This post summarizes the most common VPN (Virtual Private Network) protocols.
VPN protocol
VPN (Virtual Private Network) protocols:
- PPTP
- L2TP/IPsec
- SSTP
- IKEv2
- OpenVPN
PPTP
Point to Point Tunneling Protocol (PPTP).
L2TP/IPSec
Layer Two Tunneling Protocol (L2TP) is an extension of PPTP.
Internet Protocol Security (IPSec).
SSTP
Secure Socket Tunneling Protocol (SSTP) is a protocol developed by Microsoft.
IKEv2
Internet Key Exchange version 2 (IKEv2).
OpenVPN
OpenVPN is a tunneling protocol by the company of the same name.
VPN technologies
VPN technologies:
- VRF
- VRF-Lite (Multi-VRF)
- VP6
What is NOT VPN?
SSL is a networking protocol that is used at the transport layer to provide a secure connection between the client and the server over the internet. The SSL connection is to an endpoint, not a whole network.
In conclusion SSL, is not a a VPN.
SSH is used for tunneling, not for VPN, and only works on the application layer (OSI layer 7).
External references
- “CISSP 9th Edition”, Chapter 12
- Cisco; “VPN and VRF“; Cisco
- archlinux; “VPN over SSH“; archlinux
- “Difference between IP Sec and SSL“
- Chris Hoffman; “Which Is the Best VPN Protocol? PPTP vs. OpenVPN vs. L2TP/IPsec vs. SSTP“, HowtoGeek