VPN - Setup Connection on Mac – Oklahoma Christian University

You can access the OC network from off campus by creating a VPN connection. This page provides instructions for creating a VPN connection to OC using a Mac OS. At the end of the recipe, we will show you how to create a VPN status icon in your Mac menu bar for ease of access.

Sonoma macOS 14

Step 1: While on your Mac home screen, click on the Apple Icon in the top left corner.

Step 2: Select "System Preferences" or "System Settings" from the drop down menu.

Step 3: Select Network

Step 4: Select the "..." in the lower right

Step 5: Click "Add VPN Configuration"

Step 6: Click "L2TP over IPSec..."

Step 7: Fill out the information as seen below.

Set the Display name to "VPN to OC"
Click on the arrows next to Configuration and "Add Configuration...". Name it "VPN to OC"
Set the Server address to vpn.oc.edu
The Account name is your OC username
Make sure the User authentication is set to "Password", this is your OC password
Set Machine authentication to "Shared secret", and enter "Eagles" in the Shared secret box
There is no group name

Step 8: Click Options. The top three should be turned on

Step 9: Click Create

Step 10: Click VPN & Filters

Step 11: Turn on the VPN with the toggle. If everything was configured correctly, it should say "Connected for 00:00" and start counting up

Pre-Sonoma

Step 1: While on your Mac home screen, click on the Apple Icon in the top left corner.

Step 2: Select "System Preferences" or "System Settings" from the drop down menu.

Step 3: Select Network

Or your screen might look like this. You will still select "Network" either way.

Step 4: Once the Network settings are open, click the "+" sign in the bottom left-hand corner, as illustrated in the first picture below. If you do not see a "plus" sign in the bottom left-hand corner, you may need to select drop down menu "...v" and select "Add Service" as shown in picture 2.

If the lock on the bottom-left is closed, click on it and then enter your username and password.
Just above the lock, click the plus button to add a connection.

Or:

The next several steps may look slightly different depending on what Mac version you are running. We will include multiple pictures to cover the most common.

Step 5: Select the Interface drop down button.

Step 6: Select "VPN" from the menu.

Step 7: A new pop-up window will open. For "Interface" ensure VPN is still selected

Step 8: For "VPN Type" select L2TP over IPSec

Step 9: Name the Service (we recommend "VPN to OC")

Step 10: Click Create

Step 11: Enter vpn.oc.edu for the Server Address

Step 12: Enter your OC username in the username space.

Step 13: Click Authentication Settings

Step 14: A new pop-up window will open. Select Shared Secret and enter Eagles as the password

Step 15: Click OK.

Step 16: Click the Advanced button in the lower right hand corner.

Step 17: Make sure all three options are selected.

Step 18: Select Okay.

Step 19: Select "Apply" in the bottom right hand corner.

Step 20: If you get a pop-up window, select "Apply" again.

Step 21: Select "Connect."

If everything is correct, you should see a "Connected" status for the VPN to OC network.

Creating a VPN Status Icon on Your Homescreen Menu Bar

If you want to expedite the process of connecting to or disconnecting from your VPN in the future, you will need to add the VPN status icon in the menu bar. There are two ways to do this.

As you are configuring your VPN network for the first time, you can select "Show VPN status in the menu bar" from the Network Settings page. This will put an icon in the upper right hand corner of your desktop home-screen that you can click on or off as needed. See below for an illustration.