Veritas C et E

Q: Wireless OS X Server Possible Out of the Box?

Hi,

 

Many years ago I used to have a dedicated Mac Mini server which was directly connected to my University's internet via ethernet.

 

The OS X Server model has changed a bit, and now I live in Europe and get internet over wifi through a commercial internet box.

 

Is it possible to run all functions of OSX Server out of the box if the server is connected to internet only via wifi offered by that box? Would that mess up the IP addresses?

iMac, OS X Server

Posted on Oct 16, 2015 6:54 AM

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Q: Wireless OS X Server Possible Out of the Box?

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  • by MrHoffman,Helpful

    MrHoffman MrHoffman Oct 16, 2015 1:50 PM in response to Veritas C et E
    Level 6 (15,612 points)
    Mac OS X
    Oct 16, 2015 1:50 PM in response to Veritas C et E

    I'll assume you're pondering connecting a web server, mail server or other services to the Internet.  Not operating the server entirely locally.

     

    Your local network connection is less interesting than the tier of service from your ISP — OS X Server much prefers static IP when providing specific services on the open Internet — and the details and particular configuration capabilities of your ISP-provided box.

     

    A conversion of this box or of a replacement box to one that can provide a so-called "bridged" connection is much preferred here, and — yes — a wired connection is preferred as Wi-Fi can be flaky secondary to interference.    But that's not necessary, of the ISP device is sufficiently programmable.

     

    Unfortunately for those folks running servers, ISPs tend to pick dumb, cheap, simple to configure devices — this for very good reason, as those are much easier to support and maintain.   If the ISP can convert the device to "bridged" mode, you can install a more capable gateway-firewall-NAT box and/or your own Wi-Fi and other services.

     

    Also, Wi-Fi is particularly flaky in built-up area, as new Wi-FI routers and access points can appear at any time, and existing ones can be reconfigured at random.   This can hose your server connection, just as it can hose a client connection.

     

    Details of the specific model of ISP gateway-firewall-router-WiFi-NAT box will help somebody research that.   Or by reading the ISP documentation and starting to explore the port-forwarding capabilities of that particular device yourself, of course.