All posts tagged virtual IP address

DirectAccess Manage Out with ISATAP and NLB Clustering

DirectAccess Manage Out with ISATAP and NLB ClusteringDirectAccess connections are bidirectional, allowing administrators to remotely connect to clients and manage them when they are out of the office. DirectAccess clients use IPv6 exclusively, so any communication initiated from the internal network to remote DirectAccess clients must also use IPv6. If IPv6 is not deployed natively on the internal network, the Intrasite Automatic Tunnel Addressing Protocol (ISATAP) IPv6 transition technology can be used to enable manage out.

ISATAP Supportability

According to Microsoft’s support guidelines for DirectAccess, using ISATAP for manage out is only supported for single server deployments. ISATAP is not supported when deployed in a multisite or load-balanced environment.

“Not supported” is not the same as “doesn’t work” though. For example, ISATAP can easily be deployed in single site DirectAccess deployments where load balancing is provided using Network Load Balancing (NLB).

ISATAP Configuration

To do this, you must first create DNS A resource records for the internal IPv4 address for each DirectAccess server as well as the internal virtual IP address (VIP) assigned to the cluster.

DirectAccess Manage Out with ISATAP and NLB Clustering

Note: Do NOT use the name ISATAP. This name is included in the DNS query block list on most DNS servers and will not resolve unless it is removed. Removing it is not recommended either, as it will result in ALL IPv6-enabled hosts on the network configuring an ISATAP tunnel adapter.

Once the DNS records have been added, you can configure a single computer for manage out by opening an elevated PowerShell command window and running the following command:

Set-NetIsatapConfiguration -State Enabled -Router [ISATAP FQDN] -PassThru

DirectAccess Manage Out with ISATAP and NLB Clustering

Once complete, an ISATAP tunnel adapter network interface with a unicast IPv6 address will appear in the output of ipconfig.exe, as shown here.

DirectAccess Manage Out with ISATAP and NLB Clustering

Running the Get-NetRoute -AddressFamily IPv6 PowerShell command will show routes to the client IPv6 prefixes assigned to each DirectAccess server.

DirectAccess Manage Out with ISATAP and NLB Clustering

Finally, verify network connectivity from the manage out host to the remote DirectAccess client.

Note: There is a known issue with some versions of Windows 10 and Windows Server 2016 that may prevent manage out using ISATAP from working correctly. There’s a simple workaround, however. More details can be found here.

Group Policy Deployment

If you have more than a few systems on which to enable ISATAP manage out, using Active Directory Group Policy Objects (GPOs) to distribute these settings is a much better idea. You can find guidance for creating GPOs for ISATAP manage out here.

DirectAccess Client Firewall Configuration

Simply enabling ISATAP on a server or workstation isn’t all that’s required to perform remote management on DirectAccess clients. The Windows firewall running on the DirectAccess client computer must also be configured to securely allow remote administration traffic from the internal network. Guidance for configuring the Windows firewall on DirectAccess clients for ISATAP manage out can be found here.

ISATAP Manage Out for Multisite and ELB

The configuration guidance in this post will not work if DirectAccess multisite is enabled or external load balancers (ELB) are used. However, ISATAP can still be used. For more information about enabling ISATAP manage out with external load balancers and/or multisite deployments, fill out the form below and I’ll provide you with more details.

Summary

Once ISATAP is enabled for manage out, administrators on the internal network can remotely manage DirectAccess clients wherever they happen to be. Native Windows remote administration tools such as Remote Desktop, Windows Remote Assistance, and the Computer Management MMC can be used to manage remote DirectAccess clients. In addition, enterprise administration tools such as PowerShell remoting and System Center Configuration Manger (SCCM) Remote Control can also be used. Further, third-party remote administration tools such as VNC, TeamViewer, LogMeIn, GoToMyPC, Bomgar, and many others will also work with DirectAccess ISATAP manage out.

Additional Information

ISATAP Recommendations for DirectAccess Deployments

DirectAccess Manage Out with ISATAP Fails on Windows 10 and Windows Server 2016 

DirectAccess Client Firewall Rule Configuration for ISATAP Manage Out

DirectAccess Manage Out and System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM)

Contact Me

Interested in learning more about ISATAP manage out for multisite and external load balancer deployments? Fill out the form below and I’ll get in touch with you.

3 Comments
by Richard M. Hicks on December 14, 2017  •  Permalink
Posted in ADC, DirectAccess, DNS, F5, High Availability, IPv6, IPv6 Transition, Load Balancing, LoadMaster, Manage Out, multisite, Netscaler, Remote Access, transition technology, Windows 10, Windows 8.1, Windows Server 2012 R2, Windows Server 2016
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Posted by Richard M. Hicks on December 14, 2017

https://directaccess.richardhicks.com/2017/12/14/directaccess-manage-out-with-isatap-and-nlb-clustering/

Configuring Multicast NLB for DirectAccess

Introduction

DirectAccess in Windows Server 2012 R2 includes support for load balancing using either Windows Network Load Balancing (NLB) or an external physical or virtual load balancer. There are advantages and disadvantages to each, but NLB is commonly deployed due to its cost (free!) and relative ease of configuration. NLB has three operation modes – Unicast, Multicast, and IGMP Multicast. It may become necessary to change the NLB operation mode depending on the environment where DirectAccess is deployed. This article describes when and how to make those changes.

Default Configuration

When NLB is first configured, the default cluster operation mode is set to Unicast. In this configuration, all nodes in the NLB cluster share the same MAC address. The NLB kernel mode driver prevents the switch from learning the MAC address for any node in the cluster by masking it on the wire. When a frame is delivered to the switch where the NLB cluster resides, without a MAC address to switch port mapping the frame is delivered to all ports on the switch. This induces switch flooding and is by design. It is required for all nodes in the cluster to “see” all traffic. The NLB driver then determines which node will handle the request.

NLB on Hyper-V

Unicast NLB typically works without issue in most physical environments. However, enabling NLB when the DirectAccess server is running on a virtual machine requires some additional configuration. For Hyper-V, the only thing that is required is to enable MAC Address Spoofing on the virtual network adapter as I discussed here. No other changes are required.

NLB on VMWare

For VMware environments, it will be necessary to change the cluster operation mode from unicast to multicast. This is because the VMware hypervisor proactively informs the virtual switch of the virtual machine’s MAC address on startup and during other virtual networking events. When this occurs, all traffic for the NLB Virtual IP Address (VIP) will be delivered to a single node in the cluster. In multicast operation mode, all nodes in the NLB cluster retain their original MAC address and a unique MAC address is assigned to the cluster VIP. As such, there’s no need to prevent the switch from learning the virtual machine’s MAC address.

Configuring Multicast NLB

To enable Multicast NLB, first enable load balancing for DirectAccess using the Remote Access Management console as usual. DO NOT perform the initial configuration of NLB outside of the Remote Access Management console! Before adding another member to the array, open the Network Load Balancing Manager, right-click the cluster and choose Cluster Properties. Select the Cluster Parameters tab and change the Cluster operation mode to Multicast.

Configuring Multicast NLB for DirectAccess

When opening the Network Load Balancing Manager locally on the DirectAccess server, you may receive the following error message:

“Running NLB Manager on a system with all networks bound to NLB might
not work as expected. If all interfaces are set to run NLB in “unicast”
mode, NLB manager will fail to connect to hosts.”

Configuring Multicast NLB for DirectAccess

If you encounter this error message it will be necessary to run the NLB Manager on another host. You can install the NLB Manager on a Windows Server 2012 R2 system by using the following PowerShell command.

Install-WindowsFeature RSAT-NLB

Optionally you can download and install the Windows Remote Server Administration Tools (RSAT) on a Windows desktop client and manage NLB remotely.

Once this change has been made you can add additional DirectAccess servers to the array using the Remote Access Management console.

Additional Configuration

If you cannot communicate with the cluster VIP from a remote subnet, but can connect to it while on the same subnet, it might be necessary to configure static ARP entries on any routers for the subnet where the NLB cluster resides. Often this is required because routers will reject responses to ARP requests that are from a host with a unicast IP address but have a multicast MAC address.

28 Comments
by Richard M. Hicks on October 26, 2015  •  Permalink
Posted in DirectAccess, High Availability, Load Balancing, PowerShell, Remote Access, Windows 10, Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 8.1, Windows Server 2012 R2
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Posted by Richard M. Hicks on October 26, 2015

https://directaccess.richardhicks.com/2015/10/26/configuring-multicast-nlb-for-directaccess/

DirectAccess DNS Records Explained

After installing and configuring DirectAccess with Windows Server 2012 R2, several new host records appear automatically in the internal DNS (assuming dynamic DNS is supported, of course). One of them is directaccess-corpConnectivityHost and the other is directaccess-WebProbeHost. These DirectAccess DNS entries are used by Windows 8 and later clients for connectivity checks at various stages of DirectAccess connection establishment.

DirectAccess DNS Records Explained

Figure 1 – DirectAccess DNS records for IPv4-only network.

DirectAccess DNS Records Explained

Figure 2 – DirectAccess DNS records for dual-stack IPv4/IPv6 network.

Here is a detailed description for each of these DirectAccess DNS entries.

directaccess-corpConnectivityHost – This DNS host record includes both A and AAAA records when deployed on IPv4-only networks. Its A host record resolves to 127.0.0.1, which is the IPv4 loopback address. Its AAAA host record resolves to an IPv6 address that is a combination of the DirectAccess NAT64 IPv6 prefix and 7F00:1 (the hexadecimal equivalent of 127.0.0.1). When DirectAccess is configured on a network with native IPv6, the directaccess-corpConnectivityHost DNS record will only include a single AAAA record resolving to ::1.

This host record is used by the DirectAccess client to determine if name resolution for the corporate namespace is working after the IPv6 transition tunnel (6to4, Teredo, or IP-HTTPS) has been established. It does this by attempting to resolve the hostname directaccess-corpConnectivityHost.<corp_fqdn> (e.g. directaccess-corpConnectivityHost.corp.example.net) to an IPv6 address that it expects (the organization’s NAT64 prefix + 7F00:1 or ::1). If it does not resolve, or resolves to a different address, the client will assume that the transition tunnel was not established successfully and, if possible, fall back to another IPv6 transition protocol and repeat the process until it is successful.

Note: The DirectAccess client does not attempt to connect to the IP address resolved by directaccess-corpConnectivityHost. It simply compares the IP address returned by the query to the expected address (NAT64 prefix + 7F00:1 or ::1).

directaccess-WebProbeHost – This DNS host record includes only A records and resolves to the IPv4 address assigned to the internal network interface of the DirectAccess server. If load balancing is enabled, this host record will resolve to the virtual IP address (VIP) of the array. For multisite deployments there will be directaccess-WebProbeHost A host records for each entry point in the organization.

This host record is used by the DirectAccess client to verify end-to-end corporate network connectivity over the DirectAccess connection. The client will attempt to connect to the directaccess-WebProbeHost URL using HTTP. If successful, the DirectAccess connectivity status indicator will show Connected.

If any of these DirectAccess DNS records are missing or incorrect, a number of issues may arise. If the directaccess-corpConnectivityHost host record is missing or incorrect, DirectAccess IPv6 transition tunnel establishment may fail. If the directaccess-WebProbeHost record is missing or incorrect, the DirectAccess connectivity status indicator will perpetually show Connecting. This commonly occurs when an external load balancer is used and a virtual server isn’t created for the web probe host port (TCP 80). In addition, these DirectAccess DNS entries are not static and may be deleted if DNS scavenging of stale resource records is enabled on the DNS server.

67 Comments
by Richard M. Hicks on July 6, 2015  •  Permalink
Posted in 6to4, DirectAccess, IP-HTTPS, IPv6, IPv6 Transition, Remote Access, Teredo, Windows 10, Windows 8, Windows 8.1, Windows Server 2012, Windows Server 2012 R2
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Posted by Richard M. Hicks on July 6, 2015

https://directaccess.richardhicks.com/2015/07/06/directaccess-dns-records-explained/

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