A tiny Alpine based docker image to quickly setup an L2TP over IPsec VPN client w/ PSK.

Does your office or a client have a VPN server already setup and you just need to connect to it? Do you use Linux and are jealous that the one thing a MAC can do better is quickly setup this kind of VPN? Then here is all you need:

1. VPN Server Address
2. Pre Shared Key
3. Username
4. Password

Setup environment variables for your credentials and config:

export VPN_SERVER_IPV4='1.2.3.4'
export VPN_PSK='my pre shared key'
export VPN_USERNAME='myuser@myhost.com'
export VPN_PASSWORD='mypass'

Now run it (you can daemonize of course after debugging):

docker run --rm -it --privileged --net=host \
           -v /lib/modules:/lib/modules:ro \
           -e VPN_SERVER_IPV4 \
           -e VPN_PSK \
           -e VPN_USERNAME \
           -e VPN_PASSWORD \
              ubergarm/l2tp-ipsec-vpn-client

From the host machine configure traffic to route through VPN link:

# confirm the ppp0 link and get the peer e.g. (192.0.2.1) IPV4 address
ip a show ppp0
# route traffic for a specific target ip through VPN tunnel address
sudo ip route add 1.2.3.4 via 192.0.2.1 dev ppp0
# route all traffice through VPN tunnel address
sudo ip route add default via 192.0.2.1 dev ppp0
# or
sudo route add -net default gw 192.0.2.1 dev ppp0
# and delete old default routes e.g.
sudo route del -net default gw 10.0.1.1 dev eth0
# when your done add your normal routes and delete the VPN routes
# or just `docker stop` and you'll probably be okay

You can see if your IP address changes after adding appropriate routes e.g.:

curl icanhazip.com

On your VPN client localhost machine you may need to sudo modprobe af_key if you're getting this error when starting:

pluto[17]: No XFRM/NETKEY kernel interface detected
pluto[17]: seccomp security for crypto helper not supported

The previous strongswan based version of this docker image is still available on docker hub here:

docker pull ubergarm/l2tp-ipsec-vpn-client:strongswan

• ipsec connection works
• xl2tpd ppp0 device creates
• Can forward traffic through tunnel from host
• Pass in credentials as environment variables
• Dynamically template out the default config files with sed on start
• Update to use libreswan instead of strongswan
• See if this can work without privileged and net=host modes to be more portable

• royhills/ike-scan
• libreswan reference config
• Useful Config Example
• libreswan and Cisco ASA 5500
• NetDev0x12 IPSEC and IKE Tutorial