Airport Extreme attached HDD remote access (mac to Mac)

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Level 1

4 points

Airport Extreme attached HDD remote access (mac to Mac)

Hi,

Apologies for raising another post on this subject, but the supplied info (mostly from Tesserax) for this topic, although extensive & comprehensive, is still not

allowing me to set up my kit to allow remote Mac access to my AEBS HDD.

Part of the problem I think is that the interface for my Airport Utility is slightly different, another part of the problem no doubt is my own lack of understanding.

I'm going to show the procedure that I followed (kindly posted by Tesserax), with the area's of difficulty highlighted, but first here's my exact set up:

iMac - Mavericks 10.9.1. Airport Extreme 5th gen v6.3.2 - attached HDD (formatted Mac OS Extended (Journaled)). BT Openreach Fiber Modem. All connected by ethernet. Static external IP supplied by ISP.

Tesseax's guide:

Method #3: Using Port Mapping

Prerequisites:

If the 802.11n AirPort Extreme Base Station (AEBSn) or Time Capsule (TC) is connected directly to the broadband Internet modem, verify that the modem is in bridge mode, i.e., if the modem provides NAT & DHCP services, disable them. - Using Openreach Fibre box; no control over it, but assumed in bridge mode as no double NAT.
If the AEBSn or TC is downstream of another router or gateway device, configure that device for port mapping/forwarding to the AEBSn or TC. (Note: AFP requires that TCP port 548 be mapped.) Also, configure the AEBSn or TC to have a static Private IP address so that it will always be found at the same address. No other gateway devices other than listed above.
Use CheckIP (or equivalent) to determine your router's current Public (WAN-side) IP address. Static IP known & used.

I am using later version of Airport utility (6.3.2)

Setup:

Start the AirPort Utility > Select the 802.11n AirPort Extreme Base Station (AEBSn,) and then, note the IP address shown. Done.
Select Manual Setup. No manual setup tab.
Verify that Connection Sharing = Share a public IP address is selected on the Internet > Internet Connection tab. May be the problem - I don't have this option or any equivalent.
Select Disks, and then, select File Sharing. No option.
Verify that both the "Enable file sharing" and "Share disks over WAN" options are enabled. Done.
Verify that Secure Shared Disks = With a disk password. (Recommended) Done.
Verify that AirPort Disks Guest Access = Not allowed. (Recommended) No option.
Select Advanced, and then, select the Port Mapping tab. No option.
Click the plus sign to add a new port mapping. Done.
For Service, select the "Personal File Sharing" option. Done.
In the Public UDP Port(s) and Public TCP Port(s) boxes, type in a 4-digit port number (e.g., 8888) that you choose. In the Private IP Address box, type the internal IP address of your AEBSn that you wrote down in step 1. In the Private UDP Port(s) and Private TCP Port(s) boxes, type 548. Click Continue. Done; LAN IP address used?
In the Description box, type a descriptive name like "AirPort Disk File Sharing," and then, click Done. Done.
Click on Update. Done.

To connect to the shared AirPort Disk from a remote location using a Mac:

From the Finder > Go > Connect to Server.
Enter the DynDNS-provided Domain Name or Public (WAN-side) IP address of the AEBSn, followed by a colon and the Public port number that you choose in step 11 of the previous procedure. For example: afp://www.mydyndnsdomain.com:8888 or afp://123.456.789.123:8888 Done. Used static IP address & assigned port.
Click Connect.
You should be prompted for your user name and password. The user name can be anything you like; the password should be the Disk password for the AEBSn that you created in step 6 previously. No prompt on remote Mac. Given 'There's a problem connecting' dialogue.
Click Connect.

Arrgh!

Any (further) help on this would be greatly appreciated!

Regards,

Posted on Feb 10, 2014 1:55 AM

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Answer 1

Morat Author

Level 1

4 points

Feb 13, 2014 8:04 AM in response to Morat

This is so frustrating - I'm sure that I'm 99% there with this, but something simple isn't right which is stopping me connecting remotely...

Any idea's where I'm going wrong?

..anyone...?

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Answer 2

Feb 13, 2014 9:23 AM in response to Morat

Cannot speak for Tesserax, so we will need to wait for his reply. A few notes, though since the User Tip was posted some time ago....before AirPort Utility 6.x versions were released by Apple.

Using Openreach Fibre box; no control over it, but assumed in bridge mode as no double NAT.

Assuming that the Openreach box is in bridge mode, then the AirPort Extreme would be configured to provide DHCP and NAT services. That is the same setting as Share a Public IP Address.

No other gateway devices other than listed above.

So, no other routers "upstream" from the AirPort Extreme.

Static IP known & used.

For the sake of simplicity, let's say that the IP address is 12.345.678.910. There is also a local or internal LAN IP address listed. You will need to write that down. It might be something like 10.0.1.1 or 192.168.1.1, for example.

I am using later version of Airport utility (6.3.2)

OK, understood. My condolences.

Start the AirPort Utility > Select the 802.11n AirPort Extreme Base Station (AEBSn,) and then, note the IP address shown. Done.

When you clck on the AirPort Extreme icon, information about the device will be displayed. The IP Address should be the same as the Static IP address shown above....12.345.678.910.

Select Manual Setup. No manual setup tab .

In AirPort Utility, 6.3.x, this would be the Edit box at the lower right hand corner of the window that appears when you click on the AirPort Extreme icon.

Verify that Connection Sharing = Share a public IP address is selected on the Internet > Internet Connection tab. May be the problem - I don't have this option or any equivalent.

Click Edit as above, then click the Network tab at the top of the screen.

Look for Router Mode and verify that the setting is DHCP and NAT. That is the same as Share a Public IP Address. Should look like this:

Select Disks, and then, select File Sharing. No option.

Should look like this:

Select Advanced, and then, select the Port Mapping tab. No option.

These settings appear under the Network tab in AirPort Utility 6.3.x, as you have discovered.

In the Public UDP Port(s) and Public TCP Port(s) boxes, type in a 4-digit port number (e.g., 8888) that you choose. In the Private IP Address box, type the internal IP address of your AEBSn that you wrote down in step 1. In the Private UDP Port(s) and Private TCP Port(s) boxes, type 548. Click Continue. Done; LAN IP address used?

Should look similar to the screenshot below. This shot shows port 8889. You would use 8888 if that is what you set up. The Private IP Address would be the LAN IP Address of the AirPort that you noted previously.

Enter the DynDNS-provided Domain Name or Public (WAN-side) IP address of the AEBSn, followed by a colon and the Public port number that you choose in step 11 of the previous procedure. For example: afp://www.mydyndnsdomain.com:8888 orafp://123.456.789.123:8888 Done. Used static IP address & assigned port.

Type in

afp://123.456.789.10:8888

When you click Connect, a box will appear with your Name and Password. The Password is the device password that you use for the AirPort, or if you elected to use a separate disk password, you would enter the disk password.

There is an option to have KeyChain Access remember your password for future log ons.

Click Connect.

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Answer 3

Morat Author

Level 1

4 points

Feb 13, 2014 9:58 AM in response to Bob Timmons

Thanks for the reply Bob.

-Openreach box is in bridge mode. Confirmed.

-No upstream devices, just AEBS & Openreach box.

-Router mode is DCHP & NAT, as your screen-shot.

-Disk settings are the same as your screenshot.

-Network/ Ports settings are the same as your screenshot, except with my own Private IP(LAN IP) & Public ports (can the Public ports be any 4 digit number?)

So everything is as you have described, but still no dice - no name/ password dialogue, just 'There's a problem connecting...' dialogue.

Time to give up & stop wasting my (& other peoples time) on this I think...

Many thanks again for your help.

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Answer 4

Feb 13, 2014 10:29 AM in response to Morat

Check the Base Station tab using AirPort Utility to make sure that you have enabled Setup over WAN.

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Answer 5

Morat Author

Level 1

4 points

Feb 13, 2014 10:41 AM in response to Bob Timmons

WAN Set up was off, but now on, but still can't connect.

I've remembered that I use an Airport Express as well, but only set to extend my wireless network & provide airplay. Does that change anything - is this a face-palm moment?

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Answer 6

Feb 13, 2014 11:54 AM in response to Morat

The Express would have nothing to do with this.

You are trying to connect from outside of your home network at the present time, correct?

This will not work in my experience if you are trying to "test" the connection on your own network.

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Answer 7

Morat Author

Level 1

4 points

Feb 13, 2014 11:58 AM in response to Bob Timmons

Yes, attempting to connect to my AEBS Hdd externally, both through my works' network & a friends network, neither with any success so far. I guessed trying to connect from my own network wasn't going to work as you say.

Yes, my local LAN IP for the AEBS IS 10.0.1.1

Thanks for your persistence Bob.

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Answer 8

Feb 13, 2014 12:09 PM in response to Morat

I think it is time for Tesserax to take a look.

Always the possibility that the network at work has a firewall or other blocks in place to not allow this type of connection. Your ISP for the home network may have them in place as well, automatically blocking the port settings.

You will need talk to one of the upper level folks at the ISP. The regular "techs" who man the phones probably won't know what you are talking about.

If you are sure that you have the settings correct on your Mac, then you have to look elsewhere if you want to pursue this.

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Answer 9

Morat Author

Level 1

4 points

Feb 13, 2014 1:28 PM in response to Bob Timmons

I'm pretty sure my work are blocking my attempts, but there shouldn't be any problems connecting from my friends house. Is it a common issue do you think - isp's blocking these types of connections? I would have thought that just by requesting a static ip, would make these connections possible by default.

The whole point of doing this was to avoid the cost of a paid ftp service (Dropbox in this instance). I thought I had everything I need (with the exception of networking experience!) to be able to make my Hdd accessible by a friend/ client in LA for work I'm doing for him.

Tesserax's method (3) seemed the ideal solution, as opposed to using BBTM, which would have meant dishing out my iTunes details.

Anyway, thank you so much for your efforts - very much appreciated indeed. I'll speak to my ISP, but I'm not holding out much hope for them being able to advise on my specific set-up. I can only hope that they just say 'oh yes, we block connections like that. Would you like us to let you?' Stranger things have happened....

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Answer 10

Morat Author

Level 1

4 points

Feb 15, 2014 2:53 AM in response to Morat

Well, this is staggeringly frustrating...

Called my ISP & they say there's no blocking from them.

Tried smb, afp & ftp settings & can't connect externally from PC's or Macs. Settings are exactly as they should be as far as I understand.

The only variable is the fiber (fttc) modem; not configuable in any way, but is set to bridge. I would have thought if this modem (1 of only a very few vdsl modems available & supplied by BT) didn't allow this type of traffic someone would have mentioned it.

Surely my set-up isn't unique & I'm not the only one having this issue. Or maybe I'm unique in that I can't see a problem staring me in the face.

Got an Apple support call coming on Monday. Will see if they can help...

Tesserax can you help - there's a beer in it for you...somehow!

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Answer 11

Morat Author

Level 1

4 points

Feb 15, 2014 5:28 AM in response to Morat

So in summary & my final attempt before I give up (again):

ISP: Fiber Broadband. Supplied Static IP. No blocking.

Kit: iMac (OS 10.9.1), Airport Extreme (5th gen v6.3.2) with attached HDD, Openreach VDSL Modem (not user configurable. Set in bridge mode). All wired.

Software: Airport Utility (6.3.2).

Software settings;

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Answer 12

Morat Author

Level 1

4 points

Feb 15, 2014 5:47 AM in response to Morat

...now working - enabled Default Host at router IP (was my PS3 IP)😠😐😊

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Answer 13

Morat Author

Level 1

4 points

Feb 15, 2014 6:40 AM in response to Morat

the above is only a temporary solution...

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Answer 14

Jan 19, 2016 10:49 PM in response to Bob Timmons

Like the original poster, I am trying to access a USB hard drive connected to an Apple router (Airport Extreme 5th Gen in my case, with firmware version 7.6.4 and my Mac has Airport Utility version 6.3.5). Basically I can access to this router mounted thumb drive from within my network, but can't get remote access. I haven't tried the Back to my Mac solution because I want a device indepent solution. I find Tesserax's instructions not quite enough, though I appreciate them and Bob trying to explain and update them. Let me explain my issues for anyone who can help or is suffering as well...

My first success is that from within the LAN (on my Airport Extreme Wifi) I can connect to the thumb drive with Finder > Go > Connect to Server and then I can enter either (a) my public IP address or (b) any dynamic DNS address that points to this public wifi (adding "smb://" before the server name is optional). The main setting to make this connection work is that under "Disks" tab (in Airport Utility > click "Edit" base station) the "enable file sharing" option is checked. The "share disks over WAN" option isn't important yet. The Go > Connect to Server step is actually not needed, as the airport extreme automatically mounts as a shared disk in the Finder.

My second success is that I can connect to the Airport Extreme from the Guest wifi network. For this to work "share disks over WAN" must be selected (in Airport Utility > click "Edit" base station > Disks). Again the Airport Extreme automatically mounts and can be connected to using Finder > Go > Connect to Server. Note that the public IP address is the same for the standard and the guest accounts, so this is not a very wide WAN...

I fail completely however in connecting to the server from outside my home network. I have tried from work internet. Either physically at work or using VNC connection to work internet I fail to connect. This failure occurs whether or not I have the "Allow setup over WAN" option checked in the "Base Station" tab.

(Frankly, I am glad this option doesn't make a difference b/c I am interested in sharing a disk over the internet, not opening up the settings of the router entirely!)

I have tried many other things including various aspects of port forwarding. I'll note that I can open various ports on my computer (LAN IP 10.0.1.21) but not on the router itself (LAN IP 10.0.1.1). Note that my USB drive does not have its own IP address.

Another curious behavior occurs under Network > Network Options when I check "Enable default host at:" the IP address 10.0.1.253 automatically appears. I change this to 10.0.1.1 to attempt to connect to the router (followed by Save > Update) and then two things happen. First I can no longer Finder > Go > Connect to Server, as I now get the message "There was a problem connecting to the server ..." Second the IP address magically returns to the original 10.0.1.253 despite having saved it as 10.0.1.1 ?!!

Despite all this exploration and more, I still cannot connect to my USB drive from the internet. I feel like I am running out of things to try (aside from Back to My Mac) which I suppose I will try next as an imperfect solution (what if I want files and there is no Mac handy?!!). If anyone has any suggestions or explanations, I'd be happy to learn more or try something different.

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Answer 15

Jan 19, 2016 11:25 PM in response to astrorocks

Try downgrading to 7.6.1 firmware on the AE.

No port forwarding is required when you check make disk available to WAN.. BUT only AFP can access it. SMB is not made available publically. It is not secure.

Remember also you must use AFP to remotely access so when you make the connection you must force the computer to use AFP.. which also means btw that you have to use a Mac anyway.

SMB access to the TC can be done by breaking the security.

http://www.stratospherix.com/support/gsw_timecapsule.php?page=6remote

I tried to use this and in the end found the port you use was critical.. it simply didn't work unless the port translation was made exactly right.

You are breaking your neck to do something that is easy if you don't use Apple systems.. because Apple want to force you to connect by BTMM.. and since you don't want to use a Mac to connect then change to a more standard router. One that actually can do port forwarding and rely on it.. but even better.. just use VPN services of a router .. eg.. a cheap router.. WR1043ND v2 (<$50US on Amazon) flash over to gargoyle which is a simple upgrade.. and setup openvpn .. use the AE behind that as whatever you like.. AP.. USB stick in place.. and you can access the entire network.

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