I've been trying for a week to come up with a way so that I can set up
a VNC server on my home pc so that I can connect to it while I am at
work. I have tried everything under the sun and nothing. Maybe someone
here can help.

INFO:

I am using RealVNC. (Supposedly runs on port 5800)

I have a brand new Linksys WRT54GS Wireless G router at home
(I thought my old router was unable to port forward due to a bug I
read while googling it so I bought a new one)

My ISP is Comcast.

Things I've tried already:

Followed port forward.com's guide to port forward for this specific router.
(I have port forwarded on several networks before, but for some reason
this one is giving me huge issues)

I have in the router's page (192.168.1.1) set TCP protocol to forward
port 5800 to this specific machine (192.168.1.101) says enabled and
successful. I also forward port 5700 so the java app will work.

- When I start the RealVNC server on my home pc it says the service is
only connected to 192.168.1.101 when I hover over the tray icon (not my
external IP.. SEE http://www.realvnc.com/support/portforward.html to
see what I mean)

- I go to http://canyouseeme.org/ to test the port FAILED.

Instead of Port Forwarding I decide to enable DMZ
(the more extreme solution) on this machine 192.168.1.101 and disable
the port forwarding.

- Same results as above 

I then discovered through IP CONFIG /ALL that I have a Dynamic IP

- I have registered a dynamic dns host at DynDNS (myexample.dnsalias.net) to
make my dynamic IP sort-o-static.

- I'm not sure what to do with this though. I leave my realVNC server
running on my PC (even though it doesnt forward correctly) and try to
go to myexample.dnsalias.net:5700 (5700 is the java app for
realVNC) and it times out. However localhost:5700 brings up the
java client correctly.

I am NOT using service pack 2
I do have ZoneAlarm installed but I've been trying to get this to work
without having it turned on so I dont think that is an issue.


Anyone have any ideas what I can do so I can VNC to my PC from outside
my local network? Or any other way I could get to my home pc, without
going through websites that are probably already filtered by my
companys filter such as gotomypc.com

Hello rob_sipko,

Thank you for your question.

First of all, I would check to make sure that Comcast ALLOWS you to
have servers running on their network. Some ISPs do not allow this and
will block your access.

Secondly, make sure the VNC server is working on your local network.
Do you have another machine available that you can use to connect to
the VNC server on your LAN? This will show you if it is working
locally.

If that does not work, check to see if you have the Windows firewall
installed and running. Remove all the firewall products you use.
Remove ZoneAlarm and just see if things get better.

Looking at what you have previously said, this could be a shot in the
dark but you never know.

Check for updated firmware for your device.

Go to this website:
Linksys
http://www.linksys.com/servlet/Satellite?c=L_Content_C1&childpagename=US%2FLayout&cid=1115416835852&pagename=Linksys%2FCommon%2FVisitorWrapper

Choose the model of the router you have and find an update. Before
applying an update, make sure you back up your config.

Now I would set about applying a STATIC IP on your local PC. To do
that, do the following:

Click START -> Control Panel (or settings) -> Network Connections

right click the network connection that is connected to the network
and choose Properties.

Now, highlight TCP/IP and choose properties. Change your PC from using
"Obtain an address automatically" to "Use the following IP address". 
Enter the same credentials into there as you receive from your
ipconfig /all.

This will give you a static IP (i would advise you use the same IP
address as you have set up for the port forwarding).

A dynamic to Static host conversion will only set your EXTERNAL IP
address to a pseudo static address; it will do NOTHING for your
internal address. Once this is done, use VNC Viewer to connect to
"myexample.dnsalias.net" and see if it works.

If you are targeting the correct external IP address, on the right
port, the port is forwarding onto the right port and IP address of the
desktop machine and the desktop machine has NO firewall software
installed then there is NO reason at all why you cannot connect using
RealVNC.

An alternative method, if you use Windows XP, is to install Service
Pack 2 and start to use Remote Desktop, as it is a lot nicer and more
elegant. I use it a lot for connections to my home machines and i find
it a lot better and faster to use than the VNC products.

Remote Desktop uses port 3389 so it could be a good place to start as
I can certainly confirm that port!

If you need any additional clarification, let me know and I'll be glad
to assist you.

--keystroke-ga

Your problem could also be that your employer is blocking the traffic
- if they have a filter on internet traffic they are probably running
a firewall as well.

Is there some reason you aren't using SP2? It has security fixes
beyond just the firewall.

Yes, you should definitely be running SP2-- it fixes a number of
security flaws which can compromise you by not using it.  There is NO
REASON not to have SP2 along with all recent Windows updates
installed.  It's necessary if you have a Windows machine.

--keystroke-ga