Professional Documents
Culture Documents
online and playing games on the dastardly Aberystwyth University firewall, I will walk you through what it is you need to do step by step for each of the major platforms. If you have any issues with the tutorial, let me know via email at sfo@aber.ac.uk. A) i)Please take note of the following: Port - a bridge that either allows or stops the connection to a certain aspect of any network. Ports can come in two forms: Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) and User Datagram Protocol (UDP). Each of these are used for different functions, but each are important to their relevant port. The act of fully opening up a port is called Port-Forwarding. Ports can controlled by the network administrator to allow however much data that is being transferred over any port as they wish. An example, Port 80 is used for the Hypertext Transfer Protocol (or HTTP), which allows you access the internet in web browsers for you to search the web. It does also allow the use of Peer-to-Peer (or P2P) connections, which are generally associated with file sharing applications through torrenting, such as BitTorrent, uTorrent and Limewire. While HTTP is enabled after you have registered your MAC address, the Port prohibits use of file sharing, and therefore torrents will NOT work on the Aberystwyth University network. Trying to bypass this protocol either by a proxy or any other means will most likely get you in trouble with the IT guys, and could lead to your connection being cut off, meaning no online at all. A full run down of ports which are and are not allowed on the network can be found at the following link: University Firewall FAQs Wii - To clarify, because of the need for all UDP ports to be open to allow access to the Nintendo servers, the Wii unfortunately is NOT playable online. This will be explained a bit later. LAN on the University Network - As your block in halls will be sharing the same IP address, we understand that it is possible to play games over a LAN with other people in your block. I have no way of testing this, but theoretically, it should be possible. The IP address though is only shared with those on your floor though, so connecting to someone from the block across or underneath you will not work because they will be assigned under a different IP address, and you must be on the same IP for LAN play to be possible. MAC Address Spoofing - For those with PC's that will be wanting to play on more than one gaming platform (such as Steam, Origin/EA servers, Games for Windows and the Blizzard network), you may be able to spoof your MAC address even with one network card. While it is not permitted on the university network, it is possible to do so. However, unless you are sure of how to do it, I would not recommend spoofing your MAC address. The network firewall has just enough space for Steam's default ports with Starcraft 2, but not Steam and World of Warcraft, so it's worth checking out and playing around with and mixing and matching ports for the games you play most. If you absolutely must have the extra port available though, then there are tutorials online. I will not be offering a tutorial.
Written and researched by Sam O'Hara. Thanks to Liam Edwards for use of his Xbox.
To add a port to be forwarded, simply pick the correct protocol, add the port number, and note what it's for. After that, it will be ready to be unlocked. Written and researched by Sam O'Hara. Thanks to Liam Edwards for use of his Xbox.
2. Click on 'Set up a new connection or network'. It should bring up a menu of options. From here, click on 'Set up a wireless ad-hoc network':
Written and researched by Sam O'Hara. Thanks to Liam Edwards for use of his Xbox.
3. Continue through the menus until you come to the set-up screen. Give it a name, and set it to be saved. I would recommend keeping the authentication open to allow for the easiest access, but feel free to use WPA2 and a password if you wish. Then click next:
The ad-hoc network should now be set up for when you want to connect your 360. It should be available in the network button in the tool tray at the bottom right of the screen:
But to be able to use the internet and allow for access to Xbox Live, you must first enable ICS (Internet Connection Sharing), register your 360's MAC address to the university network, and open the ports needed for Xbox Live to play. To enable ICS, with the connection you are using for the network: 1) Open up the 'Network and Sharing Centre' from the control panel, and click on 'Change Adaptor Settings'.
Written and researched by Sam O'Hara. Thanks to Liam Edwards for use of his Xbox.
2) With the connection to the university network, right click on it and click 'Properties' (you may have to run it through a user with admin access to see it).
3) From the Properties, click on the 'Sharing' tab, and tick the top box to enable ICS. I would recommend unticking the second box to ensure you have control over the ICS.
Written and researched by Sam O'Hara. Thanks to Liam Edwards for use of his Xbox.
ICS should now be enabled! Now, you must configue your Xbox 360 to allow play on the network. ii)Finding your Xbox 360's MAC address 1. On your Xbox Dashboard, click on 'System Settings', and then 'Network Settings'. It should then should you a list of available connections. If you have set your computer up right to allow an ad-hoc network, you will see an option of the network you have set up.
Written and researched by Sam O'Hara. Thanks to Liam Edwards for use of his Xbox.
2. Click on the correct connection, and you should have some configure and testing options. Click 'Configure Network', and go to the 'Additional Settings' tab.
Written and researched by Sam O'Hara. Thanks to Liam Edwards for use of his Xbox.
3. From the additional settings tab, Go to 'Advanced Settings'. From here, it will show you the MAC default.
4. Once you have your MAC address, you need to register it to the university network. You can do so through this link: LINK 5. Connect to the network on your 360 set-up through your laptop! Written and researched by Sam O'Hara. Thanks to Liam Edwards for use of his Xbox.
iii) Please note that if you haven't already arrived at the university, the link above may not work until connected to the network in your halls of residence. I have been able to log onto it though off premises, so you may be able to do it from home before making the journey, using your home internet connections on your 360. Once registered to the server, you must unlock the ports needed for Live. For this, go to the following link: Aber Firewall Login Then, on the MAC address of your 360, you must unlock the following ports: UDP: 88 UDP & TCP: 3074, 53, 1863(For use of Video Kinect) NOTE: Because Live uses port 80, it is advised to use the auto-connect feature on games that have it available. Trying to connect to a specific server will likely cause a 30 minute network block. Joining other friends or playing through previous/other players profiles is an alternative.
Written and researched by Sam O'Hara. Thanks to Liam Edwards for use of his Xbox.
You would also need to ensure that the MAC addresses for both network cards are registered for this to work. ii) Finding your MAC address 1. Go to the 'Settings' tab, and then 'System Settings'.
Written and researched by Sam O'Hara. Thanks to Liam Edwards for use of his Xbox.
3. From there, it should give you the system information, including the console's MAC address. Take that information and add it to the registration for MAC addresses. It should now be certified by the network.
Once your MAC address is registered to the network, you must open the following ports for the PS3 to connect to the network: TCP: 80 (this stops online play), 443 & 5223 UDP: 3478 & 3479
Written and researched by Sam O'Hara. Thanks to Liam Edwards for use of his Xbox.
iii) Logging in 1. Go to your Setting Tab, and scroll to the 'Network Settings'.
2. Go to the 'Internet Connection Settings', and select the setting method 'Custom'.
3. Click for a 'Wired Connection', and 'Manual Settings', and 'Auto-Detect' for Speed and Duplex.
Written and researched by Sam O'Hara. Thanks to Liam Edwards for use of his Xbox.
4. For IP Address Setting, choose 'PPPoE'. This is because the network needs to verify that it's your user acoount (and therefore the MAC address registered to you) that the console is trying to play through. When prompted, you must enter your Aber Uni username and Password.
5. Choose 'Automatic' for DNS setting & MTU, 'Do Not Use' for Proxy Server, and 'Enable' for UPnP.
Written and researched by Sam O'Hara. Thanks to Liam Edwards for use of his Xbox.
6. You will be taken to a summary screen and asked to test the connection. If everything has been done correctly, you should get a connection to the Playstation.
iv) I have not tested this set up. If preparations are correct, and it does not, work, go through with automatic settings after it finds the wired connection from an auto-detect (in step 3). I understand you can also set up the same set-up as for Xbox Live through your wireless, but I tried this last year and had no fortune with it. For setting up the wireless connection, follow step i) in section B) of this tutorial, and then in the network options, click 'Wireless' instead of 'Wired' for the connection type, and scan from you Playstation to find your Ad-hoc network set up through your computer. Remember! You are unable to play online through your Playstation however, but you will be able to update games, and browse the Playstation Network as usual. You may also have access to features with dedicated servers (such as Playstation Home), but I cannot guarantee this.
Written and researched by Sam O'Hara. Thanks to Liam Edwards for use of his Xbox.
It needs a minimum of 16 ports to work, as seen above. For games that are not powered by Steam, you may need additional ports to allow for those games to work online through Steam (as shown for Call of Duty: Black Ops in the above picture). Please note that bringing up a server browser in any Valve online games (such as Counter Strike and Day of Defeat) will cause your connection to be locked out for 30 minutes. You can also only join servers within the default Steam ports (I could only connect to between 27015 and 27035). If you wish to find servers to play on, I suggest using Gametracker.com to find games. To connect, simply copy the IP for that particular server, and use the following command in the console (bought up with the ` key, next to 1 on the keyboard): connect [Replace with IP address]
ii) Starcraft 2
To allow for online play of Starcraft 2, the following ports must be unlocked: TCP & UDP: 6112 When bringing up the launcher, any attempts to update will result in a 30 minute network block UNLESS you make sure that the launcher does not update via P2P. After doing this, the game will update fine, and allow online play. This can be done by clicking the preferences/option button in the launcher and disable the Peer to peer option in the network menu.
Written and researched by Sam O'Hara. Thanks to Liam Edwards for use of his Xbox.
iii)World of Warcraft
To allow for online play of World of Warcraft, the following ports must be unlocked: TCP - 3724, 6112, 6113, 6114, and 4000 When bringing up the launcher, any attempts to update will result in a 30 minute network block UNLESS you make sure that the launcher does not update via P2P. After doing this, the game will update fine, and allow online play. This can be done by clicking the preferences/option button in the launcher and disable the Peer to peer option in the network menu. Ports for other Blizzard games can be found on Blizzard's Support Page. The set up is the same as the two above.
Written and researched by Sam O'Hara. Thanks to Liam Edwards for use of his Xbox.