Remote Access Services

From Nitix Knowledgebase

What is RAS?

Remote Access Services (RAS) is a feature that allows you to access an internal network while at home or on the road. You can take advantage of RAS with:

• A VPN (which requires the Internet and a PPTP client)
• A dial-in connection (which requires a dial-up modem and a phone line)

Windows will typically have a Point to Point Tunneling (PPTP) client built-in. You may have to purchase a separate software package if you are using a Macintosh.

In order to establish a remote connection, users have to have PPTP or dial-in access. Refer to the Creating Users section in the user manual chapter User & Team Management for more information.

PPTP - Client-to-Server VPN Service

Configuring VPN Service on Nitix

1. Select VPN from the Network Setup menu on the left side of any WebConfig screen. The VPN Setup screen will be displayed:



2. Enable the PPTP server by selecting "Enable".
3. Click Save Changes.

Configuring VPN Service in Windows

Before you can establish a VPN connection, you have to install VPN service on your Windows 95/98/Me workstation. Windows 2000 and Windows XP workstations already have VPN services installed.

1. From the Start menu, select Settings > Control Panel. Double-click on the Add/Remove programs icon.
2. The Add/Remove Programs Properties screen will be displayed. Select the Windows Setup tab.
3. Select Communications from the Components list and click Details.... A second Components list will be displayed, showing the communications components that are already installed and those that can be installed.
4. Scroll to Virtual Private Networking in the Components list.
   • If it already has a check, then VPN software has already been installed. Proceed to Establishing a VPN Connection.
   • If it does not have a check, you have to install the VPN software. Proceed to the next step.
5. Place a check in the Virtual Private Networking box and click OK.
6. The Windows Setup screen will be re-displayed. Click Apply. The software is installed automatically.
7. Reboot your computer when the software is finished installing.

You may be asked to insert your Windows 95/98/Me disk for additional software components to be loaded. Follow the instructions provided, and refer to Microsoft Support for more information.

Establishing a VPN Connection

To establish a VPN connection to a Nitix server, you need to know your username and password as well as the the Nitix server’s domain name or IP address.

Windows XP/2000

The following steps will help guide you through a successful VPN connection, Windows XP or 2000. The provided screen shots are from Windows XP.

1. In Windows, go to Network Connections.
2. Select New Connection Wizard and click Next.
3. In the Network Connection Type window, select the radio button labeled "Connect the network at my workplace", then click Next.



4. In the following Window, select the "Virtual Private Network" option then click Next.
5. In the Connection Name windows, enter a name that will distinguish the location you are connecting to.
6. In the Public Network window, select "Do not dial the initial connection" and click Next.
7. In the VPN Server Selection window enter the hostname of the Nitix server followed by the domain name, or alternatively, the public IP address. Click Next to proceed.



8. Click Finish.

Now that the VPN connection has been created, you will need to configure the settings before connecting to the remote network.

9. Open up the VPN connection. Before logging in for the first time click on Properties.



10. Click the Networking tab and from the "Type of VPN" drop-down box, select PPTP VPN and click OK. This only needs to be set once for each connection.
11. Login using the provided Nitix username and password and click OK. Various messages will display such as "Verifying the connection..." and "Registering the user..." prior to a complete connection.

Windows 95/98/Me

Follow these steps to establish a VPN connection in Windows 95/98/Me systems:

1. From the Start menu, select Programs > Accessories > Communications > Dial-up Networking.
2. Double-click on the Make New Connection icon. The following screen will be displayed:
3. Enter a name for the VPN connection. Click Next. The following screen will be displayed:
4. Enter your Nitix-powered server’s host name or external IP address:
   • Enter a host name (such as www.example.com) if Nitix provides DNS resolution for your domain.
   • Enter an IP address (such as 192.168.0.1) if Nitix does not provide DNS resolution. To find the external IP address, select Local from the Network Setup menu. On the screen that is displayed, click Advanced.... In the Network Devices section of the screen, look at the IP address of the un-trusted Ethernet interface (usually Eth1).
5. Click Next. The following screen will be displayed:
6. Click Finish. You have created an icon that activates a VPN connection to your home network through your Nitix-powered server.
7. Right-click on the icon that you just created and select Properties. In the window that is displayed, click on the Server Types tab.
8. In the Advanced options section of the screen, ensure that only the following are checked:
   • Enable software compression
   • Require encrypted password
   • Require data encryption.
9. In the Allowed network protocol section of the screen, ensure that only TCP/IP is checked. Click OK.
10. Once you are connected to the internet, establish a VPN connection to the internal network by double-clicking the icon that you created in step 6.
11. The following window will be displayed. Enter your Nitix login name and password. Click Connect.
12. Click Close to minimize this window.
13. You are now connected to your local network through a secure VPN. Depending on your internet connection, it may take longer than normal to complete network requests. The following icon (showing traffic between your workstation and the Nitix-powered server you are connected to) will be displayed in the bottom right corner of your screen:
14. To terminate the VPN connection, double-click on the icon. Select Disconnect in the window that is displayed.

Disconnect a PPTP Connection

1. On the System Status page, in the Services Status Snapshot section, the PPTP Connections line will display the status of all PPTP connections. If there are active connections, a Details link will be displayed:



2. Click on the Details link. The Active PPTP Users screen will be displayed:



3. Click on the delete action button of the user whose PPTP connection you want to disconnect.
4. A window will be displayed that asks "Are you sure you want to disconnect ‘username’?" Click OK to disconnect the PPTP connection.

Dial-in Service

Configuring Dial-in Service on Nitix

1. Select Dial-up from the Networking Setup menu on the left side of any WebConfig screen. The Dial-up Networking Setup screen will be displayed:



2. Click on the appropriate modem’s action button.
3. A second Dial-up Networking Setup screen will be displayed:



4. In the Allow Dial in connections section, select "Yes".
5. Click Save Changes.

Configuring Dial-in Service in Windows

1. From the Start menu, select Settings > Control Panel. Double-click on the Add/Remove programs icon.
2. The Add/Remove Programs Properties screen will be displayed. Select the Windows Setup tab.
3. Select Communications from the Components list and click Details.... A second Components list will be displayed, showing the communications components that are already installed and those that can be installed.
4. Select Dial-Up Networking from the Components list.
   • If it already has a check, then dial-in software has already been installed. Proceed to Establishing a Dial-in Connection.
   • If it does not have a check, you have to install the dial-in software. Proceed to the next step.
5. Place a check in the Dial-Up Networking box and click OK.
6. The Windows Setup screen will be re-displayed. Click Apply. The software is installed automatically.
7. Reboot your computer when the software is finished installing.

You may be asked to insert your Windows 95/98/Me disk for additional software components to be loaded. Follow the instructions given to you.

Establishing a Dial-in Connection

When a user dials into a Nitix-powered server, the username will appear in the Internet Status field of the System Status screen for the duration of the connection. The administrator can terminate the connection from this screen.

In order to establish a dial-in connection to your network, you need to know your Nitix username and password and the phone number of a modem that is connected to an external phone line. Depending on your Internet connection, it may take longer than normal to complete network requests.

Follow these steps to establish a dial-in connection on Windows 95/98/Me systems:

1. From the Start menu, select Programs > Accessories > Communications > Dial-up Networking.
2. Double-click on the Make New Connection icon. The following screen will be displayed:



3. Enter a name for the dial-in connection. Click Next. The following screen will be displayed:



4. Enter your area code, phone number, and country code.
5. Click Next. The following screen will be displayed:



6. Click Finish. You have created an icon that activates a dial-in connection to the internal network.
7. Establish a dial-in connection by double-clicking on the icon that you created in the previous step.
8. The following window will be displayed. Enter your Nitix login name and password. Click Connect.



9. A window showing you the progress of the connection will be displayed.
10. The following icon (showing traffic between your workstation and the Nitix-powered server you are connected to) will be displayed in the bottom right corner of your screen when you are connected to the local network:



11. To terminate the connection, double-click on the icon. Select Disconnect in the window that is displayed.

Terminating a Connection from WebConfig

When a user dials into the Nitix-powered server, their username will appear in the Internet Status section of WebConfig’s System Status screen for the duration of the connection. The administrator can choose to terminate the user’s connection from this screen.

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