Wrong. Probably.
So, Since I just posted the other day about dumping my pile of Python scripts and IPsec VPNs and moving to Tailscale for my personal use case, several folks have sparked conversations with me about the topic.
In my case, it made complete sense to do something else. I was using a solution that was the essentially held together with bubblegum, duct tape, and baling wire. It was fragile, it kept breaking, and let’s be real – I was bending the solution into a shape it wasn’t designed to be used in – which is why it kept breaking in the first place.
You see, IPsec tunnels are intended to work when you’ve got stable, fixed endpoints. Over time, things have been done so that endpoints can become dynamic. But typically just one endpoint. Suddenly, with two dynamic endpoints, results become… Unpredictable. I think that’s a kind way of putting it even. That right there, explains my repeated breakage problems.
So, if you’re still using traditional firewall & VPN in a more traditional use case, then yes, keep doing things more traditionally – keep on using IPsec VPNs. It’s quite honestly the best tool in the bag for what you’re hoping to accomplish in terms of securing data that’s in motion, provided you’re able to meet the bars of entry in terms of hardware support as well as supported feature set.
So, get rid of your firewalls? Not a chance. Get rid of my SRX firewalls and EX switches? No way, no how. You can have my Junos stuff when you pry it from my cold, dead hands. Heck, I make my living with Junos. But just like the whole story of the guy who only has a hammer and thinks everything is a nail, sometimes you’ve just got to use a different tool to do the job right.
But taking the time to think about how to break up with complexity and technical debt? Yeah, that’s totally worth your time. Sometimes that means saying goodbye to old friends, even when you forced them into places where they didn’t quite fit.
So, in the end the whole square-peg-round-hole thing? Stop doing that.
Automating All the Things. 