Virtual Private Networks

Virtual Private Networks
Introduction
Today’s society and economic foundations are fairly vast with many companies, large or small, requiring their employees to have access to the company’s network from different locations around the globe. While thousands of miles seem like a great barrier for this to be achieved, employees can be given access to these networks via remote access. This can be completed by implementing VPNs (Virtual Private Networks). A VPN is a private network that uses a public network (usually the Internet) to connect remote sites or users together. Instead of using a dedicated, real-world connection, such as leased line, a VPN uses "virtual" connections routed through the Internet from the company's private network to the remote site or employee. (“How Virtual Private”, 2008). A successful implementation of a remote access VPN depends on hardware and software components and overall configuration as well as building on a number of best practices. Most importantly, the success of a VPN also relies on the security of the network. Some of this security can be followed through with the implementation of a VPN policy for the company.
Hardware
One of the first items to look at when creating a remote access VPN is the hardware required for the connections and security of the network. The basic hardware that can be used is VPN Concentrators, Firewalls, and VPN-enabled routers. VPN-enabled routers are configured to communicate with the encryption and tunneling requirements of a VPN so that the accesses between remote users are secure. The brand and security level needed will be dictated by the need of the company as many products are tailored to suit different needs. VPN Concentrators were specifically developed to address the requirement for a purpose-built, remote-access VPN device. VPN concentrators provide high availability, high performance and scalability and include components, called Scalable Encryption Processing (SEP) modules, that enable...