Openvpn naujas

OpenVPN configuration types

Before configuring anything you should first know what type of OpenVPN connection suits your needs the best. The key things to be considered here are the type of connection (TUN (tunnel) or TAP (bridged)), the data transfer protocol (User Datagram Protocol (UDP) or Transmission Control Protocol (TCP)), and the authentication type (TLS or Static key). Here is a short overview of the differences:

• Type
  • TUN (tunnel) - simulates a network layer device and it operates with layer 3 packets like IP packets. TUN is used for routing and connecting multiple clients to a single server.
  • TAP (bridged) - simulates a link layer device and it operates with layer 2 packets like Ethernet frames. TAP is used for creating a network bridge between two Ethernet segments in different locations.

• Protocol
  • UDP - is used by apps to deliver a faster stream of information by doing away with error-checking.
  • TCP - a suite of protocols used by devices to communicate over the Internet and most local networks. It provides apps a way to deliver (and receive) an ordered and error-checked stream of information packets over the network.

• Authentication
  • TLS - uses SSL/TLS + certificates for authentication and key exchange.
  • Static key - uses a pre-shared Static key. Can only be used between two peers.

Overviews of most of these types and variations are provided in this article. Concerning TCP vs UDP, we will be using UDP for all examples. Choosing between TCP and UDP doesn't affect the rest of the configuration, so you can still follow the given examples no matter which protocol you are using. Simply choose the one that suits your purposes.