vpn plugin architecture

["Thomas Bushnell, BSG" <tbushnell google com>]

I'm trying to write a simple VPN plugin, something like the existing vpnc plugin, but simpler.

It does not need significant user-configuration; in fact, it needs none. Similar to vpnc, it will talk to a lower-level program to actually do the vpn setup. It will need to prompt the user for some secrets, but the existing secret-handling is entirely unnecessary, because it is essential that the secrets never be cached or stored.

So this should be easy, right?  And yet, it's not.

I have a program which is essentially a replacement for nm-vpnc-service, which is all I should need. But for the life of me, I can't figure out how to point network manager at it.

I'm happy with a hardcoded set of gconf things to create the connection (I do not need any dynamic configuration here).  I thought it should be sufficient to create something in /system/networking/connections, but it isn't.

Thomas