We have 2 PCs connected to the internet through routers. The internet
connections both have static IPs. We want to connect the 2 machines so
they can share files as though they were on the same network, but we
don't want to use a VPN.

Security is not an issue here.

We've tried to use NAT to redirect the NetBIOS ports to the respective
machines and added an LMHOSTS entry but whenever we try and connect we
get this message
"\\name is not accessible.

The specified server cannot perform the requested operation."

I'm assuming this is because we need to redirect some other ports as
well as 137, 138, 139 and 445.

Does anyone know what else we need to do?

Thanks for any .
Mike

On Mon, 03 Sep 2007 17:55:37 +0000, mikeybates wrote:

> We have 2 PCs connected to the internet through routers. The internet
> connections both have static IPs. We want to connect the 2 machines so
> they can share files as though they were on the same network, but we
> don't want to use a VPN.
>
> Security is not an issue here.
>
> We've tried to use NAT to redirect the NetBIOS ports to the respective
> machines and added an LMHOSTS entry but whenever we try and connect we
> get this message
> "\\name is not accessible.
>
> The specified server cannot perform the requested operation."
>
> I'm assuming this is because we need to redirect some other ports as
> well as 137, 138, 139 and 445.
>
> Does anyone know what else we need to do?

Should work. Download wireshark and loop at the packets going on the wire
to see what goes wrong.

HTH,
M4

In article <1188842137.827249.110310@r29g2000hsg.googlegroups .com>,
mikeybates@gmail.com wrote:

> We have 2 PCs connected to the internet through routers. The internet
> connections both have static IPs. We want to connect the 2 machines so
> they can share files as though they were on the same network, but we
> don't want to use a VPN.
>
> Security is not an issue here.
>
> We've tried to use NAT to redirect the NetBIOS ports to the respective
> machines and added an LMHOSTS entry but whenever we try and connect we
> get this message
> "\\name is not accessible.
>
> The specified server cannot perform the requested operation."
>
> I'm assuming this is because we need to redirect some other ports as
> well as 137, 138, 139 and 445.
>
> Does anyone know what else we need to do?

Many, if not most, broadband ISPs block the NetBIOS ports because when
broadband was first becoming popular many users were enabling file
sharing without restricting it to their home LANs, so they were
unwittingly opening up file sharing to the entire Internet. When this
hit the press, ISPs protected their customers by blocking the ports.

--
Barry Margolin, barmar@alum.mit.edu
Arlington, MA
*** PLEASE post questions in newsgroups, not directly to me ***
*** PLEASE don't copy me on replies, I'll read them in the group ***

On Sep 3, 10:55 am, mikeyba...@gmail.com wrote:

> Security is not an issue here.

Unfortunately, it is. Not security that you care about, but security
built into the tools you are trying to use.

You are trying to fit a square peg into a round hole. And everything
about the square peg is about not letting you do that.

DS