Large Remote Access Vpn example essay topic

Over the past few decades, many things have changed. With the growth of the Internet, life has been altered in so many ways because of the information superhighway. Anything from candies to cars can be purchased over the internet. The range of information available to people is practically limitless. I can research computer networking while reading an article on the gubernatorial race in the New York Times, listen to a speech by world-renowned speaker Tom Hopkins, and download "500 miles" by Peter, Paul, and Mary all at the same time from the comfort of my bedroom. Now, with that in mind, what kind of doors does that open up to the serious world?

More than personal things, what about the business world? Instead of simply dealing with local or regional matters through conventional means of communication (e.g. "snail mail", telephone and video conferencing, etc. ), many businesses today have to consider national and international markets and the logistics that go into a network of that type (Tyson). As the popularity of the Internet grew, businesses started to use it as a means of extending their own networks. First came intranets, which are password-protected sites designed for use only by authorized users (e.g. company employees). Now, many companies are creating their own VPN, or Virtual Private Network, to accommodate the needs of remote employees and distant offices. Basically, a VPN is a private network that uses a public network to connect remote sites or users together, hence the role of the internet in the creation of the VPN.

Instead of using a physical connection, like ISDN or DSL, a VPN "uses a virtual connection routed through the Internet from the company's private network to the remote site or employee. (Tyson) " There are commonly two basic types of VPN's. The first type is a site-to-site VPN. "Through the use of dedicated equipment and large-scale encryption, a company can connect multiple fixed sites over a public network such as the Internet.

(Tyson) " Site-to-site VPN's can be either intranet-based or extranet-based. An intranet-based site-to-site VPN can connect two or more remote locations to a single private network by creating an intranet VPN to connect two Local Area Networks to each other. An example of this would be a domestic based with a partner company in a foreign country. An extranet-based site-to-site VPN allows various groups (e.g. partner companies, supplier and consumers, etc.) to work in a shared environment by creating an extranet VPN connecting two or more Local Area Networks to each other. An example of this would be a service-related company's website (e.g. food distributor) that allows selected clients (e.g. restaurants, bars, pizzerias, etc.) to access that website and utilize certain information (e.g. Order supplies) (web). Each remote member of an extranet-based site-to-site VPN can communicate in a secure and reliable manner using the Internet as the medium to connect to each other.

A VPN can grow to accommodate more users and different locations much easier than a leased line. In fact, scalability is a major advantage that VPN's have over typical physical connections. Unlike physical connections, where cost increases in proportion to the distance involved, the physical locations of each party doesn't have as much to do in the creation of a VPN than it does in a physical network (Tyson). The second common type of VPN is a remote access VPN, also known as a virtual private dial-up network, or a VPDN. This is a user-to-LAN connection used by a company that has employees who need to connect to the private network from various remote locations. "Typically, a corporation that wishes to set up a large remote-access VPN will outsource to an enterprise service provider (ESP).

The ESP sets up a network access server (NAS) and provides the remote users with desktop client software for their computers. The telecommuters can then dial a toll-free number to reach the NAS and use their VPN client software to access the corporate network. (Tyson) " A good example of a company that needs a remote-access VPN would be a large firm with hundreds of sales people in the field. I work for a subsidiary of Citigroup as a financial advisor. There are times when I have to check compliance rules on certain aspects of my work. Sometimes, I've needed that information right away.

My company's VPN allows me to get the information I need when I need it. Remote-access VPN's permit secure, encrypted connections between a company's private network and remote users through a third-party service provider (Tyson). VPN's are becoming very popular. Many large corporations use VPN's to allow their representatives access company resources.

According to journalist Christopher McDonald, "many VPN technologies already exist, with more being developed, marketed and deployed each day. Some products are based on standards (usually emerging standards); others are proprietary. Some address very specific requirements, such as secure remote access over the Internet for mobile users, while others focus more on secure LAN-to-LAN connectivity. Each product and technology has inherent strengths and weaknesses". In conclusion, we have taken a look at what a VPN is. We have looked at the different types of VPN's.

We have seen what a VPN is capable of. Only time will tell what VPN's will be capable of one day.

Bibliography

Dictionary. com web Tyson, Jeff. How Virtual Private Networks Work web McDonald, Christopher. Virtual Private Networks, an Overview web.