OpenVPN client confusion

NickW

The FAQ's and documentation seem to be a bit lacking on the question of OpenVPN clients. Specifically:

- There seem to be 3 options for Windows clients. The standalone desktop client, the connect client and the Windows installer. What are the recommended deployment scenarios for these 3 clients?

- The documentation seems to recommend the Connect client as the best option...and yet later on there are detailed steps on how to create & edit client config files (*.ovpn) - but the connect client does not seem to use such files.

- The desktop client and the connect client do not seem to use any certs for authentication which leaves the Windows installer version??

I'm sure I'm missing something obvious...but any pointers would be great..Cheers!

Mimiko

The documentation is ok. Most of it is related to OpenVPN server and the one who setup's VPN. Simple users are guided by the admins of corresponding OpenVPN connections.
You can download desktop client or installer, which basically is the same, but none will work whitout a config file (.ovpn), which you must configure or get from the administrator of the VPN.

NickW

Can you point me to an article/document which discusses the various clients available for Windows; the differences between them; the relative merits of each and the recommended deployment scenarios?

One document I read discusses the config file being in C:\prog files\openvpn\config. However, I have just (finally) found the config file for the connect client in c:\prog files\openvpn technologies\openvpn client\etc\profile. There seems to be no reference to this location in anything I have read.

For a newcomer to OpenVPN (but a 15 year IT veteran), this lack of clarity on the client options is a glaring omission.

Cheers!

Mimiko

You can use --config option to pass the full path and name for config file.

marklkelly

Hi Nick,

I'm experiencing exactly the same confusion as you - did you ever manage to figure it out? With all due respect - the response you got didn't look overly helpful (but that might just be me).

mwandelaar

Mimiko wroteThe documentation is ok. Most of it is related to OpenVPN server and the one who setup's VPN. Simple users are guided by the admins of corresponding OpenVPN connections.
You can download desktop client or installer, which basically is the same, but none will work whitout a config file (.ovpn), which you must configure or get from the administrator of the VPN.

The answer is straight-forward: You are using some kind of a client to connect to the openvpn-server.
The administrator of the vpn can exactly tell you wich client is perfect for you AND provide you the nessecary configfiles, which includes the .ovpn-file, certificates and keys.

This pair will allow you to connect to the server and use openvpn.

marklkelly

Hi mwandelaar,

Thanks for coming back to me. Just to clarify - I am the VPN administrator.

I've generated client certificates, and understand that I need to create a .ovpn file. What isn't clear is how I make the OpenVPN desktop client aware of the .ovpn file. There doesn't appear to be an option to load the .ovpn file from with the client.

There are plenty of instructions on where to place the .ovpn file - but these instructions all seem to apply to a previous version of the client, as they typically specify c:\Program Files\OpenVPN\config as the target directory. In the latest version of the client - there isn't a config folder (as far as I can see) and the file path is very different e.g. C:\Program Files (x86)\OpenVPN Technologies\OpenVPN Client

So question is - where do I put these files for the client to recognise them?