It is actually possible to configure port forwarding on most popular broadband routers via Universal Plug-n-Play (UPnP) from your Windows XP PC. Unfortunately, it appears that a couple components needed to do this are not part of the default Windows XP installation but are easily added.
Either use the UPnP feature of your router to dynamically configure your port forwarding or go into the control panel of your router to create a static entry. Don't try to do both.
Preparation
- First make sure your broadband router supports UPnP and that it is turned on. Check your routers documentation for information on how to do this. For LinkSys routers it is normally found under Administration/Management.
- Find your Windows XP CDROM if you have one. Many pre-built systems will have everything you need already on your disk but not installed yet. On these you may not need the OS disc.
Open your Network Connections window from the Start Menu via Start/Settings/Network Connections. You should see something like this:
If you already have an item that says Internet Connection - Internet Gateway, you can probably skip to the next section on Enabling Port Forwarding.
If you don't see an Internet Gateway type entry, then the rest of this applies to you.
Select Optional Networking Components from the Advanced Menu. You should see a dialog like this:
The middle item, Networking Services, is the one you are interested in. Select it and then click on the Details button. You should see a dialog like this:
There are two items that need to be installed if they are not already checked.
- Internet Gateway Device Discovery and Control Client
- UPnP User Interface
Click on Next and the new components will be installed. Depending on how the OS was installed you may be prompted for your Windows XP CDROM.
Once installation is complete you should see an Internet Connection item in the Network Connections dialog. If you don't, try selecting Refresh from the View menu or closing and reopening the dialog. If you still don't see it, review the previous steps and make sure all the steps were followed. Also make sure the UPnP is enabled for your broadband router. Consult your user guide for details on how to do this.
Enabling Port Forwarding
Once you have the Internet Connection item of type Internet Gateway in the Network Connections dialog, select it and then select Properties from the File menu. You should see a dialog like this:
Click on the Settings button to open the Advanced Settings dialog. You should see a dialog like this:
In all likelihood there will be no Services listed. Any that are listed and have the check mark indicate that you have some software running that has an open port to the internet. Make sure this is something you want.
To get MapTool up and serving to your players on the internet, click the add button to open the Service Settings dialog. You should see a dialog like this:
Your dialog should have all the fields empty. Enter a Description. MapTool might be a good choice for this.
Put in your internal IP address. You can get this from the Server Info (aka Connection Information) dialog in MapTool shown next to the Service Settings dialog above.
Remember! You want the local address and not the external address.
Next put in the External & Internal Port numbers. The default for MapTool is 51234. Use the default unless you have some reason to use another number and know what numbers are okay to use.
Ensure that TCP is checked and then click on the OK button.
The Advanced Settings dialog should now look like this:
If it worked you get an entry for MapTool (or whatever you chose).
If you get an error when doing this, check that UPnP is enabled on the router and that you used the correct IP address.
That's it. Start MapTool and do a Test Connection from the Start Server dialog. It should report success.