Openswan Software As A VPN Client For Connecting To Cisco VPN Servers

Posted on May 7, 2010 by Lucky

I have been using “vpnc” software as a VPN client for connecting to my company’s VPN servers for quite some time. However, “vpnc” is very limited in features as it only supports IPsec aggressive mode, pre shared key (PSK) authentication, and only IKEv1 (IKE version 1). Although, “vpnc” also supports “hybrid” authentication, this hybrid authentication just involves verifying server’s certificate, but not client’s certificates. These features are just a subset of features included in various IPsec and IKE protocols. In addition to the features what “vpnc” offers, IPsec and IKE protocol suites involve IKEv1 main mode (phase 1 exchange in addition to phase 2 quick mode exchange), certificates and raw RSA keys based authentication, and IKEv2 (IKE version 2) among several others features. Due to this, I planned to move to another IPsec based VPN software that implements a large IPsec and IKE feature set. Openswan (http://www.openswan.org/) is one such popular open source (free) software available that can be used for connecting to Cisco VPN servers. Here I will explain the instruction I used for connecting to my company’s Cisco VPN server. I used the latest Openswan version (2.6.25) as of now that can be downloaded from http://www.openswan.org/download/openswan-2.6.25.tar.gz . I have experimented Openswan on Fedora and Ubuntu Linux distributions. Fedora offers pre compiled rpms, whereas it should be compiled from source on Ubuntu. For example, Openswan rpms for Fedora 12 can be downloaded from http://koji.fedoraproject.org . Various instructions for using Openswan are described next.

Installation On Fedora 12:

yum install openswan (as a root user)

or

sudo yum install openswan (as a non root user with sudo permissions)

Compilation and Installation on Ubuntu:

tar -xvzf openswan-2.6.25.tar.gz
cd openswan-2.6.25
make programs install

Editing /etc/ipsec.conf file:

Your ipsec.conf file should look like below:

config setup
protostack=netkey
nat_traversal=yes
oe=off

conn   mycompany
authby=secret
left=%defaultroute
leftid=@your company group name
leftxauthclient=yes
leftmodecfgclient=yes
leftxauthusername=your login name in your company
right=your company’s gateway IP address or host name
remote_peer_type=cisco
rightxauthserver=yes
rightmodecfgserver=yes
ike=<described in detail below>
esp=<described in detail below>
auto=add

The value of “ike” and “esp” can be in the format “encryption algorithm-hash algorithm;Diffie Hellman group”, where encryption algorithm can be one of “3des” or “aes”, hash algorithm can be one of “md5” or “sha1”, and Diffie Hellman group can be “modp1024” (similar to diffie hellman group 2 or dh2) or “modp1536” (similar to diffie hellman group 5 or dh5). Although, there are several others encryption algorithm and Diffie Hellman groups implemented in Openswan, however, the values described here are the most frequently used. For example, different values of “ike” can be as follows:

ike=3des-md5;modp1024
ike=aes-sha1;modp1536 or ike=aes-sha1 (by default, Openswan assumes “modp1536”, so it is not required to be written explicitly)

“esp” can also take values similar to “ike” as follows:

esp=3des-md5;modp1024
esp=aes-sha1

The values of “ike” describes the IKE phase1 (main mode or aggressive mode) “encryption algorithm-hash algorithm;Diffie Hellman group” combinations, whereas “esp” describes IKE phase2 (quick mode) “encryption algorithm-hash algorithm;Diffie Hellman group” combinations. You must contact your company’s network administrator about the exact configured values for these parameters.

A sample /etc/ipsec.conf will look like below:

config setup
protostack=netkey
nat_traversal=yes
oe=off

conn   mycompany
authby=secret
left=%defaultroute
leftid=@cisco-group
leftxauthclient=yes
leftmodecfgclient=yes
leftxauthusername=johnmatt
right=your.company.gateway.com
remote_peer_type=cisco
rightxauthserver=yes
rightmodecfgserver=yes
ike=aes-sha1
esp=aes-sha1;modp1024
auto=add

Note: Please leave a space or tab before each line in /etc/ipsec.conf, except the lines “conn setup” and “conn mycompany”.

Editing /etc/ipsec.secrets:

<your company group name as the value of “leftid”>: PSK “your company’s group password”
<@username similar to leftxauthusername beginning with @> : XAUTH “your user password”

A sample /etc/ipsec.secrets will look like below:

@cisco-group: PSK “abcd1234”
@johnmatt : XAUTH “xyz12wx”

Starting Openswan:

service ipsec start (must be root)

or

sudo service ipsec start (as non root user with sudo permissions)

Establishing VPN Connection:

ipsec auto –up mycompany (must be root)

or

sudo ipsec auto –up mycompany (as non root user with sudo permissions)

If you see “IPsec SA established” as one of its output, that means that the connection is established.

Stopping Openswan:

service ipsec stop (must be root)

or

sudo service ipsec stop (as non root user with sudo permissions)

Configuring Aggressive Mode:

By default, Openswan uses IKE “main mode” during its phase1. However, it is possible that your company’s Cisco VPN server may be using “aggressive mode” instead of “main mode”. For configuring, “aggressive mode”, add following line anywhere in the “conn mycompany” section.

aggrmode=yes

Perfect Forward Secrecy (PFS):

By default PFS is enabled in Openswan, to disable that add following line anywhere in the “conn mycompany” section.

pfs=no (pfs=yes by default)

Configuring Openswan With RSA Secure ID (One Time Password (OTP)):

In the above instructions, I have assumed that your user password (@johnmatt : XAUTH “xyz12wx”) does not change, and remains same for long duration. However, several companies are giving RSA secure IDs (also called RSA tokens) that are being used as one time password (OTP) for better security. If you have also got RSA secure ID from your company, then you need to change your /etc/ipsec.secrets slightly, and your /etc/ipsec.secrets will look as follows:

@cisco-group: PSK “abcd1234”

Notice that there is no XAUTH line now. The reason is that when you will run “ipsec auto –up mycompany” command, it will prompt you for user password. When using RSA secure IDs, your password generally would be “PIN+RSA number displayed”, where PIN is a fixed secure string created by you. Your company must tell you about it, so you should not be worried.

In general, Openswan offers many more configuration options than those described here. Please run commands “man ipsec.conf” and “man ipsec.secrets” for more details. If you need further guidance on Openswan configuration, please leave a comment.

Posted in Technology | Tagged | 2 Comments

How To Connect Securely With Your Company's VPN server (Cisco VPN servers) Using "vpnc" Client

Posted on May 5, 2010 by Lucky

Now days, several software companies provide their employees with the flexibility of working from home as and when there is a need. This way, employees can maintain a better balance between their work life and personal life. However, while working from home, employees are needed to use a VPN (virtual private network) client for connecting with their company’s VPN servers. VPNs are useful for preventing company’s confidential communication from outsiders. “vpnc” is a software, that can be used to accomplish this, and can be downloaded from http://www.unix-ag.uni-kl.de/~massar/vpnc/. I am assuming that your company uses Cisco VPN servers, because “vpnc” is primary developed as a client for them. “vpnc” software implements IPsec (IP Security) based technology for providing VPN connections. The instructions, I am going to describe below, have been tested on Linux (Ubuntu and Fedora) machines. On Fedora, you can do “yum install vpnc”, and on Ubuntu, you can do “apt-get install vpnc” for installing “vpnc” on your machine, if you do not want to compile from “vpnc” source code. You must be logged in as a “root” user for installing software on your Linux machine. If you are not logged in as a root user, then you must have “sudo” permission to install “vpnc” software, and then commands will be “sudo yum install vpnc” on Fedora, and “sudo apt-get install vpnc” on Ubuntu.

Simple “vpnc” configurations (mostly used):

First, you need to create a file named as “vpnc.conf” in your “/etc” directory. Again, for creating files in /etc directory, either you must be root user or must have “sudo” permissions. The contents of your “vpnc.conf” file should be:

IPSec gateway (you can ask your company’s network administrator about it).
IPSec ID (Again, you can ask your company’s network administrator about it).
IPSec secret (Please ask your company’s network administrator about it, and should be kept secret).
Xauth username (You must be knowing this).
Xauth password (You must be knowing this).
NAT Traversal Mode natt

A sample vpnc.conf file should be as follows:

IPSec gateway your.vpn.server.com
IPSec ID  abcdef
IPSec secret xyz1234
Xauth username johnmatt
Xauth password at!23gh5
NAT Traversal Mode natt

Once you have written above information in your vpnc.conf, then type following command on the command prompt:

vpnc (if logged in as a root)

and,

sudo vpnc (if not a root user)

In the above instructions, I have assumed that your user password (Xauth password) does not change, and remains same for long duration. However, several companies are giving RSA secure IDs (also called RSA tokens) that are being used as one time password (OTP) for better security. If you have also got RSA secure ID from your company, then you need to change your vpnc.conf slightly as discussed next.

vpnc with RSA secure IDs:

Then, your vpnc.conf should like:

IPSec gateway your.vpn.server.com
IPSec ID  abcdef
IPSec secret xyz1234
Xauth username johnmatt
NAT Traversal Mode natt

Note, the line “Xauth password at!23gh5” is missing. The reason is that now vpnc will prompt you for a password. When using RSA secure IDs, your password generally would be “PIN+RSA number displayed”, where PIN is a fixed secure string created by you. Your company must tell you about it, so you should not be worried.

Advanced “vpnc” configurations:

By default, vpnc is configured with Diffie Hellman group 2. If your company’s VPN server is configured with some other group, then you need to enable following option in your vpnc.conf file:

IKE DH Group <dh1/dh2/dh5>

If your company’s VPN server is configured with PFS (Perfect Forward Secrecy), then enable following option in your vpnc.conf (by default disabled):

Perfect Forward Secrecy <nopfs/dh1/dh2/dh5/server>

By default, vpnc uses IPsec in PSK (pre shared key) mode for authentication. However, if you want to use certificates for authentication, you also need to use following configuration variables in your vpnc.conf:

IKE Authmode hybrid
CA-File  <certificate-authority-pem-file>
CA-Dir <path-to-your-certificate-authority-directory>

When running vpnc, it does not output any messages. However, if you want to see the output messages for debugging purposes, please enable the following option in your vpnc.conf file.

Debug <0/1/2/3/99>

Insecure vpnc options:

I would suggest vpnc users never enable following options in your vpnc.conf.

Enable Single DES

If you enabled single DES (Data Encryption Standard), your VPN connection will become a joke. Also, be careful while enabling following:

Enable no encryption

If you are sure that you are not communicating any confidential or sensitive company information, or you may be concerned with your VPN connection’s performance that may have been slowed down due to encryption, you may enable this option. In general, DO NOT enable this option.

Note: please refer vpnc man page (command: man vpnc) for more details on configurations.

Posted in Technology | Tagged | 2 Comments

H4 VISA Documents Required At Port Of Entry In USA (United State of America)

Posted on May 1, 2010 by Lucky

1. Copy or Original I797A (I129 type)
2. Passport (with H4 visa)

It is good to have other documents that you carried with you during your H4 visa interview, as specified here:
https://binaryjunction.com/2010/04/29/h4-visa-documents-for-usa-united-state-of-america/

Questions asked:
1. Where does your spouse work?
2. What is your spouse’s job description?

In addition, it is better to prepare other questions like here:
https://binaryjunction.com/2010/05/01/h4-visa-related-questions-asked-during-the-interview-appoinment/

Posted in VISA | Tagged | 7 Comments

H4 VISA related questions asked during the interview appointment at USA (United State of America) Embassy or Consulate

Posted on May 1, 2010 by Lucky

I have prepared these questions by talking with some of my friends who have gone through this process before. Not all questions may be relevant to your situations, and some questions may seem unnecessary. I just wanted to prepare a comprehensive list to cover different scenarios. I have also tried to group the questions in different categories for better clarity. If you think if some important question is missing, or some question listed here is not clear, please leave a comment.

General questions:
1. How long are you and your spouse planning to stay in USA? (Answer: For the duration of your H1B)
2. What is your education?
3. What type/kind of visa are you applying for? (Answer: ofcourse H4)
4. How did you receive the documents?
5. Who took the visa interview appointment online?
6. Where will you stay in USA?
7. Who will bear the expenses while you are in USA or who will financially support you in the US?
8. Who filed the visa application and where did you file it?
9. Are you traveling alone, in case you are, they may ask why?

Your spouse’s (who is on H1B) job related questions:
1. Where does your spouse work, or what is the name of your spouse’s company?
2. How long has your spouse been working?
3. What is your spouse’s position (role) in the company? What are his/her job responsibilities or job description?
4. Is your spouse employed through some consultant company or is he employed directly?
5. What is your spouse’s salary?
6. Where is your spouse’s employer located?
7. If working for a consultant company, where are his clients located?
8. What are your spouse’s timings at his/her current job? does he/she ever work beyond that?

Marriage related questions:
1. When did you get married? or How long have you been married?
2. Was it arranged or love marriage?
3. When did you meet your spouse for the first time?
4. How did you meet your spouse?
5. Where did you get married?
6. Is your marriage registered, or please show your marriage certificate?
7. What is your spouse’s date of birth?
8. What is your husband’s age? your age?
9. Have you ever called your spouse? what is his/her number?
10. What is your mother-in-law’s name?  What is your father-in-law’s name?
11. What is your full maiden name?  your spouse full name? why did you not change your surname after marriage (in case you did not)?
12. How many people were present during your marriage?
13. Are your father in law and mother in law in USA (in case they are)? When will they come back? Why do they want to come back?
14. What does your father-in-law do? Same question for your mother-in-law, your mother and father, and your siblings?
15. Are you wearing the same wedding necklace?
16. How long has your spouse been in USA?

H1B related questions:
1. When did your spouse’s H1B start (i.e. start date)?
2. When did your spouse get H1B visa stamped?
3. Does your spouse have H1B stamped, why did he not come? when is he planning to come?
4. Have your spouse applied for green card? is your spouse planning to apply for green card? why not?
5. What is the plan you and your husband have, after H1B (or H4) duration is over?
6. (If you didn’t go for the H4 interview with your spouse’s H1B visa appointment then) Why did you not come with your husband for the interview?
7. Who sponsored your spouse’s H1B?

(In case, you have been in USA before (for example on F2), and then going for H4) Your USA stay related questions:
1. What was your visa status before? what was your spouse’s visa status before?
2. Did you work anywhere?
3. What do you do there? Are you planning to work in the future?
4. How do you spend your time there, if not working?
5. When did you go to USA or how long have you been in USA?
6. Where do you (or your spouse) stay in USA? do you stay together?

(In case, your spouse worked on OPT before shifting to H1B) OPT related questions:
1. How did your spouse work before H1B? or what was your spouse’s status before H1B if he/she was working? (Answer: Post-OPT)
2. How did your spouse work before when he was in school? (Answer: either CPT or PreOPT)

Your spouse’s school (US university where your spouse studied) related questions:
1. Which school did your spouse attend? his/her major? his/her degree?

Your siblings related questions:
1. Do you have any brother or sister or any other relative in USA? similar question for your spouse?
2. Is your brother/sister planning to go to USA, in case they are not in USA? If not, why not?
3. If your spouse family is in USA, then what does your brother-in-law/sister-in-law doing in USA? Where do they stay?

I have prepared these questions by talking with some of my friends who have gone through this process before. Not all questions may be relevant to your situations, and some questions may seem unnecessary. I just wanted to prepare a comprehensive list to cover different scenarios. I have also tried to group the questions in different categories for better clarity. If you think if some important question is missing, or some question listed here is not clear, please leave a comment.General questions:
1. How long are you and your spouse planning to stay in USA? (Answer: For the duration of your H1B)
2. What is your education?
3. What type/kind of visa are you applying for? (Answer: ofcourse H4)
4. How did you receive the documents?
5. Who took the visa interview appointment online?
6. Where will you stay in USA?
7. Who will bear the expenses while you are in USA or who will financially support you in the US?
8. Who filed the visa application and where did you file it?
9. Are you traveling alone, in case you are, they may ask why?Your spouse’s (who is on H1B) job related questions:
1. Where does your spouse work, or what is the name of your spouse’s company?
2. How long has your spouse been working?
3. What is your spouse’s position (role) in the company? What are his/her job responsibilities or job description?
4. Is your spouse employed through some consultant company or is he employed directly?
5. What is your spouse’s salary?
6. Where is your spouse’s employer located?
7. If working for a consultant company, where are his clients located?
8. What are your spouse’s timings at his/her current job? does he/she ever work beyond that?Marriage related questions:
1. When did you get married? or How long have you been married?
2. Was it arranged or love marriage?
3. When did you meet your spouse for the first time?
4. How did you meet your spouse?
5. Where did you get married?
6. Is your marriage registered, or please show your marriage certificate?
7. What is your spouse’s date of birth?
8. What is your husband’s age? your age?
9. Have you ever called your spouse? what is his/her number?
10. What is your mother-in-law’s name?  What is your father-in-law’s name?
11. What is your full maiden name?  your spouse full name? why did you not change your surname after marriage (in case you did not)?
12. How many people were present during your marriage?
13. Are your father in law and mother in law in USA (in case they are)? When will they come back? Why do they want to come back?
14. What does your father-in-law do? Same question for your mother-in-law, your mother and father, and your siblings?
15. Are you wearing the same wedding necklace?
16. How long has your spouse been in USA?

H1B related questions:
1. When did your spouse’s H1B start (i.e. start date)?
2. When did your spouse get H1B visa stamped?
3. Does your spouse have H1B stamped, why did he not come? when is he planning to come?
4. Have your spouse applied for green card? is your spouse planning to apply for green card? why not?
5. What is the plan you and your husband have, after H1B (or H4) duration is over?
6. (If you didn’t go for the H4 interview with your spouse’s H1B visa appointment then) Why did you not come with your husband for the interview?
7. Who sponsored your spouse’s H1B?

(In case, you have been in USA before (for example on F2), and then going for H4) Your USA stay related questions:
1. What was your visa status before? what was your spouse’s visa status before?
2. Did you work anywhere?
3. What do you do there? Are you planning to work in the future?
4. How do you spend your time there, if not working?
5. When did you go to USA or how long have you been in USA?
6. Where do you (or your spouse) stay in USA? do you stay together?

(In case, your spouse worked on OPT before shifting to H1B) OPT related questions:
1. How did your spouse work before H1B? or what was your spouse’s status before H1B if he/she was working? (Answer: Post-OPT)
2. How did your spouse work before when he was in school? (Answer: either CPT or PreOPT)

Your spouse’s school (US university where your spouse studied) related questions:
1. Which school did your spouse attend? his/her major? his/her degree?

Your siblings related questions:
1. Do you have any brother or sister or any other relative in USA? similar question for your spouse?
2. Is your brother/sister planning to go to USA, in case they are not in USA? If not, why not?
3. If your spouse family is in USA, then what does your brother-in-law/sister-in-law doing in USA? Where do they stay?

Posted in VISA | Tagged | 1 Comment

H4 VISA Documents Required During Interview at USA (United State of America) Embassy or Consulate

Posted on April 29, 2010 by Lucky

Recently, my sister got married and she applied for H4 visa as her husband has been working on H1B visa in USA. It was one of the hectic processes, I had to go through collecting all the needed paper work. My brother-in-law had to leave for USA due to his work, so my sister went alone for her H4 VISA stamping. My brother-in-law already had his H1B visa stamped. I thought to share the required documents on my blog as it might be helpful for others. Although, this list is from an Indian perspective, but might be helpful for people from other countries.

Before listing the documents, I would like to mention that marriage is a must requirement for H4 visa.

Mandatory documents:
1. Principal applicant’s copy of I797 (I129): As we understand, principal applicant is the one who is associated with I797A (I129 type). Also, it is not necessary for principal applicant to be present, and H4 visa applicant can go alone too for the stamping.
2. Spouse’s original passport: who is applying for H4 visa.
3. HDFC receipt.
4. Applicant visa photos as specified on http://travel.state.gov/visa/temp/info/info_1287.html.
5. Interview letter.
6. DS-160 application confirmation letter with CEAC bar code: With the introduction of DS-160, one needs not carry the printout of complete application, only the confirmation letter is enough.

Important note 1: US embassy just needs the original passport of H4 visa applicant. Other than this, US embassy never requires any other original documents.

Not mandatory, but highly important documents:
1. Principal applicant’s employment verification letter: a sample letter is provided here http://www.immihelp.com/greencard/sample-employment-letter.html.
2. Principal applicant’s job offer letter.
3. Principal applicant’s pay slips for the last 2 months (better to take 6 months or last one year).
4. Principal applicant’s W2 from previous years: W2 is a tax document sent by USA employers to its employee.
5. Principal applicant’s tax returns (federal and state both) from previous years.
6. Marriage certificate.
7. Marriage invitation cards.
8. Marriage album or some photos.
9. Copy of principal applicant’s valid passport (current and old if any).
10. Copy of principal applicant’s H1B visa: It is not mandatory to have a copy of H1B visa, as it is possible that principal applicant has a H1B approval I797A (I29 type), but does not have H1B visa stamped on his/her passport.
11. Copy of principal applicant’s previous visas, if any.
12. Travel itinerary printout.

Supporting documents:
1. Spouse’s I797A (I539 type): Not everybody receives it, and my sister did not have this one. As per my understanding, infact as my brother-in-law told me, that if the spouse has already been in USA, for example on F2 visa, and then his/her employer files H1B petition for the employee and his/her spouse. In this case, H4 visa person receives I797A (I539 type).
2. LCA (labor condition application): Filed by the company at the time of H1B petition.
3. H1B petition filed by the company.
4. Copy of (at least 6 months) bank statements (checking and savings or any accounts) showing enough funds to support your spouse.
5. A (nice) cover letter from the principal applicant inviting H4 applicant (his/her spouse) addressed to US embassy.

Not really needed, but you may have:
1. Principal applicant’s SSN (social security number) copy: SSN is a unique identification number provided by USA to all its residents who are  eligible and getting paid for the work they are doing.
2. Principal applicant’s driver license photocopy.
3. Principal applicant’s photocopy of I94: I94 is given when one enters USA at the port of entry.
4. Copy of (Pre or Post) OPT documents, if any.
5. Copy of principal applicant’s degrees.
6. H4 applicant’s degree or marksheet documents.
7. H4 applicant’s birth certificate.
8. Principal applicant’s copies of I20 in case he/she has studied in USA before working on H1B: I20 is a document provided by USA university to the international students who have got admission. I20 decides the length of your stay in USA.
9. H4 applicant’s bank account in India.
10. Principal applicant’s USA residency proof, like lease paper if staying in a rented apartment or driver’s license.

In case, the spouse has already been in USA, then you may also take following documents, but not necessary:
1. H4 applicant’s ITIN document: As H4 is dependent VISA, one with H4 visa can not have SSN, so USA issues that person ITIN number that is only used for tax purposes.
2. H4 applicant’s driver’s license copy.
3. H4 applicant’s copies of I20 when on F2 visa, if any.

Important note 2: It is better to have two copies of each original document, in case US embassy requires one, and one for your records.

Important note 3: One on H4 visa is not entitled to work in USA, and can not get paid in any form.

Important note 4: I797C is a notification letter sent by USCIS for the approval of H1B petition. generally I797C is not needed any where.

We got lot of help from the following (very helpful) links:
http://murthyforum.atinfopop.com/
http://www.immihelp.com
http://travel.state.gov/visa/temp/info/info_1287.html
http://www.travel.state.gov/passport/guide/guide_2081.html

Posted in VISA | Tagged | 16 Comments

Earning more money through blog carnivals

Posted on April 2, 2010 by Lucky

In one of my previous posts, I discussed about a very simple way to create a blog website using WordPress. Recently, I have observed that one of most important reasons for creating a blog has been “how to turn a blog into money-making medium”. However, I believe that it is not as easy as it may seem. The reason is very simple that you must know several methods that are very essentials for earning money through blogs. In this post, I would like to discuss one of those methods I have learned recently that may be helpful in generating more money from your blogs. The method simply involves submitting your blog posts to the appropriate topics in “Blog Carnivals”. Blog Carnivals help increasing the reach of your posts to a large number of people in this world. That means “free advertising”, and are very helpful for early bloggers. I would suggest that you must submit your those posts that are helpful to others. Because, if your post is helpful, more people will visit your blog, and it will lead to increased web traffic. As I have learned from other expert bloggers that increased traffic mostly means more money. However, I must warn that there are several other skills too that one must posses to achieve the cumulative benefits. However, I am not going into other required skills in this post, and I am just focusing on “how to utilize Blog Carnivals” that will help you generate more traffic to your blog website. In addition, I am also not going to discuss what are Blog Carnivals, and for that, I would suggest, please visit http://blogcarnival.com . Please follow the next steps to submit your posts to Blog Carnivals:

1. Open the website http://blogcarnival.com/bc/ in your favourite web browser. I believe that this is the most famous site for using blog carnivals.

2. You will see a link “submit” that you should click. If your eyes can not search the link “submit” easily, then you should use “CTRL+F” key combination to search the “submit” word on the website.

3. After you have clicked on “submit”, you should notice a form that should be filled for submitting your post.

4. The first field is “Carnival”, that is a drop down menu, that you should click to choose an appropriate topic that is relevant to your post. Specifically, topics in the drop down menu are the titles of the blog carnivals. These carnivals are like magazines that will publish your post depending upon how useful and relevant your post is for that particular topic. These blog carnivals are accessed by several people, and will help in advertising your blog through your post. So please be careful while choosing the topic.

5. Next required field for you to fill is “Permalink URL”. As I discussed in one of my previous posts that “Permalink” is a link that can be used to directly access your post without accessing your blog first. WordPress provides this feature, and you can easily find the Permalink for your post. Once you have found the “Permalink” of your post, please copy and paste the link (or URL) in the “Permalink URL” field.

6.  In the “Submitter name” field, you should choose your name that you have been using for your blog website.

7. Then, in the “Submitter e-mail” field, you should fill your email address that you are using for your blog related communications.

8. Next important field is “Category”, that is also a drop down menu. Again, you should choose an appropriate category that is relevant to your post.

9. The “Remark” field is an optional one, that you can use if you want to give some details about your post.

10. Next you will see “Enter this code” field, where two words appear as a picture that you must enter in the box “Type the two words:”. You must decipher those words correctly, otherwise, it will ask to repeat that again and again. This is an important feature used frequently on the Internet now days for preventing malicious entities creating false submissions with the help of an automated program.

11. Now make sure once again that you have filled the form correctly. If you are sure, then just click the “submit” button. You should receive a confirmation email that your post was submitted successfully. If you do not get that email, you should try submitting your post again as there may be an error in your submission.

Important Note: You can submit your post to multiple blog carnivals, so you can repeat the above steps and submit your post to other topics, as you will notice that your post is relevant to more than one blog carnivals. Also, on the blog carnivals website, you can search for the topics, that are relevant to your post, and it will show an appropriate list.

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