VPN Remote Access

Introduction

William Paterson University provides a VPN option for remote access into its computing and network environment. VPN access is available for faculty and staff only.

VPN stands for Virtual Private Network. A VPN allows you to use the ISP (Internet Service Provider) of your choice and connect to WPUNJ using services normally restricted to campus usage. It does this by providing a "Virtual" network connection to WPUNJ. That is, even though you are connected to your ISP, it appears that you are actually connecting from WPUNJ. Providing that you have a fast enough connection to the University's network through an Internet service provider you can access any data and applications the same way you do from your office at the University.

When should you use a VPN Connection?

The VPN connection should be used when you need to connect to a protected/firewalled WPUNJ network services. These include but are not limited to:

• Logging into the administrative systems
• Connecting remotely to some of the University's Library resources
• Retrieving E-Mail Using WPUNJ Discussion Groups

When connecting to unrestricted services, such as browsing the Web, you should use only your ISP connection and not the VPN connection. VPN is only required for access to protected services at WPUNJ.

Usage Instructions

Download the required software through WP Connect from the "Employee" tab, and under the "Available Application" window frame. The VPN does not replace your ISP connectivity, it is intended only so your can access secure resources.

The VPN server authenticates using Windows/Email usernames and passwords ONLY. Faculty and staff users must have a valid WPUNJ Windows/Email account to use the VPN services.

The steps to sign-on to WebVPN and use are as follows:

1. Simply navigate to Web VPN and sign in with your university credentials.
   
2. Click Login.
3. Once your university credentials are verified, you will be taken to the new user interface for the VPN. The Home Tab will be the default view for your VPN session. From this home Tab, you will be able to view your U-Drive, K-Drive, as well as have direct links to both the university's home page and the Library's home page. Don't be alarmed if you don't see the words "U-drive" or "K-drive". They are simple named differently. Also, if you edit a file you will have to save it on your local drive and upload the way you would upload an e-mail attachment, drag and drop or direct saving to the network drive is not available.
   • My Folder represents your User folder, or your U-Drive.
   • WPU Folders represents the K-Drive.
   
4. Don't forget to LOG OFF after you have completed your VPN session.

Microsoft Windows

Download the Windows VPN client from the WPCONNECT portal. From the "Employee" tab, and under the "Available Applications" window frame you will see a link named "Download the Universal VPN Software". Click on it.

Install the AynConnect VPN Client

• Once the above link is selected a new web page will open up asking for your WPU user account and password.
  

  
  

• Once you enter this information the portal web page will automatically start the AnyConnect client installation. During the installation you may see a security alert popup bar (?) asking to run an add-on. At this point you can either click on the "skip" link as shown below or let the time counter time-out by itself and continue with the installation.
  

  
  

• At completion of the installation you will see a "Connection established" on your brrowser window as shown below. Now your VPN client is fully installed and running. Just close your browser.
  

  
  

• To disconnect the VPN client simply right click on the VPN icon on the right side of your task bar (it looks like a lock) and click on the 'Disconnect" button.
  

  
  

• To reconnect click on the start windows button at the left bottom of your task bar and select "All Programs". There you will find a "Cisco" folder with the Anyconnect VPN program icon. Click on the icon to launch the AnyConnect VPN client.
• Once launched you will be asked to enter your WPU user account and password. Please do so. If the "Connect to:" field is empty please enter vpn.wpunj.edu. That is the address of the VPN server. Now click on the "Connect' button to run the AnyConnect VPN client.
  

  
  Note: The Cisco VPN Client will be minimized to the task bar, the icon looks like a lock. To disconnect, right click on the icon for the VPN client and select disconnect.

  For technical support contact Help Desk Request

Mac OS X (10.7 or later)

• If you are using a university supplied MacBook or MacBook Pro you should skip to step 6.

1) Log into WPConnect. Go to the Employee Tab and select "Download Universal VPN Software. You will be prompted to log in. DO so.

2) Once logged in click on the "any connect" button on the left of the page

3) Click on "start AnyConnect"

4) Wait for the installation to fail. When it does click on the "Mac OS X 10.4 +(intel)" link

5) it will download a file to your designated download location. This is usually your downloads folder but you may have changed it to somewhere else. Locate the file "vpnsetup.dmg" and double click on it. It will mount a disk image on your desktop.

6) Before you can run the installer package, you should temporarily disable Gatekeeper. Refer to these instructions. Once complete, run the installer in the disk image. It will create a folder in your Applications folder named "Cisco".

7) In that folder you will see an application named "Cisco Any Connect VPN Client". Double click on it.

8) when the program launches you will see a connect window. In the space next to "Connect to" type "vpn.wpunj.edu" and click "connect"

9) If the software can reach the university authentication server you will be asked for your university login credentials. Enter them and click the "connect" button.

You are now connected to the university network. Disclaimer:

William Paterson University is not responsible for any software/hardware failures due to the installation of the VPN software provided by Cisco.

iOS Devices (iPad, iPhone)

iPad and iPhone have the ability to connect to the on campus network via VPN. Some helpful tips:

• VPN connections are only possible from off campus
• Your iOS device must be connected to the Internet via wi-fi or cellular data.
• The below screen captures were created on an iPhone. The interface looks similar on an iPad.

Search for "cisco anyconnect" on the App Store and download the app.

When first launching the application, Cisco Anyconnect will display this prompt. Tap OK.

Tap "Add VPN Connection..."

Enter WPUNJ as the description and vpn.wpunj.edu as the server address. Tap Save.

Tap the on/off switch to On to connect.

You will be prompted to enter your WPUNJ username and password.

To confirm that you are connected, the VPN icon will be visible on the top right corner of the screen, next to the battery indicator.

Accessing files on your network shares (K and U drives)

It is important to understand that accessing our network storage through the webvpn is a bit different than using your office PC or laptop. There is no "drag and drop." To access and/or edit a file, it must first be downloaded locally. If your file is edited or changed, you must UPLOAD it back to the folder it resided in. If you fail to do so, all changes you made will only exist on the computer you made the changes on.

From the home tab, you must select the set of folders you wish to access. As mentioned above, folders do not show up as "K" or "U." Instead you see "My Folder," "Groups Folder" and "WPU Folders." See the circled area by clicking "Expand" below:

My Folder - This is your "U Drive" which is commonly mapped on your University computer to "Documents" in Windows 7 or "My Documents" in Windows XP.

Groups - This is a direct link to K:\Groups. All of your departmental folders should be in here.

WPU-Folders - This is the root of the "K Drive." If you store and access all of your files from the Groups folder or your User folder, you will not need to use this option.

Navigating Shared and User Folders

Once you have chosen which set of folders you want to use, click on the link to display the list. In the example below, I have clicked on "Groups."

By default, the list is sorted in alphabetical order. Just like on the K drive, you can change the sorting to sort by Name, Size, Type or Date Modified by clicking on that heading. You should still have the menu on the left (Home, Web Applications, Browse Networks and AnyConnect) as well as a sequence of icons above the folder list:

Hovering over the icons should tell you what each one does. For navigating, the important ones are:

Level Up - This is like the back button on your web browser. This will go "up" one level in your list of folders.

Previous & Next - The page will only display the number of files or folders that fit on that particular page. Use these buttons to find the page containing the resource you need.

Opening, Downloading & Editing Files

Once you've found the file you want to use, it's almost as simple as clicking on the file. In most browsers, this will prompt you to open or save the document. If you only need to read the file, it is OK to go ahead and click "open." This will save the document in your temporary internet files and allow you to read the document. BE CAREFUL If you decide to edit this document, clicking "save" might just save it in your temporary internet files only to be lost at some point. It's important that, if you are going to edit the file, you save it to your local computer and then open it from there.

Uploading Changed, Edited or New File

This step would apply to:

Any document you downloaded and edited

New documents you would like to add to a network folder Once you have edited your file (or have a new one), you must upload it to the server. If you do not, it will only reside on your local machine. If you have been editing a document for a decent amount of time, the WebVPN may have timed out. If this is the case, log back in and browse to the folder you wish to upload your document to. Once in that folder, click on the icon to upload files: You should now be presented with a box to upload your file:

Click on "browse" and browse (on your local computer) to the location you saved your new or edited file. Once selected, click OK. If this file already exists on the server, it will warn you and as you if you wish to overwrite. If you are sure you want to upload the file, click OK:

You should now be able to browse to, download, edit and upload files through use of the WebVPN. The VPN software available on this page is for use in the United States and Canada ONLY. It is NOT to be placed on a computer system that will be subject to International Travel. Exporting this software is a Federal Crime.