OpenVPN-AS

Today I set up our first OpenVPN-AS server and man is it cool.  A lot of the things I didn’t like about regular OpenVPN (managing certificates, difficult authentication mechanisms, command line management, etc.) are addressed in OpenVPN-AS.  You couldn’t ask for better licensing either….$5 per concurrent connection.  That’s a software model I can buy into!

First I set up a CentOS server.  It’s ver 5.3 with minimal stuff loaded.  The I downloaded and ran the rpm right from OpenVPN.net.  After a few small configs in pfSense to port forward https over the box I was up and running.  I even got RADIUS authentication working of my SecurID box. For testing I just registered for the free 2 user license but I plan on purchasing more after our pilot is complete.   If you want VPN for your business the cost is way worth the effort on this package.  The difference between configuring OpenVPN and OpenVPN-AS is huge.   OpenVPN-AS is way easier to set up and deal with both as an administrator and a user.  Now…if they could only include OpenVPN-AS as a package in pfSense…..