Maclive.net:: Hamachi: Peer to Peer VPN Connections
Hamachi: Peer to Peer VPN Connections from Technology Posts
June 23, 2006
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 Virtual Private Networks, or VPNs, are the safest way to connect computers or computer networks over the internet. Once a VPN connection is established, the data between the systems on either side of the VPN tunnel exchange data that has been wrapped in encryption. This prevents evil doers from accessing the data while it’s in transit.
Unfortunately, while VPNs are an extremely secure way to connect computers, configuring the VPN connection often borders on rocket science. The routing, IP protocols, and assortment of encryption options often keep even the advanced computer users needlessly spinning their wheels for days. In many cases, people simply give up on the concept of security and fall back to more conventional and much less secure means of transferring data.
In a previous post on this site, I detailed how to configure the VPN service built-in to OS X Server. The article explained how to configure the VPN server so that remote clients (telecommuters or portable computer users) could access a secure LAN over the internet using a VPN client. And while the story was very well received, it became obvious that I wasn’t the only one stumbling to get a VPN server working correctly.
A conventional VPN connects a remote user to a secure network, be it home or corporate. Once the VPN connection is in place, all data between the remote client and the VPN server is wrapped in a tunnel of encryption. It’s impervious to anyone trying to eavesdrop as the data is transmitted over the internet. This is what makes it a virtual private network. The VPN allows the remote user access to all of the network resources of the home or corporate network as if the remote user where plugged into a network port right on the LAN.
Several problems plague people trying to setup a VPN server. First, firewall rules must be set to allow communication between the remote user and the VPN server. This is very often much easier said than done. Next, there is the unyielding configuration of the VPN server and its clients. Additionally the remote user can be at the mercy of NAT translation issues and the access controls set by the network providers at the remote user’s location. In short, there are a lot of things that can go wrong.
All of these issues left me thinking that there must be another way. And, it turns out that there is. Hamachi was design to resolve nearly all of these issues.
What is Hamachi?
Simply put, Hamachi is a peer to peer software VPN solution. It is very easy to install, easy to configure, and just as secure as a conventional VPN. As far as its functionality, it really only differs from a conventional VPN connection on one simple way. A typical VPN connection allows a remote user access to an entire network using the VPN server as a secure gateway to the network and its resources. Instead, Hamachi establishes a point to point VPN tunnel connecting two (or more) computers. The two computers then have full and complete communication with each other via the tunnel, but neither acts as a gateway to the LAN on either side of the connection. The VPN tunnel is considered to be peer to peer.
What makes Hamachi so revolutionary is that it is extremely easy to install, configure, and use. Hamachi is a product of Applied Networking Inc. of Vancouver, Canada. The goal was to create a secure VPN solution that used time tested industrial grade encryption and was still easy enough for anyone to use.
Hamachi’s early releases supported only Windows XP and Linux. But even from the beginning, the developer intended a version for the Mac OS. It took some time, but a beta version is finally available for OS X. Unfortunately, the current version of Hamachi for Mac is run from the command line and is not very easy to use. This was a big problem until a creative and unnamed mind over at hamachix.com took it upon himself to write a GUI for the Hamachi software. With the graphical interface Hamachi finally become accessible to the average Mac user.
Installing and using Hamachi
To install Hamachi, just copy the application from the disk image to the Applications directory on the hard drive. Upon first launch, Hamachi will check to see if the command line resources the HamachiX relies upon are installed. If they are not, HamachiX will install them.
In order to use Hamachi, the computer must be a member of a virtual Hamachi network. Users can either join an existing network, or a new network can be created at any time. Since Hamachi networks are virtual, the network has no physical presence. The networks exist only within Hamachi and are a means to separate users into secure groups.
To create a network, simply click the Add button in the HamachiX toolbar. A case sensitive network name must be assigned to the network. The same goes for a password. Since this is all of the information other users will need in order to join the virtual network, it is important to choose a strong network password. It might be more appropriate to think of the network password as a pass-phrase because a phrase is typically much more difficult to guess or crack. The longer the word or phrase, the better. It should be entered in mixed capitalization and include numbers, letters, and special characters. And, it goes without saying that any password found in the dictionary is out of the question. Finally, select the option to Create a Network.
Once the network is created, HamachiX automatically adds the client to that network. Other users, or computers, will want to join the existing network. To do this, simply click the Add button and enter the networks name and password (or phrase) exactly. Both are case sensitive. Then select the option to join a network.
Once more than one client is a member of the network, a list of network members will be listed under the Peers tab when the network name is selected. If the computer is signed onto the network, a green light will appear beside the computers name and IP address. Hamachi offers a great deal of flexibility in that computers can be members of more than one network at the same time.
The list of Hamachi peers shows who is active on the network at any given time. If the remote computer has a green light beside it, it’s an active member of the VPN. Just right click on the computer in the peer list and select a connection option from the contextual list of choices. This list makes it easy to open up a file share or FTP connection with the remote computer provided they have the necessary services enabled.
Keep in mind that users are not limited to the 3 connection options shown in the contextual menu. More can be added, and any networking that can be negotiated between two computers can also be done over a Hamachi connection.
Additionally, according to the Hamachi web site, Apple’s Bonjour protocol is also supposed to work over Hamachi. This is interesting because Bonjour is designed to only broadcast over the computer’s local subnet. In theory, this would allow people to share their music with friends, or listen to their home music collection from work. Unfortunately, in my tests, I have been unable to get iTunes music sharing to work. At this point, I’m not sure if there is a bug, or I’m doing something wrong. As I understand it, Bonjour should just work once the Hamachi network is in place. With luck, this is a bug and it will be resolved in an update release.
Closing
Hamachi really is a great VPN solution for the rest of us. Once the software is installed on each computer, the encryption and security become transparent to the user. And while other VPN solutions often have difficulty traversing NAT enabled networks, Hamachi makes short work of these typical trials and tribulations associated with Virtual Private Networks.
Since both Hamachi and HamachiX are still in an active beta stage, it’s wise to keep an eye out for updates. For more information on how Hamachi works behind the scenes, be sure to checkout the support forums. The developers at Applied Networking Inc. have been extremely forthcoming regarding the security protocols used in Hamachi. And, for a security expert’s take on Hamachi, checkout the Security Now! podcast #18. Steve Gibson does a great job of explaining how Hamachi works and why its an extremely secure and functional VPN solution.
Update: 6/29/06 7:55am
One of my primary goals in this story was to explain why Hamachi really is a great alternative. Anyone who has tried to set up their own VPN server will appreciate the ease of use. But for the rest of us, it is just a great solution for doing a few things that we haven't been able to do before. To that end, my second goal was to share iTunes and iPhoto libraries outside of the local network.
I made mention of this only briefly in my original post. Since Hamachi's VPN network joins computers as if the VPN is a separate local area network, it should be possible to share iTunes music using iTunes built-in sharing feature (which uses the zero configuration Bonjour protocol). While I knew this should work as soon as Hamachi was installed, for some reason I simply couldn't see other users music. Last week I couldn't see a remote share music library. Last night I still had no luck. This morning, when I sat down at my computer, I could see several remote music shares!
Why did Hamachi start working? I'm still not sure. My MacBook has 10.4.7 freshly installed, but my tower still has 10.4.6. I'm still running the same version of Hamachi on all of the machines. It's just a mystery.
I invite everyone to leave comments below. Is Hamachi letting you share iTunes and iPhoto libraries over Bonjour or is this hit and miss for everyone? As of right now, I can play remotely hosted music with no noticeable delay. Yet another reason to fall in love with Hamachi!
Update: 7/13/06 11:03pm
A new version of HamachiX has been released. In includes the latest build of the Hamachi command line components.
Update: 7/14/06 11:40am
With either the update to 10.4.7, or iTunes 6.05, it looks like the Bonjour music sharing has stopped working. Reinstalling tuntap support does appear to resolve the issue.
The Universal Binary tuntap installer can be downloaded here:
http://www.lillevold.com/files/tuntap_tiger_universal.tar.gz
Thanks to all who helped resolve this issue! Their comments are listed below.
--
Steve
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By smanke at 6:04 PM 
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Comments: 64 |
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By EmiratesMac on June 24, 2006 at 6:31 AM
Thanks for this! It's great reading. I just found it literaly a few minutes after
posting myself on Hamachi http://www.emiratesmac.com/home/p2_articleid/562.
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By smanke on June 29, 2006 at 10:32 AM
I just updated the above post. For some reason, iTunes music sharing just started to
work.
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By Cosimoto on July 1, 2006 at 1:43 AM
I was able to use Hamachi/iTunes sharing until both machines were updated with
10.4.7. Now I can't get it to work at all. Might have been iTunes 6.0.4 too. Are you
experiencing the same thing or is it just me?
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By EmiratesMac on July 1, 2006 at 6:30 AM
Cosimoto: no Hamachi stopped working for me too when I upgraded to 10.4.7. I just
reinstalled Tuntap and Hamachi and it works okay again.
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By smanke on July 1, 2006 at 9:55 AM
Looks like you guys are right. Most of the machines on my network are having the same
issue.
I'm thinking that reinstalling the underlying Hamachi components and
reinstalling them will correct the issue, but I don't have a practical way to test it.
There are options to do this under the Help menu in System Support. Is that what
you did, EmiratesMac?
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By Cosimoto on July 1, 2006 at 11:17 AM
Installing tuntap (I never installed it before, so it wasn't a reinstall) fixed
it for me too. Thanks for the help!
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By nbmacman on July 4, 2006 at 10:15 PM
Where do we find the seperate installer for tuntap?
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By smanke on July 14, 2006 at 10:38 AM
Has anyone found a universal binary version of tuntap? Or, has anyone getting iTunes
sharing to work again using the non UB version on an Intel Mac?
This is the
only installer I have seen online so far:
http://www-user.rhrk.uni-kl.de/~nissler/tuntap/
Cosimoto,
EmiratesMac, what installer did you use?
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By Cosimoto on July 14, 2006 at 10:47 AM
I got it to work on my intel imac in a very weird way. I used that installer you
mentioned, but i couldn't get it work no matter what I did. Them just for the fun if it,
I installed the windows version of Hamachi (I use Parallels) and WTF (!), the mac Hamachi
started working! I have no idea why, but now it runs perfectly. And no, the windows
version does not have to be running in order for the mac version to work. See, I told you
it was weird.
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By smanke on July 14, 2006 at 10:59 AM
ahh... wow! that's really odd!
I'll play with it and see if i can get it
to work. Thanks!
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By smanke on July 14, 2006 at 11:21 AM
To All:
Magnus sent me this link:
http://forums.hamachi.cc/viewtopic.php?t=7338
That page
contains this link to the Universal Binary tuntap installer:
http://www.lillevold.com/files/tuntap_tiger_univer...
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By tdy on July 19, 2006 at 7:20 PM
her is my hamachi netvork CS1.6Rulez password CS1.6Rulez
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By Graham on July 21, 2006 at 7:11 AM
Hey I got HamachiX installed but when i try add a netwrok or join on the add button is
always greyed out. How do I fix that?
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By smanke on July 21, 2006 at 11:04 AM
Graham,
That seems to be a bug in HamachiX. I recall hitting the same
issue. I just hit the tab button a couple of times to toggle through the fields and the
button just lit up.
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By Anonymous on August 12, 2006 at 2:04 PM
Hmm, I installed the GUI version of HamachiX on the mac, installed Hamachi on my PC,
and sharing my iTunes music appears to work like a charm! The Mac and PC are on two
different networks and it's not giving me any problems. I'm running OS X ver. 10.4.7, and
iTunes ver. 6.0.5 (20) on both machines.
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By bacnd on August 29, 2006 at 10:47 AM
I can't browser with Hamachi, please help me, thanks
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By smanke on August 29, 2006 at 11:16 AM
bacnd,
Can you be more specific? You can't browse file shares, or
iTunes?
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By bacnd on August 29, 2006 at 8:51 PM
Yes SMANKE
I'm exactly do not browser or ping by Hamachi, I do many work so not
right, help me please
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By bacnd on August 29, 2006 at 8:56 PM
not browse file share, when I ping to another PC, message are always show: Request
timed out
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By bacnd on August 29, 2006 at 11:25 PM
I can't see anything i need in this page. please help me about file share when i use
Hamchi
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By smanke on September 7, 2006 at 4:58 PM
bacnd,
There was a day last week when there seemed to be a network wide
outtage of Hamachi. I am wondering if you were using it at that time.
Other
than that, I had some small issues when I first installed the software. Everything seemed
to work better following my first reboot.
Are you still having issues?
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By stephen on October 25, 2006 at 11:10 AM
I have it working for iTunes, but how do you get it to share files from a PC to a Mac?
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By smanke on October 25, 2006 at 12:03 PM
stephen,
If you have the file sharing setup on each of the machines,
you're already set. You just need to keep in mind that you need to use the Hamachi IP
address in place of the normal IP in order for the traffic to move over the Hamachi VPN.
If you want to access a Windows share from your Mac over Hamachi, you would
select Connect to Server from the Finder's Go menu (or type Apple+K in the Finder) and
enter smb://5.x.x.x into the address field. (5.x.x.x being the Hamachi IP of the Windows
box serving the file share.)
If you want to access a Mac file share from
Windows, make sure the Windows File Sharing services is enabled on the Mac and open the
Run command from the Windows Start menu. In the Run field, type '\\5.x.x.x\' into the box
and hit enter. In this case, 5.x.x.x is the Hamachi IP of your Mac system. The Windows
box should bring up a list of shares and printer available on Mac box.
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By pari on December 6, 2006 at 11:19 PM
im trying to access the pc from the mac, using OSX 10.4.8, don't seem to work, i can't
login, or add any network.
is there a problem if one has updated to
10.4.8?
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By pari on December 6, 2006 at 11:29 PM
ooops... my bad. i skipped the part with the tuntap... should be working now =)
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By William on January 3, 2007 at 5:18 PM
there is another program like Hamachi to used ???
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By smanke on January 4, 2007 at 9:15 AM
No other programs like Hamachi that I am aware of.
HamachiX seems to be
languishing. No revisions or improvements in far too long. I've been using the command
line version more lately and have been much happier. I hope to put together a new post on
that subject in the near future.
If anyone knows of an alternative to
Hamachi, please post a note. As far as I know, Hamachi is the first solution of its kind.
I just wish it was as refined for the Mac as it is on Windows!
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By mohaa59 on January 5, 2007 at 1:43 PM
Hamachi was working in normal way but it stopped working with me ; when i try to ping
some one in my netwok while the person is online it say request timed out although this
person can ping me and see my file but i cant see his files but only i can chat with
him
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By smanke on January 5, 2007 at 7:16 PM
Very strange. Does rebooting, or resetting the service correct the issue?
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By be_uke on January 8, 2007 at 5:06 PM
Do I need to do anything to my windows box or the mac for files to show up? For
instance, I put \\5.x.x.x (the Hamachi IP of the mac machine, into the Run command, but it
is unable to find anything. Likewise, when I put in smb://5.x.x.x into the Mac, it is
unable to connect, but I am able to share my iTunes library, so I know that Hamachi is
working. What can I do? Thanks.
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By smanke on January 9, 2007 at 9:02 AM
That's odd. Have you enabled Windows Sharing on the Mac? I just tested both ways on
two of my machines. One is off site and firewalled. I was able to connect both ways.
On the other side, some XP boxes sometimes need to have file sharing enabled.
I know that sharing works both ways. If iTunes works, something else is blocking
you. It could be the software firewall on either platform as well.
Good
luck!
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By silkman on February 5, 2007 at 10:29 AM
when i try to "browse" my 2nd pc at work a windows password screen appears. my hamachi
password does not work for this. I can see my work pc on the network and it pings and i
can send messages but i can't browse my pc? file sharing is enabled. could this be a
network/firewall at work problem?
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By smanke on February 5, 2007 at 10:58 AM
silkman,
If you see a password prompt when you try to connect to the
remote machine, its the remote machine that is asking for authentication at an OS level.
Its not part of Hamachi. You will need to enter a valid username and password for the
remote system at the prompt.
Its the remote system that is keeping you our
because it doesn't like the username and password you have entered. Make sure the login
you are using is valid on the machine and be sure that account has permission to access
files remotely.
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By V3ngance on February 9, 2007 at 1:19 PM
For some reason I cant browse anyone on hamatchi and some of my friends cant either.
But some other people on my hamatchi network can browse some others. Can someone help me?
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By smanke on February 11, 2007 at 1:32 PM
V3ngance,
Sorry, you've got me stumped! Are you all running the latest
version?
Anyone else have an idea?
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By V3ngance on February 11, 2007 at 9:27 PM
I am runing the latest version.
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By V3ngance on February 11, 2007 at 9:27 PM
*and so is everyone else
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By Geronimo on March 5, 2007 at 11:00 PM
I just installed Hamachi for the second time on my machine, I downloaded the free
version so I could transfer files from one PC to another like I used to.
I created a
network, and when I try to browse to the other PC a window pops up asking for a password
to "connect to blablabla". It is not the network password, thats not what it is asking
for. I don't know which password it wants. The window only pops up on the PC that I need
to get the files to, browsing from the other PC works fine, but its useless because the
files that I need are on that PC.
Thanks for any help.
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By smanke on March 6, 2007 at 8:02 AM
Geronimo,
It sounds like the password its asking for is the one used to
login to the remote PC. Its not the network pass, but the remote computers pass.
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By Geronimo on March 6, 2007 at 5:31 PM
Yes, you're right, don't know why I couldn't think of that earlier, it works fine now,
thank you.
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By zacanto on March 21, 2007 at 4:31 AM
hi everybody,
Do you know were I can find a keygen for hamachi because after 1
month software were basic and I don't know what does it mean by basic?
Thanks
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By smanke on March 21, 2007 at 7:16 AM
This explains the difference between basic and premium: http://www.hamachi.cc/compare.php
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By LENGLENG21 on April 26, 2007 at 9:33 PM
how can i install the hamachi?i realy need it for my ran private on line game pls. help
me...thank you and more power
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By Aruma on May 6, 2007 at 4:26 AM
Hi , i'm a hamachi user (windows) and i can't join or make a network would someone help
me ...
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By odysseus on June 2, 2007 at 4:11 AM
Hi all
I've downloaded HamachiX 0.9 on my mac, and when ever I try to
launch it, it will quit after a few seconds. A dialog pops up saying 'the application
hamachix quit unexpectedly and blah blah blah and doesn't give a reason why it quit. I've
tried the 4 latest versions and they all do the same.
Please help, I need
Hamachi to connect to a windows box.
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By smanke on June 4, 2007 at 8:50 AM
odysseus,
That's odd. I'm betting you have a corruption somewhere. Try
searching for a Hamachi pref file in both the system's preference folder, and your user
pref folder. Delete it if you find it, then try running HamachiX again.
If
that doesn't do it, you might need to start looking through your system and see if the
Hamachi command line portion of the app is only half installed. Try hitting the forum at
Hamachi.cc and see if you can find a list of what files are placed on your drive when the
software is installed. Then use that info to try and figure out if the app was only half
installed.
I've never seen an issue like this with Hamachi, but I've seen it
with other apps in the past.
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By abbie on June 10, 2007 at 11:01 AM
hi there, i'm trying to get into the other pc but its asking for a password. i read
above that the password shoudl be the one used to log in to the remote computer, however,
there is no password in logging in the remote computer...
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By smanke on June 10, 2007 at 2:04 PM
abbie,
I'm betting Windows is not allowing remote access because there is
no password. Try adding a password to the account and see if it works after that.
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By Anonymous on July 7, 2007 at 2:12 AM
hi there a group of my friends and i used hamachi for ages but now we cant seem to
connect is there are thing going on atm with hamachi? and why else eould this happen?
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By Fez on August 12, 2007 at 10:17 PM
How do I browse the computers connected on my Hamachi network?
do I just
go to run and type \\ip_address or is there some thing else I need to do?
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By smanke on August 13, 2007 at 1:40 AM
Fez,
That should do it. If you know the IP of the Hamachi client you want
to connect to, that's the easiest way to do it.
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By Fez on August 13, 2007 at 2:01 AM
Smanke,
Thanks for your response. I figured out what I was doing wrong.
I had disabled the vulnerable windows applications during installation. That
stopped me from browsing the folder on clients. I fixed from preferences now it works
great!
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By Vermouth on September 19, 2007 at 9:16 PM
i have a question.. I want to play games with my friend using hamachi. I use hamachi x
for mac and all my friend are using windows.. How can i connect to them? In my hamachi i
can see them but they can't see me and i can't connect with them.. Wat should i do?
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By smanke on September 19, 2007 at 10:21 PM
Have you disabled the software firewall on your Mac?
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By Vermouth on September 20, 2007 at 12:59 PM
im sorry im new to mac.. Is disabling the firewall needed to be able to connect hamachi
on? In my windows i know i need to.. But in mac is it required before turning on
hamachi?
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By inviz_ on September 21, 2007 at 3:49 PM
Hey guys,
I decided to set up my cousin with hamachi so we could share
large files easily.
I can browse, download, upload to and modify all the
files in his shared documents folder, but he cannot even see mine.
his
machine produces the error, "the path 5.xxxxxxxxx does not exist.
any insight
gratefully recieved!
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By smanke on October 1, 2007 at 9:03 AM
Vermouth & inviz_
In both cases I would start by disabling the
firewalls.
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By Anonymous on November 18, 2007 at 5:56 AM
why i can't connect to the server hamachin in online game
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By Anonymous on November 27, 2007 at 7:53 PM
i just installed hamachi and it shows that my peer is connected (green dot)but i cannot
ping or browse i CAN ping myself and i used the loopback (127.0.0.1) and it all checks
fine but i cant do theirs
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By Mohammed on December 25, 2007 at 1:56 AM
hi
i just download hamachi and i dont know what to do i wanna play online with
other people it keeps and saying i am offline in hamachi it would be realy great if some 1
can help me out thanks alot
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By LUKE on February 24, 2008 at 9:37 AM
Smanke, I need you help I been trying to connect my two pcs using Hamachi but when I
typed at the windows start , run on one pc the ip address on one 5.X.X.X it says network
path is not found. The firewall on pc I typed in the ip has already been disabled.it
stills doesnt work.
P/s the itunes worked though on both pc
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By max on February 28, 2008 at 11:08 PM
when i open hamachi it brings these things up
terminal and other shit.. can u
help me?
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By Ali Sahbana on April 6, 2008 at 1:56 PM
Please, I like hamachi demo
give me information in video
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By smanke on April 7, 2008 at 8:19 AM
Video... a great idea! I'll see what we can do about that!
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