Creating a VPN Connection to Physics

Below are instructions for creating a VPN connection from an XP client. See the computer staff for instructions for 2000 and 9x clients.

Before you can use the Physics VPN, you need to have the computer staff modify your account. It's satisfactory to send an email request if you use an account within the department to send the email. In the subject heading, type Request VPN Rights. Please note that we won't honor requests made from email accounts outside the department. If you don't use the Physics email servers, you'll have to come to Room 2180 Smith Lab to request the modification to your account.

To create the connection

• On the computer that runs Windows XP, confirm that the connection to the Internet is correctly configured.
• Click the Start button, and then click Control Panel.
• In Control Panel, double-click Network Connections.
• Click Create a new connection.
• In the Network Connection Wizard, click Next.
• Click Connect to the network at my workplace, and then click Next.
• Click Virtual Private Network connection, and then click Next.
• If you are prompted, do one of the following:
  • If you use a dial-up connection to connect to the Internet, click Automatically dial this initial connection, and then, in the list, click your dial-up Internet connection.
  • If you use a full-time connection (such as a cable modem), click Do not dial the initial connection.
• Click Next.
• Type OSU Physics as a descriptive name for the connection, and then click Next.
• Type the host name winvpn.physics.ohio-state.edu, and then click Next.
• Click Anyone's use if you want the connection to be available to anyone who logs on to the computer, or click My use only to make it available only when you log on to the computer, and then click Next.
• Click to select the Add a shortcut to this connection to my desktop check box if you want to create a shortcut on the desktop, and then click Finish.
• If you are prompted to connect, click No.
• In the Network Connections window, right-click the new connection.
• Click Properties, and then configure further options for the connection:
  • If you are connecting to a domain, click the Options tab, and then click to select the Include Windows logon domain check box to specify whether to request Windows 2000 logon domain information before attempting to connect.
  • If you want the computer to redial the connection if the line is dropped, click the Options tab, and then select the Redial if line is dropped check box.

To use the connection

• Use one of the following methods:
  • Click the Start button, point to Connect To, and then click the new connection OSU Physics.
  • If you added a connection shortcut to the desktop, double-click the shortcut on the desktop.
• If you are not currently connected to the Internet, Windows offers to connect to the Internet.
• After your computer connects to the Internet, the VPN server prompts you for your user name and password. Type your user name and password, and then click Connect. Your network resources should be available to you in the same way that they are when you connect directly to the network.
• To disconnect from the VPN, right-click the icon for the connection, and then click Disconnect.