Does My USRobotics Broadband Router USR8000, USR8000A, USR8001, USR8003, USR8011, USR8022 or USR8200 pass encrypted data through NAT via VPN?

Yes, when using most Virtual Private Network (VPN) clients with a private IP address, the USRobotics Broadband Router 8000, 8000A, 8011, 8022, or 8200 allows automatic passthrough of encrypted data through Network Address Translation (NAT).

What is NAT?

Network Address Translation (NAT) is a kind of firewall. Like a firewall, NAT acts like a security unit, filtering both incoming and outgoing Internet traffic. Why is a firewall necessary? One of the primary uses of a firewall is to protect any business or home user from hackers and other intruders. The use of a firewall thwarts an intruder's ability to enter a local network and in the process, prevents the misuse of credible networks and IP addresses for illegal purposes. How does NAT work? Let's say for example, you're sitting in front of your office computer at work and it's lunchtime. You decide to eat at your desk and surf the Internet. You're interested in learning more about how to network your home so you type www.usr.com in your Internet browser. Now let's stop here for a moment. First of all, you're smart to consider USRobotics networking technology since networking is a sure and reliable way to Stay Connected. Second, by accessing the Internet, at the same time, you employed the use of NAT without knowing it! Okay, but how was that a firewall? Yes, it's true you experienced a seamless Internet connection from your office computer. You typed in a certain URL and the Web page assigned to that URL appeared. When you sent the URL request through your Internet browser, your Internet browser sent that same request to your company's Local Area Network (LAN) where an IP address was assigned. That IP address (often referred to as a private IP address) was encrypted and sent out as a different IP address (called a public IP address) to the Internet to capture your specific URL request. Once captured, the public IP address brings your requested URL back to the company's LAN where the LAN re-encrypts the public IP address back to its original private IP address. The private IP address then delivers your requested URL to your specific office computer where you sit at your desk, eating your lunch, and reading about networking applications. Is that all NAT is used for? Networking features such as sharing Internet connections, print servers, and files are all major benefits of networking. Once you've successfully networked your home or office, you can begin to utilize additional features of the USRobotics Broadband Router 8000, 8000A, 8011, 8022, and 8200. One of those functionalities is the use of NAT. Depending on your specific setup, NAT can be utilized to prevent outside networks from connecting to your computer, it can be utilized to filter and control what types of sites your employees or family members visit on the Web, and it can even be utilized to catalog Web sites that have been visited. For more information about NAT and its use with the USRobotics Broadband Router 8000, 8000A, 8011, 8022, 8200 refer to the documentation located on our USRobotics Broadband Router Support Page.

What is VPN?

Virtual Private Network (VPN) is used to provide secure access between a network and a remote access network through the Internet. In other words, the use of VPN is what allows you to access the Internet so that your network traffic appears to originate from a specific server. Why is it necessary to use VPN? A common situation where the use of VPN occurs is the office worker who works remotely and needs to establish Internet connectivity via the use of the company's server. When this happens, the VPN serves as a direct tunnel from the company's server to - in this example - the employee's laptop. What do you mean by "tunnel?" Tunnel or tunneling is another way to describe the more technical concept of encapsulation. VPN encapsulates and encrypts packets of information to send to the company's server then on to the Internet and then on to the employee who is working remotely. Encapsulation is just as it sounds, it wraps a specific code or a header around the data (what the employee calls for by accessing the company's server) thereby creating the packet itself. There are many forms of VPN encapsulation methods including, but not limited to, Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol (PPTP), Layer 2 Tunneling Protocol (L2TP), and IP Security (IPSec). Does VPN conflict with NAT? In many situations, yes VPN and NAT do not get along. When VPN and NAT do not work together, generally NAT will override VPN and deny the employee the remote accessibility he/she is looking to establish. However, the USRobotics Broadband Router 8000, 8000A, 8011, 8022, and 8200 avoids this confrontation altogether by allowing both VPN and NAT to work together so that remote access via a VPN client transfers through NAT.