University of Southern California

ITS Information Technology Services

A division of the Office of the Chief Information Officer

The Cisco VPN 3000 Client (Windows 2000/XP/Vista)

VPN, also called IP tunneling, is a secure method of accessing USC computer resources.

Please note that the Cisco VPN 3000 desktop client is no longer supported by ITS. Existing users may continue to connect using the Cisco VPN 3000 desktop client. New users should use the web-based Cisco AnyConnect client.

Connecting with the Cisco Systems VPN Client
After you have installed the VPN and rebooted your system, you can now attempt to connect to the USC network:

  1. From the Start menu, select Programs, then select Cisco Systems VPN Client.
  2. From the submenu, select VPN Client.
    Result: The VPN Client window appears.

    vpn1.jpg
    Figure 1: VPN Client Window

  3. Click Connect.
    Result: The User Authentication window appears.

    vpnuserauth.jpg
    Figure 2: User Authentication Window

  4. In the Username field, type your USC username.
  5. In the Password field, type your USC account password. Click OK.
  6. If you enter your username and/or password incorrectly, you will be prompted to enter them again. After three unsuccessful attempts to authenticate, the VPN client will return an authentication error.

    7. At this point, the VPN client should be working properly. You can check to see the VPN client's current status by double-clicking the VPN Client icon on the System Tray.

    vpnsystray.jpg
    Figure 3: System Tray

  7. To disconnect from the VPN connection, right-click the VPN Client icon on the System Tray and select Disconnect.

Re-Configuring the Cisco Systems VPN Client
After installing the VPN client, you should automatically have a pre-configured Connection entry. If you accidentally delete that entry you may recreate it in the following way:

  1. From the Start menu, select Programs, then select Cisco Systems VPN Client.
  2. From the submenu, select VPN Client.
    Result: The VPN Client window appears.

    vpnnew.jpg
    Figure 4: VPN Client Window

  3. Click the New button.
    Result: The Create New VPN Client Connection Entry window appears (see Figure 5).

    sslvpnentry.jpg
    Figure 5: Create New VPN Client Connection Entry Window

  4. Type a name in the Connection Entry box. You may also type an optional description of the connection in the Description box. The name of the new connection and its description should be different from other VPN connections that you have created.
  5. In the Host field, type sslvpn.usc.edu.
  6. Verify that Group Authentication is selected. The name of the group depends on VPN usage. If you are connecting to the VPN server to access restricted electronic resources from an outside ISP, type USC. If you are connecting from a USC wireless connection, type Wireless.

    If you are at the Doheney Eye Institute, KUSC, Los Angeles County+USC Medical Center, or a Tenet Health Care hospital, then use alternate profiles in the Group Authentication. See VPN Frequently Asked Questions for more information.

  7. In the Password and Confirm Password fields, type GoTrojan. The password is displayed in asterisks as it is typed in.
  8. Click Save.
  9. Click Finish to exit the wizard.

Getting Help
For questions, contact the Customer Support Center at 213-740-5555 or consult@usc.edu.

Last updated:
September 03, 2009

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VPN Documentation

The use of all USC computing resources is governed by the USC Computing Policies.