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VPN access

Most internal services (SSH, databases, admin UIs) are only reachable over VPN. LEF’s standard remote access is SSL-VPN with Entra SSO.

  • You have an Entra account and the required VPN access (see Access control policy).
  • You can complete MFA prompts (when required).
  1. Open the VPN portal and sign in using Entra (SSO).
  2. Install the recommended VPN client (if prompted by the portal) or follow the client instructions provided by Infra.
  3. Connect, then access internal hostnames and services.
  • Maximum connection time: 24 hours (forced disconnect after that).
  • FortiGate VPN modes:
    • Web mode: disabled
    • Tunnel mode: only
  • Client: FortiClient is mandatory.
  • Confirmed sslvpn-web-mode is disabled (browser access off).
  • Confirmed SSL-VPN remains tunnel mode only.
  • Authentication remains via Entra (Azure) SSO.
  • IPsec configuration is currently disabled; can be re-enabled later if we decide to migrate from SSL-VPN.
  • Note from provider: Fortinet plans to discontinue SSL-VPN in the future (monitor roadmap and plan migration timing).
  • VPN clients receive internal DNS settings, including dns.core.lef (192.168.20.40).
  • When internal hostnames don’t resolve, verify VPN connectivity first, then check dns.core.lef and DNS split horizon.

We use FortiGate SSL VPN with SAML-based sign-on configured in Microsoft Entra (entra.microsoft.com).

FieldValue
Identifier (Entity ID)https://vpn.lef.digital:10443/remote/saml/metadata
Reply URL (Assertion Consumer Service URL)https://vpn.lef.digital:10443/remote/saml/login
Sign on URLhttps://vpn.lef.digital:10443/remote/saml/login
Relay StateOptional
Logout URLhttps://vpn.lef.digital:10443/remote/saml/logout
ClaimSource
givennameuser.givenname
surnameuser.surname
emailaddressuser.mail
nameuser.userprincipalname
usernameuser.userprincipalname
groupuser.groups
Unique User Identifieruser.userprincipalname

FortiGate access policies reference Entra group Object IDs.

GroupObject IDSourceAccess scope
VPN Entra4e76a567-afd4-4a37-ab9e-6c590510213cCloudTODO (confirm intended scope)
VPN Users7c7f6e8a-1b53-4968-bfc1-d0a3b2ba4f18Windows Server ADFull access (standard VPN users)
VPN Report Appa786b7ac-fb4c-40f2-ae64-5d61bf791adaCloudLimited to np-ritmo
  • Confirm you can reach internal admin UIs (see Services).
  • If you still can’t resolve internal hostnames, check split-horizon DNS (see DNS split horizon).
  • SSL-VPN is terminated at the EVEO-managed perimeter firewall (see Firewall & public ingress). Public traffic is restricted to HTTP(S) forwarding; operator access stays VPN-only (see Access).
  • Treat VPN configuration artifacts as sensitive. Don’t store them in Git.
  • Not on VPN → internal DNS and services are unreachable.
  • Missing group/app assignment in Entra → SSO succeeds but access is denied.
  • DNS resolves to the public IP from inside LAN/VPN → fix split-horizon DNS.