Module 8: VPN and IPsec

Concepts
Enterprise Networking, Security,
and Automation v7.0 (ENSA)
Module Objectives
Module Title: VPN and IPsec Concepts

Module Objective: Explain how VPNs and IPsec are used to secure site-to-site and remote
access connectivity.

Topic Title Topic Objective

VPN Technology Describe the benefits of VPN technology.
Types of VPNs Describe different types of VPNs.
IPsec Explain how the IPsec framework is used to secure
network traffic.

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8.1 VPN Technology

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VPN Technology
Virtual Private Networks
• Virtual private networks (VPNs) to
create end-to-end private network
connections.
• A VPN is virtual in that it carries
information within a private network,
but that information is actually
transported over a public network.
• A VPN is private in that the traffic is
encrypted to keep the data confidential
while it is transported across the public
network.

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VPN Technology
VPN Benefits
• Modern VPNs now support encryption features, such as Internet Protocol Security
(IPsec) and Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) VPNs to secure network traffic between sites.
• Major benefits of VPNs are shown in the table:

Benefit Description

Cost Savings Organizations can use VPNs to reduce their connectivity costs while simultaneously
increasing remote connection bandwidth.
Security Encryption and authentication protocols protect data from unauthorized access.

Scalability VPNs allow organizations to use the internet, making it easy to add new users without
adding significant infrastructure.
Compatibility VPNs can be implemented across a wide variety of WAN link options including
broadband technologies. Remote workers can use these high-speed connections to
gain secure access to corporate networks.

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VPN Technology
Site-to-Site and Remote Access VPNs
A site-to-site VPN is terminated on VPN gateways. VPN traffic is only encrypted
between the gateways. Internal hosts have no knowledge that a VPN is being used.

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VPN Technology
Site-to-Site and Remote Access VPNs (Cont.)
A remote-access VPN is dynamically created to establish a secure connection between a
client and a VPN terminating device.

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VPN Technology
Enterprise and Service Provider VPNs
VPNs can be managed and
deployed as:
• Enterprise VPNs - common solution
for securing enterprise traffic across
the internet. Site-to-site and remote
access VPNs are created and
managed by the enterprise using
IPsec and SSL VPNs.
• Service Provider VPNs - created
and managed by the provider
network. The provider uses
Multiprotocol Label Switching
(MPLS) at Layer 2 or Layer 3 to
create secure channels between an
enterprise’s sites, effectively
segregating the traffic from other
customer traffic.
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8.2 Types of VPNs

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Types of VPNs
(1) Remote-Access VPNs
• Remote-access VPNs let remote and
mobile users securely connect to the
enterprise.
• Remote-access VPNs are typically enabled
dynamically by the user when required and
can be created using either IPsec or SSL.
1. Clientless VPN connection -The
connection is secured using a web
browser SSL connection.
2. Client-based VPN connection - VPN
client software such as Cisco AnyConnect
Secure Mobility Client must be installed
on the remote user’s end device.

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Types of VPNs
SSL VPNs
SSL uses the public key infrastructure and digital certificates to authenticate peers.
The type of VPN method implemented is based on the access requirements of the
users and the organization’s IT processes. The table compares IPsec and SSL
remote access deployments.

Feature IPsec SSL

Applications supported Extensive – All IP-based applications Limited – Only web-based applications and
file sharing
Authentication strength Strong – Two-way authentication with Moderate – one-way or two-way
shared keys or digital certificates authentication
Encryption strength Strong – Key lengths 56 – 256 bits Moderate to strong - Key lengths 40 – 256
bits
Connection complexity Medium – Requires VPN client Low – Requires web browser on a host
installed on a host
Connection option Limited – Only specific devices with Extensive – Any device with a web browser
specific configurations can connect can connect
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Types of VPNs
(2) Site-to-Site IPsec VPNs
• Site-to-site VPNs connect networks
across an untrusted network such as the
internet.
• End hosts send and receive normal
unencrypted TCP/IP traffic through a VPN
gateway.
• The VPN gateway encapsulates and
encrypts outbound traffic from a site and
sends the traffic through the VPN tunnel
to the VPN gateway at the target site.
The receiving VPN gateway strips the
headers, decrypts the content, and relays
the packet toward the target host inside
its private network.

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Types of VPNs
GRE over IPsec
• Generic Routing Encapsulation (GRE) is a non-secure site-to-site VPN tunneling
protocol.
• A GRE tunnel can encapsulate various network layer protocols as well as multicast
and broadcast traffic.
• GRE does not by default support encryption; and therefore, it does not provide a
secure VPN tunnel.
• A GRE packet can be encapsulated into an IPsec packet to forward it securely to
the destination VPN gateway.
• Standard IPsec VPNs (non-GRE) can only create secure tunnels for unicast
traffic.
• Encapsulating GRE into IPsec allows multicast routing protocol updates to be
secured through a VPN.

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Types of VPNs
GRE over IPsec (Cont.)
The terms used to describe the encapsulation of GRE over IPsec tunnel are
passenger protocol, carrier protocol, and transport protocol.
• Passenger protocol –Origin Data– This is the original packet that is to be
encapsulated by GRE. It could be an IPv4 or IPv6 packet, a routing update, and
more.
• Carrier protocol –GRE Headers– GRE is the carrier protocol that encapsulates
the original passenger packet.
• Transport protocol –Tunnel Header of IPsec– This is the protocol that will
actually be used to forward the packet. This could be IPv4 or IPv6.

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Types of VPNs
GRE over IPsec (Cont.)
For example, Branch and HQ need to exchange OSPF routing information over an
IPsec VPN. GRE over IPsec is used to support the routing protocol traffic over the
IPsec VPN. Specifically, the OSPF packets (i.e., passenger protocol) would be
encapsulated by GRE (i.e., carrier protocol) and subsequently encapsulated in an
IPsec VPN tunnel.

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Types of VPNs
Dynamic Multipoint VPNs
Site-to-site IPsec VPNs and GRE over IPsec are not sufficient when the enterprise
adds many more sites. Dynamic Multipoint VPN (DMVPN) is a Cisco software
solution for building multiple VPNs in an easy, dynamic, and scalable manner.
• DMVPN simplifies the VPN tunnel configuration and provides a flexible option to
connect a central site with branch sites.
• It uses a hub-and-spoke configuration to establish a full mesh topology.
• Spoke sites establish secure VPN tunnels with the hub site.
• Each site is configure using Multipoint Generic Routing Encapsulation (mGRE).
The mGRE tunnel interface allows a single GRE interface to dynamically support
multiple IPsec tunnels.
• Spoke sites can also obtain information about each other, and alternatively build
direct tunnels between themselves (spoke-to-spoke tunnels).

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Types of VPNs
IPsec Virtual Tunnel Interface
IPsec Virtual Tunnel Interface (VTI) simplifies the configuration process required to
support multiple sites and remote access.
• IPsec VTI configurations are applied to a virtual interface instead of static mapping
the IPsec sessions to a physical interface.
• IPsec VTI is capable of sending and receiving both IP unicast and multicast
encrypted traffic. Therefore, routing protocols are automatically supported without
having to configure GRE tunnels.
• IPsec VTI can be configured between sites or in a hub-and-spoke topology.

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Types of VPNs
Service Provider MPLS VPNs
Today, service providers use MPLS in their core network. Traffic is forwarded through
the MPLS backbone using labels. Traffic is secure because service provider
customers cannot see each other’s traffic.
• MPLS can provide clients with managed VPN solutions; therefore, securing traffic
between client sites is the responsibility of the service provider.
• There are two types of MPLS VPN solutions supported by service providers:
• Layer 3 MPLS VPN - The service provider participates in customer routing by establishing a
peering between the customer’s routers and the provider’s routers.
• Layer 2 MPLS VPN - The service provider is not involved in the customer routing. Instead,
the provider deploys a Virtual Private LAN Service (VPLS) to emulate an Ethernet multiaccess
LAN segment over the MPLS network. No routing is involved. The customer’s routers
effectively belong to the same multiaccess network.

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8.3 IPsec

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IPSec
Video – IPsec Concepts
This video will cover the following:
• The purpose of IPsec
• IPsec protocols (AH, ESP, SA, IKE)

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IPSec
IPsec Technologies
IPsec is an IETF standard that defines how a VPN can be secured across
IP networks. IPsec protects and authenticates IP packets between source
and destination and provides these essential security functions:
• Confidentiality - Uses encryption algorithms to prevent cybercriminals from
reading the packet contents.
• Integrity - Uses hashing algorithms to ensure that packets have not been altered
between source and destination.
• Origin authentication - Uses the Internet Key Exchange (IKE) protocol to
exchange the security association (SA) automatically between source and
receiver.
• Diffie-Hellman – Used to secure key exchange.

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IPSec
IPsec Technologies (Cont.)
• IPsec is not bound to any specific rules
for secure communications.
• IPsec can easily integrate new security
technologies without updating existing
IPsec standards.
• The open slots in the IPsec framework
shown in the figure can be filled with any
of the choices that are available for that
IPsec function to create a unique security
association (SA).

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IPSec
IPsec Protocol Encapsulation
Choosing the IPsec protocol
encapsulation is the first building block
of the framework.
• IPsec encapsulates packets using
Authentication Header (AH) or
Encapsulation Security Protocol
(ESP).
• The choice of AH or ESP establishes
which other building blocks are
available.
• AH is appropriate only when
confidentiality is not required or permitted.
• ESP provides both confidentiality and
authentication.

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IPSec
Confidentiality
The degree of confidentiality
depends on the encryption
algorithm and the length of the
key used in the encryption
algorithm.

The number of possibilities to try

to hack the key is a function of the
length of the key - the shorter the
key, the easier it is to break.

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IPSec
Confidentiality (Cont.)
The encryption algorithms highlighted in
the figure are all symmetric key
cryptosystems:
• DES uses a 56-bit key.
• 3DES uses three independent 56-bit
encryption keys per 64-bit block.
• AES offers three different key
lengths: 128 bits, 192 bits, and 256
bits.
• SEAL is a stream cipher, which
means it encrypts data continuously
rather than encrypting blocks of data.
SEAL uses a 160-bit key.

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IPSec
Integrity
• Data integrity means that the data
has not changed in transit.
• A method of proving data integrity is
required.
• The Hashed Message Authentication
Code (HMAC) is a data integrity
algorithm that guarantees the integrity
of the message using a hash value.
• Message-Digest 5 (MD5) uses a
128-bit shared-secret key.
• The Secure Hash Algorithm (SHA)
uses a 160-bit secret key.

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IPSec
Authentication (Ch8 in CCNA Sec)
There are two IPsec peer authentication
methods:
1. Pre-shared key (PSK) - (PSK) value
is entered into each peer manually.
• Easy to configure manually
• Does not scale well
• Must be configured on every peer
2. Rivest, Shamir, and Adleman
(RSA) - authentication uses digital
certificates to authenticate the peers.
• Each peer must authenticate its opposite
peer before the tunnel is considered
secure.

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IPSec
Secure Key Exchange with Diffie – Hellman (CH7 in CCNA
Sec.)
DH provides allows two peers to establish
a shared secret key over an insecure
channel.

Variations of the DH key exchange are

specified as DH groups:
• DH groups 1, 2, and 5 should no longer be
used.
• DH groups 14, 15, and 16 use larger key
sizes with 2048 bits, 3072 bits, and 4096
bits, respectively
• DH groups 19, 20, 21 and 24 with respective
key sizes of 256 bits, 384 bits, 521 bits, and
2048 bits support Elliptical Curve
Cryptography (ECC), which reduces the time
needed to generate keys.
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IPSec
Video – IPsec Transport and Tunnel Mode
This video will explain the process of the IPv4 packet with ESP in transport
mode and in tunnel mode.

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8.4 Module Practice and Quiz

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