OpenVPN Split Tunneling on an Unkiosked Skydio X10D Controller

The Skydio X10D controller does not ship with a VPN preinstalled. To use a VPN, you will need your own VPN subscription or organization-provided VPN profile, and the OpenVPN Connect app, which can be installed from the Google Play Store on your controller.
When a Skydio controller is connected to a VPN, all network traffic is typically routed through the VPN by default. This includes traffic for the local radio link between the controller and the aircraft. Because the Skydio radio link uses a private local network, routing that traffic through the VPN can prevent the controller from communicating with the aircraft. This guide explains how to modify an OpenVPN profile so aircraft traffic remains on the local radio network while other traffic continues to use the VPN.

[note]These instructions are specific to OpenVPN Connect. However, split tunneling is a standard feature on many enterprise VPN clients. If your organization uses a different VPN client, configure it to exclude the following subnet from the VPN tunnel: 192.168.42.0/24  - Refer to your VPN provider’s documentation for the equivalent split-tunneling or route-exclusion setting.[/note]

Requirements

• An unkiosked Skydio X10D Controller 
• The original .ovpn profile file from your VPN provider or administrator
• A separate computer with a plain-text editor, such as:
  • Notepad on Windows
  • TextEdit in Plain Text mode on macOS
  • Any code editor
• A USB-C storage device
• The OpenVPN Connect app installed on your Skydio controller

[note]Once a profile has been imported into OpenVPN Connect, it cannot be exported. If you no longer have the original .ovpn file, re-download it from your VPN provider or request a new copy from your administrator before continuing.[/note]

Step 1 - Open the .ovpn File

On your computer, open the .ovpn file in a plain-text editor.

The file contents will look like a list of OpenVPN settings followed by one or more certificate or key blocks. These blocks may begin with tags such as:

Step 2 - Add the Local Route

Scroll to the very bottom of the file, below any closing tag such as:

Add the line:

Step 3 - Save the file

• Ensure the filename still ends in .ovpn and not .ovpn.txt

Step 4 - Transfer the File to the Controller

• Copy the edited .ovpn file onto your USB-C storage device
• Plug the storage device into your Skydio controller
• Open the Files app on the controller
• Copy the edited .ovpn file from the storage device to the controller’s internal storage
• The Downloads folder is a recommended location

Step 5 - Re-Import the OpenVPN Profile

OpenVPN Connect will not overwrite an existing profile. You must remove the old profile before importing the edited one.

• Open OpenVPN Connect on the controller.
• Find your current VPN profile.
• Press and hold the profile, then tap Delete.
• Open the Files app and tap the edited .ovpn file.
• Choose Open with OpenVPN.

Alternatively, open OpenVPN Connect, tap the + button, and select File to import the edited profile.

Step 6 -Verify the Configuration

• Connect to the VPN
• Open the Skydio app and confirm that you can see and control the aircraft normally
• Open a web browser on the controller and visit: whatismyipaddress.com
• The website should show your VPN provider’s IP address rather than your local internet IP address
• If both checks pass, the configuration is complete

Troubleshooting

[accordion heading="The aircraft is unreachable while the VPN is connected"]

Confirm the following:

• The added route line was placed outside of any block surrounded by opening and closing tags, such as <...> and </...>.
• The filename still ends in .ovpn.
• The previous OpenVPN profile was fully deleted before the edited profile was imported.
• The route line matches the subnet used by the aircraft radio link.

[/accordion]

[accordion heading="An unsupported option warning appears during import"]

This warning usually refers to other lines in the profile that your VPN provider generated. It does not affect the route line added in this guide and can usually be dismissed.

[/accordion]

[accordion heading="I use a custom Microhard radio subnet"]

If your Microhard radio uses a custom subnet, replace 192.168.42.0 with the first three octets of your custom subnet, followed by .0.

For example, if your radio is on:

192.168.210.x

use:

route 192.168.210.0 255.255.255.0 net_gateway

[/accordion]

[accordion heading="For IT Administrators"]

If you manage the OpenVPN server, you can push this route exemption to all clients from the server side, rather than requiring each user to edit their profile manually.

Add the following directive to the server’s additional configuration directives, then reload the server configuration:

push "route 192.168.42.0 255.255.255.0 net_gateway"

Clients will install the route the next time they connect.

For deployments using custom Microhard subnets, adjust the network accordingly. If different users or tenants require different radio subnets, use a client-config-dir file to push per-client or per-tenant routes.

[/accordion]

Explore More

Explore related articles for additional information

Skydio X10D Manuals, Guides, and Resources

Unkiosk Mode on Skydio X10D

[note]If you need assistance, please reach out to: FedSupport@skydio.us[/note]

Skydio, Inc.  A0649