Port Forwarding
This is becoming so ridiculous, I'm about to ask for my money back. I just purchased this VPN thing yesterday and have been on about 8 chats and received no help. I even submitted a ticket and in the ticket response they told me they couldn't help me and to check out the forums....so here I am.
Long complicated story is that I am trying to set up an IP camera wirelessly through my router to my computer. In order to do so, I would normally go to my router's configuration and open a port for the camera. This is very unsecure and I wanted to fix it so I tried this VPN. I downloaded VPN (for windows, the one with the little green guy, really simple installation instructions) and got it set up. I got my camera set and opened the port on the router. I remembered that I needed to enable port forwarding on VPN so I did so then for the local port number I put in the port number the camera was connected to...the program didnt like this one bit and completely stopped working and make me uninstall and reinstall it just to get it working again. Now I have everything functioning I dont know what to do about the port forwarding? I have to open the port on my router in order for the camera program to communicate with the camera. When I follow the port forwarding instructions online for VPN, I try to open a new gateway (I'm not even sure what that means because chat wouldn't help me, so I assume I try to open one of the web addresses listed in the instructions...for example http://nl.privateinternetaccess.com/ (Netherlands)) and I get error page: "problem loading page:The site could be temporarily unavailable or too busy. Try again in a few moments.
If you are unable to load any pages, check your computer's network connection.
If your computer or network is protected by a firewall or proxy, make sure that Firefox is permitted to access the Web. "
Help me!!!
Long complicated story is that I am trying to set up an IP camera wirelessly through my router to my computer. In order to do so, I would normally go to my router's configuration and open a port for the camera. This is very unsecure and I wanted to fix it so I tried this VPN. I downloaded VPN (for windows, the one with the little green guy, really simple installation instructions) and got it set up. I got my camera set and opened the port on the router. I remembered that I needed to enable port forwarding on VPN so I did so then for the local port number I put in the port number the camera was connected to...the program didnt like this one bit and completely stopped working and make me uninstall and reinstall it just to get it working again. Now I have everything functioning I dont know what to do about the port forwarding? I have to open the port on my router in order for the camera program to communicate with the camera. When I follow the port forwarding instructions online for VPN, I try to open a new gateway (I'm not even sure what that means because chat wouldn't help me, so I assume I try to open one of the web addresses listed in the instructions...for example http://nl.privateinternetaccess.com/ (Netherlands)) and I get error page: "problem loading page:The site could be temporarily unavailable or too busy. Try again in a few moments.
If you are unable to load any pages, check your computer's network connection.
If your computer or network is protected by a firewall or proxy, make sure that Firefox is permitted to access the Web. "
Help me!!!
Comments
The slightly longer version is that port forwards are more complicated than most think. And you have a lot less control. You do not get to choose what port to forward, and the server you connect to does not magically take up all your local network and make it part of the Internet accessible to everyone, then wave yet another magic wand and make it only accessible to you...
I know I likely sound like an ass. And I am. But I am trying to explain why I do not think this will work, and sarcasm is my native language.
Unless it's somehow sending pictures somewhere else.
That sounds fishy.
What is the make and model of your camera? I'd like to verify how it works.
Or are you trying to access the camera from a remote location (not inside your home network)?
The VPN is an encrypted tunnel between your computer and PIA's server, over the internet. You don't need to use it for your cameras because as VPN said above, they are operating on your LOCAL network (i.e. not on the internet).
If you wanted them to broadcast online (eg so you can log in remotely and watch your house), then and only then would you need to set up port forwarding via your router, but it would mean you couldn't use the VPN.
PIA works great, and although they'd be happy to refund you I'm sorry to say the only issue you've had is that you didn't understand how it worked. That said, I agree with you that support can be dire at present, and that's something PIA have promised they're working on.
http://forums.untangle.com/openvpn/23692-remotely-accessing-ip-cameras-through-openvpn.html
The way that you are currently connecting, with the PIA client from your computer, your IP camera isn't actually using the VPN. Here is the point where it gets strange. I read your posts as if you need a port forward to use a remote camera's video recording mode.
Port forwarding at PIA works like this: The PIA server chooses a port number for you and assigns it to your VPN connection. It then tells you that port number. When you reconnect, the port number can change, you don't have any control over it.
The port is always active on the same server you are using. That server isn't identified by the hostname, but solely its IP address. You can find that IP address by looking at the output of some networking related console commands you run on your system, or visiting a website that shows your IP address through the VPN.
Only on that IP address is the forwarded port active, and only for as long as your VPN connection persists.
Can you enter the port number somewhere in the IP camera's interface?
Could you perhaps screenshot the part where it talks about the needed port forwarding?
Its not letting me upload a pic. Is there another way?
[IMG]http://i62.tinypic.com/24n4mcp.jpg[/IMG]
If the FOSCAM address on the sticker was "example" then it would be "example.myfoscam.org:88". This should work even if you run the VPN, so long as your local network is configured to make that feature accessible. (You may still have to run the VPN on both the local network and the remote network you use to access it.)
Honestly I'm on the verge of returning the camera cuz its been nothing but problems! haha
Ultimately, one or both of the camera or the VPN is not what you want. The VPN will give you a full refund within seven days of subscription. So the choice is yours. I wish I knew a way to fix it for you.
If you run the camera's companion software on a computer that is connected to the same network, you do not need a port forward at all.
If you run it on another network, but the camera itself isn't using the VPN, then the port forward you need doesn't have anything to do with the VPN.
Seriously, could you perhaps at least post some of the involved IP addresses and describe how the devices involved are connected to the internet and/or each other?
There are other VPN Services where you can ask for a certain port to be opened up and get the same port every time.
But so far PIA is the best VPN so far.
I just wish PIA could do something similar.
And are the IP's STATIC?
if this is the case then the camera should, when attached to the PC, either by cable or wireless, be seen as a storage device.
Maybe you need to set the config of the software to utiles the correct IP range.
I dont use Windows ( LinuxMint), which I asume you are using, so I cant provide any ideas re that.