What is a Virtual Private Network (VPN)?

VPN stands for “Virtual Private Network”. The conventional VPN is an independent network that is encapsulated in another network. ISDN is an example of such a structure. The ISDN network is within the general dial-up network. The current VPN is the IP network, which usually forms a self-contained subnet within the public Internet. This embeds itself and uses the addressing methods there. However, separate network packets are transported, which the client software packs into protocols that can be addressed separately, regardless of their content. The gateway unpacks the packets again. In addition, the VPN offers the option of encryption. A secure connection is created in an insecure network.

This is particularly important in countries that prohibit free access to the World Wide Web or where the user even has to fear reprisals. Here it is only essential that the user can establish a connection to the VPN gateway. If the gateway is in a country with unrestricted Internet access, the user is protected. The user establishes a client gateway connection. This sends data as if through a tunnel. Therefore, this process is called “tunneling”.

The VPN is crucial for laptops, notebooks and smartphones that use public access to access the Internet. The tunnel solves two problems at once. First, the content itself is encrypted. Second, and this is the key advantage, it is possible to hide which target a connection was established with. The VPN thus offers the user security and a certain degree of anonymity.

We at centron use VPN connections, for example, to provide you with highly secure to provide home office workstations.