How To Fix and Avoid Printer Paper Jams

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Printer jams occur when the paper feeding through the printer goes awry. Sometimes the printer ignores the problem, soldiers onward, and extrudes a crumpled mess into the output tray; on other occasions, the printer stops in midjob, and the crumpled mess--or part of it--remains trapped somewhere inside the machine.

When a paper jam occurs, some printers flash lights at you and scream for help. Others sense where the jam is and provide guidance on clearing the blockage. If your printer offers diagnostic advice, follow it. Also, take time to check the printer's documentation for help in clearing jams. Here are the basic steps you'll follow to correct the problem:

1. Turn off the printer. If you're going to be working inside the printer, you don't want any trouble with electricity or moving parts. And if you're dealing with a laser printer, you also don't want the fuser to generate additional heat. If the paper is jammed in or near the fuser unit (you'll feel the heat as you come near it), you'll have to wait for the fuser to cool off before clearing the jam.
2. Open all doors leading to the paper path. If you can't tell which door leads to the paper jam, start by removing or opening the input tray and following the paper path all the way to the output tray, opening every door or panel that you can find along the way.
3. Carefully pull out paper sheets and scraps. Check for paper sheets that are stuck or askew, as well as for paper scraps. Pull paper out of the path firmly but very carefully and slowly. When possible, pull paper in the direction it is supposed to go in under normal conditions--not backward, which could strain the printer's mechanics.Take care to remove all of the paper: As any scraps that remain could cause further jamming. If you have the misfortune of breaking a mechanical piece in the printer, stop what you're doing and call for service.
4. Close all doors and turn on the printer. Once switched on, the printer should reset itself automatically. If the printer reports that it is still jammed, double-check for stray paper scraps, and then close all the doors again. If the printer continues to complain, try turning it off and then back on. If the complaints continue, you'll have to call for service--and hope that a deep-seated piece of paper--rather than a broken mechanical part--is the source of the problem.

To avoid a jam next time:

1. Use only one kind of paper at a time in your input tray.
2. Whether you have a single input tray in your printer's driver or many input trays, tell the printer what kind of paper you have in the tray: Most printer controls include a section or drop-down list where you can pick a paper by name, type, thickness, or other quality.
3. If you aren't sure whether your printer takes a certain kind of paper, check its documentation.
4. When you reload your input tray, pay attention to the tray's needs, such as how the paper should be loaded and whether the length or width guides need adjusting.

Source: http://www.pcworld.com/article/227252/how_to_fix_and_avoid_printer_paper_jams.html

How to avoid or remove Mac Defender malware

Friendly Computers would like to help you to avoid or remove Mac Defender malware.

Summary

A recent phishing scam has targeted Mac users by redirecting them from legitimate websites to fake websites which tell them that their computer is infected with a virus. The user is then offered Mac Defender "anti-virus" software to solve the issue.
This “anti-virus” software is malware (i.e. malicious software).  Its ultimate goal is to get the user's credit card information which may be used for fraudulent purposes.
The most common names for this malware are MacDefender, MacProtector and MacSecurity. 
In the coming days, Apple will deliver a Mac OS X software update that will automatically find and remove Mac Defender malware and its known variants.  The update will also help protect users by providing an explicit warning if they download this malware. 
In the meantime, the Resolution section below provides step-by-step instructions on how to avoid or manually remove this malware.

Products Affected

Mac OS X 10.4, Mac OS X 10.6, Mac OS X 10.5

Resolution

How to avoid installing this malware

If any notifications about viruses or security software appear, quit Safari or any other browser that you are using. If a normal attempt at quitting the browser doesn’t work, then Force Quit the browser.

In some cases, your browser may automatically download and launch the installer for this malicious software.  If this happens, cancel the installation process; do not enter your administrator password.  Delete the installer immediately using the steps below.

1. Go into the Downloads folder or your preferred download location.
2. Drag the installer to the Trash. 
3. Empty the Trash.

How to remove this malware

If the malware has been installed, we recommend the following actions:

• Do not provide your credit card information under any circumstances.
• Use the Removal Steps below.

Removal steps

• Move or close the Scan Window
• Go to the Utilities folder in the Applications folder and launch Activity Monitor  
• Choose All Processes from the pop up menu in the upper right corner of the window
• Under the Process Name column, look for the name of the app and click to select it; common app names include: MacDefender, MacSecurity or MacProtector
• Click the Quit Process button in the upper left corner of the window and select Quit
• Quit Activity Monitor application
• Open the Applications folder
• Locate the app ex. MacDefender, MacSecurity, MacProtector or other name
• Drag to Trash, and empty Trash

Malware also installs a login item in your account in System Preferences. Removal of the login item is not necessary, but you can remove it by following the steps below.

• Open System Preferences, select Accounts, then Login Items
• Select the name of the app you removed in the steps above ex. MacDefender, MacSecurity, MacProtector
• Click the minus button

Use the steps in the “How to avoid installing this malware” section above to remove the installer from the download location.

Note: Apple provides security updates for the Mac exclusively through Software Update and the Apple Support Downloads site. User should exercise caution any time they are asked to enter sensitive personal information online.

Source: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4650

Six Things That Block Your Wi-Fi, and How to Fix Them

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Does your wireless network seem slow? A recent study by Epitiro, a UK-based broadband-analysis firm, shows that consumers lose an average of 30 percent of the data speed their broadband connection supplies when they use Wi-Fi connections in the home.

Why the slowdown? You've probably heard that some household electronic devices, including microwave ovens, baby monitors, and cordless phones, hamper Wi-Fi performance. To separate fact from fiction, we did some research and consulted an expert on the topic: Nandan Kalle, networking business unit manager for router manufacturer Belkin.

1. Public Enemy Number One: Your Neighbors' Wi-Fi Networks

"I'd say the biggest source of interference today for most people is their neighbors' Wi-Fi networks," says Kalle. The problem is that most existing Wi-Fi equipment operates on the crowded 2.4GHz band. "There are basically three nonoverlapping channels. I always describe it as a three-lane road that's really, really busy," Kalle adds.

If you use a 2.4GHz router and live in a densely populated area, your neighbors' Wi-Fi networks could interfere with yours, hindering the performance and range of your wireless network.

The solution: Buy a dual-band router that operates simultaneously at 2.4GHz and 5GHz. While the 2.4GHz band is necessary for supporting older Wi-Fi devices, 5GHz "is almost like an 11-lane highway that nobody's heard about yet," Kalle says. "There's much less congestion."

Newer Wi-Fi devices, including tablets such as the Apple iPad and Motorola Xoom, Internet-ready TVs with built-in Wi-Fi, gaming consoles, and business laptops, are all dual-band. "They all play in the 5GHz band. They can take advantage of that empty highway, and that's really going to help," Kalle says.

It's important to get a router that supports simultaneous 2.4GHz and 5GHz, such as the $100 Cisco Linksys E2500. Some older dual-band routers allow only one band at a time; that's a problem if you have older Wi-Fi devices (as most people do), because you'll have to leave your router at 2.4GHz. "You won't get any benefit from the 5GHz mode," says Kalle.

When you're shopping for a new router, look for a dual-band, 802.11n MIMO device, which typically has an "N600" label. The "N" refers to 802.11n, an international Wi-Fi standard approved in 2009. MIMO(multiple input, multiple output) technology provides greater range by using multiple antennas to transmit and receive data. And "600" refers to two bands, each transmitting at 300 megabits per second.

2. Household Electronics

Is your microwave oven, cordless phone, or baby monitor sabotaging your Netflix stream? Perhaps.

Most problems with cordless phones and microwaves involve products that use the 2.4GHz band. Many baby monitors operate at 900MHz and won't interfere with Wi-Fi. However, some wireless monitors are 2.4GHz, which can interfere with 802.11g or single-band 802.11n routers.

The solution: When choosing a wireless baby monitor, look for a 900MHz model such as the Sony 900MHz BabyCall Nursery Monitor ($45). Alternatively, get a Wi-Fi-friendly system such as the WiFi Baby 3G ($272), which connects to your existing wireless network.

Newer cordless phone systems like the Panasonic KX-TG6545B ($140) use DECT 6.0 technology and the 1.9GHz band, not the 2.4GHz or 5.8GHz bands.

3. Bluetooth Devices

Older Bluetooth devices did interfere with Wi-Fi networks--but those days have passed.

"Over the past several years, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi manufacturers have implemented specific techniques to minimize interference," says Kalle.

The solution: "Most people replace their phones every couple of years, so unless you have a really old phone or Bluetooth device, it's unlikely that [Bluetooth] will interfere with Wi-Fi," says Kalle.

4. Humans

You might recall from science class that the human body is mostly water, anywhere from 45 percent to 75 percent depending on your age and fitness level. Water can hamper Wi-Fi speeds, too.

"For example, say your room is very crowded and you're having a party. That can actually dampen your Wi-Fi signal--but that's an extreme case," says Kalle.

"When we're doing Wi-Fi testing in the lab and trying to get very accurate results, we have to make sure that we're not standing in front of the antenna, because we'll measurably impact the performance," he adds.

Humidity can affect Wi-Fi speeds too, but not enough for the average user to notice.

The solution: Relax. Don't worry about humidity, or those bags of water called people. After all, you can't control the weather, and it's unwise to be antisocial just to get better Wi-Fi performance.

5. Security Settings

In some low-end routers, a stronger security setting can moderately affect performance. However, that doesn't mean you should turn off security completely, or downgrade to weaker protection.

In recent years, the WPA (Wireless Protected Access) and WPA2 protocols have displaced the older and less-secure WEP (Wireless Encryption Protocol). On inexpensive routers that use WEP, upgrading to WPA may impede performance a bit. In contrast, more-robust devices generally have hardware specifically designed for WPA and WPA2 encryption; as a result, the stronger security protocols shouldn't slow Wi-Fi speeds on higher-end routers.

The solution: Kalle stresses the importance of router encryption. "You always hear about data theft, and it's so easy to enable security these days," he says. Since today's routers have security enabled out of the box, users don't have to worry about configuring it. But don't disable encryption, even if doing so may speed up your Wi-Fi a little.

6. Old Firmware

Why upgrade your router's firmware? Well, for performance improvements and occasionally a new feature or two.

"Whenever you have a problem, check to see if you have good firmware. Sometimes there are little bugs out there, and the router manufacturer may already have a fix," says Kalle.

When you buy a new router, it's always a good idea to check for the latest firmware as well.

The solution: Keep your firmware up-to-date. With older devices, you'll have to access the router's administrative interface--typically through a Web browser--to check for updates. The process is getting easier, though. "Our routers have an application--it's almost like iTunes--that tells you whenever there's new firmware available," says Kalle. "The user can update by just pushing a button."

Although the workings of your router may seem mysterious, following these simple tips can go a long way toward keeping your home wireless network in working order.

Source: http://www.pcworld.com/article/227973-2/six_things_that_block_your_wifi_and_how_to_fix_them.html

What To Do When Your Email Account is Compromised

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More and more I see spam coming from friends when I open my e-mail. In addition to this, people are telling me that they think their e-mail accounts have been hacked. Signs can be friends receiving messages you did not send, mail is marked read that they never saw, settings are changed, or anything else out of the ordinary. In any case, the question is the same: “What do I do?”

While many Ghacks readers may know to follow these steps, having a guide handy for others is a useful thing. I can imagine many readers are resources for friends, family, and coworkers. These steps can serve as a checklist to ensure thoroughness.

his is a guide on how to reasonably secure your e-mail account. What to do if you lose access to your account is a different problem for another article. This article assumes you still have access, but strange things (as mentioned) are going on. It will cover the three most commonly used e-mail account types: Gmail, Hotmail, and Yahoo Mail. While changing the settings is pretty easy, finding them can be less than obvious. Here are some screenshots to help you find the general settings page for your account.

 

Step 1 : Change Your Password

You need to do this immediately. This is akin to changing the locks on your doors. When you do not know exactly who has a key to your home, the locks are a liability. Count yourself lucky that you can get into your account. To change your password, log-in and go to Settings. Then follow the steps appropriate to your account.

• In Gmail: Mail Settings > Accounts and Imports > Change Password
• In Hotmail: More Options > Account Details (look for “Change” next to password)
• In Yahoo Mail: Mail Options > Account Information > Change your password

Step 2 : Check Your Recovery E-mail Address

Your recovery e-mail address is the one that you use to reset/regain your password. However, if it was changed, it can be used to get the password to your account. Take a look to see if it is set to another account you own. If not, change it immediately. You also may want to follow these steps on that account.

• In Gmail: Mail Settings > Accounts and Imports > Change Password Recovery Options
• In Hotmail: More Options > Account Details (look for “Remove” next to an odd e-mail)
• In Yahoo Mail: Mail Options > Account Information > Update password-reset info

Step 3 : Change Your Hints

Most people forget about this, but it is a good idea to change your hints. If the hacker knows the answer, they may be able to regain access. This usually requires the recovery e-mail address to be altered, but it is still better to change your hints. Since hints are usually used to reset passwords, they can be used to change your password.

• In Gmail: Mail Settings > Accounts and Imports > Change Password Recovery Options
• In Hotmail: More Options > Account Details (look for remove next to a question)
• In Yahoo Mail: Mail Options > Account Information > Update password-reset info

Step 4 : Check Your Forwards

Checking your forwards is going to be a tedious process, but it is important. If you only have time to skim them over, then do so but make a thorough look your next priority. Your bank account may depend on it. Your e-mail account can be set up to send letters to other e-mail accounts. Most websites are set up to send new passwords to your e-mail address. That means that an unscrupulous person could ask the site for your password, set up your account to forward it to an account they have access to, and the get into the site. That could be a bank site, a blog, FaceBook, or anything else.

• In Gmail: Mail Settings > Forwarding and POP/IMAP
• In Hotmail: More Options > Email forwarding
• In Yahoo Mail: Mail Options > POP & Forwarding (note: a premium service)

Step 5 : Change All Your Passwords on Connected Accounts

Sadly, you have to assume that your forwards are compromised. You are going to have to go through each site you used your e-mail account to sign up with and change the password and hint. You might even want to associate them with a separate account to isolate critical e-mails. Alternatively, you could just change your password and hint on sensitive sites. Your bank and any financial websites should be first. Social networking site like FaceBook and Twitter should be next.

Keep in Mind

You should always use a strong password for your accounts: one with uppercase, lowercase, numeric, and symbol characters. Ideally, you should have a different one for each account. At the very least your e-mail, financial, and social networking sites should have separate passwords. Security is not about absolutes, but about making it difficult for others to gain access to you account.

It is worth noting that each of these services has an extra security feature. You can actually set up your account to use your phone for e-mail recovery. As I have not used it, it is beyond the scope of this article, but is worth considering.

Addendum

If you have troubles logging in at all, you may want to take a look at the following guides to resolve the problem:

• Hotmail Sign In Help
• Yahoo Mail Signin, Login Help (Yahoomail)
• MSN Hotmail Sign In Troubleshooting
• Google Sign In Help, Troubleshooting
• Gmail Login

The guides aid you in password, username and account recovery.

Source: http://www.ghacks.net/2011/04/11/what-to-do-when-your-email-account-is-compromised/

Top Automation Tools to Look At

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Here are some Automation tools that you should look at. They are free and can help you different ways.

Data Visualization

It is an easy way to create reportsfrom any data.  You can easily create report layouts and import data from almost any data base system like Oracle, MySQL, PostgreSQL, Firebird, MS SQLServer, IBM DB2, Interbase, SQLite or from external files and create hundreds of documents in whatever format you want (PDF, RTF, XLS, XML). Cost: Free

The application works on a variety of OS formats:  Linux, MS WindowsXP/Vista/2003/7 ,  and Mac OS .  It supports  English, Spanish, and Polish.

[Download Link]

Do It Again

If you’ve ever wanted a task to be repeated on your computer, this program will help you do that. It allows you to make your computer automatically perform a task for you, whenever you want.  For example, if there is something that you do on your computer over and over, and you do it exactly the same way every time (such as backing up your pictures, checking web-based email for new messages, etc.), you can tell Do It Again how to perform that task (by doing it once yourself to create the new task). After that you record a task (or macro) then sit back and watch as your computer automates that task, clicking the mouse and pressing the keyboard by itself.  If it helps, this is also called macro or automation software, as it allows you to record a macro, then play it back to automate the actions of that macro. Cost: Free.

[Download Link]

Auto Mute

Control the sounds on your PC. How?  This small software utility  will make your PC silent when it’s turning on or is waking up. Solution is very easy! The sound is automatically muted when the computer is turning off or is going to suspend mode. The next system start is absolutely silent even if you forgot to turn the sound off in previous session. After that you can enable sound effects manually, using a shortcut combination. Moreover, you may use this keyboard shortcut to quickly switch the sound on and off.

Why is this program beneficial? Well around your house if you have small children trying to sleep, it won’t wake them up. If you are at work, you can control the sound there too.

[Download Link]

Source: http://www.windows7news.com/2011/04/13/top-automation-tools/

How to Remove Win 7 Anti-Spyware 2011 (Fake Anti-Virus Infections)

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If your PC is infected with the Win 7 Anti-Spyware 2011 malware or something similar, you’ve come to the right place, because we’re going to show you how to get rid of it, and free your PC from the awful clutches of this insidious malware (and many others)

Win 7 Anti-Spyware 2011 is just one of many fake antivirus applications like Antivirus Live, Advanced Virus Remover, Internet Security 2010, Security Tool, and others that hold your computer hostage until you pay their ransom money. They tell you that your PC is infected with fake viruses, and prevent you from doing anything to remove them.

This particular virus goes by a lot of names, including XP Antispyware, Win 7 Antispyware, Win 7 Internet Security 2011, Win 7 Guard, Win 7 Security, Vista Internet Security 2011, and many, many others. It’s all the same virus, but renames itself depending on your system and which strain you get infected with.

The What Now?

If you aren’t familiar with this one, it’s time to take a look at the face of an awful scam. If you are infected, scroll down to the section where we explain how to remove it.

Once a PC is infected, it’ll display this very official-looking window, which pretends to scan your PC and find things that are infected, but of course, it’s all a lie.

The really crazy thing is that it pops up a very realistic looking Action Center window, but it’s actually the virus.

Removing Rogue Fake Antivirus Infections (General Guide)

There’s a couple of steps that you can generally follow to get rid of the majority of rogue antivirus infections, and actually most malware or spyware infections of any type. Here’s the quick steps:

• Try to use the free, portable version of SUPERAntiSpyware to remove the viruses.
• If that doesn’t work, reboot your PC into safe mode with networking (use F8 right before Windows starts to load)
• Try to use the free, portable version of SUPERAntiSpyware to remove the viruses.
• Reboot your PC and go back into safe mode with networking.
• If that doesn’t work, and safe mode is blocked, try running ComboFix. Note that I’ve not yet had to resort to this, but some of our readers have.
• Install MalwareBytes and run it, doing a full system scan.
• Reboot your PC again, and run a full scan using your normal Antivirus application (we recommend Microsoft Security Essentials).
• At this point your PC is usually clean.

Those are the rules that normally work. Note that there are some malware infections that not only block safe mode, but also prevent you from doing anything at all. We’ll cover those in another article soon, so make sure to subscribe to How-To Geek for updates (top of the page).

Removing Win 7 Anti-Spyware 2011

Download a free copy of MalwareBytes, copy it to a thumb drive, and then install it on the infected PC and run through a scan. You might have better luck doing this in Safe Mode.

You may have better luck installing MalwareBytes first, if the virus will let you. In my case, it did not. When I scanned through the first time using SUPERAntiSpyware, it detected the viruses and removed the files just fine.

At this point, you should hopefully have a clean system. Make sure to install Microsoft Security Essentials, and don’t be fooled by these viruses again.

Can’t Open Any Applications After Deleting the Virus?

The next problem was that once the virus was removed, you couldn’t open anything—in fact, I still wasn’t even able to install MalwareBytes. Hopefully you have better luck.

Why couldn’t I open anything? Because the virus had rewritten the registry to force all applications to open the virus instead—which meant you couldn’t even open the registry editor to fix the problem. This problem might have been avoided had I properly completed the scan, but I interrupted it before it was done.

On a normal PC, there’s a registry key under HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT that specifies what happens when you double-click on an executable file (*.exe) – but on a virus-infected system, this value is rewritten with the virus executable. That’s how it prevents you from opening anything.

To fix the problem, I exported a clean registry file from another PC, and did a little extra hacking to it, and problem solved! All you have to do is download, extract, copy the .reg file to the infected PC, and double-click it to add the information into the registry.

Download the Fixing Malware Appliction Won’t Open Registry Hack

Source: http://www.howtogeek.com/57837/how-to-remove-win-7-anti-spyware-2011-fake-anti-malware-infections/

Get Started With a VPN: For Beginners, Power Users

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Do you want to be secure--I mean really secure--when you're on the Internet? If so, then you want a virtual private network.

A VPN creates a secure "tunnel" across the Internet between you and your office, a VPN provider, or your home. Why would you want that? Easy-to-use programs such as Firesheep make it easy for snoops to see what you're writing in your e-mail messages, posting to your Facebook page, or buying online. But with a VPN, you can surf the Web through that virtual tunnel, away from prying eyes, and your Internet traffic is encrypted.

Whether you just want to access Wi-Fi networks on the road without potentially exposing your activities to nosy strangers, or whether you need to enable a team of remote employees to handle business securely on the Internet, you can find a VPN to fit your needs. This guide will walk you through VPN essentials for beginners and power users.

VPN for Beginners

The easiest and least costly way to get a VPN service is to obtain one from your company, school, or organization. Not on the road often? Check with your IT department to see if they offer a VPN to all users. If they do, life is good: Just install the corporate VPN software, set it up, and you're ready to go. The next time you turn on your PC, fire up the VPN application before you start surfing the Web.

What if your IT department doesn't have a VPN--or what if you don't have an IT department? You're not out of luck. Lately, numerous VPN providers, including Banana VPN, Black Logic, LogMeIn Hamachi, and StrongVPN, have started offering their services for a fee, generally from $15 to $20 a month. To learn more, take a look at a comparison of three personal VPN services.

How do you go about picking one? If a service has an online forum, check what their customers have posted. Call or e-mail to see if real people answer. Generally speaking, bigger is better. If they're a tiny company, that may be fine for you as an individual, but they probably can't give you the support a small company needs.

Is the privacy factor alone worth the effort? Yes, but VPNs offer other advantages as well. For example, if you're in Canada, ordinarily you can't watch a U.S. TV show on Hulu. But you can access the show if you use a VPN to obtain a U.S. IP (Internet Protocol) address.

Some VPN providers offer another benefit: anonymous Web browsing, which allows you to roam the Internet without being tracked. If your ISP blocks some applications, such as Skype or other VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) applications, you can use a VPN to get around the restrictions.

These VPN services may sound exactly like what you need. Beware, however: Not all services are created equal. If a service doesn't have enough VPN servers--technically, VPN concentrators--to support the number of customers, you may experience poor Internet speeds or be unable to make a connection at all.

So, before subscribing to a VPN service, look into what its customers say about it. Better still, if the company offers a free test period, take advantage of it before paying money for a service that may not meet your needs.

VPN Fundamentals for the Power User

Do you want to lock down your Internet connection when you’re on the road? If so, the best approach is, of course, to use a VPN. You’re set if you work for a company that can provide you with a VPN. But if you run your own small business or home office, you also have options.

You can find several, inexpensive ways to get a VPN of your own. Besides paying $15 to $20 a month to a VPN subscription service, you might be able to install a VPN server into your router using open-source, alternative router firmware such as DD-WRT and OpenWRT. This firmware will allow you to use many, but not all, Wi-Fi routers and access points as VPN endpoints.

VPN on Your Router

Before flashing your Wi-Fi hardware with any alternative firmware, make sure that it's supported. The last thing you want to do is to "brick" your wireless device--rendering it useless--just to set up a small VPN. Be sure to consult the DD-WRT supported-device list or the OpenWRT supported-device list. As these lists are all works in progress, check back often if you buy a brand-new router or access point.

If you'd rather not take your hardware's life into your own hands, some routers, such as Buffalo Technology's WZR-HP-G300NH AirStation Nfiniti Wireless-N High Power Router, come with DD-WRT already installed.

VPN Server Software

Some desktop operating systems, including Windows (from XP to Windows 7) and Mac OS X, include VPN server software. Granted, these are very simple VPNs, but they may be all you need. Of course, the Windows Server family comes with more-sophisticated VPN setups. If you're running all Windows 7 clients and Windows Server 2008 R2, you may also want to consider using DirectAccess, an advanced IPSec VPN that runs over IPv6 on ordinary IPv4-based LANs and the Internet.

If you don't choose to use DirectAccess but opt for Microsoft's older VPN technologies, Windows Server 2008 R2 has a helpful new feature: VPN Reconnect. Just as the name suggests, it will try to connect VPN sessions automatically if they're interrupted by a break in Internet connectivity. This function can be handy for users with spotty Wi-Fi connectivity, since they won't need to manually reconnect with the VPN after they reestablish a network connection.

Another way to add a VPN to your small network is to install VPN server software yourself. The best known of these is OpenVPN, which is open-source. It's available in versions for almost all popular desktop operating systems, including Linux, Mac OS X, and Windows.

If setting up native OpenVPN sounds a little too technical for you or your staff, you can run it as a VMware or Windows Virtual Hard Disk OpenVPN virtual appliance. With this arrangement, you'll have a basic VPN up and running in minutes.

But OpenVPN is far from the only VPN software out there. Other programs worth considering are NeoRouter and Tinc. If you want more than just VPN services and do-it-all network-services software packages, I highly recommend the open-source Vyatta, Core 6.1. Vyatta includes OpenVPN.

VPN Appliances

If you plan on having more than a dozen or so users on the VPN at one time, though, you'll want to use an inexpensive VPN hardware appliance such as the Juniper Networks SA700 SSL VPN Appliance, the SonicWall Secure Remote Access Series, or the Vyatta 514.

No matter which VPN you use, you'll need to set your firewall to allow VPN traffic. On many routers and firewalls, this task can be as simple as setting VPN passthrough to allow VPN traffic. Typically, your choices will be PPTP (Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol), L2TP (Layer Two Tunneling Protocol), or SSL (Secure Sockets Layer). Allow only those VPN protocols that you'll be using--after all, when in doubt with firewalls, it's safer to forbid than to permit.

Check your VPN’s documentation to see which ports you’ll need to open. As for SSL VPNs, they typically use port 443, the usual port for SSL-protected Web servers, so that port should already be open.

Naturally, no matter what VPN you're running and regardless of your network setup, a VPN in a small business is likely to limit its users’ speeds. For example, in my own home office, my Charter cable Internet connection gives me a 25-megabits-per-second downlink and a 3-mbps uplink. This means that no matter how fast my remote network connection is when I connect to my OpenVPN server, my maximum throughput will be limited to 3 mbps.

I've often seen small businesses flummoxed by slow VPN connections. That usually happens because neither the users nor the in-house IT staffers (often one and the same) realize that the math of Internet connections means that the slowest link along the VPN route will determine the VPN's top speed. If you want a really fast VPN, you'll need to bite the bullet and get a high-end Internet connection from your ISP.

Source: http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/223044-1/get_started_with_a_vpn_for_beginners_power_users_and_it_pros.html