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Thread: Pfsense VPN

  1. #1

    Pfsense VPN

    I have set up Pfsense VPN in my home for my own personal use. When away from home using my mobile phone and authenticated through the VPN I can reach everything on my home network but when I launch the Lutron app it hangs and says "Connection Failed". What am I missing? Does anyone have any experience configuring Pfsense, or any VPN, to work with Lutron? Thanks.GS

  2. #2
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Jan 2019
    Posts
    342
    I don’t mess with Pfsense, but I do install Ubiquiti hardware. My understanding is that L2TP VPN does not forward multicast, which will prevent the app from discovering the bridge on the network. I remember that there was some way to get multicast over a certain kind of VLAN but I don’t remember anything other than that. <br><br>

    Why would you want to do this? You should have your phone logged into your Lutron account which will discover your system through the cloud, making VPN unnecessary.

  3. #3

    caseta lutron access through vpn

    Why do I want to do this? Lack of trust in other organizations to "protect" my data/network. I have read too many anecdotes proving that technology is often designed for convenience, in haste, and not typically with security in mind. For instance, I have several network cameras from multiple vendors that despite having the "check for update" box turned off, they constantly try to connect to websites in China. Why? At least with a firewall and VPN I control what "phones home" with information from my network. Don't get me wrong, I do enjoy technology but I believe it should have its limits. Your "broadcast" comment reminded me that I had seen another article that suggested I needed to run another app to help me connect across the networks from VPN to home. I'll ask Teh Google about it. Thanks.p.s. The Caseta Bridge is pretty chatty, too. I blocked all of its outgoing traffic and it quit working after a few days. Then I opened NTP and now it works fine on the home network. Hmmm, so why did it need the other ports open?

  4. #4

    Lutron Smart Bridge "pro" and VPN

    Does anyone have any experience with VPN and the Smart Bridge "pro" version?

  5. #5

    K.I.S.S. (kept it simple)

    So with all my grand ideas of adding a separate VLAN or playing with firewall rules in the end the simplest solution was the best. I just plugged an unused wifi router into a port on my switch which causes it to provide DHCP on a separate subnet. To top it off I used that 2nd router's Guest wifi for the Lutron bridge. Problem solved.

  6. #6
    I configured my pfSense box with OpenVPN and the Viscosity client with the “tap” option, which does forward multicast to the VPN client. Maybe that would work for you;

  7. #7
    Junior Member
    Join Date
    Mar 2018
    Posts
    3
    We do it this way: Your iphone / android phone browser > Cellular data (or Wifi) > PFSense VPN service > your automation controller (like myServer) > Caseta Pro Hub > Caseta lighting devices.

  8. #8
    I really like the information you share. I learned a lot of new and useful knowledge from your post. slither io

  9. #9
    Troubleshooting a VPN can be complicated, and it can be helpful to seek help from a network administrator or someone experienced with Pfsense configuration if you are unfamiliar with the intricacies of the setup. Try using other apps or services when connected to the VPN to see if they work properly. This can help determine if the problem is only with the Lutron app or if there is a broader connectivity issue. Good luck! bitlife

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