• SonicOS 7.1
• About SonicOS
  • Working with SonicOS
  • SonicOS Workflow
  • How to Use the SonicOS Administration Guides
  • Guide Conventions
• IPSec VPN Overview
  • About Virtual Private Networks
  • VPN Types
    • IPsec VPN
    • DHCP over VPN
    • L2TP with IPsec
    • SSL VPN
  • VPN Security
    • About IKEv1
    • About IKEv2
    • Mobility and Multi-homing Protocol for IKEv2 (MOBIKE)
    • About IPsec (Phase 2) Proposal
    • About Suite B Cryptography
  • VPN Base Settings and Displays
    • Policies
    • Active Tunnels
    • Settings
  • IPv6 VPN Configuration
• Site to Site VPNs
  • Planning Site to Site Configurations
  • General VPN Configuration
    • Configuring Settings on the General Tab
    • Configuring Settings on the Network Tab
    • Configuring Settings on the Proposals Tab
    • Configuring Settings on the Advanced Tab
  • Managing GroupVPN Policies
    • Configuring IKE Using a Preshared Secret Key
    • Configuring IKE Using 3rd Party Certificates
    • Downloading a GroupVPN Client Policy
  • Creating Site to Site VPN Policies
    • Configuring with a Preshared Secret Key
    • Configuring with a Manual Key
    • Configuring with a Third-Party Certificate
    • Configuring the Remote SonicWall Network Security Appliance
    • Configuring VPN Failover to a Static Route
• VPN Auto Provisioning
  • About VPN Auto Provisioning
    • Defining VPN Auto Provisioning
    • Benefits of VPN Auto Provisioning
    • How VPN Auto Provisioning Works
      • About Establishing the IKE Phase 1 Security Association
      • About Establishing IKE Phase 2 using a Provisioned Policy
  • Configuring a VPN AP Server
    • Starting the VPN AP Server Configuration
    • Configuring VPN AP Server Settings on General
    • Configuring VPN AP Server Settings on Network
    • Configuring Advanced Settings on Proposals
    • Configuring Advanced Settings on Advanced
  • Configuring a VPN AP Client
• Rules and Settings
  • Adding a Tunnel Interface
    • Creating a Static Route for the Tunnel Interface
  • Route Entries for Different Network Segments
  • Redundant Static Routes for a Network
• Advanced
  • Configuring Advanced VPN Settings
  • Configuring IKEv2 Settings
  • Using OCSP with SonicWall Network Security Appliances
    • OpenCA OCSP Responder
    • Loading Certificates to Use with OCSP
    • Using OCSP with VPN Policies
• DHCP over VPN
  • DHCP Relay Mode
  • Configuring the Central Gateway for DHCP Over VPN
  • Configuring DHCP over VPN Remote Gateway
  • Current DHCP over VPN Leases
• L2TP Servers and VPN Client Access
  • Configuring the L2TP Server
  • Viewing Currently Active L2TP Sessions
  • Configuring Microsoft Windows L2TP VPN Client Access
  • Configuring Google Android L2TP VPN Client Access
• AWS VPN
  • Overview
  • Creating a New VPN Connection
  • Reviewing the VPN Connection
    • Configuration on the Firewall
    • Configuration on Amazon Web Services
  • Route Propagation
  • AWS Regions
  • Deleting VPN Connections
• SonicWall Support
  • About This Document

IPsec VPN

SonicOS supports the creation and management of IPsec VPNs. These VPNs are primarily configured at NETWORK | IPSec VPN > Rules and Settings and NETWORK | IPSec VPN > Advanced.

IPsec (Internet Protocol Security) is a standards-based security protocol that was initially developed for IPv6, but it is also widely used with IPv4 and the Layer 2 Tunneling Protocol. Its design meets most security goals of authentication, integrity, and confidentiality. IPsec uses encryption and encapsulates an IP packet inside an IPsec packet. De-encapsulation happens at the end of the tunnel, where the original IP packet is decrypted and forwarded to its intended destination.

An advantage of using IPsec is that security arrangements can be handled without requiring changes to individual user computers. It provides two types of security service:

• Authentication Header (AH), which essentially allows authentication of the sender of data
• Encapsulating Security Payload (ESP), which supports both authentication of the sender and encryption of data

You can use IPsec to develop policy-based VPN (site to site) or route-based VPN tunnels or Layer 2 Tunneling Protocol (L2TP).