[Sussex] Remote (Samba 3.0.x) Domain Accesss

[Steve Dobson]

Geoff

On Tue, Jan 11, 2005 at 07:42:49AM +0000, Geoffrey Teale wrote:
> Steve Dobson wrote:
> >Both.  The VPN is a network link that encrypts packets and sends them over
> >a network.  In order for the VPN to be up both ends have to have gone 
> >through
> >their handshaking to establish the link.  It's isn't so much client/server
> >as peer to peer.
> 
> Hmmm, peer to peer isn't really a well chosen description IMHO.  In 
> order to do truely peer to peer VPN comms we have to establish 
> symmetrical VPN links on our production hardware (our product is a peer 
> to peer system) - there are definitely notional clients and servers in a 
> VPN connection.

I take your point, and internally it maybe a client/server relationship.
But to me, a user, it is not a client/server system, it is more like to
equal ends.  To get a VPN link up I only need to copy the secret from
one end to the other and point each end at the other.  I don't need
to bring the "server" up first.  Neither end is more important to me
than the other.

To me a VPN is just a software version of a CAT5 cable.  Which end of 
a CAT5 cable need to be plugged into the server?  As part of a network
link neither client/server or peer-to-peer is "Right" (note the capital).
As Paul was thinking in terms of client/server I wanted to getting away
from thinking in these terms.  After all a synonym for "peer" is "equal".

Steve