One thing that scares everyone is that your data on your Mac is protected. One of the most reliable methods to ensure communications between remote workers and the office network are secured is to use a Virtual Private Network (VPN). This is an encrypted communication tunnel established over the Internet’s public infrastructure. The VPN is an almost impregnable pipeline that shares your information safely and securely.
To make a VPN work you need a server and a client. For your server to be accessible from outside your network you need your Internet connection to not have a static IP address. Which means you need to use a dynamic DNS service. This will allow you to allocate a server name that will follow your server if you IP address are changed by you ISP. Your firewall or router will need changes made to it so that you can access the network to your server from the outside. This could mean up to four different ports. Next you need to configure OS X Server.
Using the server administration tool on a Mac connected to your network, go to services and then open the VPN sections. You need to then enter in the address allocated to you by your DNS service into the VPN host name field. It is important to then enter a shared secret into the field for the client’s connections. Select the edit button adjacent to the DNS settings and modify the DNS to be your DNS server’s address, which is most likely you router address. Click the edit button adjacent to the client addresses setting. Set the number of the VPN connections you’d like to allow and the IP address that will be allocated to the first VPN client. We’d suggest making this a number outside your DHCP range so that you can easily tell the difference between internally connect and VPN connected devices that are on your network. The enable VPN services by clicking the on button in the top right hand corner of the screen.
On your Mac you plan to connect with a VPN, go into system preferences and click the networks icon. Then click on the plus button at the bottom of the list of the network devices and add a new VPN. Give the VPN a name and then click create. In the server address field that you can now fill in, enter the address to you through your Dynamic DNS service. Click the authentication settings button and enter the shared secret into the field and the press ok. To finalise it click on the apply button and you’re done.
Connecting your mac to your server remotely over the VPN, make sure the computer is outside the company network. Then go into the system preferences choose networks and select the VPN connection you created. Click the connect button and you will be able to connect to your network and access services.
