Sooner Al, I need your knowledge

[Jarett]

Hey Al, you seem to be the guy with all the answers.
Please help me.

I have my laptop at home running Windows XP Pro. I have
my desktop at work running XP Pro. At work, I have the
Linksys Befsx41 (4-Port Swith/VPN Endpoint) and at home I
have the Linksys 4 port wireless router (the laptop is
connected wirelessly and the desktop is connected via
Ethernet).

I need to connect these two machines. I have access to
forward whichever ports need be on either/both routers
but I don't know which ones need to be configured. I am
attempting to use the XP vpn network client on the
laptop. Should the laptop dial the VPN address of the
Router? I have attempted that to see if what would occur
and and I am able to get connected. The VPN log shows
the attempt and states "check your security settings"

I have read white papers on Microsoft and white papers at
Linksys. I have also telephone Linksys. At this point,
I would like to scrap all previous setups and start from
scratch. I am also willing to go buy another VPN router
for the house IF this will fix the problem. However, I am
scared that this will simply complicate the procedure.

Please help.

Jarett
(e-mail address removed)

 

[Colin M. McGroarty]

Jarett,

I believe that if you have a successful VPN connection between the locations
it's just a matter of making sure port 3389/TCP is forwarded to the correct
address. If using the VPN you would need to make sure the VPN connects
prior to using RDP.

Hope this helps,

--
Colin M. McGroarty
MCP+I, MCSE, NT-CIP

(e-mail address removed)
www.McGroarty.org

 

[Jarett]

Part of the problem is though that I don't have a VPN
connection. I have been able to hit the VPN router but
not actually connect to it. When the connection is
attempted, it verifies the user name, pre-shared key and
then comes back and tells me to check security settings.
I want to start from scratch because I am not sure where
it is going wrong. I have set up the XP VPN Server on
the office desktop and the XP client on the laptop so now
I just want to get through the router at the house and
the router at work and then into the desktop using the
best means possible.

Thanks for your reply,
Jarett

 

[Sooner Al]

Jarett,

I simply don't know anything about IPSec VPN and looking at the BEFSX41 manual only confirms how
much I don't know... I recommend you wait for comments from Jeffrey and/or Bill, the MVPs that hang
out here, or someone with direct knowledge of the IPSec process and this router and/or post this
question to the DSLReports Linksys and/or VPN forums...

http://www.dslreports.com/forum/equip,16
http://www.dslreports.com/forum/vpn

I presume you have looked at both the "Troubleshooting" section (Appendix A) and the "Configuring
IPSec between Windows 2000 or XP PC and the Firewall Router" section (Appendix C) in the manual?

ftp://ftp.linksys.com/pdf/befsx41ug.pdf

Good luck...

 

[Jeffrey Randow (MVP)]

Sorry... Under the weather since the Smart Display chat...

Jeffrey Randow (Windows MVP - Networking & Smart Display)
(e-mail address removed)

Please post all responses to the newsgroups for the benefit
of all USENET users. Messages sent via email may or may not
be answered depending on time availability....

Remote Networking Technology Wiki -
http://www.remotenetworktechnology.com
Smart Display Support - http://www.smartdisplays.us
Windows XP Expert Zone - http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/expertzone

 

[Jeffrey Randow (MVP)]

Yes, you should connect to the public address of your VPN router...
Now, with that said, these routers can be a bit problematic as they
require careful setup...

Have you taken a look at:
http://www.linksys.com/support/support.asp?spid=86

Jeffrey Randow (Windows MVP - Networking & Smart Display)
(e-mail address removed)

Please post all responses to the newsgroups for the benefit
of all USENET users. Messages sent via email may or may not
be answered depending on time availability....

Remote Networking Technology Wiki -
http://www.remotenetworktechnology.com
Smart Display Support - http://www.smartdisplays.us
Windows XP Expert Zone - http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/expertzone

 

[Colin M. McGroarty]

Jarett,

If your office requires a VPN connection then you won't be able to connect
without it. This DOES NOT require that you purchase any VPN hardware for
home. You'll need to set up the client (What VPN client are you using by
the way?) and make sure that you have the correct security info and possibly
keys. Since you are using a Linksys you might want to try one change to
your home IP scheme as well. Linksys tends to ship with 192.168.1.0 as the
IP scheme for the private side network. Since Linksys is the most popular
hardware for use at home, one of the reasons CISCO bought them, that means a
lot of people have the home network scheme of 192.168.1.0. Some VPN routers
will not allow multiple connections from the same side PRIVATE IP address.
As a result it might not be a bad idea to try changing your home networking
scheme to something other that the standard and see if that makes a
difference. If you've already found a solution on one of the other
newsgroups please post it here for us curious types.

Hope this helps,

--
Colin M. McGroarty
MCP+I, MCSE, NT-CIP

(e-mail address removed)
www.McGroarty.org

 

[Colin M. McGroarty]

Jarett,

Also, check with your network admin what VPN client you should be using, as
not all VPNs will work with MS XP's VPN client. You may need to install the
client software and appropriate keys. This is especially true of some CISCO
and SonicWall VPNs.

Hope this helps,

--
Colin M. McGroarty
MCP+I, MCSE, NT-CIP

(e-mail address removed)
www.McGroarty.org