Solved Does my mother need a VPN client?

I have a file server (NAS) that I host lots of content on, especially important files that she also needs to access at all times as long as she has an active Internet connection.
She is 99% of the time NOT on my LAN that my NAS is connected to. Instead, a remote network.
This particular network share has already been mapped as a local drive in File Explorer on her laptop.
"Be always available offline" has also been enabled on the particular network share.

Does she need a VPN client such as OpenVPN GUI Client to keep accessing this particular network share on her laptop when she's connected to a remote network? Via SMB2 (in File Explorer, the drive has been mapped as a local drive)

Using a VPN is a good option. OpenVPN on your NAS
Port forwarding is a technique used to allow external devices to access services on your local network. It involves mapping an external port of the router or gateway to the internal IP address that identifies your NAS.
It’s a risky idea to assign a public IP address to your NAS because it exposes everything on it to potential attackers. These attackers have tools that can scan for exactly this kind of vulnerability, especially weak passwords.

I have a file server, she's connected to it from a remote network over OpenVPN. I have everything set up correctly, both on the server and the client. I can see there's 1 VPN connection currently, that's her. What she can see is the latest state of the files from back when she was on my LAN.

I have offline file sync enabled on all the NAS shares that she has read access to. I have manually sync'd both shares 3x consecutively, she still cannot see the latest file versions or new files I've since added

How can I solve this?

Copilot suggests the following troubleshooting steps, worth a try, IMHO

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It seems you’re facing an issue with offline file synchronization over OpenVPN. Let’s troubleshoot this step by step:

1. Background Sync via VPN:
   • By default, Windows offline files synchronize when the user is connected to the local network. However, over a VPN connection, synchronization might not occur as expected.
   • To address this, you can adjust the slow link mode settings to allow synchronization even over a slow VPN connection. Here’s how:
     • Open the Group Policy Editor (you can search for “gpedit.msc” in the Start menu).
     • Navigate to Computer Configuration → Administrative Templates → Network → Offline Files.
     • Look for options related to background sync and slow link mode. Adjust these settings to allow synchronization over VPN connections.
   • Keep in mind that the initial synchronization might still be slow, but subsequent updates should work better.
2. Permissions and Ownership:
   • Ensure that the user has the necessary permissions to access the files and folders on the server.
   • Check the permissions on the CSC (Client Side Caching) folder (usually located at C:\Windows\CSC). Add the NETWORK group with “List folder / read data” permissions for the folder.
   • Restart the Offline Files service (CscService) after making any changes.
3. Troubleshooting Offline Files:
   • If the issue persists, consider disabling and re-enabling offline files:
     • Go to Control Panel → Sync Center → Manage Offline Files.
     • Click on the “Disable offline files” button.
     • Reboot your PC.
     • Open Windows Explorer and navigate to C:\Windows\CSC.
     • Take ownership of the CSC folder by right-clicking on it and selecting Properties.

Remember to test these changes while connected via VPN to ensure that synchronization occurs properly. If you encounter any further issues, consider alternative solutions like cloud storage services (e.g., Google Drive, Dropbox) for seamless file access across networks.
Summary: Adjust slow link mode settings, verify permissions, and consider cloud storage alternatives for smoother file synchronization over VPN.

Can someone help me out with non-GPT-generated advice?

What's wrong with trying out the sugggested troubleshooting steps?

If you need follow-ups go to copilot.microsoft.com (best, because you are close to the issue) or post here > I will try to help

So I've been having issues with my mother not being able to see files in their most up-to-date state when connecting to my NAS from a remote network via a VPN

Turns out, if I create a shortcut pointing to the NAS or the specific network shares like this: \\Server IP\Share it works perfectly without issues and you get to see the latest files or files in their most up-to-date state

BUT

If I map a network drive when connected to the LAN and then enable Always Offline (Sync) and then open the drive I don't get to see the latest files ever since the last time the client was connected to the share via LAN, not VPN. VPN is working, network connection is fine, every detail in ipconfig checks out yet this issue persists. Also I can't even manually force a sync

Tried going the "Enable SMB1" route, made no difference so I disabled it again.

Also when connecting to the share over a VPN (and remote network), when I go into "Network" in File Explorer, I can't see the NAS or any servers on the LAN. Is this normal?

hdmi said:

Network Computers are not Showing Up in Windows 10/11 | Windows OS Hub

I have received several emails from readers asking for help in resolving the problem of displaying computers in a network environment on the latest Windows 10 and 11 builds. Indeed, there…

woshub.com

Click to expand...

didnt work

You are using wired or wifi network ? the router type ? firewall used ? can you see the network from other PCs ?

William654 said:

You are using wired or wifi network ? the router type ? firewall used ? can you see the network from other PCs ?

Click to expand...

WIFI

It's a TP-LINK AX router with WIFI 6

Kaspersky Firewall that's part of the Kaspersky Total Security suite

Wdym by that? When the other PCs are connected to my LAN via VPN? No. When they are directly connected to my LAN via WIFI or Ethernet? Then yes

CSharpDev said:

When they are directly connected to my LAN via WIFI or Ethernet? Then yes

Click to expand...

you can see them if connected directly ?
What is the setting of wifi ap isolation in the router ?
disable firewall temporarily and try

William654 said:

you can see them if connected directly ?
What is the setting of wifi ap isolation in the router ?
disable firewall temporarily and try

Click to expand...

If not using VPN, then yes.

No AP.

I... am not sure disabling it would be a good idea lol. Isn't this normal behavior tho? Because Network Discovery is Layer 2, VPN is Layer 3 iirc.

As the title says, whenever I am on a remote network and connected to my NAS (file server) via OpenVPN, when I go into Network in File Explorer, it cannot detect my NAS (file server) even tho now because of the VPN, "I am part of my LAN" as long as I am connected to the VPN and authenticated into it, if I understand correctly

Or is this normal?

I'll try to be as detailed and yet as short as possible.

I have a couple of network drives that I have mounted on all my and my mother's laptops. All of them have the "Offline Sync" enabled. I think this means that as long as the devices are authenticated into my LAN due to the / over the VPN, they should be "seen as if they were actually on my LAN" (tho they are connected to a remote network). So shouldn't the drives' content be automatically updated to the "latest version" as long as they are authenticated into my LAN thru the VPN? Because that isn't happening. And I think it should be

by creating shortcuts to the shares (\\ServerIP\Share) the syncing works flawlessly even tho offline sync isn't / cannot be enabled.

But when going the "mounted network drive --> Offline Sync Enabled" route this never works even tho the VPN connection is perfect, I've checked multiple times.

When I go into the share by means of \\ServerIP\Share, I get to see the latest file versions.

But when I mount the drive like this \\ServerName\Share, I only get to see the versions from the last time my client was on my LAN

I use OpenVPN to connect to my LAN when I'm on a remote network. I am using a DDNS service too.