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Firewall problem
I have recently uprooted and moved across country, switching Internet providers in the process. Unfortunately, this has seriously impinged upon my gaming "responsibilities" (as my wife calls them).
For whatever reason, I am currently unable to access any of the TCP/IP games that I was playing (even the ones that have not kicked me out for staling). http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif I have tracked the problem down to my firewall. If it is on, even at a minimal setting, I am unable to connect to any of the gaming servers. If it is off, I can. The thing is, I don't want to run my computer all the time without a firewall, and I don't want to go through the hassle of turning the firewall off/on every time I submit a turn (or tweak an already submitted turn). Anyone know how to customize a firewall so that it can be on, but still allow TCP/IP game play? |
Re: Firewall problem
Yes. And no. They're all very different. Is it a software or hardware firewall? What is its brand/model, brand/version?
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Re: Firewall problem
Same thing happened to me after my recent move to Florida, I finally just left the firewall off.
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Re: Firewall problem
It is a hardware firewall associated with my SURFboard wireless cable modem (Gateway SBG900).
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Re: Firewall problem
I am no networking expert, but I have dabbled enough to feel your pain Saint.
I googled your modem and here is a link to the user's guide (pdf): http://broadband.motorola.com/consum...User_Guide.pdf You might want to look for info on the DMZ (demilitarized zone) and port triggering/forwarding. Maybe you can find some clues there. Hope that helps until a network guru comes along. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif |
Re: Firewall problem
So thats what happened to you!
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Re: Firewall problem
http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/image...es/redface.gif http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/image...es/redface.gif http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/image...es/redface.gif
Very sorry about the delays that I have caused. The realities of moving with my family cross country and starting a new job have left very little free time to trouble shoot my Internet connection issues. Thus my gaming responsibilities have suffered. |
Re: Firewall problem
Windows? What version? Linux? (I'll assume WinXP for the moment)
Find the IP address of your machine. (See TOC, starting page 19) Go to the start menu, and look for "Run" You'll want to open up a command prompt "cmd" In that command prompt, type ipconfig. You'll get a number that looks something like 192.168.1.# or 192.168.0.#. The pound is some number from 1 to 255. This number represents your machine's ip on your network (not the internet as a whole). Remember this number. As a side note, if this works for a while but then stops, consider asking about static IPs. I'll tell you how to assign yourself a permanent one. Thats another lesson though. Use that user guide for a reference. You'll want a custom policy page 27 (33 out of 130). Also see page 28 (using the first number displayed by my reader from now on- adjust if it doesn't match). As described on page 29, you may want to start from the high template, than customize. My hardware firewall doesn't need any particular customization, so I'm not certain exactly where the problem you're having originates. Consider the DMZ your very last resort. That puts a your machine outside of the firewall. It's practically the same as turning your firewall off, except it won't expose other machines on your network. TCP, port varies based on game, continued tomorrow. Sane tomorrow? Lucid. Late night.. short form, not certain which method to use ATM. Port Forwarding (try second) pg 40 something. If networked game has port 2222, than set at start and end range. Put IP from above in lan Ip address (192.168.1.#). Enable then add, then test. First thing to try Port Triggers p48 Protocol is TCP. Port Start/End is 2222 Session Chaining Disabled (this game only needs one port). Session Interval Zero. Address replace probably disabled. Multi host almost certainly disabled, if player. Uhmm... sorry for scrambled brains. Starting point this hopefully is. |
Re: Firewall problem
Should have stated at the outset that I am on a Mac.
As far as IP address goes. . . I know the IP address of the modem (but I assume this is not what you are talking about). I can also see several Mac "addresses" for my machine (a different one for the firewire, ethernet, and airport), but I am not sure which (if any) of these to use. They don't look like IP addresses. I have tried to disable the NAT (network address translation), and to set my machine (at least on a temporary basis) as a NAT passthough device using the aforementioned Mac addresses. Both to no avail. As for port forwarding. . . . am I understanding you correctly that I am supposed to set my machine to the same port as the host computer is using (and change the port setting on a game by game basis)? Sure seems cumbersome. It is getting late, so I am going to have to call it a night. Will try to play around with the port triggers tomorrow. Thanks for getting me started. |
Re: Firewall problem
Do you want to have the modem firewall specifically or is any firewall ok? I mean, there's OSX's own firewall, which I have put on, that doesn't interfere with gameplay.
To use the native firewall, go to system settings (or equivalent, my system isn't on English), pick Sharing, and there you should see button to enable firewall. Has worked for me, and Macs really aren't that much in the wild as it comes to nasty stuff floating around. But I'm not expert so I might be endangering all reading this, so at everyone's own risk. And I think the IP address can be seen from the system prefs -> network. At least to me it says the IP address for ethernet and that I'm connected to internet via it. |
Re: Firewall problem
I have a Mac, too. I wonder about the problem you're having.
Maybe you can turn off that firewall and either use the OSX firewall or buy a firewall program. I use Intego's NetBarrier. Is it possible that the OS modified the network settings somehow when it was reconnected in your new location? |
Re: Firewall problem
I'm not certain what you need to do... I'm just giving you somethings to try. If I was in your area, I'd be happy to tinker with it until it works, but all I can do is see if I can find a way to break my firewall, and see if I can extrapolater from that.
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Re: Firewall problem
Wow, thanks for all the help, especially from the not-so Lazy_Perfectionist. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif
I also called tech support (several times) and got essentially the same advice as LP's. I have tried both port forwarding and port triggers to no avail. Although, when I try port forwarding I get a message that indicates that I also have to open said port in my firewall (but doesn't indicate how this would be done). I think despite all the helpful advice I have received, and the many hours that I have put into the problem, I am going to have to punt. I think I will run both the mac firewall, and the modem firewall, and just toggle off the modem firewall when I am uploading/downloading turns. Not exactly convenient. But it is secure and I can stop pounding my head against the wall trying to come up with something more elegant. |
Re: Firewall problem
Oh.. two firewalls? At one point in time, I was behind three or four firewalls, depending on whether you counted the one that was always off.
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Re: Firewall problem
Sounds strange doesn't it? However, if does not seem to matter if my mac firewall is on or off, I still can't run the game with my modem firewall active (despite efforts to the contrary). I figure that I will have to turn off the modem firewall to connect to the game servers, and when I do, I would like to have at least the mac firewall working as a backup. I feel naked without any firewall protection, even if it is only for a minute or two at a time.
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Re: Firewall problem
Two firewalls isn't such a bad idea, actually, if one's software and the other's hardware.
... Unfortunately, without buttocks-based access (being on site), I really can't do anything w/o error messages. Though I can point you towards several play by email games. |
Re: Firewall problem
http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif
Thanks for the help. I have played a lot of PBEM before discovering this forum and TCP/IP play. Hard to go back. While inconvenient, my current difficulties are not any more cumbersome than PBEM. All that is likely to happen is that I will scale back the number of games that I play (1 or 2 instead of 4,5, or 6). http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif My wife is pleased to no end. |
Re: Firewall problem
Dear Saint Ham-bone,
As you can see I have returned from my honeymoon and as a result no longer suffer from the drawback of annoying my fellow players with 6 week long staling of turns. Therefore I wish to slay you asap in a game of some sort. The end. Rathar P.s. So glad your move went well, our wedding was awesome but not nearly as awesome without your presences, honeymoon was amazing except we got wholesale robbed of everything but our clothes.. Meh..! As to the problem with your issues, errmm I dunno! Oh and I also concur in regards to your opinion about tcp/ip games versus pbem. Once you done the best, the rest are indeed forgotten.! |
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