NetworkManager VPN configuration export does not work

[Alexey Balmashnov]

Intrepid,
network-manager: 0.7~~svn20080818t061112+eni0-0ubuntu1

Subject says it. To reproduce:
1. Configure VPN connection
2. Try to Export it to a file

As a result I got cryptic error message dialog:
===
Cannot export VPN connection

The VPN connection 'vpn_test' could not be exported to vpn_test (pptp).conf.

Error: unknown error.
===

Expected behavior:
Configuration saved to a file.

=============
WORKAROUND
The configuration is saved in a file in /etc/NetworkManager/system-connections/
that has the same name as the connection.
This file can be examined with a text editor and/or copied around to other machines.
source: https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/network-manager-openvpn/+bug/264144/comments/27
WORKAROUND
=============

[Alexander Sack (asac)]

0.7 vpn support was quite new when i last uploaded it. There have been substantial improvements in the meantime. Please test when the next upload when i make the next snapshot available and comment her whether that helped. Thanks!

[Alexey Balmashnov (a.balmashnov)]

No improvements in NM 0.7~~svn20080908t183521+eni0-0ubuntu2

[Alexander Sack (asac)]

On Fri, Sep 12, 2008 at 07:28:31AM -0000, Alexey Balmashnov wrote:
> No improvements in NM 0.7~~svn20080908t183521+eni0-0ubuntu2
>

could you please file this bug in bugzilla.gnome.org against NM? and
let us know about the gnome bug id?

 - Alexander

[Alexey Balmashnov (a.balmashnov)]

Here we go: http://bugzilla.gnome.org/show_bug.cgi?id=551939

[Sergei Orlov (sergei-orlov)]

I have the same bug...

[Dmytro Korzhevin (korg)]

I can confirm this bug in network-manager Version: 0.7~~svn20081018t105859-0ubuntu1

[Daniel Knittl-Frank (knittl)]

confirmed here

using ubuntu intrepid with latest updates and trying to export a microsoft pptp configuration

[Kjell Braden (afflux)]

Looking at their code, both network-manager-openvpn and network-manager-pptp don't seem to support exporting configs yet. However, they should at least set a sensible error message.

[Robert (robrwo)]

If they don't support exporting configuration, then please disable the export button.

[Phoenix (phoenix-dominion)]

Still the same here on up-to-date jaunty

[davee (davee-sungate)]

The correct upstream bug is http://bugzilla.gnome.org/show_bug.cgi?id=573987 not 551939 - the Gnome bugs were re-organised. The new bug is to "implement import/export", i.e. it's just not implemented at all right now.

[yyy (yyyy)]

This bug is present also in version 0.7.0.100 (default for ubuntu 9.4)

[Mathieu Trudel-Lapierre (cyphermox)]

Reassigning to another GNOME bugzilla number, since there is a more specific entry -- also added the tracker for the same bug for the openvpn plugin

[pdf (pdffs)]

Fixed upstream https://bugzilla.gnome.org/show_bug.cgi?id=573986#c2

[Marc Poulhiès (marc-poulhies)]

Applying this patch to the source package of karmic works. The export produces a nearly correct file (it uses bad uid/gid).

[Mathieu Trudel-Lapierre (cyphermox)]

Targetting this for karmic-updates, since we should be releasing the fix shortly.

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

This bug was fixed in the package network-manager-openvpn - 0.8~rc1-0ubuntu1

---------------
network-manager-openvpn (0.8~rc1-0ubuntu1) lucid; urgency=low

  * upstream release tagged 0.7.997 (NM 0.8~rc1)
    + 0.7.997
    - export: implement export and fix a few import/export bugs (LP: #264144)
    - tls: handle PEM files without an ending newline (rh #507315)
    - export: implement export for static-key configurations (bgo #573986)
  * Add logic to map ~rc1 to 0.7.997 tag, as per the main NM branch.
  * Bump build-deps to require NM 0.8~rc1.
  * Update Standards-Version to 3.8.3.
 -- Mathieu Trudel <email address hidden> Tue, 22 Dec 2009 13:55:04 -0500

[Mathieu Trudel-Lapierre (cyphermox)]

I'm marking this bug against network-manager as invalid, since it instead affects the various VPN plugins directly.

For the time being, network-manager-pptp still does not seem to export configs properly.

[Oliver Herrmann (oliver-herrmann80)]

I had this Issue too, but now im under Lucid Beta1 and it works like charm.

Export and also Import ... thx for this importent work

[Michael Doube (michael-doube)]

Export is still failing for me on today's Lucid ISO. Connecting to Imperial College's VPN, following these instructions:
http://www3.imperial.ac.uk/ict/services/securitynetworkdatacentreandtelephonyservices/collegenetwork/networkconnections/vpnconnection/linux

[Martin McDowell (martin-mcdowell)]

Still not working in network-manager-pptp-gnome / network-manager-pptp

[Elvis Dominguez (elvisd79)]

the problem still here in nm-applet 0.8 (ubuntu 10.04)

[Alan Lord (theopensourcerer)]

Am seeing this problem on 10.10 64bit

[George Calianu (george-calianu)]

I have the same problem in 11.04.

[Nathan Salwen (salwen-1)]

I am running 12.04 and am unable to do

VPN Connections->Configure VPN... then selext VPN and then Export for a pptp vpn connection. I get the error:

"The VPN connection 'myvpn' could not be exported to myvpn.conf.

Error: unknown error"

[Exeleration-G (exeleration-g)]

The error also appears in Ubuntu 13.04, using a PPTP VPN connection.

[Exeleration-G (exeleration-g)]

Possible workaround:

On the first machine:

cd /etc/NetworkManager/system-connections/
sudo cp NameOfConnection ~
cd ~
sudo chown yourusername.yourusername NameOfConnection
[copy file to second machine's home directory]
sudo chown root.root NameOfConnection
sudo chmod 600 NameOfConnection
sudo cp NameOfConnection /etc/NetworkManager/system-connections/
cd /etc/NetworkManager/system-connections/
ls -hl

Make sure that NameOfConnection is there, and make sure its permissions are set like this:
-rw------- 1 root root

Can anyone confirm that this works?

[superxor (phaneendra-chiruvella)]

I get this error on 13.04 while trying to export a PPTP VPN Connection.

[Michael Nagel (nailor)]

I am on Ubuntu 12.04 LTS where this is an issue.
I can confirm that the file-based workaround outlined in comment #27 by exeleration-g works.

[senya (senya)]

Confirming the issue on Ubuntu 14.04.

[citizendelta (dghallau)]

Confirming the issue on Ubuntu 15.04.

[公输目 (yue937)]

confirming the issue on Ubuntu 14.04 amd64.
 https://clbin.com/7OgauO.png

[Jorge Valhondo (jrg-valhondo)]

I confirm this issue in 14.04 LTS x64

[Esel (glumpad)]

I confirm this issue in 16.04 x64