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- Feb 26, 2008
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NOTE: This tutorial does require some technical knowledge - it's intended to help take all of the various components and make some understanding of the concept, not take you step-by-step.
Well, oftentimes you want to host a game on Warcraft III. (Actually, this tutorial will most likely apply to any game where you have to forward ports.) But you quickly discover that it is not as easy as it looks.
No doubt if you did some searching on this subject, you would find a number of "tutorials" that throw out such terms as "IP Addresses", "Ports", "Forwarding", "Router", and other such terms. That's all well and good, but no one tells you exactly what goes on here. Let's put an end to that.
So, to begin. First, I'll start by defining some terms:
IP Address: A set of 4 numbers separated by periods that identify your computer to other devices.
Port: A number assigned to a particular service/program/thing that transfers data from some other device to your computer. A port is simply a "bookkeeping" measure designed to help the computer know what program is running what.
Forwarding: This is the process of telling devices such as routers where they need to send information that has a certain port number. For example, you can tell your router to send any information with a port number of "10" to a specific IP Address.
Router: A device that is used to forward various information to the correct destination. The routers that are typically found in homes are used to connect all computers in the house to one internet connection - the router is used to distinguish incoming and outgoing information between the computers.
Modem: A device that actually does the talking to the ISP (usually by phone line or cable line) and actually enables internet connection. Some routers are also modems, but some are separate devices.
Behind the Scenes
Now, then. A nice little lesson in and of itself, don't you think? Anyway, let us move on to what needs to happen. (We don't want to be here all day, now, do we?)
So, you have probably learned that Warcraft III requires a certain port to be forwarded to your computer for you to host. This is indeed true. Using the above definitions, hopefully you know what this means now. But that isn't all the story is it? We still have to get the information from the internet to your computer. So here is how we do it.
First of all, take an inventory of all your hardware (routers, modems, and anything else you might have). It is key to understand with what you are dealing before you begin doing random things. Now, the understanding of what is happening comes from the realization that you are now setting up a postal service. You have to get the message from point A to point B, making sure to send it to the right places on the way. To do this, we will need to know how to configure your devices, whatever they may be.
Because there are so many brands and so on out there, refer to PortForward.com - Free Help Setting up Your Router or Firewall to (hopefully) find out how to get into the configuration of each of your devices. Most devices can be accessed using a typical internet browser and the IP Address of the device.
Routers: If you open up Command Prompt (or similar, if you are on a different OS) and type ipconfig in there, the router will most likely be the Default Gateway IP Address that appears. Try typing that in if you are lost.
Modems: If your modem is also a router, see above. If it is separate, then listen up. The IP of the modem will then most likely be the DNS Server IP Address (you may have to enter "ipconfig -all" into the Command Prompt to see this).
So, to set up your port forwarding correctly, you need to get the right address on each device to properly forward the information. If you have a modem and a router, you must forward from the modem to the router, then from the router to the computer. Follow the solutions below for your situation.
ONE DEVICE: This is the easiest. Forward the correct port to the IP Address of your computer (obtained from ipconfig in Command Prompt). Then make sure all of your Windows firewalls or similar are allowing Warcraft III through, and then you should be good.
TWO OR MORE DEVICES: This is a bit trickier. Your goal here is to find the "inner" and "outer" IP Address of the internal component(s). Basically, this means that your router uses one IP to talk to the computer, and another to talk to the modem. You must find both. Usually this can be found in the router's config page(s). Unfortunately, due to the variety of routers, I can't be much more specific. If you can find a standard IP Address ON your router under the Internet portion, that should be it. This address should come with the same DNS (modem) address that you found earlier. This is the external IP Address of the router. Then this is the key: you forward the port from the modem to that EXTERNAL IP ON THE ROUTER, then forward the port from the ROUTER to your computer.
See what we did there? A bit of a hop from one to the next. If you have more than just a router and a modem, then do the same, but for the other devices. Forward from one to the next down the line to your computer, making sure to get the right IP Address for the external and internal on each device.
That about does it. I hope this gives you a bit of a better understanding on what exactly port forwarding is and how to do it. If you have further problems, feel free to ask.
One last note as I leave:
If you live in some communal type area like an apartment or college dorm, then you may not have access to all of the devices along the line to forward the ports. In this case, there is most likely no solution except to talk to those in control of the devices and see what can be done.
Hosting - The Full Picture
Well, oftentimes you want to host a game on Warcraft III. (Actually, this tutorial will most likely apply to any game where you have to forward ports.) But you quickly discover that it is not as easy as it looks.
No doubt if you did some searching on this subject, you would find a number of "tutorials" that throw out such terms as "IP Addresses", "Ports", "Forwarding", "Router", and other such terms. That's all well and good, but no one tells you exactly what goes on here. Let's put an end to that.
So, to begin. First, I'll start by defining some terms:
IP Address: A set of 4 numbers separated by periods that identify your computer to other devices.
Port: A number assigned to a particular service/program/thing that transfers data from some other device to your computer. A port is simply a "bookkeeping" measure designed to help the computer know what program is running what.
Forwarding: This is the process of telling devices such as routers where they need to send information that has a certain port number. For example, you can tell your router to send any information with a port number of "10" to a specific IP Address.
Router: A device that is used to forward various information to the correct destination. The routers that are typically found in homes are used to connect all computers in the house to one internet connection - the router is used to distinguish incoming and outgoing information between the computers.
Modem: A device that actually does the talking to the ISP (usually by phone line or cable line) and actually enables internet connection. Some routers are also modems, but some are separate devices.
Behind the Scenes
Now, then. A nice little lesson in and of itself, don't you think? Anyway, let us move on to what needs to happen. (We don't want to be here all day, now, do we?)
So, you have probably learned that Warcraft III requires a certain port to be forwarded to your computer for you to host. This is indeed true. Using the above definitions, hopefully you know what this means now. But that isn't all the story is it? We still have to get the information from the internet to your computer. So here is how we do it.
First of all, take an inventory of all your hardware (routers, modems, and anything else you might have). It is key to understand with what you are dealing before you begin doing random things. Now, the understanding of what is happening comes from the realization that you are now setting up a postal service. You have to get the message from point A to point B, making sure to send it to the right places on the way. To do this, we will need to know how to configure your devices, whatever they may be.
Because there are so many brands and so on out there, refer to PortForward.com - Free Help Setting up Your Router or Firewall to (hopefully) find out how to get into the configuration of each of your devices. Most devices can be accessed using a typical internet browser and the IP Address of the device.
Routers: If you open up Command Prompt (or similar, if you are on a different OS) and type ipconfig in there, the router will most likely be the Default Gateway IP Address that appears. Try typing that in if you are lost.
Modems: If your modem is also a router, see above. If it is separate, then listen up. The IP of the modem will then most likely be the DNS Server IP Address (you may have to enter "ipconfig -all" into the Command Prompt to see this).
The Good Stuff
So, to set up your port forwarding correctly, you need to get the right address on each device to properly forward the information. If you have a modem and a router, you must forward from the modem to the router, then from the router to the computer. Follow the solutions below for your situation.
ONE DEVICE: This is the easiest. Forward the correct port to the IP Address of your computer (obtained from ipconfig in Command Prompt). Then make sure all of your Windows firewalls or similar are allowing Warcraft III through, and then you should be good.
TWO OR MORE DEVICES: This is a bit trickier. Your goal here is to find the "inner" and "outer" IP Address of the internal component(s). Basically, this means that your router uses one IP to talk to the computer, and another to talk to the modem. You must find both. Usually this can be found in the router's config page(s). Unfortunately, due to the variety of routers, I can't be much more specific. If you can find a standard IP Address ON your router under the Internet portion, that should be it. This address should come with the same DNS (modem) address that you found earlier. This is the external IP Address of the router. Then this is the key: you forward the port from the modem to that EXTERNAL IP ON THE ROUTER, then forward the port from the ROUTER to your computer.
See what we did there? A bit of a hop from one to the next. If you have more than just a router and a modem, then do the same, but for the other devices. Forward from one to the next down the line to your computer, making sure to get the right IP Address for the external and internal on each device.
Parting Words
That about does it. I hope this gives you a bit of a better understanding on what exactly port forwarding is and how to do it. If you have further problems, feel free to ask.
One last note as I leave:
If you live in some communal type area like an apartment or college dorm, then you may not have access to all of the devices along the line to forward the ports. In this case, there is most likely no solution except to talk to those in control of the devices and see what can be done.
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