AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client Useful Tips for Linux

The most commonly encountered issues when connecting with the Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client can be fixed by altering your browser settings. If you are having problems please see the following notes:

In these notes the term "Security Gateway" refers to the Cisco device to which the Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client connects. Examples of Security Gateways include the Adaptive Security Appliance 5500 and Catalyst 6000.

The complete release notes for this product cover additional issues and are available from Cisco's website.

Adding a Security Certificate in Response to Browser Alert Windows

SSL uses certificates to identify peers in a connection. The Security Gateway has a certificate installed that is used to establish its identity. This certificate may be issued from a widely trusted source, such as Verisign or Thawte, that your computer is already configured to trust, or it may be a self-signed certificate that your computer will not trust automatically. This results in the Security warnings during connection establishment.

This section explains how to install a self-signed certificate as a trusted root certificate on a client in response to the browser alert windows.

In Response to Firefox "Certified by an Unknown Authority" Window

Install the certificate as a trusted root certificate as follows:

  1. Click Examine Certificate in the "Web Site Certified by an Unknown Authority" window.
    The Certificate Viewer window opens.
  2. Click the Accept this certificate permanently option.
  3. Click OK.
    The Security Gateway window opens, signifying the certificate is trusted.

In Response to "Browser can't verify the identity of the website Hostname_or_IP_address" Window

Install the certificate as a trusted root certificate as follows:

  1. Click Show Certificate in the "Browser can't verify the identity of the website Hostname_or_IP_address" window.
  2. Select the option "Always trust Hostname_or_IP_address when connecting to Hostname_or_IP_address".
  3. Click Continue. The Security Gateway window opens, signifying the certificate is trusted.


Allowing Java Applet Execution in Browser

Any browser that supports the Java plugin should work for Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client’s web launch. On Linux, the Java plugin is 64-bit only; this means that only 64-bit browsers are supported. Firefox support the Java plugin; however, Chrome is a 32-bit only browser and does not run Java. For this reason, Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client’s web launch functionality will not run in Chrome and will need to be downloaded manual.


Firefox


By default, Firefox blocks execution of Java applets. In order to grant the necessary permissions to web sites running Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client’s web launch., we must enable Java applet's on Firefox Add-ons.

  1. Navigate to Menu >> Add-ons >> Plugins >> Oracle JAVA
  2. Locate Java(TM) Platform item and expand its drop-down menu.
  3. Select the option Ask to Activate.
  4. Restart your browser for setting to take effect.

This will allow Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client Java applet to execute.