When you add a policy-based IPSec VPN, IPSec tunnels are used to connect multiple local subnets that are behind the NSX Edge node with peer subnets on the remote VPN site.

The following steps use the IPSec Sessions tab on the NSX Manager UI to create a policy-based IPSec session. You also add information for the tunnel, IKE, and DPD profiles, and select an existing local endpoint to use with the policy-based IPSec VPN.

Note:

You can also add the IPSec VPN sessions immediately after you have successfully configured the IPSec VPN service. You click Yes when prompted to continue with the IPSec VPN service configuration and select Sessions > Add Sessions on the Add IPsec Service panel. The first few steps in the following procedure assume you selected No to the prompt to continue with the IPSec VPN service configuration. If you selected Yes, proceed to step 3 in the following steps to guide you with the rest of the policy-based IPSec VPN session configuration.

Prerequisites

  • You must have configured an IPSec VPN service before proceeding. See Add an IPSec VPN Service.
  • Obtain the information for the local endpoint, IP address for the peer site, local network subnet, and remote network subnet to use with the policy-based IPSec VPN session you are adding. To create a local endpoint, see Add Local Endpoints.
  • If you are using a Pre-Shared Key (PSK) for authentication, obtain the PSK value.
  • If you are using a certificate for authentication, ensure that the necessary server certificates and corresponding CA-signed certificates are already imported. See Certificates.
  • If you do not want to use the defaults for the IPSec tunnel, IKE, or dead peer detection (DPD) profiles provided by NSX, configure the profiles you want to use instead. See Adding Profiles for information.

Procedure

  1. With admin privileges, log in to NSX Manager.
  2. Navigate to the Networking > VPN > IPSec Sessions tab.
  3. Select Add IPSec Session > Policy Based.
  4. Enter a name for the policy-based IPSec VPN session.
  5. From the VPN Service drop-down menu, select the IPSec VPN service to which you want to add this new IPSec session.
    Note: If you are adding this IPSec session from the Add IPSec Sessions dialog box, the VPN Service name is already indicated above the Add IPSec Session button.
  6. Select an existing local endpoint from the drop-down menu.
    This local endpoint value is required and identifies the local NSX Edge node. If you want to create a different local endpoint, click the three-dot menu ( An icon with three black dots aligned vertically. Clicking this icon displays a menu of sub-commands. ) and select Add Local Endpoint.
  7. In the Remote IP text box, enter the required IP address of the remote site.
    This value is required.
  8. Enter an optional description for this policy-based IPSec VPN session.
    The maximum length is 1024 characters.
  9. To enable or disable the IPSec VPN session, click Admin Status.
    By default, the value is set to Enabled, which means the IPSec VPN session is to be configured down to the NSX Edge node.
  10. (Optional) From the Compliance suite drop-down menu, select a security compliance suite.
    Note: Compliance suite support is provided beginning with NSX 2.5. See About Supported Compliance Suites for more information.
    The default value selected is None. If you select a compliance suite, the Authentication Mode is set to Certificate and in the Advanced Properties section, the values for IKE profile and IPSec profile are set to the system-defined profiles for the selected security compliance suite. You cannot edit these system-defined profiles.
  11. If the Compliance Suite is set to None, select a mode from the Authentication Mode drop-down menu.
    The default authentication mode used is PSK, which means a secret key shared between NSX Edge and the remote site is used for the IPSec VPN session. If you select Certificate, the site certificate that was used to configure the local endpoint is used for authentication.

    For more information about certificate-based authentication, see Using Certificate-Based Authentication for IPSec VPN Sessions.

  12. In the Local Networks and Remote Networks text boxes, enter at least one IP subnet address to use for this policy-based IPSec VPN session.
    These subnets must be in a CIDR format.
  13. If Authentication Mode is set to PSK, enter the key value in the Pre-shared Key text box.
    This secret key can be a string with a maximum length of 128 characters.
    Caution: Be careful when sharing and storing a PSK value because it contains some sensitive information.
  14. To identify the peer site, enter a value in Remote ID.
    For peer sites using PSK authentication, this ID value must be the public IP address or the FQDN of the peer site. For peer sites using certificate authentication, this ID value must be the common name (CN) or distinguished name (DN) used in the peer site's certificate.
    Note: If the peer site's certificate contains an email address in the DN string, for example, 
    C=US, ST=California, O=MyCompany, OU=MyOrg, CN=Site123/emailAddress=user1@mycompany.com
    then enter the Remote ID value using the following format as an example. 
    C=US, ST=California, O=MyCompany, OU=MyOrg, CN=Site123, MAILTO=user1@mycompany.com"
    If the local site's certificate contains an email address in the DN string and the peer site uses the strongSwan IPsec implementation, enter the local site's ID value in that peer site. The following is an example. 
    C=US, ST=California, O=MyCompany, OU=MyOrg, CN=Site123, E=user1@mycompany.com"
  15. To change the profiles, initiation mode, TCP MSS clamping mode, and tags used by the policy-based IPSec VPN session, click Advanced Properties.
    By default, the system generated profiles are used. Select another available profile if you do not want to use the default. If you want to use a profile that is not configured yet, click the three-dot menu ( Three black dots aligned vertically. Clicking this icon displays a menu of sub-commands. ) to create another profile. See Adding Profiles.
    1. If the IKE Profiles drop-down menu is enabled, select the IKE profile.
    2. Select the IPsec tunnel profile, if the IPSec Profiles drop-down menu is not disabled.
    3. Select the preferred DPD profile if the DPD Profiles drop-down menu is enabled.
    4. Select the preferred mode from the Connection Initiation Mode drop-down menu.
      Connection initiation mode defines the policy used by the local endpoint in the process of tunnel creation. The default value is Initiator. The following table describes the different connection initiation modes available.
      Table 1. Connection Initiation Modes
      Connection Initiation Mode Description
      Initiator The default value. In this mode, the local endpoint initiates the IPSec VPN tunnel creation and responds to incoming tunnel setup requests from the peer gateway.
      On Demand In this mode, the local endpoint initiates the IPSec VPN tunnel creation after the first packet matching the policy rule is received. It also responds to the incoming initiation request.
      Respond Only

      The IPSec VPN never initiates a connection. The peer site always initiates the connection request and the local endpoint responds to that connection request.

    5. If you want to reduce the maximum segment size (MSS) payload of the TCP session during the IPSec connection, enable TCP MSS Clamping, select the TCP MSS direction value, and optionally set the TCP MSS Value.
      See Understanding TCP MSS Clamping for more information.
    6. If you want to include this session as part of a specific group, enter the tag name in Tags.
  16. Click Save.

Results

When the new policy-based IPSec VPN session is configured successfully, it is added to the list of available IPsec VPN sessions. It is in read-only mode.

What to do next

  • Verify that the IPSec VPN tunnel status is Up. See Monitor and Troubleshoot VPN Sessions for information.
  • If necessary, manage the IPSec VPN session information by clicking the three-dot menu ( Three black dots aligned vertically. Clicking this icon displays a menu of sub-commands. ) on the left-side of the session's row. Select one of the actions you are allowed to perform.