The University of Michigan (U-M) provides remote access VPN (Virtual Private Network) service to all students, faculty, and staff. This VPN service provides a secure way to connect to the CAEN network from off-campus and obtain access to campus resources. There are three main benefits to why this makes connecting to CAEN easier and safer:

• The VPN provides an encrypted connection between your computer and the CAEN network, allowing secured transmission of data.
• Once the connection is established, the VPN is immune to Broadband provider (Cable and DSL) port blocking of Windows ports so that file sharing, Microsoft Exchange email & calendaring, and other Windows services are allowed to work.
• The VPN furnishes a U-M IP address similar to the way that one is obtained through campus Ethernet, DHCP, wireless or dial-in. This allows staff to access resources that are restricted to U-M IP addresses from off-campus.

The VPN is based on the same security model used for the CAEN Wireless VPN, using the Cisco VPN client. If you already have the Cisco VPN client installed on your laptop for use with CAEN Wireless, you only need to install an additional profile that will give you access from home. Mac OS X users can also use the VPN client built into the operating system.

With several VPNs available at U-M using different clients and profiles, and running on different platforms, it may not be clear which VPN you should use or when you should use it. Below we provide a brief comparison of the VPNs on campus, their profiles, and their use.

Cisco VPN Client

There are many options for connecting to VPNs on- and off-campus using the Cisco VPN client. The client is available for several operating systems, and various profiles have been set up to allow the U-M community to connect to the campus network. They include:

• UMICH-Wireless-VPN - This is the default profile offered with the Cisco VPN client download for CAEN Wireless on North Campus. It can also be used with the UM Wireless network on Central Campus. It is restricted to on-campus connections only, and provides an Engineering IP address. This profile connects to a VPN that is operated by CAEN, and uses your UMICH.EDU (Kerberos) password for authentication.
• UM-on-campus-wireless - This profile is offered with the Cisco VPN client download for the UM Wireless network. It is meant to be used for on-campus, wireless use only, and provides a U-M IP address. This profile connects to a VPN that is operated by ITCom, and uses your UMICH.EDU (Kerberos) password for authentication.
• UM-off-campus-wireless - This profile is also offered with the Cisco VPN client for the UM Wireless network. It is meant to be used for off-campus, remote connections only, and provides a U-M IP address. This profile connects to a VPN that is operated by ITCom, and uses your UMICH.EDU (Kerberos) password for authentication.

Mac OS X VPN Client

The Mac OS X VPN client can also be used for VPN connections to campus. It requires the native Internet Connect application that is available for those using an Apple computer running Mac OS 10.4 or later. To set it up, one simply needs a Kerberos configuration file (edu.mit.Kerberos) and the profile (CAENOSXVPN). The client can be used for both on- and off-campus connections to obtain an Engineering IP address, with no further configuration needed. This profile connects to a VPN that is operated by CAEN, and uses your UMICH.EDU (Kerberos) password for authentication. For setup information, please refer to the CAEN Mac OS VPN page.

Quick VPN Comparison

The following table shows the differences between the VPNs and profiles available at U-M, and how they should be used to connect to campus:

Links to downloads for all the profiles and configuration files discussed on this page are available by clicking here.

Further Information

For more information on the Cisco VPN client using the CAEN Wireless profile (UMICH-Wireless-VPN), and the Mac OS VPN client (CAENOSXVPN), please visit the CAEN Wireless web page at:

• http://www.engin.umich.edu/caen/network/wireless/

For more information on the Cisco VPN client using the UM-on-campus-wireless and UM-off-campus-access profiles, visit the ITCom web page at:

• http://www.itcom.itcs.umich.edu/vpn/