Chapter 6. Client/Server Mode with tap Devices
The other deployment model for OpenVPN is a single server with multiple remote clients capable of routing Ethernet traffic. We refer to this deployment model as client/server mode with tap devices.
The main difference between tun and tap mode is the type of adapter used. A tap adapter provides a full virtual Ethernet (layer 2) interface, whereas a tun adapter is seen as a point-to-point (layer 3) adapter by most operating systems. Computers connected using (virtual) Ethernet adapters can form a single broadcast domain, which is needed for certain applications. With point-to-point adapters, this is not possible. Also, note that not all operating systems support tap adapters. For example, both iOS and Android support tun devices only.
In this chapter, we start with a basic client/server setup, which is very similar to the basic setup described in Chapter 4, Client/Server Mode with tun Devices. However, there are subtle differences that...