Starting a Connection Before Logging on to a Windows NT Platform

On a Windows NT platform, you can connect to the private network before you log on to your system. This feature is called start before logon and its purpose is primarily to let you log in to the domain and run login scripts.

Your administrator may have set this up for you. Once you establish a VPN connection, your credentials are sent to a domain controller for logging on to your system. If you need to launch an application before you log on, see the section "Launching an Application" for information.

When you have established a successful VPN connection, the VPN Client window closes, and your logon window displays. If the connection is not successful, the VPN Client window continues to display. Your administrator might have set up a banner that lets you know when you have a successful connection.

To activate start before logon, follow these steps:

Open the VPN Client Options menu and choose Windows Logon Properties.
Click Enable start before logon and then click OK or to cancel the operation, click Cancel.

What Happens When You Use Start Before Logon

When start before logon is active, the following events occur when your system starts:

Your system logon dialog box displays. Other messages might display as well, depending on your setup. Wait until you see the VPN Client start.
The VPN Client starts and displays the connection dialog box over the system logon dialog box.
You connect to the private network of the VPN Device. The connection dialog box goes away.
You log on to your system.

Note You can use certificates for authentication with start before logon when your personal certificate, along with the CA or intermediary certificate(s), are in your Cisco certificate store and the Microsoft local machine but not your personal Microsoft store (CAPI certificates). However, to use a CAPI certificate, you can log on using cached credentials, connect using your CAPI certificate, and disable the "Disconnect VPN connection when logging off" parameter (see "Disconnecting When Logging Off of a Windows NT Platform," following). This action keeps your connection open. Now you can log back on to the system.

For information on enrolling certificates and importing certificates into your Cisco store, see "Enrolling and Managing Certificates."

For information about using start before logon with the Entrust SignOn feature, see "Connecting with an Entrust Certificate."

Turning Off Start Before Logon

To turn this feature off, use the following procedure:

Open the VPN Client Options menu and choose Windows Logon Properties.
Click to uncheck Enable start before logon and then click OK or to cancel, thus keeping the feature enabled, click Cancel.
To make these changes take effect, reboot your PC.