January 2003 - WLUG - wlug.mailman3.com

Re: [Wlug] vpn behind firewall
by Michael Long Jan. 7, 2003

Jan. 7, 2003

Hi Andy, I was hoping that by adding a second nic card that plugs into my router I could somehow configure the webserver to use one nic and the vpn to use the other without the 2 cards knowing about each other. From some of the responses I have gotten it appears that this was naive thinking on my part. Cheers, Mike > On Tuesday 31 December 2002 10:18 am, Michael Long wrote: > > I have gotten both vpn's coexisting nicely with each other. I can now > > connect to my desktop at work via vnc. It looks like I can now remove my > > windows partition...YEA! > > > > Now for my final issue. I have not been able to configure my cisco vpn to > > allow me access to my local lan when connected the vpn is running. This is > > proving to be most inconvenient because I do have a web server running that > > is accessable to the outside world. Unfortunately the webserver is > > unavailable when the vpn is activated. I am thinking that if I add a > > second nic card to the box and configure it properly that I should be able > > to have one card handle the webserver traffic and the other card will > > handle the vpn traffic. Does this seems like a sane configuration? If so > > can someone point me to documentation that will explain how to accomplish > > this. > > > > Thanks again, > > Mike > > Hi Mike, > > Look for a setting in your configuration that says something about > "EXCLUDE_LOCAL_LAN". The possible values are true and false. Toggle it and > see if that fixes your problem. > > If the webserver in question is running on the machine that is making the VPN > connection, then it will not be visible on the Internet while the VPN is > active. That's a feature. When you activate the VPN on your machine, you > become part of your company's network, and when you deactivate the VPN, you > go "back to normal". > > You could add another NIC to handle the web traffic, but you then create a > path from one NIC to your machine and out the other NIC to your company's > network. Do you really want to create a back door into your company's > network that way? This is a security issue to be considered. > > Later, > > Andy > > -- > Andy Stewart, Founder > Worcester Linux Users' Group > Worcester, MA USA > http://www.wlug.org > > > _______________________________________________ > Wlug mailing list > Wlug(a)mail.wlug.org > http://mail.wlug.org/mailman/listinfo/wlug > > >

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Re: [Wlug] vpn behind firewall
by Michael Long Jan. 7, 2003

Jan. 7, 2003

I have gotten both vpn's coexisting nicely with each other. I can now connect to my desktop at work via vnc. It looks like I can now remove my windows partition...YEA! Now for my final issue. I have not been able to configure my cisco vpn to allow me access to my local lan when connected the vpn is running. This is proving to be most inconvenient because I do have a web server running that is accessable to the outside world. Unfortunately the webserver is unavailable when the vpn is activated. I am thinking that if I add a second nic card to the box and configure it properly that I should be able to have one card handle the webserver traffic and the other card will handle the vpn traffic. Does this seems like a sane configuration? If so can someone point me to documentation that will explain how to accomplish this. Thanks again, Mike > Well, my editor ate that one... Let's try this again. > > On Tue, Dec 24, 2002 at 05:58:15PM -0500, Michael Long wrote: > mlong> it if anyone could give me some clues or at least some intelligent > mlong> questions to ask so that I might make this thing work. It is sometimes > mlong> necessary to "help" the help desk in order that they can help you. :) > > "VPN" can mean many things... but usually it means a PPTP or IPsec > encrypted tunnel. IPsec uses port 500/udp for ISAKMP key exchange, and > IP Protocol number 50/51 for ESP/AH encryption/authentication (i.e., not > TCP or UDP). > > IPsec wasn't designed to work with the hack that is NAT (Network Address > Translation, Internet Connection Sharing), so if you are sharing one > real IP address to multiple computers with a Linksys, you can run into > issues. Basically, vendors like Linksys have hacked around the IPsec > limitation to make it sort of work through the NAT. Make sure you have > turned on the "IPsec passthrough" features of your router (NOT IPsec/VPN > endpoint). You should also look for an upgrade to the Linksys firmware > to see if it addresses your issue... It is hit-or-miss often times with > these SOHO routers. Good luck. > > mlong> Part 2: I am planning to fire up a vpn connection to my employer on > mlong> Thursday for the first time. Are there any issues running 2 vpn > mlong> connections behind a firewall. > > The IPsec through NAT hack I mentioned above usually only works with ONE > IPsec session at a time, so if both VPN's use IPsec, you may be out of > luck unless you take turns using the VPN software. On the other hand, > some vendors have figured out a way to allow multiple IPsec sessions to > work through NAT at once... > > It could be that one or both VPN's are using a technology other than > IPsec, in which case, the issues are completely different. PPTP usually > works fine through NAT, for example. There are other protocols as well, > which may or may not work through NAT. > > In addition, if they are using IPsec with a Nortel Networks Contivity > VPN switch on their end, it may have a feature called "NAT Traversal" > which wraps the entire IPsec flow in UDP packets (the administrator > chooses the port number, but Nortel recommends 10001/udp). If this is > the case, it might make sense to turn OFF any IPsec-passthrough features > of your router, so that the NAT Traversal kicks in. > > -- > Charles R. Anderson <cra(a)wpi.edu> / http://angus.ind.wpi.edu/~cra/ > PGP Key ID: 49BB5886 > Fingerprint: EBA3 A106 7C93 FA07 8E15 3AC2 C367 A0F9 49BB 5886 > > _______________________________________________ > Wlug mailing list > Wlug(a)mail.wlug.org > http://mail.wlug.org/mailman/listinfo/wlug > > >

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RE: Linux on a PPC chip
by Sands Fish Jan. 7, 2003

Jan. 7, 2003

Thanx everyone for the advice on Linux for the PPC. I ended up going with Debian, and, guided by the advice of the installation docs that come with their dist. for PPC, I had a very successful (lacking sound, but i was told to expect that, besides it's a server) installation on the G4 Mac. Now, the only other tweak I have a burning desire to make to this box is to configure the kernel to use SMP for the dual 500Mhz processors. From what I've heard, it should only be using the first one right now, and that I have to rebuild the kernel with SMP support. Sound right? I would appreciate any tips or help on getting there, such as: -> how -> where to check to -know- that it's using one or both -> any other useful kernel info anything would be great really. thanx! - Sands <x>< __________________________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Mail Plus - Powerful. Affordable. Sign up now. http://mailplus.yahoo.com

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Notebooks...
by Wesley T Allen Jan. 7, 2003

Jan. 7, 2003

Hi gang, Well, with the 0% financianing out there I'm seriously considering dumping my current notebook and taking all my Christmas cash to get a machine that works better with linux. I'm sick of this HP buggy BIOS that won't let linux read the thermal or battery data, even with acpi, so this'll go back to winXP for my wife, we'll dump the desktop completely, and I'll get the new machine. My question is, what's known to work with Linux. Are Toshiba's friendly? I'm not touching a compaq with a 10 foot pole, and does anyone have an HP laptop that is fully functional with linux? What about the latest Dells? Or even, gasp GATEWAY???? I checked out linux on laptops, but most of the models weren't even close so I figured I'd ask all of you... Wes

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Color matching scanned photos vs. printed output
by Andy Stewart Jan. 7, 2003

Jan. 7, 2003

Hi Everybody, I've been playing with my new toy, an Epson 1660 Photo scanner, which works very nicely with Linux. I have noticed that photos that I scan in and then print don't look the same as the original. I am using Xsane, Gimp-Print, and CUPS. If it matters, the photo is 4x6 inches, scanned at 400 DPI, and printed in 1440x720 high quallity mode. The photo was originally printed from my 3 Mpixel digital camera (2160x1440 pixels), so I believe I've used a more than sufficient DPI when scanning. I suspect the problem is that neither the scanner nor the printer is perfect, and that the cumulative effects of the transfer functions (scanner to computer to monitor to computer to printer) are causing this. Its actually worse if I let Xsane compensate for me with its automatic adjustments of gamma, brightness, and contrast. Adjusting the image on my monitor screen probably isn't going to help much since my monitor isn't perfect, nor is there any guarantee that I have it properly adjusted. Is there any good way, other than trial and error, to fix this? Would generating some simple test patterns help in making the proper adjustments? Thanks, Andy -- Andy Stewart, Founder Worcester Linux Users' Group Worcester, MA USA http://www.wlug.org

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Toshiba Laptop?
by Wesley Allen Jan. 6, 2003

Jan. 6, 2003

Hi gang, What's your collective opinion of Toshiba laptops? Circuit City has got a decent machine (Satellite 1415-s173) for $999 and they actually let me boot Knoppix on it to check out hardware support (everything worked). The only thing I'm wondering about is the battery. MY HP laptop doesn't let Linux read the battery info with either apm or acpi, and I think this is a function of an incredibly bad bios implementation. The demo models at Circuit City didn't have batteries, so I had no way of checking this bug out on that brand. Does anyone have experience with a Toshiba laptop that has an acpi bios? Can you relate your experience to me? Wes

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Re: [Wlug] Notebooks...
by webmaster＠atari-users.net Jan. 6, 2003

Jan. 6, 2003

Have you considered a Apple iBook or Powerbook? An iBook runs for about $1000 and PB's $2000. Compared to my Dell Laptop for work.. Apple has some nice hardware. I have an iBook 500mhz.. I was shocked how well Yellow Dog Linux ran on it. The speed difference over Mac OS X was very noticable. I also tried Mandrake PPC linux on it, not very impressed with it. Unfortunetly, the 20 gig drive I placed in the iBook fried, so all I have now is Mac OS X. The 10 gigs is too tight for a dual system. I'm having a hard time converting the wife to linux.<G> A buddy down in CT has a Powerbook running Yellow Dog also, only issue is the ATI video is not fully supported yet. just throwing my 2 cents in.. Rob Mahlert

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Re: [Wlug] Notebooks...
by Chuck Homic Jan. 6, 2003

Jan. 6, 2003

On Mon, Dec 30, 2002 at 08:04:00AM +0000, Wesley T Allen wrote: > My question is, what's known to work with Linux. Are Toshiba's > friendly? I'm not touching a compaq with a 10 foot pole, and does > anyone have an HP laptop that is fully functional with linux? What > about the latest Dells? Or even, gasp GATEWAY???? > I checked out linux on laptops, but most of the models weren't even > close so I figured I'd ask all of you... Weren't close to what, exactly? You mean not close to working with Linux? I was looking for a simple machine (ie. more powerful than my desktop P-200 was my minimum requirement) that would be ultra portable. I was looking for something uber-small and uber-light that I'd carry around with me everywhere because it was so uber-small and uber-light. I decided on a Fujitsu Lifebook P-2000, and it was the best purchasing descision of my life. It has a couple of 1337 features: * 800MHz Crusoe chip (I mean come on, Linus helped design the chip!) * 16:9 aspect ratio screen (1280x768), awesome for watching DVDs * Wikkid 6+ hour battery life, with so-called "normal usage" * Tiny: 10.5" by 6" by 1" * Optional integrated 802.11b * Everything works in Linux except the shatty WinModem All of my friends (who don't want a 19" screen on their laptop) drool over the thing, so I'd highly recommend it if you don't need a number-crunchin' gaming system. -Chuck

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Re: [Wlug] Notebooks...
by William Smith Jan. 6, 2003

Jan. 6, 2003

On Mon, 30 Dec 2002 08:04 "Wesley T Allen" <wallen(a)charter.net> wrote: > My question is, what's known to work with Linux. Are Toshiba's > friendly? I'm not touching a compaq with a 10 foot pole, and does > anyone have an HP laptop that is fully functional with linux? What > about the latest Dells? Or even, gasp GATEWAY???? i can't speak for the latest Gateway systems, but i know that my Gateway Solo 9100 works nicely with Linux... i run RH8.0 on it... I've been using Linux on it since I got it, with RH7.2. > I checked out linux on laptops, but most of the models weren't even close so I figured I'd ask all of you... I have found that it is always safer to ask. now... back to searching for Rio utils... ;) William Smith wsmith(a)chezsmith.com Fall River, MA www.chezsmith.com

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Re: [Wlug] Notebooks...
by Robert L Krawitz Jan. 4, 2003

Jan. 4, 2003

Date: Mon, 30 Dec 2002 08:04 From: "Wesley T Allen" <wallen(a)charter.net> My question is, what's known to work with Linux. Are Toshiba's friendly? I'm not touching a compaq with a 10 foot pole, and does anyone have an HP laptop that is fully functional with linux? What about the latest Dells? Or even, gasp GATEWAY???? I have a Dell Inspiron 8000 that works perfectly under Linux. I can suspend and resume it just fine, which impresses a lot of folks since they can't even do that under Windows. The 8200 is the current model; you can find 8000's and 8100's for reasonable money on eBay. It's a big, clunky-looking machine, but the internals are well done, it's very fast, and it has a very nice screen (1400x1050 or 1600x1200; none of this silly 1024x768 on a 15" screen). It can also take two batteries. I'd actually go for an 8000 rather than an 8200 if you want long battery life; the slower processors (mine is 700 MHz) make for much longer battery life. I get 5 hours from a 2700 and 3800 mAH battery; you can buy 4400 mAH batteries now, which should give about 7 hours of battery life. There are lots of other configuration options; you can get a combo DVD/CDRW drive, or two optical drives, if you like. You don't need a docking station, as it has all of the connections on the back panel. -- Robert Krawitz <rlk(a)alum.mit.edu> Tall Clubs International -- http://www.tall.org/ or 1-888-IM-TALL-2 Member of the League for Programming Freedom -- mail lpf(a)uunet.uu.net Project lead for Gimp Print -- http://gimp-print.sourceforge.net "Linux doesn't dictate how I work, I dictate how Linux works." --Eric Crampton

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