MIE VPN Service
MIE VPN is the departmental Virtual Private
Network service of the Department of Mechanical
and Industrial Engineering which provides faculty, researchers and
students remote access to the internal MIE research network.
The VPN service is a convenient and secure way to access your
office and lab desktops and printers from home or while travelling with
your portable computer. When your remote computer successfully
connects and authenticates to the VPN service, it will become part of
the MIE research network as if you were in the department.
(Note to
MIE Departmental Staff: This
service does not give access to the MIE Administrative network.)
Contents:
What you need:
1. Windows, Linux/Unix or MacOS X with any
internet connection (DSL, Cable, etc)
2. UTORid
login and password to sign up for
UTORvpn. Optional but strongly recommended.
3. MIE user
login and password (same login
as for your @mie.utoronto.ca
email account). Strictly required.
All you need to do is install the VPN software
on your home PC or on the portable computer with which you travel.
Installation:
MIE VPN uses the same software as the UofT VPN
service (UTORvpn),
with a customized configuration. It is recommended to
install UTORvpn first and then add MIE-vpn to it, as described
below. For guests or visitors who do not have a UTORid
(needed for UTORvpn) or can't install UTORvpn for any reason, we
provide alternative installation
instructions below.
Note:
Install the VPN software only on the computer from
which you want to connect, e.g. only on your home computer or
the notebook with which you travel. You do not need to install the
software on the computer that you want to access (MIE office or lab
computer).
Installing MIE-vpn and UTORvpn
(recommended method)
1. Sign up and
install the UTORvpn
software. If you already have UTORvpn, skip to step 2.
- Go to www.vpn.utoronto.ca
and follow the instruction to install UTORvpn for your system. You need
your UTORid to
sign up and download the software.
- Follow the UTORvpn instructions to connect:
- Test that the connection
is working.
The following link will tell you if you are connected to UTORvpn:
Click here
for connection test.
2. Download and
save the MIE VPN
configuration file.
Important:
For security, the following file can only be downloaded if you are
connecting with UTORvpn
or from any UToronto
network. If you are installing it from home, connect to
UTORvpn first or you would get Permission Denied on the following step.
Click to download the following file: mie-vpn-1.ovpn
Save
and copy mie-vpn-1.ovpn
into the UTORvpn folder of your system disk:
- Windows
XP: \Documents
and
Settings\Your_Name\Application
Data\OpenVPN\config
- Windows
Vista: \Users\Your_Name\AppData\Roaming\OpenVPN\config
- MacOS
X: Home folder, Library/openvpn
- Unix/Linux:
/etc/openvpn
Windows XP
note: If "Application Data" does not appear under
"Documents and Settings", open Windows Explorer, choose Tools - Folder
Options; in the View tab enable "Show Hidden Files and Folders"
Windows
Vista note: If "AppData" does not appear under "Users",
open
Windows Explorer, choose Organize, Folders and Search Options; in the
View tab enable "Show Hidden
Files and Folders".
Mac OS X
note: You should have the following files in your Library/openvpn folder: utorvpn.ovpn
and mie-vpn-1.ovpn
Proceed to Connect to MIE-vpn
Installing MIE-vpn without UTORvpn
(for users without UTORid)
If you do not have a UTORid or are not eligible for UTORvpn access, use
these instructions to install the software (OpenVPN) and add the
MIE-vpn configuration file. Note that the installation might be considerably more difficult
in some systems (Mac, Linux, Unix). Also, if you later on install
UTORvpn you will have to uninstall and reinstall using the instructions
in the previous section.
1. Go
to www.openvpn.net, download and
install the latest version of OpenVPN.
Make sure to install version 2.1
or newer. Version 2.0
will not work with the MIE-vpn. As of this writing (Apr
2008) there are only installation packages for Windows. If there are no
packages for your operating system (e.g. Mac, Linux or Unix) you would
have to install by compiling the source code (inexperienced users
should not attempt this).
Mac OS X users install Tunnelblick application from www.tunnelblick.net
2. Download and
save the MIE VPN
configuration file.
Important:
For security, the following file can only be downloaded if you are
connecting from any UToronto
network. You can download it and save it when you are in the
departmant and take it home, or ask your supervisor or a colleague to
download it from the department and email it to you.
From a UToronto or MIE connection, click to
download the following file: mie-vpn-1.ovpn
Save
and copy mie-vpn-1.ovpn
into the OpenVPN config
folder of your system disk:
- Windows: \Program Files\OpenVPN\config
- Unix/Linux: /etc/openvpn
- Mac OS X: Home/Library/openvpn
Connecting to MIE VPN:
Important:
You have the choice to connect to either UTORvpn or MIE-vpn.
Unfortunately it is not possible to connect to both at the same
time. Disconnect from UTORvpn before connecting to MIE-vpn.
- Open the UTORvpn or OpenVPN software.
Mac OS X: Run the Tunnelblick application (in the Applications
folder).
- Choose mie-vpn-1
and connect.
- Type your MIE user login and password
(same
login
as for your @mie.utoronto.ca
email account)
After a few seconds you should get confirmation that the connection was
successful. Now you should be able to reach your lab/office
desktops and printers.
Test:
The following link will tell you if you are connected to the MIE
VPN: Click here
for connection test.
Connection example
for Windows:
1. Open the
OpenVPN icon on the Windows desktop. (Windows Vista: Right-click
icon and select "Run as Administrator"!)
2. Right-click the small
OpenVPN network icon on the system tray (near the clock).
3. Choose mie-vpn-1 then Connect.
4. Type your MIE user
name and password.
5. After a few seconds the connection should be ready.
Note that the system tray icon turns green.
6. To
disconnect, right-click the small OpenVPN system tray network icon,
choose mie-vpn-1 and
Disconnect.
Connection
example
for MacOS X:
Follow the example to
Connect to UTORvpn; you should have an extra option to "Connect to
mie-vpn-1".
Use your MIE user name and
password to connect to MIE-vpn (instead of the UTORid needed for
UTORvpn).
Testing
the VPN connection
The
following link will tell you if you have sucessfully connected to the
MIE
VPN: Click here
for connection test.
Connecting to your MIE
desktops and printers:
After a successful connection to MIE VPN, you should be able to connect
to desktops, printers and other networked machines in the MIE
network. For example, by connecting using Remote Desktop, Virtual
Network Computing (VNC), File Sharing, etc.
You would need to know the IP
address of the office or lab computer that you wish to access,
before you try remote access. The IP address should be four
numbers, such as 192.168.#.# or 128.100.#.#.
- Windows: Open a Command Prompt window
(Start - Run - "cmd") and type the command "ipconfig".
- MacOS X: System Preferences - Network
- Linux/Unix: "ifconfig"
command.
Hint:
Check the network settings and test the connection while you are still
in the department, before you go home or away. If you can
establish connection between two computers in the department, it should
also work remotely through the VPN.
Note:
Most desktop computers in the MIE network have "dynamic IP address"
which means that the IP address may change from time to time.
However,
the IP address should remain the same for as long as the computer is
running. In most cases, the same IP address is reassigned when
the
computer is restarted. If your computer is changing IP address
often, contact us if
you wish to have a permanent, static
IP address (not recommended for portable computers).
Important!
Make sure that your computers are password protected!
Example:
Windows Remote Desktop connection
You want to access your MIE office PC (OFFICEPC) from home (HOMEPC)
using Remote Desktop.
In OFFICEPC:
- Make sure that passwords are needed to
login to Windows. Otherwise anyone could access your computer!
Check in "Control Panel" - "User Accounts".
Assign strong passwords to your Windows account and for every user of
the computer.
- Enable
Remote Desktop: Control Panel - System - Remote tab; in
the Remote Desktop section, "Allow users to connect..."
- Check
IP address: Start - Run - "cmd". Type the command "ipconfig". Example: "IP Address: 192.168.15.250"
Test the connection from another computer in your office or in your lab
(for example LABPC2):
- Start - All Programs - Accessories -
Communications - Remote Desktop Connection
- Remote Desktop Computer: "192.168.15.250" (the IP
address of OFFICEPC)
- You should see OFFICEPC's logon screen.
Logon to Windows as you normally do.
You should have full control of OFFICEPC.
- If the connection fails, double-check settings,
check if a software firewall is blocking, etc
Now back at home in HOMEPC:
- Install MIE-VPN
software as described earlier in this document, if you haven't done so.
- Connect to MIE-VPN
and use your MIE login and password to connect.
Optionally but recommended, test the
VPN connection.
- Run Remote Desktop Connection as you did from
LABPC2:
Start - All Programs - Accessories - Communications - Remote Desktop
Connection;
Remote Desktop Computer: "192.168.15.250"
- Logon to OFFICEPC. You should have full
control as if you were in the office.
Example: Mac OS X access to shared folders.
You want to access the shared folders on your office Mac OS X desktop
("Office Mac") from your home Mac OS X computer ("Home Mac").
In "Office Mac" :
- Set up File Sharing in Systems Preferences -
Sharing.
- Add the folders you wish to share.
IMPORTANT: Make sure you are the only user allowed to access the shared
folders. Remove access from everyone else.
- Find out the IP address of the computer, in
System Preferences, Network.
Example: "IP address:
192.168.15.251"
In "Home Mac":
- Install MIE-VPN
software as described earlier in this document if you haven't done so.
- Connect to MIE-VPN.
Use your MIE login and password to connect.
Optionally but recommended, test the
VPN connection.
- In Finder,
in the Go menu,
select "Connect to
server"
- Type the IP address of "Office Mac".
Example: 192.168.15.251
- You should be prompted for your "Office Mac"
password and if successful your folders are displayed.
Example: Network printing from wireless
laptop.
Problem: Your laptop prints to a network printer while connected to the
(wired) MIE network but can't print when you connect to the UofT
wireless network, nor from any other network.
Solution: Install and connect to the MIE-vpn. No other changes
are needed; printing will work while you are connected to the MIE VPN.
MIE-vpn vs UTORvpn
After you have done the VPN software installation, you have the choice
to connect to MIE-vpn (departmental) or UTORvpn (institutional).
The following are the similarities and differences:
- Both MIE-vpn and UTORvpn use open-source software (OpenVPN), with support for Windows,
Macs, Linux & Unix systems.
- UTORvpn gives you access to University
resources (e.g. libraries) but not to departmental
internal networks.
MIE-vpn gives you access to University resources and to the MIE departmental
research network.
- You login to MIE-vpn with your MIE user account. You
login to UTORvpn with your UTORid.
- When connected to UTORvpn, all your internet
traffic goes through the VPN connection and through UofT, which might
be slower.
When connected to MIE-vpn, only MIE and UofT network connections go
through the VPN, other internet access goes directly to the internet
via your regular ISP servers.
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