Public IP & Dynamic DNS address

[tommy2s]

I rarely post asking for help and generally fix all of my networking problems/issues based on my experience or research. But this one has stumped me.

Here’s what I’m working with:

Myhost.ddnscompany.com (router’s ddns service is enabled)

Public IP 76.x.x.x port# (router is configured for port forwarding and is confirmed that the port is open)

Using my iOS app. I can connect to my device with both my ddns and public IP address.

Using a browser I can connect to my devices GUI and log in with my ddns address.

When I attempt to connect using my public IP 76.x.x.x port#, the result returned is “Unable to Connect” “Firefox can't establish a connection to the server at 76.x.x.x port#” I tried the same thing using internet explorer and it returned the same results.

These tests have been done on an external network.

I’ve searched online high and low for countless hours and cannot find an answer as to why it won’t connect. I’ve even gone the route of contacting two different tech support companies and not even they can explain to me what’s going on. I’ve also spoken with my IT dept. and they too don’t have an answer.

Note: I can’t ping my public IP address as I’m sure something in my router is preventing it. If I connect a computer directly to my modem bypassing my router and disable my firewall I can ping my public IP which is what it is supposed to do.

Any networking help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Wolfshadw]

What exactly are you trying to connect to? I don't think you can do much with a browser other than Web or FTP connections. If you're trying to connect to content you have stored on the system, you should just remote in to it.

-Wolf sends

 

[Tcinator]

my first though is to ask if you type in a port through ios app? and do you use a port with the ddns address in the browser? if your doing port forwarding, most routers don't actually grasp on to the external port in a 1to1 fashion. most still use PAT (port address translation) when the router sees the ddns it knows what the internal port is and doesn't need your help, and the app (if it doesn't need the port) most likely auto negotiates with the PAT with out you knowing it. I may be off base with your config but it may be something for you to think about.

 

[tommy2s]

What exactly are you trying to connect to? I don't think you can do much with a browser other than Web or FTP connections. If you're trying to connect to content you have stored on the system, you should just remote in to it.

-Wolf sends

I am connecting to my security camera. Using my dynamic dns address on firefox or IE I can get to the GUI and log in, no problem. So my question is, why can't I use the actual public IP address with the corresponding port number to connect to the same GUI and log in using a browser?

I would think that since the ddns host name translates to my public IP address that they would work one in the same as the ddns account I have is basically turns my ISP's dynamic address into a static IP.

 

[tommy2s]

my first though is to ask if you type in a port through ios app? and do you use a port with the ddns address in the browser? if your doing port forwarding, most routers don't actually grasp on to the external port in a 1to1 fashion. most still use PAT (port address translation) when the router sees the ddns it knows what the internal port is and doesn't need your help, and the app (if it doesn't need the port) most likely auto negotiates with the PAT with out you knowing it. I may be off base with your config but it may be something for you to think about.

Makes sense. The configuration in iOS app does require me to input a specific port number. As for the browser, when I type in the ddns address, I do not need to input a port number. I simply type in the ddns host name, hit enter and the GUI pops up. So I think you're on point with the PAT. Not sure how to work that one out just yet... Thanks for the info!

 

[Tcinator]

No problem.. just thought of one other thing... the app uses a port for connecting to the "service" but you are trying to use that same port with the ip as a website. idk how the camera site works but you may just need to find the right port or setup the right 1to1 nat translation. the ddns knows how to get past the pat because its hosted by the router itself. hope you get your answers!

 

[tommy2s]

No problem.. just thought of one other thing... the app uses a port for connecting to the "service" but you are trying to use that same port with the ip as a website. idk how the camera site works but you may just need to find the right port or setup the right 1to1 nat translation. the ddns knows how to get past the pat because its hosted by the router itself. hope you get your answers!

Yes I am using the same port when attempting to connect to the camera. i.e. 76.0.0.0 : port#. The camera has it's own interface, so it's not a "camera site" as you mentioned, just to be clear. The camera GUI works like the GUI of a router when you log in, if that makes sense...

I think the problem lies within the PAT. It also may have something to do with other ports not being opened. It will be interesting so see what happens when I add two or three more cameras on the network and attempt to connect to them...lol Thanks again for your help!