WatchGuard Technologies, Inc.

VPN Support

Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) are the most effective way to keep your business communications over the Internet private and secure. WatchGuard® products are capable of delivering strong encryption to protect VPN connections and IPSec tunnel routing, which reduces the complexity of managing multiple VPN tunnels.

WatchGuard offers Mobile VPN and Branch Office VPN support.

Mobile VPN

WatchGuard Mobile VPN gives your traveling employees and telecommuters a secure connection to your corporate network. This cost-effective solution allows you to use a standard Internet connection, eliminating expensive long-distance charges. By deploying Mobile VPNs from your centrally managed security appliance, you also save time and money by eliminating the need to maintain dedicated modem banks and remote access servers.

Three types of Mobile VPN are available, PPTP Client, NCP® Client, and SSL.

• PPTP Client

  A standard component of Firebox® X, Firebox® X e-Series this version Mobile User VPN utilizes the widely accepted Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol (PPTP) bundled with most Microsoft Operating systems.

  How PPTP Works
  A PPTP tunnel is established using the Dial-Up Networking dialog on a Windows workstation. Remote users are authenticated using MS-CHAP against a user/password list maintained in the Firebox configuration or on a separate Radius authentication server. MS-CHAP relies on a challenge-response mechanism that prevents the client's password from being passed across the Internet.

  Once the tunnel is established, all data exchanged between the Firebox and the remote client is encrypted using RSA RC4 encryption standards. The Firebox decrypts and filters each packet according to configured rules. You also have the option to log all Remote VPN traffic to your log server.

• NCP® Client (IPSec)

  NCP® client software runs on any Windows® 2000/XP or Windows NT® workstation, and is available on all Firebox® X and Firebox X e-Series firewalls. This is the most efficient way to deploy MVPNs for your mobile workforce.

• SSL

  SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) VPN is a convenient remote access method that offers strong security and easy access from practically anywhere that Internet access is available. Mobile VPN with SSL is available on all Firebox® X e-Series appliances, with number of tunnels varying by model and whether the Pro upgrade is present. Supported clients include Microsoft Windows Vista, XP, and 2000 (32-bit); and Mac OS X versions 10.3 through Leopard.

Branch Office VPN with IPSec

WatchGuard Branch Office VPN is a standard component of all Firebox® X and Firebox® X e-Series models to give you secure communications between your offices and your trading partners.

• IPSec

  WatchGuard Branch Office VPN is compliant with current IPSec standards. IPSec Branch Office VPN capability establishes encrypted tunnels between a Firebox and any other IPSec-compliant security device - for example, devices used at branch offices, trading partners, or supplier locations - regardless of brand.

  Firebox® X and Firebox® X Edge devices are designed to work together seamlessly through WatchGuard System Manager, which deploys VPNs between Firebox devices with drag-n-drop simplicity. This saves you time and resources as you set up and manage your branch office connections with ease.