Overview

You can configure your Safe@Office appliance as part of a virtual private network (VPN). A VPN is a private data network consisting of a group of gateways that can securely connect to each other. Each member of the VPN is called a VPN site, and a connection between two VPN sites is called a VPN tunnel. VPN tunnels encrypt and authenticate all traffic passing through them. Through these tunnels, employees can safely use their company's network resources when working at home. For example, they can securely read email, use the company's intranet, or access the company's database from home.

The are four types of VPN sites:

• SecuRemote Remote Access VPN Server. Makes a network remotely available to authorized users who connect to the Remote Access VPN Server using the Check Point SecuRemote VPN Client (provided for free with your Safe@Office) or another Safe@Office.
• SecuRemote Internal VPN Server. SecuRemote can also be used from your internal networks, allowing you to secure your wired or wireless network with strong encryption and authentication.
• L2TP VPN Server. Makes a network available to authorized users who connect from the Internet or from your internal networks using an L2TP client such as the Microsoft L2TP IPSec VPN Client.
• Site-to-Site VPN Gateway. Can connect with another Site-to-Site VPN Gateway in a permanent, bi-directional relationship.
• Remote Access VPN Client. Can connect to a Remote Access VPN Server, but other VPN sites cannot initiate a connection to the Remote Access VPN Client. Defining a Remote Access VPN Client is a hardware alternative to using SecuRemote software.

All Safe@Office models provide full VPN functionality. They can act as a Remote Access VPN Client, a Remote Access VPN Server for multiple users, or a Site-to-Site VPN Gateway.

A virtual private network (VPN) must include at least one Remote Access VPN Server or gateway. The type of VPN sites you include in a VPN depends on the type of VPN you want to create, Site-to-Site or Remote Access.