Site-to-Site VPN (Nebula SD-VPN, Hub-and-Spoke) — "No proposal chosen"
Environment
- Nebula Hub-and-Spoke SD-VPN. Hub = HQ, Spoke = one store.
- Hub: USG FLEX 200,
V5.42(ABUI.1), MACD8:EC:E5:78:60:AB, public IP82.66.18.xxx. - Spoke: USG FLEX 200,
V5.42(ABUI.1), MACFC:22:F4:F6:C1:59, public IP82.127.155.xxx. - Both "Up to date (Stable)" in NCC — identical firmware, config sync OK.
- A third, unrelated spoke exists in the org, MAC
D8:EC:E5:B6:D1:54.
Symptom
Tunnel never establishes, fails in a tight retry loop 24/7. Phase 1 (IKE_SA_INIT) always succeeds with a matching proposal (AES128-CBC / HMAC-SHA256 / DH2048). Phase 2 (IKE_AUTH) fails every time right after AUTH is received:
[SA] : No proposal chosen IPsec SA negotiation failed [ID] : Tunnel [SA_D8ECE5B6D154_11] Phase 1 Peer ID mismatch
Key finding
The failing tunnel object on the hub, SA_D8ECE5B6D154_11, is named after the MAC of a different spoke in our org — not the store actually connecting. Even though the correct store's WAN IP and identity (IDi) are presented, the hub validates against the other spoke's expected identity → ID mismatch → no Phase 2 policy selected → "No proposal chosen".
A second tunnel object also exists for this spoke, correctly named after its real MAC (SA_FC22F4F6C159_11), but pointed at the spoke's internal LAN address instead of its WAN IP ("Peer not reachable"). Looks like destination address and peer identity got cross-referenced between two spoke entries in the topology.
Onset
Our log pipeline (hub logs forwarded off-box) shows near-zero background occurrences before, then a clean step-change to ~1,000 occurrences/12h starting 2026-08-27 ~12:00 UTC, continuous since. No known config change on our end that day.
Already ruled out
- Firmware/config mismatch between hub and spoke (identical, both synced).
- Transient/cached state: disabled/re-enabled the spoke's VPN in Nebula (DNS + tunnel refresh confirmed in logs) — no change.
- Cipher/PFS mismatch: Phase 1 proposal matches fine on both sides.
Question
Is this a known Nebula SD-VPN topology-generation issue on USG FLEX 200 (V5.42/ABUI.1)? How can a spoke's tunnel get validated against a different spoke's identity, and is there a way to force-rebuild a single spoke's tunnel object without touching the rest of the mesh?
Happy to enable Support Access and share config exports if useful.
Accepted Solution
-
Hi @sebala,
Thank you for granting us access to investigate.
As mentioned in the PM, we found that NAT Traversal had not been configured. We updated the NAT-T setting on the spoke to Auto and disabled/re-enabled the VPN. After these changes, the tunnel came up.
Please verify this on your end as well, and let us know if you encounter any further issues. We are happy to continue investigating if needed.
Zyxel Tina
0
All Replies
-
Hi @sebala,
To help us investigate further, could you please enable Zyxel Support Access and provide your org/site names?
Zyxel Tina
0 -
Hello @Zyxel_Tina,
I sent you these informations by Direct Messages.
0 -
Hi @sebala,
Thank you for granting us access to investigate.
As mentioned in the PM, we found that NAT Traversal had not been configured. We updated the NAT-T setting on the spoke to Auto and disabled/re-enabled the VPN. After these changes, the tunnel came up.
Please verify this on your end as well, and let us know if you encounter any further issues. We are happy to continue investigating if needed.
Zyxel Tina
0 -
Hello Tina,
With your help, I managed to set up the VPN for that site and connect to several devices.
Many thanks!0 -
Hi @sebala,
We're glad to hear that the VPN setup is now working successfully with your devices. Thank you for confirming!
Zyxel Tina
0
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