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Manual Chapter : Clients for Linux

Applies To:

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BIG-IP APM

  • 17.1.0, 17.0.0, 16.1.5, 16.1.4, 16.1.3, 16.1.2, 16.1.1, 16.1.0, 16.0.1, 16.0.0, 15.1.9, 15.1.8, 15.1.7, 15.1.6, 15.1.5, 15.1.4, 15.1.3, 15.1.2, 15.1.1, 15.1.0, 15.0.1, 15.0.0, 14.1.5, 14.1.4, 14.1.3, 14.1.2, 14.1.0, 14.0.1, 14.0.0, 13.1.5, 13.1.4, 13.1.3, 13.1.1, 13.1.0
Manual Chapter

Clients for Linux

About Linux clients

Access Policy Manager (APM) supports two Linux clients, a CLI and Network Access client components for browser-based access. On the CLI for Linux, APM supports logon with user name and password only and does not support any endpoint security features.
On the client component for Linux, APM supports all of the primary Network Access features, except for Drive Mappings and some endpoint security features. For endpoint security support for the web client for Linux, refer to
BIG-IP APM Client Compatibility Matrix
 on AskF5 at
http://support.f5.com/
. For information about Network Access features, refer to
BIG-IP Access Policy Manager: Network Access
 on AskF5 at
http://support.f5.com/
.

About browser-based connections from Linux, Mac, and Windows clients

For Linux, Mac OS X, and Windows-based systems, the Network Access client component is available for automatic download from the BIG-IP system.
The client component supports secure remote web-based access to the network. It is not the same as the customizable client package that is associated with the connectivity profile.
The first time a remote user starts Network Access, APM® downloads a client component. This client component is designed to be self-installing and self-configuring. If the browser does not meet certain requirements, APM prompts the user to download the client component and install it manually.

Requirements for client installation and use on Linux

The table lists requirements for installing Network Access client components on a Linux system and using them for web-based access.
Requirement
Specification
Browser
Use Firefox for installing the client component. The browser must support the installation of plugins.
Firewall settings
If you have a firewall enabled on your Linux system, you must enable access on IP address 127.0.0.1, port
44444
.
PPP
The system must support PPP. (This is usually the case.) The user must have permission to run the PPP daemon.
Installation privilege
The remote user must have superuser authority, or, must be able to supply an administrative password to successfully install the Network Access client.

About Network Access features for Linux clients

Access Policy Manager (APM) supports two Linux clients, a CLI and Network Access client components that support web-based access. On the CLI for Linux, APM supports logon with user name and password only and does not support any endpoint security features.
With the web-based client components for Linux, APM supports all of the primary Network Access features, except for Drive Mappings and some endpoint security features. For endpoint security support for the web client for Linux, refer to
BIG-IP APM Client Compatibility Matrix
 on AskF5 at
http://support.f5.com/
. For information about Network Access features, refer to
BIG-IP Access Policy Manager: Network Access
 on AskF5 at
http://support.f5.com/
.

Specifying applications to start on a Linux client

You can specify applications to start when the client begins a Network Access session. You might do this when you have remote clients that routinely use Network Access to connect to an application server, such as a mail server.
  1. On the Main tab, click
    Access
    Connectivity / VPN
    Network Access (VPN)
    Network Access Lists
    .
    The Network Access Lists screen opens.
  2. In the Name column, click the name of the network access resource you want to edit.
  3. To configure applications to start for clients that establish a Network Access connection with this resource, click
    Launch Applications
     on the menu bar.
  4. Click
    Add
     to add an application list.
    A screen opens showing the Add Application To Launch area.
  5. In the
    Application Path
     field type an application to launch.
    For example, type
    /usr/bin/mozilla
     to start Mozilla.
  6. In the
    Parameters
     field, type a parameter.
    For example, type
    http://www.f5.com
    .
  7. From the
    Operating System
     list, select
    Unix
    .
  8. Click
    Finished
     to add the configuration.
Now, when remote users with assigned resources make a Network Access connection, the application you configured starts automatically.

Overview: Installing and using the CLI for Linux

The BIG-IP Access Policy Manager includes a CLI for Linux. With the CLI, users can initiate VPN connections through APM® from the command line. You can download and deploy this client to your organization's Linux desktops.

Downloading the Linux command line client

Beginning with BIG-IP 14.1.0, you can directly download the
Command Line Client for Linux
 installer packages in either
rpm
 and
deb
 format and distribute it to clients for installation.
  1. On the Main tab, click
    Access
    Connectivity / VPN
    Connectivity
    Client Downloads
    .
    A list of available client downloads displays.
  2. Click the required
    Command Line Client for Linux
    rpm/deb
     file to download.
    The
    rpm/deb
     file is downloaded to your local directory.
Open the package using software installer and proceed with the installation or you may choose to use command line utility to install the package.

Importing a certificate to the local trust store

You can import an untrusted certificate to the local trust store and change it into a trusted certificate.
  1. Using operating system commands, place the certificate in any folder in the operating system.
    For example,
    /etc/certs
    .
  2. Change the directory.
    For example,
    cd /etc/certs
    .
  3. Type the command
    c_rehash ./
    .
The certificate is installed.
Alternatively, instead of installing the certificate, you can specify the
--cacert
 option to import a certificate to the local store.

Linux client commands

The following commands are supported by the Linux command line client. All commands that are invoked on the Linux command line client begin with the command
f5fpc
.
To start a VPN connection, type either of the following commands:
  • f5fpc --start [
    arguments
    ]
  • f5fpc -s [
    arguments
    ]
This requires the
--host
 or
-t
 argument at the minimum.
Use the following table to assign arguments to the Linux commands.
Arguments
Description


--nonblock
-b

Returns the command line interface immediately after the command.


--host [https://]hostname[:port]
-t [https://]hostname[:port]

The host name to which the client starts the VPN connection. This is required.


--user username
-u username

The optional user name for the connection.


--password password
p password

The optional password for the connection.


--userhex hex-encoded-username
-U hex-encoded-username

The optional hex-encoded user name for the connection.


--passwordhex hex-encoded-password
-P hex-encoded-password

The optional hex-encoded password for the connection.


--cert certificate
-r certificate

Specifies an optional client certificate.


--key certificate_key
-k certificate_key

Specifies the key for an optional client certificate.


--keypass SSL_certificate_password
-y SSL_certificate_password

Specifies the password for an optional SSL certificate.


--cacert trusted_CA_certificate
-a trusted_CA_certificate

Specifies a certificate from a trusted certificate authority (CA). If
--cacert
 or
--cacertdir
 is specified, then the server certificate validates for trust against the specified certificate or directory. If
--cacert
 or
--cacertdir
 is not specified, then the default location
/etc/ssl/certs
 is checked to verify trust. The
--nocheck
 option can be specified if a server certificate check is not desired, though this is not recommended.


--cacertdir trusted_CA_certificate_directory
-d trusted_CA_certificate_directory

Specifies a certificate directory that contains a certificate from a trusted CA. If
--cacert
 or
--cacertdir
 is specified, then the server certificate validates for trust against the specified certificate or directory. If
--cacert
 or
--cacertdir
 is not specified, then the default location
/etc/ssl/certs
 is checked to verify trust. The
--nocheck
 option can be specified if a server certificate check is not desired, though this is not recommended.


--nocheck
-x

Specifies that the trusted CA certiicate is not verified for trust at all. If
--cacert
 or
--cacertdir
 is specified, then the server certificate validates for trust against the specified certificate or directory. If
--cacert
 or
--cacertdir
 is not specified, then the default location
/etc/ssl/certs
 is checked to verify trust. The
--nocheck
 option can be specified if a server certificate check is not desired, though this is not recommended.
To stop the VPN connection, type either of the following commands:
  • f5fpc --stop
  • f5fpc --o
To display the connection status, type either of the following commands:
  • f5fpc --info
  • f5fpc --i
To display the command line client help, type either of the following commands:
  • f5fpc --help
  • f5fpc --h

Info command status and error codes

The following status codes and error codes might be displayed when you run the
--info
 command.
Error code/command status
Hex value
Shell value
Description
CLI_ERROR_SUCCESS
0x0
0
The command line operation was successful.
CLI_ERROR_USERS_DISCONNECT
0x150
80
The user was disconnected
CLI_ERROR_LOGON_FAILURE
0x151
81
Login failed due to incorrect authenticaion information or login errors.
CLI_ERROR_ATTENTION_REQUIRED
0x154
84
The user's attention is required.
CLI_ERROR_GENERIC_FAILURE
0x155
85
An error occurred in the system API.
CLI_ERROR_UNKNOWN_PARAMETER
0x156
86
An incorrect or unknown parameter was passed to the command line.
CLI_ERROR_WRONG_VALUE
0x157
87
This is an undefined error.
CLI_ERROR_UNKNOWN_SESSION_ID
0x158
88
An unknown session ID was encountered. The user should reconnect to the server.
CLI_ERROR_NO_PROFILE
0x15B
91
No such profile exists.
CLI_ERROR_MSGQ_OPEN_FAILURE
0x15D
93
The system failed to open the message queue.
CLI_ERROR_OPERATION_IN_PROGRESS
0x15F
95
An operation is in progress, please retry.
kss_Initialized
1
1
The session is initialized.
kss_LogonInProgress
2
2
The user login is in progress.
kss_Idle
3
3
The session is idle.
kss_Established
5
5
The session is established.
kss_AttentionReq
6
6
The session requires the user's attention.
kss_LogonDenied
7
7
Login was denied.
kss_LoggedOut
8
8
The user is logged out of the server.

Support for the Command Line Clients running on Linux AArch64 with UOS and Ubuntu Operating Systems

With this release, Edge Client supports Linux Command Line Clients (f5fpc) on AArch64 with UOS and Ubuntu Operating Systems. However, support for Edge Client installation package creation for AArch64 BIG-IP would be available in the upcoming BIG-IP version 17.1.0 or higher releases, meanwhile, you can follow the below steps to produce a Linux installer package and distribute to users using any internal file distribution portals or email.

Installing the Linux AARCH64 Package

Perform the following steps to install the
linux_f5cli.aarch64.deb
 package from the BIG-IP:
  1. Upload and install the APM 7240 GA build on the BIG-IP server.
  2. Secure Shell (SSH) to BIG-IP server through root credentials.
  3. Copy the file from the
    /var/apm/mount/apmclients-7240.2023.104.610-6163.0.iso/sam/www/webtop/public/download/linux_f5cli.aarch64.deb
     location to a server where users can download it.
  4. Use the command
    sudo dpkg -i linux_f5cli.aarch64.deb
     and install the package on the ubuntu machine.
  5. For the installation instructions, refer to the K47922841 article.

Editing the log level for Edge Client on Linux

You can edit log settings in the configuration file on Linux systems.
  1. In the
    /usr/local/lib/F5Networks
     directory, open the
    f5networks.conf
    file.
  2. Edit the settings to change the log level.
    By default, the values are 0 (zero). For debugging purposes, set the values to 5.

VPN component installation and log locations on Linux

On Linux operating systems, the client installs the VPN components and writes VPN logs to the locations listed in the table.
Category
Location
VPN component
/usr/local/lib/F5Networks
VPN logs
~/.F5Networks
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