Problems with Remote Viewing

[mcrimm]

I'm new with BI but pretty good with computers. I have a PC connected to an Orbi by Cat5. I have a few wireless IP cams and a wired cam. I have a demo copy of BI running and I'm using one of my wireless cams successfully to monitor. I have the cam and my PC on a static IP on the Orbi. Local access over my home network works fine with the port I have selected

My problem is getting a port to work on UPnP to view on my iphone. I had 5124 working for about 10 seconds and now it doesn't connect. I've tried a ton of ports; 80, 8081, 5125, 12601 and can't get the remote access wizard to see me - except for the one time on 5125.

I've spent hours on this and hopefully it is an easy fix. I have a full version of BI coming from Amazon today.

Mike

 

[lcam]

I use the BI web server and connect to that using the mobile app.

 

[TonyR]

@mcrimm ,

What about your WAN IP...is it static or are you using DDNS?

 

[TonyR]

+1 to what @lcam said; the BI app is great. That being said, to access remotely (not on LAN) you'll still need either static WAN IP or DDNS hostname (since no VPN).

 

[mcrimm]

I have the box checked "Get Dynamically from ISP" on my orbi
Mike

 

[TonyR]

I have the box checked "Get Dynamically from ISP" on my orbi
Mike

Then your WAN IP can change. Use a DDNS like FreeDNS and create a hostname. I use no-ip, pay $25/year for 24 hostnames.
I access my BI remotely (outside my LAN) with a URL like "myhostname.noip.com:MY-BI-port". A free client runs in my BI server's system tray and tells no-ip when my WAN IP changes and what it is. Then my BI app or PC can find it when I use the above URL.

FreeDNS gives you 5 hostnames for free, I think.

EDITED 1029: Page 64 of the Orbi manual says you can get a free DDNS account with Netgear.

 

[mcrimm]

Thanks, TonyR........the learning curve is certainly steep for us old guys.

 

[davej]

So for the "Remote, external, wan internet" access you turn on your router's VPN? I'm guessing a DDNS always needs to run a utility service on your pc?

 

[lcam]

For testing you can use a web site such as What Is My Public IP Address - WhatIsMyIP.com® to get your current public IP and use that with the BI web server and port forwarding.

 

[mcrimm]

I am in the process of setting up the dynamic DDS that Netgear offers for free on my Orbi. I’m waiting for the email from them at this point. Hopefully this step will work. Confusion abounds.
Mike.

 

[davej]

For testing you can use a web site such as What Is My Public IP Address - WhatIsMyIP.com® to get your current public IP and use that with the BI web server and port forwarding.

Ah, but is port-forwarding considered safe anymore? I think VPN is the new approach.

_EDIT_ Yikes. Apparently VPN is much more complex than I had hoped.

 

[lcam]

You can use that method for testing and after that you can use more secure methods if you are uncomfortable.

 

[TonyR]

Thanks, TonyR........the learning curve is certainly steep for us old guys.

I hear ya. Your profile says you're 68, I'll be 70 in 3 months...but I guess I got a head start, circa 1975 with CP/M, before DOS, Windows, etc.
I certainly don't think that I have "arrived" and I'm still learning. I must be....my wife tells me daily "Boy, you've got a LOT to learn".

 

[mcrimm]

So, after screwing with this some more, I still can’t find BI remotely. I’m not sure DDNS or OpenVPN will help with this. I can see my cameras remotely with Amcrest View but not BI. I have tried disabling my windows firewall and Webroot AV. Something is blocking my access via numerous port configurations. Head shake.

 

[davej]

If you go to this website...
GRC | ShieldsUP! — Internet Vulnerability Profiling
(Click on "Proceed" button and then the line that says "All Service Ports")
..you can conduct a port-scan. If it shows that no ports are open then that is your problem. You need to set your router port-forwarding so that your server which is running BI can be reached. On the router you will need to know the IP address of the computer that runs BI. You will also need to set the port to be forwarded.. I think this will be port 81. Then go back to the above website and see if it shows port 81 is open.

However... this discussion says "Don't forward ports!"...
VPN Primer for Noobs

 

[mcrimm]

Here is the Port Fwd screen on my Orbi Router. All services point to ip37 which happens to be my wife’s iPad. My PC is static on ip26.

The ‘all services ports’ scan showed no open ports. Should I change all of these ip’s to 26 and modify port 80 to 81?

You can tell I am a bit confused and really appreciate your assistance.

Mike

Service Name External Ports Internal Ports Internal IP address
1 FTP 37777 37777 192.168.1.37
2 ICUII 37778 37778 192.168.1.37
3 HTTP 80 80 192.168.1.37

 

[davej]

The forwarding needs to point to the pc that has BI installed on it. You can see the BI Webpage inside your home network, right?

 

[mcrimm]

Yes I can see my cams on my local system. I modified all of those 192.168.1.37 addresses in my last post to 26 (my pc). I rebooted my Orbi and reran ‘all services ports’ - no change.

Is it possible that I need to make some changes in my Netgear Modem?

 

[davej]

So on your local network you can type 192.168.1.26:81 into your browser and see the BI login?

 

[mcrimm]

I am away for a couple hours but last night I had no difficulty viewing locally on port 81 or 5124. 5124 was the last port that worked - for about 1 minute.

Again, my ip’s for my 5 cameras and pc are static and I am not yet using a DDNS or VPN. I am sitting in a fitness center at the moment and can remotely see each of my cameras on Amcrest View app in my iPhone but not on the BI app.