What is a VPN (Virtual Private Network)?

A Virtual Private Network (VPN) is a secure connection that allows your computer to access the University computer network when you are not on campus or if you are using wireless connections.
The University VPN service (once the software is installed on your computer) allows you to establish a secure connection so that the data passed between your computer and the University network is protected, as it is strongly encrypted.
You can then be confident that your files, emails and passwords etc. cannot be inspected by anyone on other networks between yourself and the University

Why do I need a Virtual Private Network (VPN)?

You need a VPN if you want to access certain resources on the University computer network and your computer is not plugged into a University network socket. For example you may need to use it if you:

Work from home
Travel on University business
Use the campus wireless network
Work on a remote site or NHS facility etc.

You may also need VPN when using certain external resources that only allow University addresses to access them, eg library journals.
A lot of University resources are globally available and, for these, VPN is not generally required. Email, for example, can be accessed by Outlook Web App (OWA), which is already secured using the HTTPS protocol. VPN could be used as a 2nd layer of security if the data being transmitted/received is particularly sensitive.

Resources on the University network

Library catalogue
University staff and student intranets
P drives - not using the web interface
Applications within Faculties and Schools that are restricted to
Setting up your VPN under Windows Vista

Setting up PublicVPN access under Windows 7 is simple. The following instructions go step–by–step through the creation process. These instructions work under all the client–side variations of Windows 7, namely Home Basic, Home Premium, Business, and Ultimate.
The things to click and places to type your information are hilighted in red, yellow, green, and/or blue.

System Requirements
Before setting up your VPN connection, make sure your version of Windows 7 is up to date by running Windows Update.

Make sure your system is up–to–date
Be sure that you run Windows Update before setting up your VPN connection.

Open the Start Menu
First, click on the Start Menu and type “VPN” into the search box.

Click on the “Set up a virtual private network (VPN) connection.”

Enter the server information
Now, enter the server information as below.

In the text box labelled ‘Internet address’ type ‘gateway.publicvpn.net’. This is the Internet address of the PublicVPN.com servers.
In the text box labelled ‘Destination name’ type ‘PublicVPN.com PPTP’. This is the name of the connection, and will show up in the “Connect to a network” screen when we’re done.
Lastly, make sure that the checkbox labelled “Don't connect now; just set it up so I can connect later” (hilighted in yellow) is checked.
Then click the “Next” button.

Enter your PublicVPN.com username and password
In this screen, enter your PublicVPN.com username and password. This is the same username and password that you use to log in to the PublicVPN.com website.
In the text box labelled “User name:”, enter your PublicVPN.com username.
In the text box labelled “Password:”, enter your PublicVPN.com password.
Optionally, check the “Remember this password” checkbox and you won’t have to enter your password when you connect to PublicVPN.com.
Then, click the ”Create” button.

Go to the connection
Click on the Start Menu, type the word ‘Network’ into the search box, and click on ‘Network and Sharing Center.’

When the Network and Sharing Center opens, click on "Connect to a network."

When you click on "Connect to a network", a list of VPNs pops up. Right click on the "PublicVPN.com PPTP" connection and choose "Properties."

Edit the VPN type
When the property window opens, click on the "Security" tab. Click on "Automatic", and change it to "Point to Point Tunneling Protocol (PPTP).

Neworking settings
This screen shows you the network settings. You may have different items in your list. In the list of items that you see, make sure that only the “Internet Protocol Version 4(TCP/IPv4)” and “Client for Microsoft Networks” items are checked. If oher protcols are checked, uncheck them by clicking on the checkbox (the thing that looks like a ‘√’).
PublicVPN.com currently does not route anything except TCP/IP version 4.

Done with basic setup!
You’re now done with your basic setup! You've set up your PublicVPN.com connection to use PPTP. Click “OK” to finish now, if you want.
However, for better security we recommend that you configure your VPN connection to use an L2TP/IPsec connection, which is more secure. To do this, keep reading.

Setting up L2TP/IPsec
Create a new VPN connection document as above, but name it "PublicVPN.com L2TP".
In the “PublicVPN.com Properties”, click on the “Type of VPN” pop–up menu (hilighted in red) and select “L2TP/IPsec”.

Next, click on the “Advanced Settings…” button.

Set the Preshared Key
In the “IPsec Settings” dialog, click the radio button labelled “Use preshared key for authentication”. Then type ‘publicvpn.net’ into the textbox labelled “Key”. Then click the “OK” button.

Finished!
You’re finished! Click the ”OK” button to save your settings.