; customer-scoped gateway lifecycle
- Mullvad
- Disposable customer gateway not documented
- Proton VPN
- Disposable customer gateway not documented
- NordVPN
- Disposable customer gateway not documented
Dedicated IP / server options
- UltimateVPN
- Account-private gateway; no fixed-IP promise
- Mullvad
- Dedicated IP not offered
- Proton VPN
- Dedicated servers and static IPs for business
- NordVPN
- Paid dedicated static-IP option
VPN activity-logging policy
- UltimateVPN
- No browsing, DNS or traffic-content logs
- Mullvad
- No VPN activity logs
- Proton VPN
- No VPN activity logs
- NordVPN
- No VPN activity logs
Published third-party assessment
- UltimateVPN
- No independent no-logs audit
- Mullvad
- Cure53 infrastructure security audit
- Proton VPN
- Securitum no-logs audit
- NordVPN
- Deloitte no-logs assurance
A dedicated IP, a dedicated server and an automatically disposable gateway are different things. Proton already offers dedicated business servers. “Not documented” means not described in the cited offering—not that a provider cannot offer it.
Sources & comparison notes · reviewed 20 September 2026
Provider policies and assessment announcements, not a head-to-head independent audit. Assessments have different scopes: Mullvad’s cited Cure53 review covers infrastructure security; Proton and NordVPN cite no-logs assessments. These do not certify future behavior. UltimateVPN’s column describes its architecture and published policy, not independent certification.
Mullvad
Proton VPN
Private by architecture. Disposable by design.
Stop sharing the gateway.
Start owning the choice.
Compare monthly transfer and connection limits. The account-private architecture is part of every plan.
Current availability, access entitlement and desktop releases are confirmed in your account. Creating an account alone does not activate VPN access.