Need a public IP?

[corbywan]

It's been a little while so if this question seems kind of basic, sorry.

In order for people on the outside to take advantage of the services on a server such as Snow Leopard (mail, wiki, VPN, Podcast Producer, etc), does the server need a public IP, or can it be put in a DMZ behind the router?

I'm getting Verizon Fios this week at the office and I don't know anything about the router/interface they are going to give me, if it can only be used as a router (meaning it gets the public static IP I signed up for) or if I can turn it into a bridge (as I was able to do with their DSL box) and pass the IP on to the router I want to use, or the server, etc.

Any insights? Thanks in advance.

 

[thankins]

It's been a little while so if this question seems kind of basic, sorry.

In order for people on the outside to take advantage of the services on a server such as Snow Leopard (mail, wiki, VPN, Podcast Producer, etc), does the server need a public IP, or can it be put in a DMZ behind the router?

I'm getting Verizon Fios this week at the office and I don't know anything about the router/interface they are going to give me, if it can only be used as a router (meaning it gets the public static IP I signed up for) or if I can turn it into a bridge (as I was able to do with their DSL box) and pass the IP on to the router I want to use, or the server, etc.

Any insights? Thanks in advance.

Most routers from the ISPs can be turned into bridge mode and then your router (in my case it is the AEBS) is the gateway for all clients sitting behind it.

In order for mail to flow and VPN to work properly you will need to have a static IP address. You will then open the correct ports up on your router and point it to your server (which will have the local/internal IP address you assigned to it)


You also might want to do a little more research before you start plugging your server into the router. If you don't secure it - people might be able to steal your data. A DMZ is an area outside of your secure network where you can put hardware that doesn't have access to your internal network. If you put your server there you are asking for trouble.

 

[corbywan]

Cool, thanks. I just found out that I don't have to use their router, they just leave me an open Ethernet port on their gear, and I'm good to plug in whatever I want.

I did get a static IP from Verizon. so I'm good there.

 

[CTJoyce]

Just wondering, are you planning on using a single server for DHCP, DNS, VPN, and all your normal services, or are you spreading this out over multiple boxes? Also how many clients do you plan to connect?

I am just wondering because from this single line into the server option where one box is going to do everything you are setting yourself up for a lot of packetflow to a single NIC.

Cheers
Cameron

 

[corbywan]

CTJoyce - Good observation. Less than 10 users, don't anticipate a large amount of traffic for a server.