[AccessD] VPN

jwcolby jwcolby at colbyconsulting.com
Mon Jun 4 07:03:42 CDT 2012


 > If you are able to virtualize on your client end.

I don't know what this means.  In all cases (ATM) I have an application that comes in to a fixed IP 
address which is my SQL Server instance at one end of a VPN - (port 1433 but that is adjustable). 
So my app running on a client machine "talks" to the server through the VPN to my SQL Server running 
here at my office.  If I ever need to I can push the app to the web and have a hosted SQL Server and 
do the same thing, although I don't know the implications in regards to using an actual VPN should I 
do that (since I haven't done it yet).

I'm also confused about licensing though.

http://openvpn.net/index.php/access-server/pricing.html

Is it free?  Is it paid license per user?

Some of my users work for real companies but others are just volunteers using my database and I 
don't want to be in the middle of licensing.

This certainly looks like an alternative.

As for the netgear (tomato) router, I have a SOHO with internet through the local cable company on 
the same connection as my home systems, and they provide a "unified" cable modem / router with 
wireless.

I could of course go get a business cable connection but I would guess that would open a can o' worms.

John W. Colby
Colby Consulting

Reality is what refuses to go away
when you do not believe in it

On 6/3/2012 11:37 PM, Hans-Christian Andersen wrote:
>
>
> John,
>
> Is something like a regular VPN out of question? I'm running an OpenVPN server and it works great. Otherwise, I've got a spare Netgear router (model WNR3500L), which can have DDR-WRT firmware installed on it, which includes the ability to set up an L2TP VPN, which also works great and stable.
>
> If you are able to virtualize on your client end, I think I could cook up a Virtual Box image, which is a barebones OpenVPN server (been planning to do this anyhow), but it would of course require you open up a port on their firewall and do some configuration. And it would require that you assume some amount of responsibility for it.
>
> Nothing is cheaper than free though!
>
> Hans
>
>
>
> On 2012-06-03, at 8:06 PM, jwcolby wrote:
>
>> I have used Hamachi since forever.  Recently they limited the number of users on any given (free) network to 5, which is pretty much useless.
>>
>> So I am on the hunt.
>>
>> My situation is as follows.  I have several different SQL Server databases, all running on a server here at my office.  These are low traffic DBs but they are for entirely different clients.  Using Hamachi I built a VPN for each client, different LAN name, different password, only the people I allowed could join the networks.  The Hamachi software allowed me to set up "types" of networks including mesh (everything could see everything), and hub and spoke where everything could see the hub but the spokes could not see each other.  That is really what I need.  In my case the spokes are individual's computers in "virtual companies" and nobody wants other people seeing / accessing their computers.
>>
>> What I am hoping to accomplish is to get some Linux widget being my VPN "server", allowing me to do the same kind of thing.  As I said I have always used Hamachi and it was slick and worked (mostly) but I cannot afford to buy the new Hamachi licenses, these are non-profits and I do not charge them for what I am doing.
>>
>> So does anyone know of an "equivalent" to what Hamachi does?  I am even willing to go buy an (under $200) "router" box to do this, however whatever it is needs to be easy to set up.  There is the potential to have dozens of users that I have to manage access for and I really don't want to get bogged down in that job.
>>
>> What would be ideal would be a VM on Hyper-V running Linux running MySQL and an easy to manage firewall app for setting this stuff up.
>>
>> What I have figured out how to do is a VM on Hyper-V running Windows 2003 X32 running SQL Server and Hamachi, which was working just fine until a couple of months ago when LogMeIn decided to play nasty.  Sigh.
>>
>> --
>> John W. Colby
>> Colby Consulting
>>
>> Reality is what refuses to go away
>> when you do not believe in it
>>
>> --
>> AccessD mailing list
>> AccessD at databaseadvisors.com
>> http://databaseadvisors.com/mailman/listinfo/accessd
>> Website: http://www.databaseadvisors.com
>
>



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