On Sept. 26, 1999 F/X Communications released version 2.3 of InJoy - The Best Way to the Internet. In June I did a detailed review of v2.2. So I shall limit this review to a discussion of what has changed.

Packaging

Not mentioned in the documentation is a significant change in how InJoy is packaged.¹ Prior to 2.3 each of the four functionality levels of In-Joy--Basic, Extended, SOHO, and Professional--was a separate download. Starting with 2.3, all levels are contained in a single package. A user licenses a specific level, as before, and the licence unlocks the sections of the code required by that level. (The only exception is the Professional level for more than 25 users: that has to be ordered directly from the author.)

Installation

I have registered two different levels of InJoy--Extended and SOHO. When I updated from v2.2 to v2.3 I unzipped the single package over each of the levels separately. Upon examination, each level maintained its own identity. Each key therefore unlocked only the code it was supposed to. Therefore there were no surprises and everything worked correctly.

Security

By far the most important changes in 2.3 relate to security. Security has always been important to the F/X Communications mission, as a brief glance at some of their other products (InJoy Firewall and Tunnel/2) will show. With the latest release of InJoy, F/X Communications has tightened security provisions already supported by InJoy and introduced a whole new level of support to their basic product line.

1. Firewall
   1. Ports, specific and [multiple] ranges, can now be included in the firewall specifications. This means it is now possible to admit or exclude someone based on their port as well as just the IP.

   2. Larger number of sample filters and firewall rules have been provided.

2. IPSec
   Brand-new support for 128-bit encryption-enabled IPSec has been added to InJoy v2.3 at the SOHO and Professional levels.
   1. What is IPSec? According to the InJoy documentation:
      1. IPSec (Internet Protocol Security) is an Internet standard for interconnected, secure networking devices and the predominant technology in Virtual Private Networks (VPNs).

      2. Support of the IPSec technology extends the InJoy products with capability of building VPN's and secure channels to other major vendors on the market. The IPSec technology is proven to be interoperable and since it is an international standard, it can negotiate safe communications between different organizations using different IPSec solutions.

   2. Then what is a Virtual Private Network?²

      Suppose you have a LAN and your partner or company has another LAN in another city. Further suppose you want to exchange sensitive data between those two LAN's. One way of doing it would be to have each LAN connected to the Internet using the nearest phone line. The problem with this is that this data is highly sensitive and the Internet is notoriously insecure.

      One solution to the problem would be to enclose the outgoing TCP/IP packet created by the gateway computer (computer connected to the Internet) in yet another packet according to a different, well-defined set of specifications that would cause any tampering to be detected by the receiving gateway.

      A setup like the one we described is called a Virtual Private Network. Several such specifications to ensure security have been developed and IPSec is the one that is currently most popular. As you might imagine, encryption forms an important part of IPSec. The level of encryption employed by InJoy is 128-bits.

   3. Why IPSec?

      One of the biggest advantages of the IPSec to the OS/2 user is its proven ability to interact with many different operating systems. For more information on VPN's and IPSec consult the F/X IPSec Users Guide.

   4. Batteries Included.

      Both the SOHO and Professional levels of InJoy v2.3 include a 5 user version of IPSec. At the time of writing plugins to support additional users are available only through BMT Micro and prices start at US $200 for 25 users.

—Walter Metcalf