Help: vpnc from VirtualBox Linux guest

James C · External Since: Nov 09, 2006 Posts: 8

I had vpnc working on Ubuntu 7.10 on a physical PC, but I stopped using
that physical PC a couple of months ago.

I copied my working vpnc config file to Ubuntu 8.10 running in a
VirtualBox guest with NAT networking, running VirtualBox 2.1.4 on a
Windows Vista Ultimate host. I can start vpnc on Ubuntu either from the
command line or through Network Manager. The vpnc process on Ubuntu
connects, but then ssh connections from Ubuntu timeout trying to connect
to servers on the VPN ("ssh -v" just says eventually "connection timed
out").

If I run the Cisco VPN client on Vista, I can ssh into the VPN from
Vista or the Ubuntu guest (in other words, it works).

I'm not a networking expert, but I don't see any reason why running vpnc
on the guest OS wouldn't just work.

I also used Firestarter to switch off the firewall on Ubuntu.

Any suggestions? Is it something to do with ICMP?

Zebee Johnstone · External Since: Feb 15, 2006 Posts: 21

In aus.computers.linux on Sat, 21 Mar 2009 06:36:11 GMT
James C <enough.already DeleteThis @no.more.spam.please> wrote:
>
> I copied my working vpnc config file to Ubuntu 8.10 running in a
> VirtualBox guest with NAT networking, running VirtualBox 2.1.4 on a
> Windows Vista Ultimate host. I can start vpnc on Ubuntu either from the
> command line or through Network Manager. The vpnc process on Ubuntu
> connects, but then ssh connections from Ubuntu timeout trying to connect
> to servers on the VPN ("ssh -v" just says eventually "connection timed
> out").
>

In these sorts of situations, I haul out the packet sniffer.

So fire up wireshark on your guest, and on the host it is running on.

If you have access to the host you are ssh'ing to, run it on that too.

Try to connect and examine the packet flow.

Follow the packets out, follow the responses back. It is probable
that somehow response packets are not coming back, perhaps something
to do with the routing on the host.

Even though your working setup isn't quite the same thing, run the
sniffer on that first so you have some idea of what it should look
like.

Zebee

James C · External Since: Nov 09, 2006 Posts: 8

On 22/03/2009 7:02 AM, Zebee Johnstone wrote:
> In aus.computers.linux on Sat, 21 Mar 2009 06:36:11 GMT
> James C <enough.already.DeleteThis@no.more.spam.please> wrote:
>> I copied my working vpnc config file to Ubuntu 8.10 running in a
>> VirtualBox guest with NAT networking, running VirtualBox 2.1.4 on a
>> Windows Vista Ultimate host. I can start vpnc on Ubuntu either from the
>> command line or through Network Manager. The vpnc process on Ubuntu
>> connects, but then ssh connections from Ubuntu timeout trying to connect
>> to servers on the VPN ("ssh -v" just says eventually "connection timed
>> out").
>
> In these sorts of situations, I haul out the packet sniffer.

I had a bit of time this weekend, and read a networking book and had an
"aha-moment" with VirtualBox Host Interface Networking... to cut a long
story short, I have vpnc working now. I didn't need wireshark in the end.

Next problem:

The Windows host is sharing folders and a printer. I can see the shared
folders on the Ubuntu guest, but I still can't add the shared printer
(using system-config-printer).... Anyone?

cristi1979 · Joined: Sep 11, 2009 Posts: 1

Hello James,

Can you please post your solution? I have the same issue with virtualbox.

Thank you.