IPsec VPN overview
This section provides a brief overview of IPsec technology and includes general information about how to configure IPsec VPNs using this guide.
The following topics are included in this section:
Types of VPNs
Planning your VPN
General preparation steps
How to use this guide to configure an IPsec VPN
VPN configurations interact with the firewall component of the FortiGate unit. There must be a security policy in place to permit traffic to pass between the private network and the VPN tunnel.
Security policies for VPNs specify:
- The FortiGate interface that provides the physical connection to the remote VPN gateway, usually an interface connected to the Internet
- The FortiGate interface that connects to the private network
- IP addresses associated with data that has to be encrypted and decrypted
- Optionally, a schedule that restricts when the VPN can operate
- Optionally, the services (types of data) that can be sent
When the first packet of data that meets all of the conditions of the security policy arrives at the FortiGate unit, a VPN tunnel may be initiated and the encryption or decryption of data is performed automatically afterward. For more information, see Defining VPN security policies on page 1.
Where possible, you should create route-based VPNs. Generally, route-based VPNs are more flexible and easier to configure than policy-based VPNs — by default they are treated as interfaces. However, these two VPN types have different requirements that limit where they can be used.
Types of VPNs
FortiGate unit VPNs can be policy-based or route-based. There is little difference between the two types. In both cases, you specify Phase 1 and Phase 2 settings. However there is a difference in implementation. A route-based VPN creates a virtual IPsec network interface that applies encryption or decryption as needed to any traffic that it carries. That is why route-based VPNs are also known as interface-based VPNs. A policy-based VPN is implemented through a special security policy that applies the encryption you specified in the Phase 1 and Phase 2 settings.
Route-based VPNs
For a route-based VPN, you create two security policies between the virtual IPsec interface and the interface that connects to the private network. In one policy, the virtual interface is the source. In the other policy, the virtual interface is the destination. This creates bidirectional policies that ensure traffic will flow in both directions over the VPN.
A route-based VPN is also known as an interface-based VPN.
overview Types of VPNs
Each route-based IPsec VPN tunnel requires a virtual IPsec interface. As such, the amount of possible route-based IPsec VPNs is limited by the system.interface table size. The system.interface table size for most devices is 8192.
For a complete list of table sizes for all devices, refer to the Maximum Values table.
Policy-based VPNs
For a policy-based VPN, one security policy enables communication in both directions. You enable inbound and outbound traffic as needed within that policy, or create multiple policies of this type to handle different types of traffic differently. For example HTTPS traffic may not require the same level of scanning as FTP traffic.
A policy-based VPN is also known as a tunnel-mode VPN.
Comparing policy-based or route-based VPNs
For both VPN types you create Phase 1 and Phase 2 configurations. Both types are handled in the stateful inspection security layer, assuming there is no IPS or AV. For more information on the three security layers, see the FortiOS Troubleshooting guide.
The main difference is in the security policy.
You create a policy-based VPN by defining an IPSEC security policy between two network interfaces and associating it with the VPN tunnel (Phase 1) configuration.
You create a route-based VPN by creating a virtual IPsec interface. You then define a regular ACCEPT security policy to permit traffic to flow between the virtual IPsec interface and another network interface. And lastly, configure a static route to allow traffic over the VPN.
Where possible, you should create route-based VPNs. Generally, route-based VPNs are more flexible and easier to configure than policy-based VPNs — by default they are treated as interfaces. However, these two VPN types have different requirements that limit where they can be used.
Comparison of policy-based and route-based VPNs
| Features | Policy-based | Route-based |
| Both NAT and transparent modes available | Yes | NAT mode only |
| L2TP-over-IPsec supported | Yes | Yes |
| GRE-over-IPsec supported | No | Yes |
| security policy requirements | Requires a security policy with
IPSEC action that specifies the VPN tunnel |
Requires only a simple security policy with ACCEPT action |
| Number of policies per VPN | One policy controls connections in both directions | A separate policy is required for connections in each direction |
Planning your VPN IPsec VPN overview
Planning your VPN
It is a good idea to plan the VPN configuration ahead of time. This will save time later and help you configure your VPN correctly.
All VPN configurations are comprised of numerous required and optional parameters. Before you begin, you need to determine:
- Where the IP traffic originates and where it needs to be delivered
- Which hosts, servers, or networks to include in the VPN
- Which VPN devices to include in the configuration
- Through which interfaces the VPN devices communicate
- Through which interfaces do private networks access the VPN gateways
Once you have this information, you can select a VPN topology that suits the network environment.
Network topologies
The topology of your network will determine how remote peers and clients connect to the VPN and how VPN traffic is routed.
VPN network topologies and brief descriptions
| Topology | Description |
| Gateway-to-gateway configurations | Standard one-to-one VPN between two FortiGate units. See Gateway-togateway configurations on page 1. |
| Hub-and-spoke configurations | One central FortiGate unit has multiple VPNs to other remote FortiGate units. See Hub-and-spoke configurations on page 1. |
| Dynamic DNS configuration | One end of the VPN tunnel has a changing IP address and the other end must go to a dynamic DNS server for the current IP address before establishing a tunnel. See Dynamic DNS configuration on page 1. |
| FortiClient dialup-client configurations | Typically remote FortiClient dialup-clients use dynamic IP addresses through NAT devices. The FortiGate unit acts as a dialup server allowing dialup VPN connections from multiple sources. See FortiClient dialup-client configurations on page 1. |
| FortiGate dialup-client configurations | Similar to FortiClient dialup-client configurations but with more gateway-togateway settings such as unique user authentication for multiple users on a single VPN tunnel. See FortiGate dialup-client configurations on page 1. |
| Internet-browsing configuration | Secure web browsing performed by dialup VPN clients, and/or hosts behind a remote VPN peer. See Internet-browsing configuration on page 1. |
overview General preparation steps
| Topology | Description |
| Redundant VPN configurations | Options for supporting redundant and partially redundant IPsec VPNs, using route-based approaches. See Redundant VPN configurations on page 1. |
| Transparent mode VPNs | In transparent mode, the FortiGate acts as a bridge with all incoming traffic being broadcast back out on all other interfaces. Routing and NAT must be performed on external routers. See Transparent mode VPNs on page 1. |
| L2TP and IPsec (Microsoft
VPN) |
Configure VPN for Microsoft Windows dialup clients using the built in L2TP software. Users do not have to install any See L2TP and IPsec (Microsoft VPN) on page 1. |
These sections contain high-level configuration guidelines with cross-references to detailed configuration procedures. If you need more detail to complete a step, select the cross-reference in the step to drill-down to more detail. Return to the original procedure to complete the procedure. For a general overview of how to configure a VPN, see Planning your VPN .
General preparation steps
A VPN configuration defines relationships between the VPN devices and the private hosts, servers, or networks making up the VPN. Configuring a VPN involves gathering and recording the following information. You will need this information to configure the VPN.
- The private IP addresses of participating hosts, servers, and/or networks. These IP addresses represent the source addresses of traffic that is permitted to pass through the VPN. A IP source address can be an individual IP address, an address range, or a subnet address.
- The public IP addresses of the VPN end-point interfaces. The VPN devices establish tunnels with each other through these interfaces.
- The private IP addresses associated with the VPN-device interfaces to the private networks. Computers on the private networks behind the VPN gateways will connect to their VPN gateways through these interfaces.
How to use this guide to configure an IPsec VPN
This guide uses a task-based approach to provide all of the procedures needed to create different types of VPN configurations. Follow the step-by-step configuration procedures in this guide to set up the VPN. The following configuration procedures are common to all IPsec VPNs:
- Define the Phase 1 parameters that the FortiGate unit needs to authenticate remote peers or clients and establish a secure a connection. See Phase 1 parameters on page 52.
- Define the Phase 2 parameters that the FortiGate unit needs to create a VPN tunnel with a remote peer or dialup client. See Phase 2 parameters on page 72.
- Specify the source and destination addresses of IP packets that are to be transported through the VPN tunnel. See Defining policy addresses on page 1.
How to use this guide to configure an IPsec VPN IPsec VPN overview
- Create an IPsec security policy to define the scope of permitted services between the IP source and destination addresses. See Defining VPN security policies on page 1.
These steps assume you configure the FortiGate unit to generate unique IPsec encryption and authentication keys automatically. In situations where a remote VPN peer or client requires a specific IPsec encryption and authentication key, you must configure the FortiGate unit to use manual keys instead of performing Steps 1 and 2.