I currently have some scheduled tasks which run in the middle of the night
to exchange information using FTP, SMTP, POP3 and HTTP with various sites.
I update retrieved information into my SQL database and then pass this
information on to a hospital using an ODBC connection into their SQL server
database. I also have the need to access their SQL server via SQL
enterprise manager.
The current setup allowed port 1433 access into their network and only from
my fixed IP address range. As of 01/01/2004 they require me to do this via
a secure VPN. As a newbie to VPN, the more I read in this newsgroup about
problems others are having the more I am confused about the best approach.
The server I have has two NIC cards, one for the internal address and the
other for the WAN side.
How is the best way to setup this VPN tunnel without affecting my normal
FTP/HTTP internet access?
Is it best to use the built in VPN software solution or should I get a cheap
LinkSys type router with VPN built in?
Is performance an issue, meaning is it a load on the server to do the
encryption and VPN security, enough to warrant a hardware solution?
TIA
Mark