Starting server via GUI - Windows 7

technours

Greetings!

I have read, I have tried and I am confused...! Maybe it's a language thing (I'm French Canadian). Any way, here goes...

I have installed OPVN (2.3.4 I603-x86_64, yes it's a 64 bits system. tap windows 9.9.2_3 upgrade done) on a Win 7 Ultimate box to be the server. All is "fine", I can connect to it from a remote system, ping ok, etc. But for this to work, I have to start the SERVER in the following manner (using a account with admin priviledges):

- Click-right "Start OVPN on this configuration file" (I do this on my server.ovpn file of course)
- Enter my passphrase fot the key
- I had to set openvpn.exe (in OpenVPN\bin) to run as Administrator (ticked the box on the Compatibility tab)
- I then end up with a console window that remains minimized...ugly!

Now I tried the suggested ways found in the HOWTO and/or docs to start the server with OpenVPN GUI (by right-click - Run As and also under the actual Administrator account) and there is no way this server will start! Runs ok as a client though, as long as started with the run as trick.

To make a long story short:

- What is the actual/current/proper way to properly start the server under Windows 7?
- Is the GUI even supposed to be used to start the server?
- What exactly is the use of the OVPN service? It does not seem to do much, even when started...!

Thank you in advance for any insight and I apologized if I'm not clear enough! Feel free to ask for more details if required!

Best Regards,

Gary

Traffic

technours wroteWhat is the actual/current/proper way to properly start the server

There is no specific "proper" way ...

technours wroteIs the GUI even supposed to be used to start the server

It is suitable if you run with privileges.

technours wroteWhat exactly is the use of the OVPN service? It does not seem to do much, even when started

Check your log for errors.

To use the service to start OpenVPN with a password protected key you will need to add:

management 127.0.0.1 {port}
management-query-passwords

to your server config.

You then need to connect to the management interface with a telnet client and enter:

password 'Private Key' {password}

You can then disconnect from the management interface.

technours

@Traffic: Thank you very much, that works fine! And if you don't mind, where was that info? I totally missed that!

This whole business of the server asking for a Private Key password seems to be unclear and/or not well documented (not a criticism by the way!) and it is confusing me. Should I, or not, have a password for the PK? And is there a way to pass that password to the service automatically? Altough that doesn't seem to make much sense; might as well not have a password, right? My goal is to have the vpn server up when the system reboots after power failure or similar event. I've read various docs on how to run as a service, some seem dated and I'm not sure if they are still applicable.

Still not able to see what use the GUI has on the server side by the way! Still can't make it start the service and/or the server... And I start it with a user account with priviledges (member of admin group, using Run As, etc.).

Next step: Bridging! Sounds like fun... 😉

Any help appreciated, thank you!

Traffic

technours wrote@Traffic: Thank you very much, that works fine! And if you don't mind, where was that info? I totally missed that!

There is often an 'F' in this somewhere .. The Manual v23x

technours wroteThis whole business of the server asking for a Private Key password seems to be unclear and/or not well documented

We are in need of useful volunteers .. https://forums.openvpn.net/topic16990.html

technours wrote Should I, or not, have a password for the PK

Your PKI is complements of OpenSSL .. OpenVPN is a network protocol.

technours wrote I've read various docs on how to

Read more ..

You do not require a password for your server or client PKI .. it is simply an option provided by OpenSSL
When using EasyRSA you can usually turn this off by either entering a blank password or using option 'nopass' when generating your cert/key pair.

technours

Thank you again for the information, much appreciated.

Now I'm not sure if I "read" you right but I get the drift; I will read more and I did not mean to critizize with my comment on the documentation! And if I thought I could be "usefull", I would gladly help! And this (There is often an 'F' in this somewhere..) I'm sorry to say I do not understand what you mean by that...! I'll probably feel stupid after but what can I say... 😉 In any case, thank you for your time.

Best regards,

Gary