We have successfully connected to our remote web-servers via pcAnywhere (through our networked Microsoft proxy-server) for over a year. For various reasons, we recently added a new gateway server running a Linux OS. The MS proxy server is still up and running, but not as stable as the Linux gateway. I would like to use the Linux gateway, but pcAnywhere can't seem to connect through it.
According to our network administrator, all ports are open on the Linux gateway. However, whenever I configure my workstation to use the Linux gateway (rather than the MS proxy), I can no longer connect to the remote servers via pcAnywhere (version 9.2).
We can telnet to pcAnywhere host on port 5631 through the Linux box...but get a timeout error when trying to connect via pcAnywere. We have tried turning off encryption on the pcAnywere settings, in case this is part of the problem, but this doesn't seem to make a difference.
Every other protocol (http, ftp, smtp, pop, etc) works fine via the Linux gateway. The only problem seems to be with pcAnywere. I did try to connect to another server (listed in a previous posting on the Exchange) via pcAnywere, but like before, get the connection timeout error.
So, we're left to believe that the problem needs to be addressed on the Linux gateway. Any suggestions for a solution?
This Question has been solved and asker verified All Experts Exchange premium technology solutions are available to subscription members.
Experts Exchange has been collecting answers to technology questions since 1996…3 million and counting! If you have a question, chances are we already have your answer.
If you can't find the exact answer you're looking for, ask our exclusive community of 50,000 experts. You’ll get a personalized answer from a trusted professional.
Thousands of free tech tips, tricks, how-to’s and tutorials are available in our peer reviewed articles section. See for yourself how smart our experts are, no login required.
Save solutions to your questions, answers you’ve discovered through searching plus helpful articles in your personal knowledgebase for easy future access.
Access the answers to your technology questions today.
30-day free trial. Register in 60 seconds.
Members of the expert community talk about why the experience at Experts Exchange is different than what you will find anywhere else.
Try it out and discover for yourself.
30-day free trial. Register in 60 seconds.
Join the community of experts here and help other tech pros by answering question in your area of expertise. You can earn FREE access to all Experts Exchange's premium features and resources.
When you were using MS proxy, was that just for HTTP traffic? As in: did you specify the MS Proxy server in your internet control panel or was it your default gateway when you ran ipconfig?
For the Linux gateway, is it specified in your internet control panel as a proxy server, or just as your default gateway?
TheAmigo,
We had been using the MS Proxy for all Internet access (http, ftp, pop, smtp, etc). In order to access it, we use WSP Client (in control panel), and would specify the proxy in our browser settings.
When using the Linux gateway, we must disable the WSP Client, and specify the Linux server in our network TCP/IP properties (along with other network settings (i.e. static IP, DNS, etc).
We have users on both configurations, depending on their need. My reason for moving to the Linux gateway is that it is more stable (MS Proxy needs rebooting every now and then), and that FTP performance is much better.
Now, if we could just get pcAnywhere to work with it...
Ok, now I've got a good idea of your setup. That's the way I was hoping it was (a typical setup).
According to this page: http://service1.symantec.c
PCAnywhere uses one TCP port (5631) and one UDP port (5632).
Telnet's a good way to test TCP connectivity (as you've already done). But UDP isn't so easy to test.
A Linuxbox doing NAT via iptables (the built-in features of the kernel) can also NAT UDP. But UDP can only be NAT'd if the connection starts from behind the firewall, not out on the internet. I don't know (and can't find) the details about PCAnywhere's networking to know exactly how it uses those two ports.
One possibility is that your PCAnywhere client connects to the host via TCP and the host sends data back via UDP. If that's the case, the Linux gateway doesn't know what to do with the incoming UDP packets.
To test this theory, you can add a rule to the linux gateway to tell it to send incoming UDP packets addressed to port 5632 to your PCAnywhere client. It's a pain because that only works then for your one PC. But if it works, then we know what the problem is.
Here's how to add that rule:
iptabls -A PREROUTING -t nat -i $EXTINT -p udp --dport 5632 -j DNAT --to-destination $CLIENTIP
iptables -A FORWARD -t filter -p udp --dport 5632 -j ACCEPT
where $EXTINT is the name of the external interface of the firewall (e.g. eth1) and $CLIENTIP is the IP of your PC that you are running PCAnywhere as a client on.
The first rule says that any inbound UDP packets arriving at the firewall on port 5632 should be forwarded to your PC. The second rule tells it to allow that forwarding to take place.
It's only a theory though... so maybe PCAnywhere has some other networking quirks that this donesn't fix. Most info on the internet I can find is how to connect to a PCAnywhere server when the server is behind a firewall, not the other way 'round like your situation.
dpierpoint:
This old question needs to be finalized -- accept an answer, split points, or get a refund. For information on your options, please click here-> http:/help/closing.jsp#1
EXPERTS:
Post your closing recommendations! No comment means you don't care.
Business Accounts
Answer for Membership
by: TheAmigoPosted on 2003-04-09 at 16:26:12ID: 8303573
Is the linux gateway acting as a proxy server (e.g. running squid) or as a router? If it's routing, do you know if its also doing NAT?