XFCE & GNOME installation

OpenVPN client installation

Network Manager manages wired and wireless networks but also can build a VPN tunnel if you get the “network-manager-openvpn-gnome” package.

  • For Debian
sudo apt-get install network-manager-openvpn-gnome
sudo /etc/init.d/network-manager restart
  • For Ubuntu
sudo apt-get install network-manager-openvpn-gnome
sudo service network-manager restart
  • GUI version with Synaptic

OpenVPN client configuration with Network Manager

  1. Download configuration file "fdn-vpn-public-networkmanager.ovpn"
  2. Right click on the Network Manager icon → “Modify connections”, then “VPN” tab → “Add VPN”
  3. Give a name to the connection (e.g. “FDN Public VPN”), then fill in the following instructions:
    • Gateway: open.fdn.fr
    • Authentication: use a password
    • User name: Edward
    • Password: Snowden
  4. Download FDN Public VPN certificate to ensure that you are really connected to the FDN network and that datas are not misdirected somewhere else.
  5. Once the computer is connected to its standard physical network (by an ethernet (wired) connection on the University network, by a wireless connection, by a fiber optic connection, mobile-wise through a USB 3G key, through any standard network actually), all you have to do is to activate the VPN by clicking on “VPN connections ” → "FDN Public VPN" (if that's the name you have chosen).
  6. Network Manager builds then the securised tunnel between your computer and FDN's network. Visually, a padlock appears over the usual Network Manager icon, showing that the connection comes out on a VPN.
  7. It is also possible to check this through command-line: the command “ifconfig” (on root mode) shows a new network interface “tun0” (for tunnel 0) whose allocated adress is an IP belonging to the adress block assigned to FDN Public VPN service (of the type 80.67.179.xxx)

Useful resources