Autostart a VPN in Windows XP/Vista
Autostart a VPN in Windows XP/Vista
Just a quick one today, and it’s exactly what it says on the box.
I was unreasonably inconvenienced by the need to manually dial into my works VPN everytime I start my computer up. For some reason it really rubbed me the wrong way.
A few days ago, I finally decided to solve this niggling problem once and for all. Here are the steps you’ll need, assuming you already have the Windows VPN client configured for a VPN:
- Save your authentication details in the connection
- Set the VPN connection to not prompt for user details (Start → Connect To → right click on your VPN → Properties → Options → uncheck “Prompt for name and password”)
- Create a .bat file somewhere safe, and put in it the following:
rasdial "Name of your VPN Connection" - Create a shortcut to this .bar file
- Put this shortcut into your startup folder
Now, the next time reboot, your VPN should start as soon as you get an internet connection.