Hi all,
This is probably the dumbest question, but I just wanted to make sure lol! So obviously I connect to my works VPN on my work computer, but if I go to a different place with wifi (i.e hotel) for a day, am I still able to connect to it, even though I’ll be on a different network? I was planning on going somewhere next week on July 1st but didnt take the day off July 2nd (to give you more context).
Any help is appreciated 
Thank you!!
In the “before times” I frequently needed to connect to hotel wifi using my work computer.
One tip: hotel wifi often will need you to connect to their network by entering your room number and your last name in the browser the first time you open it. By default, the firewall on your laptop may not allow this screen to load. There should be a setting somewhere in your firewall app that will allow you to disable the firewall temporarily for a prescribed amount of time. 90 seconds, if I rememeber. Open your browser and login to the wifi within this time and you’ll be fine for the rest of your stay, or until the connection expires, whichever comes first.
You may know this already, and if so I apologize, but I have the impression you may not understand what a VPN is, based on your question.
A VPN (Virtual Private Network) allows you to use a public network (your home, free wifi from a hotspot, a hotel etc) in a secure and encrypted manner.
Think of it as an armored truck. You can drive it on a dirt road or a highway. While the highway is more likely to have accidents, because the truck is armored, the contents are kept safe.
As to the question of IF you should connect to work VPN from somewhere other than home, for that you will need to review your telework agreement and talk to your IT/manager, as different groups have different rules.
Some, for example, allow a private home network but NOT a public (ie free WiFi) one.
In our department paperwork indicates that for the time being work be completed remotely anywhere in Canada. I have staff across Canada for a variety of reasons. This was not the case pre-COVID. I don’t ask my staff which location they’re working from each day. Sometimes people ask for permission to work out of a cottage while others not. As long as they’re in Canada there are no security concerns. Cannot work from outside Canada.
This applies to many departments not just mine, I’m sure.
Yes you can connect from most places… In public though I’d be more concerned about people seeing your screen… If you work on any sensitive information, even protected A, you should have your screen facing a wall where no one can sit behind etc…
Deoending on what department and what you work on, it could be advisable to not work in a public place at all.
Not all department’s setups allow working from a location where you have to login through a splash screen. Like at a starbucks or a hotel where you would normally connect to the wifi then the first time you open a browser it pops up a page that shows “welcome to starbucks, click here to agree to terms and conditions” or “enter your hotel room number and the code for internet access”. Because the web traffic for the login occurs BEFORE the VPN is active it gets blocked.
Some departments don’t block this though so YMMV.
This probably goes without saying but if the hotel you’re staying at is outside of Canada you should definitely speak with your manager first.
Thank you all for your input! It’s much appreciated
Yes but you have to fill out a Telework Agreement for that day. It needs to be approved to work at a different location from your original agreement. They need to know where you are working from.
Pre-COVID times I traveled around the world for work with no problems. Only need special equipment for a few countries. I certainly never needed a daily remote working agreement.
The icon looks like a small red shield (its McAfee) and you right click it.
Quick Settings > Enable timed firewall groups
This will give you about 90 seconds to open the said page.
This needs to be upvoted. So many times on work trips I couldn’t connect to the hotel wifi!
Tell me more about this “free wife.”
Thank you for that explanation! That really helped me understand what vpn is (for real).
Can I ask … I sometimes connect directly to my internet box, instead of using my home wifi. Is there an advantage to doing it this way?
Using your cellular data as a hub to connect to your organization’s VPN, may also contravene your agreement and/or be less secure.
An issue arises when injury occurs on the job, as there is a presumption of responsibility of a safe work environment while on the job…
FYI. The landing pages where you need to sign into wifi and agree to the terms are called “Captive Portals”.
Stupid phone. Thanks!
from a hotspot no less! quite the spot
Speed would be about it in terms of what you would notice. typically using the network cable directly will be faster than using wifi
edit: which I am gripy about because where I work now we get devices that have no ethernet port and no adapter as part of our standard package!! yay!