Troubleshooting VPN

The following steps will help you resolve problems with your VPN connection. Start at the top and work through them in order.

Confirm that you have permission to use VPN

You must request access to the VPN by submitting a Helpdesk ticket; users no longer have access automatically. If you were granted access previously but have not used VPN in over six months then your permissions are removed automatically and you will need to request access again.

Verify That You Have An Internet Connection

First, try to access a site that doesn't require VPN. If you can view it successfully then you know your Internet connection is indeed active.

Not sure if a site requires VPN? See our list: Resources Requiring VPN for Off-campus Access (http://go.middlebury.edu/needvpn).
 

Initial Error Messages

Do you get an initial error message when you try to connect to VPN, such as:

  • Unauthorized to use this service. [See Permission issue]
  • User does not belong to any roles. [See Permission issue]
  • Time out / can't connect. [See Connection Failure issue]

 

Permission Issue

Permission issues can be resolved by submitting a ticket to the Helpdesk. Be sure to mention the specific error message you received, as well as the username you used to attempt your VPN connection.
 

Connection Failure Issue

The following steps will help narrow down the cause of the connection failure.

  • Try to ping vpn.middlebury.edu -- You should get replies from 140.233.5.201
    On a PC: Search for, then launch, the Command Prompt app (CMD).
    Type ping vpn.middlebury.edu then press the Enter key.
     
    On a Mac: Use Spotlight Search (Command + Spacebar) to search for, then launch, Network Utility.
    Click the Ping tab, then enter ping vpn.middlebury.edu for the network adddress. Click the Ping button. then press the Return key.
     
  • If your ping gets no reply, trace route can gather useful information about where the connection is breaking down. Take a screen snapshot of the trace route results to share with the Helpdesk for review.
    On a PC: Open the Command Prompt as before, then type tracert vpn.middlebury.edu then press the Enter key.
     
    On a Mac: Open the Network Utility as before, then click the Traceroute button. Fill in vpn.middlebury.edu for the internet address, then click the Trace button.

 

Related

VPN Setup Instructions

Details

Article ID: 280
Created
Tue 3/15/22 4:44 PM
Modified
Wed 9/14/22 5:04 PM

Related Articles (1)

Related Services / Offerings (1)

VPN client used to connect Middlebury clients to network resrouces