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    VPN IPsec tunnel between pfSense and Cisco RV042G keeps disconnecting

    Scheduled Pinned Locked Moved IPsec
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    • DerelictD
      Derelict LAYER 8 Netgate
      last edited by

      Not sure where you expect us to go from there. Have you asked Cisco?

      Logging packets has absolutely nothing to do with Status > System Logs, IPsec

      Chattanooga, Tennessee, USA
      A comprehensive network diagram is worth 10,000 words and 15 conference calls.
      DO NOT set a source address/port in a port forward or firewall rule unless you KNOW you need it!
      Do Not Chat For Help! NO_WAN_EGRESS(TM)

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      • N
        nasolsi
        last edited by

        Yes, I did log a call with cisco and still waiting for their reply.

        What's really interesting for me is how vpn status still appears as ''connected'' on Cisco side as no vpn connection established from pfsense to Cisco.
        I've been struggling to figure out where the problem lies- on Cisco or pfSense side.

        ![Cisco-pfSense VPN.PNG](/public/imported_attachments/1/Cisco-pfSense VPN.PNG)
        ![Cisco-pfSense VPN.PNG_thumb](/public/imported_attachments/1/Cisco-pfSense VPN.PNG_thumb)

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        • N
          nasolsi
          last edited by

          Hi again,

          just to let you know that I received a reply from cisco support saying that based on provided screenshot they can see on Cisco that I setup aggressive mode while Pfsense is in main mode. On Cisco, PFS isn't activated while on Pfsense it seems. All the rest seems to be ok.

          I did set an aggressive mode on both pfsense and cisco, and gave it a test and as result didn't work out. Then I set a main mode on both and tested it again, and didn't work either.

          I don't know what else to try.

          I've run out of ideas.

          Thank you for your help.

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          • N
            nasolsi
            last edited by

            Hi Support,

            Let give you a brief update on what happened on Friday 3/11/17. I did first reboot Cisco RV042G firewall/vpn and tried vpn connection from pfsense, and as result the vpn connection between pfsense and cisco got established but unfortunately it didn't last long and got dropped again.
            Attached the latest cisco vpn logs taken after the vpn connection got dropped.
            Hope these logs will help you a bit to figure it out.

            Thank you in advance.

            ![Cisco VPN logs.PNG](/public/imported_attachments/1/Cisco VPN logs.PNG)
            ![Cisco VPN logs.PNG_thumb](/public/imported_attachments/1/Cisco VPN logs.PNG_thumb)

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            • DerelictD
              Derelict LAYER 8 Netgate
              last edited by

              You keep posting Cisco logs to a pfSense forum. Where are the pfSense logs?

              Chattanooga, Tennessee, USA
              A comprehensive network diagram is worth 10,000 words and 15 conference calls.
              DO NOT set a source address/port in a port forward or firewall rule unless you KNOW you need it!
              Do Not Chat For Help! NO_WAN_EGRESS(TM)

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              • N
                nasolsi
                last edited by

                Hi Derelict,

                That's why I keep asking myself where are the pfsense logs.

                As said before there haven't been any pfsense firewall/ipsec/vpn logs in Status- System Logs since I got it configured and when vpn connection was temporarily established. System logs are also turned on.

                Could you please let me where else to look into so I can provide you with pfsesne logs.

                Thank you in advance.

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                • DerelictD
                  Derelict LAYER 8 Netgate
                  last edited by

                  By default they are there. Hard to say if someone changed the defaults.

                  Someone could have disabled the logs in Status > System Logs, Settings. There is a checkbox there to disable local logging. That page will also tell you if the logs are being sent to an external syslog server.

                  Chattanooga, Tennessee, USA
                  A comprehensive network diagram is worth 10,000 words and 15 conference calls.
                  DO NOT set a source address/port in a port forward or firewall rule unless you KNOW you need it!
                  Do Not Chat For Help! NO_WAN_EGRESS(TM)

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                  • N
                    nasolsi
                    last edited by

                    Attached current pfSense logging settings.

                    Just to let you know that I've successfully configured OpenVPN on pfSesne and managed to establish openvpn connection to pfSense from my Win 10 machine. Checked OpenVPN status and as result my client connection came up but no any openvpn logs displayed (see a screenshot)

                    ![pfSense logging 1.PNG](/public/imported_attachments/1/pfSense logging 1.PNG)
                    ![pfSense logging 1.PNG_thumb](/public/imported_attachments/1/pfSense logging 1.PNG_thumb)
                    ![pfSense logging 2.PNG](/public/imported_attachments/1/pfSense logging 2.PNG)
                    ![pfSense logging 2.PNG_thumb](/public/imported_attachments/1/pfSense logging 2.PNG_thumb)
                    ![pfSense logging 3.PNG](/public/imported_attachments/1/pfSense logging 3.PNG)
                    ![pfSense logging 3.PNG_thumb](/public/imported_attachments/1/pfSense logging 3.PNG_thumb)

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                    • DerelictD
                      Derelict LAYER 8 Netgate
                      last edited by

                      That is strange. I would try resetting log files. If you are on pfSense 2.4.0 I would upgrade to 2.4.1 and reset log files.

                      Chattanooga, Tennessee, USA
                      A comprehensive network diagram is worth 10,000 words and 15 conference calls.
                      DO NOT set a source address/port in a port forward or firewall rule unless you KNOW you need it!
                      Do Not Chat For Help! NO_WAN_EGRESS(TM)

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                      • N
                        nasolsi
                        last edited by

                        Hi Derelict,

                        Sorry for my delay.

                        Let me give you an update on this.

                        My pfSense was already upgraded to 2.4.1-RELEASE (amd64) version.

                        Finally I've managed to establish vpn ipsec tunnel by changing a negotiation mode from main to aggressive on pfSense as Cisco's negotiation mode was set to aggressive also and after restarting both devices. I've tried that before and it didn't work but it suddenly started working now, but I'm not sure how long vpn is going to be up and running (note: vpn connection has so far been up and running for more than 2 hours).
                        An another problem followed by since vpn ipsec tunnel was established and the problem is there is no ping or any packets going through the tunnel. I cannot ping or rdp to remote LAN or other way back.
                        Here are the ping results:
                        pfSense side:
                        pfSense WAN- Cisco WAN- ping test successfull 0% packets lost
                        pfSense LAN- Cisco WAN IP- ping test successfull 0% packets lost
                        pfSense LAN- Cisco LAN IP- variable- ping test either failed with 100% packets lost or successful with 0% packets lost

                        Cisco side:
                        Cisco WAN- pfSense WAN IP- ping test successfull 0% packets lost
                        Cisco LAN- pfSense LAN IP- variable- ping test either failed with 100% packets lost or successful with 0% packets lost, or partial 25%/75% packets lost

                        Do I miss any firewall rules?
                        What should I do next?

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                        • DerelictD
                          Derelict LAYER 8 Netgate
                          last edited by

                          If it works unreliably it is not firewall rules.

                          Hard to say here what needs to be done on the Cisco side to allow pings to its LAN address.

                          If your pfSense firewall rules on LAN allow traffic to the remote network and the IPsec tunnel is up, that is all that needs to be done.

                          Rules allowing connections from the remote network go on the IPsec tab.

                          Chattanooga, Tennessee, USA
                          A comprehensive network diagram is worth 10,000 words and 15 conference calls.
                          DO NOT set a source address/port in a port forward or firewall rule unless you KNOW you need it!
                          Do Not Chat For Help! NO_WAN_EGRESS(TM)

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