Cisco VPN Client Installation: How to Install It Silently

Deploying the Cisco VPN Client silently — without any install prompts appearing on the end user’s screen — is straightforward, but worth testing carefully given it can trigger an automatic restart depending on the switches used.

Silent Install Command

vpnclient_setup.exe /qn /VERYSILENT

This installs with no user interaction and no visible prompts.

Preventing an Automatic Restart

vpnclient_setup.exe /qn /VERYSILENT /norestart

Test the /norestart switch in a controlled environment before relying on it in a production deployment — installer behaviour around forced restarts can vary between Cisco VPN Client builds, so confirm it actually suppresses the reboot on the specific version you’re packaging before pushing it wide.

Deployment Notes

If deploying through SCCM, wrap this as an Application or Package with a detection method checking for the installed VPN client’s registry uninstall entry or a key file under its Program Files directory, and always pilot against a small test collection first given the restart risk.

Is the Legacy Cisco VPN Client Still a Realistic Option in 2026?

Worth flagging clearly: this is Cisco’s old standalone IPsec VPN Client, not AnyConnect or the modern Cisco Secure Client — and it’s been end-of-life for a long time. Cisco stopped selling it back in 2011, stopped shipping updates for it not long after, and general support wound down over the following few years, putting it years past any kind of official support today. Its last officially supported operating system was Windows 7, and it was never supported at all on Windows 10 or 11 — getting it to install and function on a current Windows build typically means chasing unsupported third-party DNE (Deterministic Network Enhancer) driver patches just to get past known compatibility failures, which isn’t something worth relying on for a production deployment. If you’re setting up new remote-access VPN deployment today rather than maintaining an existing legacy install base, the silent-install pattern above is the same general shape you’d use for Cisco’s current client — Cisco Secure Client (the rebranded successor to AnyConnect) — though the actual installer, switches, and module-based deployment (VPN module plus optional Umbrella/posture modules) are different enough that it’s worth treating as a separate deployment guide rather than assuming this exact command translates directly.