Campus VPN Service

Virtual Private Network Connections for Students, Faculty & Staff

When connecting to the campus network using the VPN client, a Virtual Private Network connection has the following advantages.

A University of Utah IP address. Upon authentication with a University Network ID (uNID), the VPN concentrator assigns a University of Utah IP address to the connection. A University IP address is required to access some services that are restricted, such as library databases.
Increased Security. Data passed through the VPN tunnel is encrypted between the remote connection and the campus network.

You only need to use the VPN client when you want a secure connection to the campus network OR you want access to restricted services. Additional VPN services are available for departments.

Note: UUHSC employees, you need to use a different VPN method to access your HSC resources. Users need to have your supervisor put in an account request (linked from the http://support.med.utah.edu/ site), and the Customer Service team will contact you on how to use the new VPN method. There is no longer a client required, it is an ActiveX control installed from the authentication page at myvpn.med.utah.edu.

Using the Campus VPN Service

There is no fee to use the campus VPN service. You will need a VPN software client installed on your computer and your University Network ID (uNID) and corresponding password to authenticate. If you have questions about your uNID or your password, call the Campus Help Desk at 1-4000. The client is approximately 3 MB in size.

When your VPN connection is active, it will slow down your traffic speed somewhat. We recommend that you only have a VPN connection when you want your network traffic encrypted or when you need a University IP address.

Client Software

We recommend downloading the latest client versions from our site. The VPN client software is available at no cost for the following operating systems:

Or, you may choose your client "at-a-glance" from the VPN grid.

OIT no longer supports VPN clients for Windows 98 or earlier and Mac OS 9 or earlier. However the clients are available; contact the Campus Help Desk at 581-4000, option 1.

Testing the VPN Connection

After installing the VPN client, you can test if the software is working as follows.

Bookmark this page in Netscape or IE.
Connect to the Internet via your ISP.
Run the VPN client software.
Test your VPN connection.

For More

Frequently Asked Questions

Web VPN over SSL

Department VPN Services