Port Forward Problems using Mac with Bell 2701HG-G Modem

[kenk23]

Help.  I've tried everything I can think of and still can't get my Bell 1701HG-G modem to successfully open ports using my iMac.... I've had success with the same modem when I used a PC, but it has died and since been replaced with this Mac.  No matter what ports I enable, port forward testers or the software I intend to use with the port will simply just not see it, even though the modem indicates they are active.

I use OSX 10.6.4.  It does not appear to be a Mac firewall issue.  Nobody seems to be able to offer any advice or help and I am ready to give up.  I hope someone out there can offer some, or have experienced something similar.  It seems like the modem and the Mac don't like each other for whatever reason.  It's not my modem/router because I took my other Mac laptop to the brother in laws house with the exact same modem and it did not work there either.

Apple support won't help, Bell won't offer advice, and I've tried the Mac-Forum.

What am I missing?  I am familiar with port forwarding and I'm sure I've configured it properly (and I've used it before like i said on PC's with the same modem with no problems...)

[Shane]

No problem

On the 2wire modem it lists the computer name for the port forwarding rules.
Does the Macs name show up? and does it show up more than once?

Shane

[Evan]

Just an idea...but you said you've had luck with this modem/router before, right?  Well, could you be trying to apply the same rule to more than one machine (your old PC and your new Mac)?  If that is a possibility then maybe you should do a factory reset on the modem/router and see if you have any luck then.

If I overlooked something obvious then my bad.  I'm just trying to throw a slightly different angle in there.   

-Evan

[kenk23]

Yeah, I've tried all these things, just recently wiped the modem clean but still nothing.  The router does see the Mac (and only once) - I've cleared all that up and started from scratch.  The IP addresses are matched up, but even DMZ mode won't take effect.  The interesting thing is that when I called Bell for technical support, I was able to convince one of the tech's to actually try to set up the port from his end the same way I did - and it worked!  Of course I went back in and tried again, and then it didn't work.... he was using a PC, I don't know for sure if that has something to do with it though, I'm grasping at straws here.

I just hope someone out there with the same setup has gone through this and there is a solution, otherwise I think I'll call Bell and maybe see if I can get another modem.

On that note - is it possible to use 2 modems on the same internet connection?  That might also help me out as I have an older (Bell) Speedstream modem that would probably work, but then I'd like to use the new modem/router for the rest of my wireless stuff.

[kenk23]

I forgot to add a possibly relevant bit of info here.... the last technician i spoke to was checking the router/modem activity logs, and it seemed to him that the port was timed out/timing out??  I'm not exactly sure what he meant by that - but if I set up the port, why would it instantly time out (I assume the default presets have something to do with that- and I didn't change those numbers - I think TCP is 86000 or thereabouts, and UDP is 600 or 800).

Maybe this offers a clue?

[Shane]

Hard to tell. If you have another modem to try that would be a good idea.

Also since the modem seems to be having problems with MAC you could hook up another router (At least for testing) then just setup the 2 routers like this
http://www.pcwintech.com/how-setup-two-or-more-routers-together-port-forwarding-port-triggering

This way we are taking the 2wire out of the port forwarding way and putting the mac behind another router that might work better with it.

Would be great for testing anyways

Shane

[kenk23]

Here's my latest findings...

I've downloaded your port forward tool for the mac, and ran it and tested the ports (both TCP and UDP) for port 40000 in my case, and it was successful.  The online software I tried previously didn't see it and still doesn't see it (I was using yougetsignal.com).   So obviously the router is set up and the port is open on the computer I suppose.

Now when I open the software (ShakesPeer) and select Active Mode, port 40000, it still says TCP and UDP are unreachable.  Does this mean something else on this computer is using those ports?  And if so how do I find out what might be using it?  I did not have ShakesPeer running at the time I tested the ports with your program?   Any advice?

[kenk23]

I forgot to mention, when I do run ShakeSpeer and then go back to your program to test the port - it says there is an error.  As long as ShakesPeer is not running, your tester is successful.

[Evan]

I was looking into the program you said it uses and it looks like the protocol used for traffic that the program is based around uses the following port ranges:

TCP/UDP: 1025-32000

You said you are using port 40000.  Try putting something in the range I posted and see if everything works.

Shane's port tester tool "activated" the ports you had forwarded for testing purposes only so as long as the port forwarding was set up correctly it would be expected to work.  If it wasn't set up correctly it would fail.  Also when you use most online port testers they are looking for the port to be open and that will only happen if the port is actively being used...which it won't be unless you have a program (typically a server) using it.  That's basically what Shane's tool does...it requests the use of the port...tests to see if the port is open...records the result...closes the port...and the displays the results to you.  That way he avoids false falses and false positives. 

-Evan

[kenk23]

Thanks for the info and advice Evan (and of course Shane)...  so if I understand correctly, with Shane's port tester, if I have software running and using the port, his test will fail (as it seems to be doing)? 

I have changed the port to 1412 (common among ShakesPeer users), and when I tested it with the ShakesPeer software, the same error is displayed (ports not reachable); however,  I have obviously proved that the port is open and active on my computer.  There is an option to run the software in 'Passive mode', which I have tried, and I am able to use it in a limited way, so that's better than nothing - but the main problem persists.  I'm really starting to think it may be some sort of software issue with ShakesPeer.  (sigh)

[Shane]

If something is already using the port and my program tries to open it you will get an error

Only one program can use a port at a time.

If my port tester says it passes then the port forwarding is working.

Just make sure the program (ShakesPeer) simply isn't requiring more ports that you have forwarded 

Shane

[Evan]

I use OSX 10.6.4.  It does not appear to be a Mac firewall issue.

I found some documentation suggestion that OS firewalls can cause problems with the PC version of your program.  Try keeping all settings the same and disable your make firewall (if that works then we can look at setting up an exception).

Also, make sure that you are not using UPnP and port forwarding together for this particular issue (if you are).

Also the PC version of this program has an area under the same section you set up either passive or active mode where you need to put your public IP address when using active mode.  If you see an option in the program settings to enter an IP address make sure you are putting your public IP address (the one the port tester tool shows) and make sure that public IP address is in fact the same one that you see when you connect to your modem.

Make sure you follow the instructions about the public IP AND the instructions about the firewall and tell us the results.  If there isn't a area to enter an IP address in the ShakesPeer settings then let me know that too and then just try with the MAC's firewall turned off.  Let me know how that goes.   

-Evan

[kenk23]

I have followed all your advice, the iMac firewalls are off, and have since noticed a few things:

I was checking out the ShakesPeer forums, and one user mentioned that he had an issue with an incorrect directory where incomplete files would be stored, and low and behold, my folder was also wrong (it was a path that did not exist).  Apparently the port forwarding doesn't work if all directories aren't accurate for some reason.  I rebooted my modem and computer after correcting this issue, tested the port again (it was working), and relaunched the program.

Interestingly, when I select active mode, port 1412, and the public IP address, the test still indicates TCP/UDP port unreachable.  However, I am now able to use the software, so the port must be open!  The way it tests the ports must be what causes the problem (I'm not sure how it goes about doing this).  So apparently, I'm good to go now. 

Thanks for all the help guys, I really appreciate it.

[Evan]

Great!  Thanks for following up and giving some detailed info about what worked and didn't.  Just for the sake of closure could you clarify one thing for me and also try one thing.

Clarify that you did, in fact, have to put your public IP in and whether or not you had originally had an incorrect IP in the field.

Also, just so I can know for future reference could you try the original port (40000) and see if "active" mode works with it?

Most of the advice I was giving was coming from configuration details regarding the PC version of the program you are using (which is the original that ShakePeer is a MAC port of) and I just want to know if the info regarding ports is universal.  It should be since the networking issues I was getting at are not Operating System specific (just like TCP and UPD are not Operating System specific).

Thanks again for following up. 

-Evan

[kenk23]

OK...I don't know how much this will help, but here's what I found out:

I have tried other ports, and specifically 40000 with the same results.  I test the port with Shane's Port Tester, and it works - the TCP and UDP ports are active.  The online testers show them closed (unless ShakesPeer is running - then they say Open).  ShakesPeer's test indicates TCP/UDP unreachable but when I try searches and downloads it works with no problems (must be some test error or glitch as I've suspected earlier?), so the port number is irrelevant, and any random number seems to work.  Some of the hubs I connect to on ShakesPeer also verify and indicate that I am in fact an 'Active' user...

As for the public IP address, I had always manually set it to the current IP address myself, so I know I didn't make a mistake there (ShakesPeer has a box that I left unchecked to detect automatically because it always showed a number that didn't seem to match my computers current public IP address - so I just didn't trust that it would be correct).  When I was troubleshooting I also tried the static device IP as well as my router IP to eliminate any IP conflict - in the end I found that it does require the current public IP address, as is to be expected with port forwarding.

In my opinion, I would suggest that the various online port checker tools were giving me false readings (I usually used them without ShakesPeer running - so they would say the ports were closed), as well as the fact that when I tested my port connection through ShakesPeer it was also giving me a false/incorrect reading of 'Unreachable' even though it was in fact connected, and I originally never bothered to try to use the program because of that even though it probably was working all along.  Discovering this website did help me sort through all the issues and Shane's port tester made me realize that I had not made any mistakes regarding the actual port forwarding process.  I really appreciate all the help and advice, but in the end I can't help but feel a little guilty because it seems to me that the real problem was/is with ShakesPeer all along... 

In any event, I got it working in the end, and there is hope that this thread will help someone else out in the future with a similar problem.  Thanks again, you guys are great!

-ken