OpenVPN Help/Advice/Pointers

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BigBadAl

Limp Gawd
Joined
Sep 16, 2010
Messages
349
I`m looking to have a play with VPN, but as my original plans to install PFSense onto a SuperMicro 5015a-EHF system are on hold due to availablility/Pricing issues, I`m lookin at doing it with my current IPCop.

Mooching around I find Zerina but after getting throught to the SSH directory and unpacking bit, it turns out zerina only supports ipcop up to 1.4.early version!

Further digging around gets me onto openVPN so I go down the same route but with no easily available walkthrough/howto I quickly found myself struggling and discovered the ipcop forums which, from what I have read, have to be the single most unfriendly forum I have ever discovered.

I found a couple peeps being told off for "thread hijacking" when all they did was ask for help and the mod doing the telling off repeatedly referred these people to the wiki and the FAQ which is seemingly more difficult that finding a virgin in a brothel!!

So, aside from the forums being about as much use as an ashtray on a motorbike, I`m stuck!

Does anybody know where this FAQ or Wiki is for simpletons like me to find how to get VPN set up on my IPCop?

Many thanks
 
just install pfsense. it's pretty easy to setup. tons of guides online.

i use openVPN for site to site tunnel. and IPsec for client to home network tunneling.
 
af22 said:
just install pfsense. it's pretty easy to setup. tons of guides online.
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That`s my plan, but until I can source a SuperMicro 5015A-EHF for sub £400 (~$644) I don`t fancy having nothing between taking my IPCop down and getting my PFSense up.

I know IPCop pretty well but until I get to play with PFSense for a bit, I`m gonna be fumbling around in the dark a bit first.

Just wish the IPCop/OpenVPN wiki or FAQ wasn`t like magic circle stuff!:(
 
why do you need an atom server to run ipcop / pfsense?

i'm using an old thin client (fanless). 1 ghz via eden, 512 mb pc133 ram.

got it for $90 bucks of ebay. unless you have 100 meg internet line, you dont really need that much power.
 
For £267.68 on Amazon you can pick up a Cisco ASA 5505 that will literally do anything you can imagine VPN wise (for the most part).

The ASDM is so comprehensive now that dare I say you won't even need to know the command line to get it up and running quickly.
 
af22 said:
why do you need an atom server to run ipcop / pfsense?

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I don`t really but the newer atom system is greener and I think I`ll get more LAN/DMZ throughput using something with dedicated Intel Gb NICs. My 2 Intel Pro 1000`s (LAN and DMZ) are on a PCI riser using the same mobo PCI slot. WAN is via onboard 10/100 NIC.
Plus the newer Atom jobbie is rackmountable to go with my HP1810G-24!:p

af22 said:
...i'm using an old thin client (fanless). 1 ghz via eden, 512 mb pc133 ram
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I too am using an old Compaq Deskpro SFF 733Mhz, 512MB PC133, on a 2GB or 4GB CF card, mine aint fanless but it`s so quiet you only know it`s on from the network activity LED`s.

af22 said:
...got it for $90 bucks of ebay. unless you have 100 meg internet line, you dont really need that much power.
Click to expand...

I have 20/2 at the moment...lookin at 50/5 though, only looking.

Think mine was only like £30 delivered a few years back
 
I can't say much about ipcop, but I can comment on OpenVPN in general. IT IS A ROYAL BITCH TO SETUP.

After digging for a day. I did get it working very nicely on a linux server and a windows client.

http://openvpn.net/index.php/open-source/documentation/howto.html#pki

You will be dealing with a lot of config files and terminal commands. Make sure to read ALL the information between the commands, it reveals things that I wish I would have read before I pulled some hair out buy just brushing through the commands.

It will be up to you to setup a route in ipcop to allow traffic from the vpn to access the lan.
 
you can also install openvpn in a VM, it does not actually have to be part of a firewall. You just need to then forward a port to it.

But yes it is a pain to setup. Need to generate certificates and crap.
 
OK, that will do, two votes to the tune of "don`t bother cuz it`s shit!" will do for me.:eek:

Many thanks;):D
 
I didn't think it was that bad to setup I did it in a linux VM in a couple hours. Been working fine for almost a year at some point I need to update versions I guess.

But if its not broke don't fix it right
 
Once you get it going it is a very solid system. I've had mine running for a few years, never have to touch it. The only time it does not work is when the VM is turned off. :D
 
I never said It was shit, it really is the best approach to a vpn, just a pain to set up. ipsec with the shrewsoft client should only take you 15 minutes to setup.
 
OK, so its awkward to set up, how is it compared to doing the same/similar in PFSense?

If it comes down to it, I`ll just acquire another deskpro or similar and set up PFsense on that and play with their VPN stuff, providing it`s not so much a PITA.

I`m looking for ease of set up. Just as a indicator, I got a little stuck with the VLANs on my HP Procurve and yet I could manage them quite easily on a Cisco, or at least I could at my last job a while back.

thanks again
 
Pfsense takes me about 5 minutes to setup ipsec vpn with a pre-shared key. Then a few more to setup a client. I use Shrewsoft's vpn client. It works very well, but you WILL run into networks that block ipsec access.

I like OpenVPN because SSL is open in every network, if you can get to a secure website, OpenVPN will connect, period. Unfortunately, not matter what platform you go with, you still have to generate certificates, and still have to deal with the notepad config on each pc. Now that I know what I am doing, I can fully setup OpenVPN and a client in about 20 minutes.
 
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