# Manage VPN Users

*Read this in other languages: [English](manage-users.md), [简体中文](manage-users-zh.md).*

By default, a single user account for VPN login is created. If you wish to add, edit or remove users, read this document.

## Using helper scripts

You may use these scripts to more easily manage VPN users: [add_vpn_user.sh](https://github.com/hwdsl2/setup-ipsec-vpn/blob/master/extras/add_vpn_user.sh), [del_vpn_user.sh](https://github.com/hwdsl2/setup-ipsec-vpn/blob/master/extras/del_vpn_user.sh) and [update_vpn_users.sh](https://github.com/hwdsl2/setup-ipsec-vpn/blob/master/extras/update_vpn_users.sh). They will update users for both IPsec/L2TP and IPsec/XAuth (Cisco IPsec). For changing the IPsec PSK, read the next section.

**Note:** VPN users are stored in `/etc/ppp/chap-secrets` and `/etc/ipsec.d/passwd`. The scripts will backup these files before making changes, with `.old-date-time` suffix.

### Add or edit a VPN user

Add a new VPN user or update an existing VPN user with a new password.

```bash
# Download the script
wget -O add_vpn_user.sh https://raw.githubusercontent.com/hwdsl2/setup-ipsec-vpn/master/extras/add_vpn_user.sh
```

```bash
# All values MUST be placed inside 'single quotes'
# DO NOT use these special characters within values: \ " '
sudo sh add_vpn_user.sh 'username_to_add' 'password_to_add'
```

### Delete a VPN user

Delete the specified VPN user.

```bash
# Download the script
wget -O del_vpn_user.sh https://raw.githubusercontent.com/hwdsl2/setup-ipsec-vpn/master/extras/del_vpn_user.sh
```

```bash
# All values MUST be placed inside 'single quotes'
# DO NOT use these special characters within values: \ " '
sudo sh del_vpn_user.sh 'username_to_delete'
```

### Update all VPN users

Remove all existing VPN users and replace with the list of users you specify.

```bash
# Download the script
wget -O update_vpn_users.sh https://raw.githubusercontent.com/hwdsl2/setup-ipsec-vpn/master/extras/update_vpn_users.sh
```

To use this script, choose one of the following options:

**Important:** This script will remove **ALL** existing VPN users and replace them with the list of users you specify. Therefore, you must include any existing user(s) you want to keep in the variables below.

**Option 1:** Edit the script and enter VPN user details:

```bash
nano -w update_vpn_users.sh
[Replace with your own values: YOUR_USERNAMES and YOUR_PASSWORDS]
sudo sh update_vpn_users.sh
```

**Option 2:** Define VPN user details as environment variables:

```bash
# List of VPN usernames and passwords, separated by spaces
# All values MUST be placed inside 'single quotes'
# DO NOT use these special characters within values: \ " '
sudo \
VPN_USERS='username1 username2 ...' \
VPN_PASSWORDS='password1 password2 ...' \
sh update_vpn_users.sh
```

## Manually manage VPN users and PSK

First, the IPsec PSK (pre-shared key) is stored in `/etc/ipsec.secrets`. To change to a new PSK, just edit this file. You must restart services when finished (see below). All VPN users will share the same IPsec PSK.

```bash
%any  %any  : PSK "your_ipsec_pre_shared_key"
```

For `IPsec/L2TP`, VPN users are specified in `/etc/ppp/chap-secrets`. The format of this file is:

```bash
"username1"  l2tpd  "password1"  *
"username2"  l2tpd  "password2"  *
... ...
```

You can add more users, use one line for each user. DO NOT use these special characters within values: `\ " '`

For `IPsec/XAuth ("Cisco IPsec")`, VPN users are specified in `/etc/ipsec.d/passwd`. The format of this file is:

```bash
username1:password1hashed:xauth-psk
username2:password2hashed:xauth-psk
... ...
```

Passwords in this file are salted and hashed. This step can be done using e.g. the `openssl` utility:

```bash
# The output will be password1hashed
# Put your password inside 'single quotes'
openssl passwd -1 'password1'
```

Finally, you must restart services if changing the PSK. For add/edit/remove VPN users, this is normally not required.

```bash
service ipsec restart
service xl2tpd restart
```