Checking the Status of a VPN Client Connection

The VPN Status and VPN Statistics windows for VPN clients enable you to determine whether the client has established a connection with a VPN server and to monitor the activity over an established connection.

To check the status of a VPN client connection, complete the following steps:

1. After a VPN client connection has been initiated, click the VPN Status tab in the VPN Login dialog box.

   This window displays the progress of the VPN client connection.

   After the connection is established, the VPN Statistics icon is displayed in the task bar. Click on the icon to view the VPN statistics. The icon is available until the connection is closed.

2. To minimize the VPN Statistics window, click OK

3. To terminate the VPN connection, click Disconnect.

   On Windows NT* systems, you must terminate your dial-up VPN connection from this window. If you terminate your dial-up connection using Windows NT's Dial-Up Monitor, your VPN connection is maintained by the VPN server until the connection times out. This open connection cannot be used by other VPN clients and is not a security risk. However, an open connection reduces the amount of resources available to the server for VPN clients.

The VPN Client Status Window

The following information is contained in the VPN client Status window:

• Server Address---IP address of the VPN server to which the client is connected.
• Local Address---IP address of the VPN client.
• Server icon---Name of the VPN server to which the client is connected.
• Tree icon---Name of the NDS^® or Novell eDirectory^TM tree that contains the VPN server to which the client is connected.
• Status
  • Key Management---Protocol used for key management. Currently, only SKIP is supported.
  • Encryption Type---Data encryption algorithm used by the VPN connection.
  • Authentication Type---Data authentication algorithm used by the VPN connection.
  • Encryption Key Size---Data encryption key length in bits.
  • Authentication Key Size---Data authentication key length in bits.

• Progress
  • Dial-Up Complete---When checked, the dial-up connection to the VPN server has been established.
  • Authenticated NetWare User---When checked, the VPN Authentication has been completed.
  • Enabled IP Encryption---When checked, the encrypted tunnel has been established for IP packets.
  • Enabled IPX Encryption---When checked, the encrypted tunnel has been established for IPX packets.
  • Performing NetWare Login---When checked, you have been successfully logged in to NetWare.

The VPN Client Statistics Window

The following information is contained in the VPN client Statistics window:

• VPN State
  • Server IP Address---IP address of the VPN server to which the client is connected.
  • Local IP Address---IP address of the VPN client.
  • Time Active---Amount of time the connection between the VPN client and server has been active.
  • Key Management---Protocol used for key management. Currently, only SKIP is supported.
  • Encryption Type---Data encryption algorithm used by the VPN connection.
  • Authentication Type---Data authentication algorithm used by the VPN connection.
  • Encryption Key Size---Data encryption key length in bits.
  • Authentication Key Size---Data authentication key length in bits.
  • IP Encryption Enabled---Whether the VPN tunnel has been configured to encrypt IP packets.
  • IPX Encryption Enabled---Whether the VPN tunnel has been configured to encrypt IPX packets.
  • Disconnect Timeout---Amount of time the VPN tunnel can remain inactive before it is disconnected.
  • Time to Disconnect---Amount of time remaining before the VPN tunnel is disconnected if no activity occurs.

• VPN Transfer
  • IPX Encrypted Packets Sent---Number of encrypted IPX packets sent from the VPN client on this connection.
  • IPX Encrypted Packets Received---Number of encrypted IPX packets received by the VPN client on this connection.
  • IP Encrypted Packets Sent---Number of encrypted IP packets sent from the VPN client on this connection.
  • IP Encrypted Packets Received---Number of encrypted IP packets received by the VPN client on this connection.
  • Unencrypted Packets Sent---Number of unencrypted packets sent from the VPN client on this connection.

    Even if the VPN client has been configured to encrypt all networks, the number of unencrypted packets sent or received might be a nonzero value. Unencrypted packets are used to bring up the encrypted tunnel itself. Although the packets are not encrypted using IPSEC, their contents are protected using Novell's proprietary protocol and encryption methods. The number of unencrypted packets should be less than 10 and should not increase after the tunnel has been established. If the value continues to increase, make sure that no other path from the protected network to the VPN client is shorter than the path through the tunnel. A shorter path can exist if another server on the protected network has a connection to the Internet. The number of unencrypted packets received is also increased by the receipt of broadcast packets from the Internet, such as BOOTP broadcast packets sent to clients.

  • Unencrypted Packets Received---Number of unencrypted packets received by the VPN client on this connection.
  • Sent Packets Discarded---Number of IPX and IP packets sent from the VPN client on this connection that were discarded. The packets are sent by applications after the connection is established, but before the encrypted tunnel is brought up.
  • Receive Packets Discarded---Number of IPX and IP packets received by the VPN client on this connection that were discarded. A nonzero value probably indicates decryption errors. Check the integrity of the line if a high value is displayed.
  • Total Packets Sent---Total number of IPX and IP packets sent from the VPN client on this connection.
  • Total Packets Received---Total number of IPX and IP packets received by the VPN client on this connection.
  • Total Bytes Sent---Total number of bytes sent from the VPN client on this connection.
  • Total Bytes Received---Total number of bytes received by the VPN client on this connection.

The More Window

The following information is contained in the VPN client More window:

• Server icon---Name of the VPN server to which the client is connected.
• Tree icon---Name of the NDS or eDirectory tree that contains the VPN server to which the client is connected.
• User Name---Client's NDS or eDirectory username.
• Context---Client's NDS or eDirectory context.
• Baud Rate---Speed at which the dial-up connection between the VPN client and Internet Service Provider (ISP) or VPN server is running.
• Protected IP Networks---Local IP networks or host addresses that can exchange encrypted data across the VPN.