Virtual Private Networks

Speed, Security, Reliability, Extra Business, Safe Business, Communication, Mobility, Global are a couple of words that are so closely related to modern business houses. While every business today is looking towards expansion, towards making more revenue while maintaining and enhancing their performance, their communication set ups, and their time frames, it becomes mandatory to have a medium that allows all of these acts.
The history about this field of communication basically started with LAN , and further went to WAN ( Wide Area Network) to ISDN ( Integrated Services Digital Network) to Optical Fibers to Intranet to Internet. WAN was the most used, and can be compared to Internet in all of its efficiency, except that it was difficult to maintain all those leased lines, they turned out to be a load on the budget of the company.
VPN or a Virtual Private Network is the talk of the day now. Now this is a network, which connects the main Business House to its remote offices by making use of the Internet.


With the introduction of VPNs in regular business, it seen that it had a lot of benefits when compared to the WANs
A few benefits to name a few would be

Improved Security.
Improved Speed
Improved Connectivity.
Improved Feedback.
Improved Income.
Improvement in expansion of business.
Improvement in the geographic communications.
Improved output rate possible by reducing the communication time.
Improved Networking.

VPNs are basically of three types

THE VIRTUAL PRIVATE DIAL UP NETWORK (VPDN): This VPN is also commonly known as a VPN with Remote access. The mode of operation is that here a User connects to a LAN that is being used by the company, which has workmen in different remote areas, and need a private network to get connected. Often work is outsourced to various companies who are better known as Enterprise Service Provider or ESP. Here the ESP sets up a Network Access Server also known as NAS. Now NAS provides desktop client software to the remote user who dials a number to connect and use the client software to communicate with the Business house.

VPN WITH INTRANET:
When there are more than one remote location for a business house, they can be connected through LAN by using a VPN with Intranet.

VPN WITH EXTRANET:
When business houses deal with dealers or suppliers, they again connect through LAN by using a VPN with Extranet

SECURITY WITH VPN
With security being the primary issue with every Communication Network, VPN makes use of
Encryption: Now this is a procedure when a computer, which is transmitting data to another, encodes the entire data is a form, which only the said recipient can decode. Encryption also takes place in two ways. The first one is the encryption by means of a symmetric key, that is to say both the sender and the receiver must be loaded with a similar code, to transmit, receive and read the data. The second type of encryption is the one where a public key is used. That is the sender sends a data to another computer, and only if he has the key authorized by the sender will the data be decrypted.
AAA Servers: Also known as the Authentication, Authorization, and Accounting Servers. They are used to help remote users for their business purposes. Here as the name suggests, once the server encounters a request to use the client software, the end user is first checked for his authenticity which may be in the form of IP address, then his authorization roles are checked for and granted as per his role and then the final part of accounting takes place which is the duty of the end user. Thus again guaranteeing security.
Firewalls: They are barriers to protect your own network. They restrict the incoming messages as per need by looking into their category. Firewalls may usually be set on three modes, as low, medium and high, and set as per need.
§ Internet Protocol Security or IPSec : It provides encryption and authentication, and both the features are very highly enhanced. The methods employed here are called as Tunnel and Transport.

Thus equipped with every safety measure, and with great speeds VPNs are a great source towards establishing fast and reliable networks