During the time that I operated a business servicing small business clients, a cornerstone of every Windows Server installation I performed was to implement secure remote access. Two important components that Windows Server provides to facilitate remote access are the Routing and Remote Access [RRAS] and the Remote Desktop Services [RDP], formerly Terminal Services roles. RRAS can be configured to provide virtual private network [VPN] access through either Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol [PPTP] or through Layer 2 Tunneling Protocol/IP Security [L2TP/IPSec] (Microsoft, 2015e). RDP provides multiple users with access to terminal-like session based desktops or applications on a single server across the network or internet (Microsoft, n.d. [b]).…show more content… Layered on top of each of these VPN implementation has been Remote Desktop Services [formerly Terminal Services]. The primary goal of these implementations was to provide remote support access for myself to remotely administer Windows Server installations for my customers. As an added benefit, most of the business owners that I worked for and some of their employees were able to work from home when necessary. With the release of Windows Server 2000 and the Routing and Remote Access component, Microsoft added Layer 2 Tunneling Protocol/IP Security [L2TP/IPSec] Virtual Private Network [VPN] capability. With L2TP/IPSec, the use of certificates for connection authentication greatly improved security. My first installation and configuration of a L2TP/IPSec VPN was in my office to learn about it before implementing it for my customer’s businesses. As I upgraded my customers to Windows 2000, Windows 2003, and later Windows 2008, I implemented L2TP/IPSec VPN remote access as well as secure inter-office VPN WAN connection over the
