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In response to a problem email, Eric said:
> Fire is not supported through any kind of firewall or natd connection.
> We have tried to make sure it *might* work, but there are no guarantees.
Alex Kac said:
> I not do think its a great idea to not support firewalls/natd. I
> don't like the idea that I have to choose between securing my network
> or keeping it open just for chat. And considering that most of the
> world does use some sort of firewall/natd...well, it just doesn't
> seem right.
It dawned on me that most everyone is behind a NAT router these days;
this cannot be a widespread problem. I am behind two NATs at home
(Airport and SpeedStream PPPoE router to DSL), two at the office, plus
some strict firewall rules at work. But I have never had any trouble
with Fire because of NAT routers or my firewalls.
I think it is because Fire and many (all?) of its various clients are
"normal" clients that connect from an unprivileged high-port to a
well-known destination port; the response stream from the server comes
back to the source port, just like most everything. *All* NAT systems
should be able to figure that out; it is fundamental functionality.
(Things like peer-to-peer AIM voice-talking or file-sharing require
different functionality and they are almost always hosed by NAT.)
So, as long as AOL and Yahoo and whoever keep their server models the
same, Fire will work through NAT routers, and it'll work through
firewalls, just like a web browser or POP or telnet or any other
service. I think the only thing that will cause any real trouble are
firewall rules specifically designed to keep chat traffic out.
And if this NAT/firewall discussion all really started because some AIM
TOC servers went down today, then...umm, sorry, and uhh, *nevermind*.
Dave Baker
--
-----------------------------------------------------------------
David V. Baker Voice/Cell:617-331-1642 Fax: 603-806-8545
mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] www.whysheep.com
It's easy to downgrade people by dwelling on their
weaknesses. It's harder to look at them with
fresh eyes and identify their strengths -- and how
they can help the organization to function.
pg 32, Finding a Way To Win, Bill Parcells
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