Always On VPN Device Tunnel Configuration using Intune

Always On VPN Device Tunnel Configuration using IntuneA while back I described in detail how to configure a Windows 10 Always On VPN device tunnel connection using PowerShell. While using PowerShell is fine for local testing, it obviously doesn’t scale well. In theory you could deploy the PowerShell script and XML file using System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM), but using Microsoft Intune is the recommended and preferred deployment method. However, as of this writing Intune does not support device tunnel configuration natively. The administrator must create a ProfileXML manually and use Intune to deploy it.

Device Tunnel Prerequisites

I outlined the Always On VPN device tunnel prerequisites in my previous post here. To summarize, the client must be running Windows 10 Enterprise edition and be domain-joined. It must also have a certificate issued by the internal PKI with the Client Authentication EKU in the local computer certificate store.

ProfileXML

To begin, create a ProfileXML for the device tunnel that includes the required configuration settings and parameters for your deployment. You can find a sample Windows 10 Always On VPN device tunnel ProfileXML here.

Note: Be sure to define a custom IPsec policy in ProfileXML for the device tunnel. The default security settings for the IKEv2 protocol (required for the device tunnel) are quite poor. Details here.

Intune Deployment

Open the Intune management console and follow the steps below to deploy an Always On VPN device tunnel using Microsoft Intune.

Create Profile

1. Navigate to the Intune portal.
2. Click Device configuration.
3. Click Profiles.
4. Click Create profile.

Define Profile Settings

1. Enter a name for the VPN connection in the Name field.
2. Enter a description for the VPN connection in the Description field (optional).
3. Select Windows 10 and later from the Platform drop-down list.
4. Select Custom from the Profile type drop-down list.

Always On VPN Device Tunnel Configuration using Intune

Define Custom OMA-URI Settings

1. On the Custom OMA-URI Settings blade click Add.
2. Enter a name for the device tunnel in the Name field.
3. Enter a description for the VPN connection in the Description field (optional).
4. Enter the URI for the device tunnel in the OMA-URI field using the following syntax. If the profile name includes spaces they must be escaped, as shown here.

./Device/Vendor/MSFT/VPNv2/Example%20Profile%Name/ProfileXML

5. Select String (XML file) from the Data Type drop-down list.
6. Click the folder next to the Select a file field and chose the ProfileXML file created previously.
7. Click Ok twice and then click Create.

Always On VPN Device Tunnel Configuration using Intune

Assign Profile

Follow the steps below to assign the Always On VPN device tunnel profile to the appropriate device group.

1. Click Assignments.
2. Click Select groups to include.
3. Select the group that includes the Windows 10 client devices.
4. Click Select.
5. Click Save.

Always On VPN Device Tunnel Configuration using Intune

Demonstration Video

A video demonstration of the steps outlined above can be viewed here.

Additional Information

Windows 10 Always On VPN Device Tunnel Configuration using PowerShell

Windows 10 Always On VPN IKEv2 Security Configuration

Deleting a Windows 10 Always On VPN Device Tunnel

Windows 10 Always On VPN Device Tunnel Missing in the UI

Video: Deploying Windows 10 Always On VPN User Tunnel with Microsoft Intune

Always On VPN Device Tunnel Does Not Connect Automatically

When configuring a Windows 10 Always On VPN device tunnel, the administrator may encounter a scenario in which the device tunnel does not connect automatically. This can occur even when ProfileXML is configured with the AlwaysOn element set to “true”.

Always On VPN Device Tunnel Does Not Connect Automatically

Manual Connection

An administrator can establish a device tunnel connection manually using rasdial.exe however, indicating no issues with connectivity or authentication that would prevent a successful automatic connection.

Always On VPN Device Tunnel Does Not Connect Automatically

Root Cause

This scenario will occur when the device tunnel configuration is applied to a Windows 10 Professional edition client.

Always On VPN Device Tunnel Does Not Connect Automatically

Device Tunnel Support

The Windows 10 Always On VPN device tunnel is supported only on Windows 10 1709 or later Enterprise edition clients that are domain-joined. To ensure the device tunnel connects automatically, upgrade to Windows 10 Enterprise 1709 or later and join it to a domain.

Always On VPN Device Tunnel Does Not Connect Automatically

Source: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-server/remote/remote-access/vpn/vpn-device-tunnel-config#device-tunnel-requirements-and-features

Additional Information

Windows 10 Always On VPN Device Tunnel Configuration using PowerShell

Windows 10 Always On VPN Device Tunnel Missing in the Windows UI

Deleting a Windows 10 Always On VPN Device Tunnel

DirectAccess Broken in Windows 10 Insider Preview Build 14971

DirectAccess Broken in Windows 10 Enterprise Insider Preview Build 14971Updated 12/9/2016: This issue has been resolved in build 14986. If you are still running build 14971, update to the latest build to resolve this issue.

For anyone running the Insider Preview version of Windows 10 Enterprise, be advised that the latest Fast Ring build (14971) has a bug that breaks DirectAccess connectivity. Microsoft is aware of the issue and is currently working to identify the root cause. As it stands now, there is no known workaround.

I’ll post an update as soon as I have more information. Stay tuned!