title: VPN Connection through PHP or some other server-side scripting?
body: <p>Ok, let me first start off by saying that I've only ever dealt with VPN access through windows by setting up a connection through the control panel. It's pretty simple since everything is pretty much a point-and-click setup. </p>
  
  <p>I'm now working on a project where I need to access a computer cloud on a private network (there is no public IP directly to the cloud so it can only be accessed when I'm on the network). My project involves a website that needs to access that cloud "somehow". Because of my lack of experience/knowledge with VPN's through the command line and how to programmatically connect to a VPN, I've hit a mild obstacle that I'm hoping someone here can help me with. </p>
  
  <p>What kind of server side scripting would I do to get a VPN connection up and running? The website is being hosted on a linux machine. Is their a "default" VPN utility under linux that I can call through PHP to establish a connection? If not, I would really appreciate any and all suggestions on how to circumvent this little problem of mine. FYI the VPN uses PPTP.</p>