So first, we need to decide on a protocol. EdgeOS supports PPTP, L2TP, and OpenVPN servers. Given that I have an EdgeRouter and I do not want to run dedicated VPN access server or applications for some rare use cases, I went for what EdgeOS supports. The client-server architecture allows a variety of protocols, either standard/open-source or proprietary, to provide the same functionality. A network access server is either the dedicated server or applications running on or behind your internet gateway router that VPN tunnels are established to. The laptop your employer provides already have remove-access VPN configured: it could be part of the operating system, or dedicated application like Cisco An圜onnect. Remote-access VPN establishes virtual tunnels between a client and a server. A remote-access VPN gives employees access to secure connection from anywhere on the internet to a remote private network and they can access resources on the private network as if they were directly plugged into it. We are all familiar with it when we work from home, we use it all day long to connect to the corporate network. In addition, a trip to the cloud is almost not the shortest path, especially you are not far away from home.

The P2P communication may not be encrypted end-to-end using proper algorithm, making it possible for attackers on your public WiFi hotspot, on the internet, or at the compromised vendor cloud, to eavesdrop your access. However, cloud-based solutions are vendor-specific, requiring different setups and apps for different use cases and it is as secure and the vendors’ security posture, which is usually not very high.

There are plenty of cloud-based P2P solutions for specific use cases and products, ranging from Synology’s QuickConnect that allows you to access your Synology NAS anytime, anywhere, from any device and browser, to security cameras’ remote access feature. In the rarest occasion when we need something from your digital home, from accessing files in your NAS to viewing security camera footage, while being away, it is very inconvenient and less secure to get access from a public internet hotspot. In the era of work-from-home, it is rare of a need to access your home network from outside of your home.

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