This article explains the fundamentals of a VPN router. VPN Routers are used for providing connectivity to users remotely as well connect multiple networks through the internet. VPN , which stands for Virtual private network , is a technology which is implemented on the routers. VPN uses the internet for building its network. All traffic through a VPN is secured and encrypted. There are two scenarios where these routers can be used.




Scenario 1 -Connection between two different locations

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Assume that you have a home network and a office network. You need to link up these locations so that you have seamless access between both the networks. In this case you could use two VPN routers , where each of the routers can be installed at both the locations. A VPN tunnel can be established between the routers and a virtual network setup through the internet. Once the tunnel is established, the home and office network can communicate as if they were one network. There is no requirement of any additional software to be installed on any of the client machines. The topology is as shown below.

VPN site to site diagram

Scenario 2 – Connection between remote clients and a specific location

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VPN routers can also be used in scenario where a remote client is in a different location and needs access to a corporate network. This is a typical work from home scenario where employees access the organization network from their home. In this case, the VPN router is installed at the organization network and the PC/Laptop of employees are installed and setup with respective VPN software which is also know as the VPN client software. For gaining access to the resources on the network, the employees would connect to the corporate network using the VPN client software.

The above two scenarios highlight the use and benefits of having a VPN router.