Starting with just a single server, NordVPN has grown into a leading cybersecurity provider. It now boasts over 6,000 servers in 111 countries, more than a third of which DataPacket provides.
NordVPN, a Lithuanian VPN service, was founded in 2012 by childhood friends in response to widespread internet censorship and surveillance concerns. Launched to provide accessible internet security tools, NordVPN offers applications for various platforms, ensuring a secure and private digital experience. In 2022, Nord Security, NordVPN’s parent company, achieved a valuation of $1.6 billion, officially earning “Unicorn“ status.
Initially, VPNs were a niche industry, but NordVPN quickly gained momentum and saw exponential customer growth. This rapid expansion increased the need for new locations and servers, leading to the necessity of finding reliable dedicated server providers.
We aimed to be a one-stop shop for everything related to consumer security and to become the fastest provider in the industry,
explains Žilvinas Abarius, Head of Online Reputation.
To ensure sufficient bandwidth, NordVPN moved from 1GE to 10GE uplinks, a key factor in their decision to collaborate with DataPacket, which provided NordVPN with a 10GE uplink well ahead of the industry standard.
Initial server orders from NordVPN arrived in 2018, with the most dramatic expansion occurring two years later.
We crafted an agreement based on their projected growth, allowing us to offer competitive pricing. As the collaboration unfolded, everything from network performance and routing to our robust support systems operated flawlessly, without any service disruptions,
explains Simon Rybisar, COO at DataPacket.
To mitigate risk and enhance service reliability, NordVPN acquired a substantial number of servers at each location, sometimes as many as a hundred. This infrastructure ensures uninterrupted service by swiftly reconnecting users to an alternate server if disruptions occur.
Servers available anytime, anywhere
As NordVPN cannot predict its exact needs but requires swift responses, it is essential for DataPacket to ensure servers are readily available across all locations. DataPacket maintains a robust inventory of servers across 53 locations, ensuring immediate availability for NordVPN and other clients.
DataPacket’s numerous locations and the near-constant server availability are a huge benefit for us. I can just say I need a certain number of servers in London, and Simon responds, ‘Okay, done,’
says Vytautas Antanavičius, Infrastructure Procurement Lead.
Cost-effective scaling for further expansion
A critical objective for NordVPN was ensuring that extensive server deployment remained cost-effective.
From the beginning, we provided NordVPN with pricing structured for long-term cooperation while offering our services on a pay-as-you-go basis, allowing them the freedom to terminate our services without any obligations,
explains Simon.
Beyond VPN: Supporting a wide range of services
DataPacket currently provides over 2,000 servers to NordVPN across all its locations. These servers support VPN services and other products requiring sensitive machines, such as dedicated IP addresses and corporate VPNs. Every new product is primarily hosted on DataPacket servers.
When it comes to network quality, NordVPN sets the bar exceptionally high, far surpassing the expectations of most VPN providers. Since 2020, NordVPN has exclusively used 10GE uplinks, ensuring that network performance at each new location meets or exceeds existing standards.
This commitment pays off, as Simon explains: Thanks to higher speeds and lower latency, our servers consistently attract more traffic than the competition. This shows that users always gravitate towards the fastest speeds.
To reduce unnecessary expenditures and manage network resources efficiently, NordVPN utilizes bandwidth pooling per region. This approach, coupled with the 95th percentile billing model, allows bandwidth to be dynamically pooled among locations within a specified region based on actual usage needs.
To effectively reach the 24/7 support team, account management, and network administrators, NordVPN has its own Slack channel. This allows all communications, including new server orders, to be managed efficiently, with detailed updates on the current situation and steps being taken to resolve issues.
Throughout our collaboration, NordVPN has not canceled a single server; on the contrary,
concludes Simon. Each time DataPacket opens a new location, NordVPN is the first to know—and typically the first to claim space.
The substantial growth in collaboration between DataPacket and NordVPN highlights the robust foundation that was established from the start. This success is evidenced by NordVPN becoming a world leader and achieving its goal of becoming the fastest VPN on the market.
