Setting Up OpenVPN3 Client

 In this guide, we will walk through the steps to install and configure the OpenVPN3 client on both Debian and RHEL systems.

1. Add Repositories and Install the Package

For Debian

1. Create Keyring Directory and Add Repository Key
   Execute the following commands to create a directory for the keyring and add the OpenVPN repository key:

   sudo mkdir -p /etc/apt/keyrings && curl -fsSL https://packages.openvpn.net/packages-repo.gpg | sudo tee /etc/apt/keyrings/openvpn.asc
   

2. Change $DISTRO
   Replace $DISTRO with your Debian distribution name (e.g., bookworm, bullseye, etc.), then run this command to add the OpenVPN repository:

   echo "deb [signed-by=/etc/apt/keyrings/openvpn.asc] https://packages.openvpn.net/openvpn3/debian $DISTRO main" | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/openvpn-packages.list
   

3. Update Package List and Install OpenVPN3
   Finally, update your package list and install OpenVPN3:

   sudo apt update
   sudo apt install openvpn3
   

For RHEL

1. Install EPEL Repositories
   Ensure that you have the EPEL repositories added. Then, install the OpenVPN3 repository:

   dnf install https://packages.openvpn.net/openvpn-openvpn3-epel-repo-1-1.noarch.rpm
   

2. Install OpenVPN3 Client
   Next, install the OpenVPN3 client:

   dnf install openvpn3-client
   

2. Configure OpenVPN

After copying all required files (key, certificate, ta.key, ca.crt, and config.ovpn), follow these steps:

1. Convert the Key
   Ensure the key is converted to a new RSA key without password protection first (specific steps depend on your key generation method).

2. Import the Configuration
   Import your OpenVPN configuration:

   openvpn3 config-import --config /file/to/profile.ovpn --name $NAME --persistent
   

3. Set Access Control List (ACL)
   Set the ACL to lock down the configuration:

   openvpn3 config-acl --show --lock-down true --grant root --config $NAME
   

4. Enable and Start the OpenVPN Session
   Enable and start the OpenVPN session service:

   systemctl enable openvpn3-session@$NAME.service
   systemctl start openvpn3-session@$NAME.service
   

3. Check the Status

1. Check Service Status
   To verify that the OpenVPN session is running, use:

   systemctl status openvpn3-session@$NAME.service
   

2. Check VPN IP Address
   Find the VPN IP address by checking the network interfaces:

   ip addr
   

   Look for the tun0 device.

3. Ping the VPN Server
   Finally, test connectivity by pinging the VPN server (replace 10.8.0.1 with your server's IP address):

   ping 10.8.0.1