WorkManager: VPN auto-launch on iPad

[Former Member]

Hello,

We are planning to allow access for Work Manager through our firewall via a per-App VPN tunnel. 

The theory is that the Work Manager app should auto-launch the VPN connection when data is synched, but this does not happen and at the moment we have to manually open the connection.

Our Network guys have said they suspect that the Work manager application is using lower level sockets that do not initiate the per app VPN. It is the CFSocket which triggers the per app VPN however some applications use lower level BSD sockets.

Can anybody confirm the Work Manager app is using the CFSocket or a lower level BSD sockets?

Any help appreciated!

Lukas

[bill_froelich · Accepted solution]

Lukas,

I can confirm (from discussions with Engineering) that the Agentry iOS Client uses the iOS CFSocket API.  It does not use the high-level iOS api call NSURLRequest nor does it use low-level BSD sockets.

Also note that Agentry uses the WebSockets protocol to switch the socket, after authentication via HTTP, into a binary mode for its use.

--Bill

[Former Member]

I had this same questions to me when I was working Support, and I want to say yes.  But one option you can do is most VPN software has sdk that you can call to enable the VPN software.  On the Transction Action before the transmit step is called, use the OpenURL Action step to call the VPN SDK to start the connection.

[Former Member]

Thanks Stephen,  so you think it Work Manager does use the lower level BSD sockets on IOS?

We are using MobileIron, we will investigate the option to call the VPN SDK.

[Former Member]

I know others have tried to Auto VPN but it wasn't working so that is the route they went.

[Former Member]

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