FTP Server problems

[Synthesthesia]

I've just gotten a one of these: http://www.mediacase.co.uk/

I've had other problems with setting it up, but it's all working on the local network.

But i've just got one question, how do i access an FTP on my home network over the internet?

[Synthesthesia]

Surely someone's used FTP over the internet before?

[Number45]

It depends really. Do you have a static IP address through your ISP at home? If so then it's very straightforward, just forward port 21 (And possibly 20, depending on the client connection) to the machine on your internal network that's running the FTP server and connect to the IP address you have.

If you don't use a static IP then you can look at a dynamic DNS provider (Assuming it's supported on your router/modem) so that you can access your connection regardless of the underlying IP address.

[Synthesthesia]

It's on a BT Home hub, how would i find out if the IP is static? I've already forwarded ports 20-21.

And if it's not, how would i setup DNS?

Thanks for answering btw

[Number45]

You typically pay for static IPs, although I know some will give them as a part of the package. You might want to check with BT (Or someone that uses the same service) but my instinct suggests you probably don't have one with them.

So you need to setup dynamic DNS. First thing you need is to find out if your router supports it (Look for an option, or search through the manual). I know the Netgear I used to have supported it, but I'm not sure my current SpeedTouch does). It'll typically be a simple page with a dropdown so that you can pick your provider (I use DynDNS) and fields for a username and password. Once you have it setup at both ends you'll be able to access your home connection using the name provided by the DNS provider (I think DynDNS use yourname.dnsalias.org).

It's fairly straightforward, but then I kind of do this for a living (In a corporate sense anyway) so I might be underestimating the complexity.