While being bored at home, I decided to look up content on VPN’s. There are many VPN servers out there, however, for the average home user, the best option was to use Windows Vista’s built in VPN server that anyone can set up at home.
What exactly is a VPN? It stands for Virtual Private Network(ing) Basically it creates a secure network from client > server over an existing Internet connection.
You may have read my previous post about a secure connection using Hotspot Shield, and how if no secure connection is made, one could easily obtain personal information from you. As stated, this limits your bandwidth usage to five gigabytes per month and displays ads in your browser. Why not use the technology built right into your operating system for what may be a better solution?
Both Windows XP and Vista contain a feature that remains somewhat hidden, which allows you to create your own secure Virtual Private Network.
Instructions for turning on this feature in Windows Vista can be located here
Instructions for Windows XP can be located here
Now that you have Windows set up to accept incoming connections on your home computer, you can now use the Internet in a safe and secure manner with your Laptop, Iphone or any other device that is VPN enabled. All you need to do is setup a new connection using the connection wizard and choose the option to connect to a workplace using VPN. You will need to know your IP address of your Internet connection at home and will need to use your VPN password that you created.
One problem that you may run into, especially with residential Internet service is the dynamically assigned IP address that is sent to your modem. To circumvent this problem, you can easily establish a free domain name at No-IP.com or dyndns.com and either run the client which can be downloaded from each site, or if you are behind a router, and your router provides ddns service, you can configure your router to update it’s ip address with the ddns server you chose. This will allow you to always connect to your vpn server regardless of what IP address your Internet Provider assigned to your modem. I will also tell you that your browsing speed will be determined by the upstream bandwidth imposed by your ISP and your service level. So if you have bandwidth hogging browsing habbits, it may be better only use the VPN when you need it, such as reading email or using IM.
have fun and happy safe surfing.
