Setting up the VPN Server.

Do you need to securely connect your home computer to your office computer over the Internet? This is what Virtual Private Networking (VPN) is all about. The key is to set up your Windows XP office computer as a VPN server and your home computer as a VPN client. With both computers connected to the Internet, your home computer will call your office computer (using the Internet connection, not the phone line) and after the call goes through, your home computer will be joined to your office network, just as if it were plugged into your network hub. In this segment we'll go over the VPN server setup and in another segment we'll go over the VPN client setup. The VPN client computer makes the call, the VPN server answers the call.

1. Click Start and then click Control Panel.
2. Make sure the Control Panel is in Classic Mode. Open the Network Connections applet.
3. Double click on the Create a New Connection icon. This opens the New Connection Wizard. Click Next on the Welcome to the New Connection Wizard page.
4. On the Network Connection Type page, select the Set up an advanced connection option and click Next.
5. On the Advanced Connection Options page, select the Accept incoming connections option and click Next.
6. On the Devices for Incoming Connections page, do not select any of the devices. Just click Next.
7. On the Incoming Virtual Private Network (VPN) Connection page, select the Allow virtual private connections option and click Next.
8. On the User Permissions page, click the Add button if you haven't already set up a user account for your home computer (if you have, just check the checkbox for his account). Type in the information required in the New User text box and click OK. Click Next.
9. On the Network Software page, click on the Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) entry and click the Properties button. In the Incoming TCP/IP Properties dialog box, put a checkmark in the Allow callers to access my local area network checkbox. Select the Specify TCP/IP addresses option. Type in a From and To address. For example, if you are using private addresses like 192.168.0.1 for your network, type in a From address like 192.168.0.250 and a To address like 192.168.0.251. That allows your VPN server to allocate an IP address to itself and to your VPN caller (VPN client). Click OK. Click Next.
10. Click Finish on the Completing the New Connection Wizard page.

Here are some other things to consider when you want to configure your Windows XP Professional computer as a VPN server:

Confirm with your Internet Service Provider (ISP) that it's Okay to make incoming VPN calls to your Windows XP VPN server (that is, that they don't block incoming VPN traffic).

If you have a "broadband router" (DSL or cable), make sure that all PPTP connections are sent to the Windows XP Professional computer (PPTP is a type of VPN connection based on the "tunneling protocol" it uses).

Make sure there are two network cards on the Windows XP machine if you want to be able to connect to the rest of the network through the VPN! Then enable IP Routing. Enabling IP Routing is important because this allows you to connect to other computers on your network. Without IP Routing, you'll only be able to connect to the Windows XP Pro computer.