Best Practice for IKE keys

[jaz0nj4ckal]

Folks,

I am configuring my first site-to-site vpn using IPsec and IKE; however, I wanted to know if I should watch out for anything and the best practices for IKE.

I have generated a phrase that is 30 characters long, but should I include “special characters” in my IKE key?

[Marvin Rhoads]

Rather than the key length and 'strength' I'd focus on keeping a copy documented / stored securely offline somewhere. Process and documentation are at least as important as the technology.

99% of your protection comes from using a VPN at all as opposed to the characters used in your PSK.

If it's an option (e.g ASA 8.4 at both ends) I'd recommend using IKEv2.