Shimo: CiscoVPN OS X Integration
My university requires everyone to use the CiscoVPN client in order to connect wirelessly. The restriction also applies when connecting to certain databases, servers, etc. While this may not sound too bad, in reality, it’s becoming a pain.
For those of you who don’t know, a VPN (Virtual Private Network) is used to make a secure connection to a remote network. When connected to a VPN over the Internet, your computer appears to be directly connected to the remote network. For a longer explanation of what a VPN is, see here.
Using a VPN allows you to access certain resources on a network that would normally be unavailable through the internet. Basically, VPN uses a public network (like the internet) to form a private network. This saves on costs of building and maintaining the infrastructure of a Wide Area Network (WAN). VPNs also provide security for network traffic that would otherwise be unsecured when moving across the internet.
If you’ve used the CiscoVPN client for OS X, you’d soon realize how much of a chore this can become. The client keeps a window up on the screen and stays in the dock the whole time you are connected.
I’ve always been pondering about a better solution, but I’ve finally found one. Shimo from nexUmoja does an excellent job of integrating the CiscoVPN client’s features into Mac OS X. While some might think this is a third-party client, it isn’t. It uses the CiscoVPN service installed with the client to actually do the connecting, so it will work with all CiscoVPN connections.
When you run Shimo, the application puts an icon in your menu bar. From this, you can connect to/disconnect from any of your CiscoVPN connections as well as access the statistics window and preferences. (Note: some of my connections have been hidden for security reasons)
In addition to just allowing you to connect to your current VPNs (from the Cisco client), Shimo allows you to add new ones through its interface as well as automatically launching the program and connecting to a VPN of your choice.
Shimo also provides a nice interface for looking at the VPN stats; it also integrates with Growl and provides keyboard shortcuts for connecting/disconnecting.
If you have to use the CiscoVPN client on your Mac, Shimo provides a solution to the terrible integration of the Cisco client with OS X. I’ve had no trouble using it to connect to my VPNs, so I recommend you give it a try. Shimo is freeware available from nexUmoja.
Thanks for presenting a very nice piece of software. Unbeleivable that is freeware also. I’m using it right now and I have to agree: if you must use cisco vpn then this is a very nice application to have.
MB-switcher
cisco also has a ssl vpn client called anyconnect which can be used to VPN. this has much better osx integration as compared to the cisco vpn client.
anyconnect will show a connected icon in the menu bar as opposed to the dock like the regular vpn client.
however the problem is that anyconnect needs additional support of the headend side and will not work with the existing IPSec VPN configuration.
@periferral
I know my university does not support AnyConnect, as I tried using that before I discovered Shimo. I’d imagine there are probably many Cisco VPN connections that do not support AnyConnect.
this would have have been sweet to know a few months ago when I was still in school. I always closed the vpn window and it would exit. Drove me crazy.
@steve
That’s one of the many things that bugged me about the Cisco VPN client…I hope that Mac users will no longer have to go through that pain…
Just a note, this is only a UI improvement. Any general connectivity issues you may have with current Cisco VPNClient software are unlikely to be solved, since “it uses the CiscoVPN service installed with the client to actually do the connecting”. Probably obvious, but I thought I would just highlight this.
Shimo Version 2 also supports AnyConnect connections besides OpenVPN, IPSec, PPTP, SSH and more…
http://www.shimoapp.com
Fabian
@fabian
I love your app and have used it with CiscoVPN in the past, but can’t figure out how to connect with AnyConnect.
Are you maybe interested in beta testing the AnyConnect functionality? Because at the moment I don’t have an AnyConnect gateway by myself, so I cannot test it at all…
Write an email to support[AT]shimoapp.com
The Cisco VPN Client (Mac) is very ugly and I stumbled across this article while looking for an alternative.
I really like Shimo. However, it’s no longer freeware and I can’t justify the cost for my usage which would basically be a nicer front-end for the Cisco VPN Client. It’s a shame there isn’t a “lite” version available just for this client.
We already saw the Diamond and Omnia in action and you’ re free to replay the game here. The Diamond surely has a few things to offer over the Omnia (VGA screen, smaller size, 3D acceleration, and magnetic stylus) but it also has its issues here and there to make it a tough call indeed. We do hope however that this review will bring you a little closer to deciding your allegiance.