SMB/VPN type software

  • Thread starter Thread starter Mark Carter
  • Start date Start date
M

Mark Carter

Here's the setup: I'm at home using Windows XP, sitting behind a Netgear
router. At work, we have a Linux server as a gateway, and a file server
running Windows 2000 sitting behind it.

I'm looking for software to put on XP so that I can easily transfer
files to and from work. I'm hoping that the setup process is as easy as
possible, so that my head wont explode trying to figure out what it is I
need to do. Any suggestions?

I can already ssh into the Linux box, and use samba to access the file
server. I can already transfer files to/from work with much huffing and
puffing, and with FTP involved along the line. I'm figuring that there
has to be a more elegant solution to the problem.
 
Mark Carter said:
Here's the setup: I'm at home using Windows XP, sitting behind a Netgear
router. At work, we have a Linux server as a gateway, and a file server
running Windows 2000 sitting behind it.

I'm looking for software to put on XP so that I can easily transfer
files to and from work. I'm hoping that the setup process is as easy as
possible, so that my head wont explode trying to figure out what it is I
need to do. Any suggestions?

I can already ssh into the Linux box, and use samba to access the file
server. I can already transfer files to/from work with much huffing and
puffing, and with FTP involved along the line. I'm figuring that there
has to be a more elegant solution to the problem.
Click to expand...

Keeping it really really simple, have you looked at Messenger etc.
-pk-
 
Here's the setup: I'm at home using Windows XP, sitting behind a Netgear
router. At work, we have a Linux server as a gateway, and a file server
running Windows 2000 sitting behind it.

I'm looking for software to put on XP so that I can easily transfer
files to and from work. I'm hoping that the setup process is as easy as
possible, so that my head wont explode trying to figure out what it is I
need to do. Any suggestions?

I can already ssh into the Linux box, and use samba to access the file
server. I can already transfer files to/from work with much huffing and
puffing, and with FTP involved along the line. I'm figuring that there
has to be a more elegant solution to the problem.
Click to expand...

Here's where things get kinda sticky, but in a perfect world you can do it
like this.

You have a couple of different options.

You can install a VPN server on the Linux box, I used SME server, it is a
router, and server, and does VPN. The XP VPN client should work with this.
You should be able to access to rest of your network this way.

If you have Win2K server behind the Linux router, you already have VPN
server software. XP also has a default VPN client, these will be
compatable. At the Linux box you'll need to open the VPN port. You will
have whatever rights your login has on the virtual network connection. This
is certainly the most complete solution.

The kicker here is to make sure the Netgear router can do VPN, I've had
some in the past that cannot, and it gets really messy. You'll not get it
to work just by opening the appropriate ports, it actually needs to support
VPN. I'm not really sure why this is, but that's been my experience.

A really easy is to use something like VNC. It's easily configurable, and
will do most of what you need to do. Just make sure to open all of the
appropriate ports on your routers.
 
-pk- said:
Keeping it really really simple, have you looked at Messenger etc.
Click to expand...

Umm, AFIAK, Messenger is for chatting to one's mates, and has nothing
to do with file transfers??
 
H-Man said:
A really easy is to use something like VNC. It's easily configurable, and
will do most of what you need to do. Just make sure to open all of the
appropriate ports on your routers.
Click to expand...

I had a quick go with VNC, but it didn't work. I'm not sure VNC is an
approriate solution anyway, as it doesn't actually transfer files.

I'm thinking that home being behind a firewall isn't the problem. It's
on the server side. Like I say, I can ssh from home to my server. So
that bit works, and isn't phased by my network at home. The problem is
that I need to hop from the work Linux firewall to the work Windows file
server in one fell swoop. It's got something to do with "tunneling";
forwarding ports and suchlike. And instead of using ssh, I need a nice
GUI file browser that makes file transfers easy. The problem is, the
whole is just too confusing for me to get my head around.
 
Here's the setup: I'm at home using Windows XP, sitting behind a Netgear
router. At work, we have a Linux server as a gateway, and a file server
running Windows 2000 sitting behind it.

I'm looking for software to put on XP so that I can easily transfer
files to and from work. I'm hoping that the setup process is as easy as
possible, so that my head wont explode trying to figure out what it is I
need to do. Any suggestions?

I can already ssh into the Linux box, and use samba to access the file
server. I can already transfer files to/from work with much huffing and
puffing, and with FTP involved along the line. I'm figuring that there
has to be a more elegant solution to the problem.
Click to expand...

Something like this?

http://www.emtec.com/pyrotrans/index.html
 
Mel said:
Something like this?

http://www.emtec.com/pyrotrans/index.html
Click to expand...

Except that it only works on Windows. Doesn't the whole thing fall to
bits as soon as Linux gets involved somewhere along the chain?

I had a quickie browse on Sourceforge, and cam up with WinSCP:
http://winscp.sourceforge.net/eng/docs/introduction
but even that doesn't really do what I want it to do.

Dunno. I should have thought that what I'm trying to accomplish would be
fairly common. I had a hunt around, and saw terms like IPSec, L2TP, PPTP
and TFTP sprinkled around. So many protocols, so little understanding.
Couldn't make head nor tails of it. Networks are a crock.
 
Here's the setup: I'm at home using Windows XP, sitting behind a Netgear
router. At work, we have a Linux server as a gateway, and a file server
running Windows 2000 sitting behind it.

I'm looking for software to put on XP so that I can easily transfer
files to and from work. I'm hoping that the setup process is as easy as
possible, so that my head wont explode trying to figure out what it is I
need to do. Any suggestions?

I can already ssh into the Linux box, and use samba to access the file
server. I can already transfer files to/from work with much huffing and
puffing, and with FTP involved along the line. I'm figuring that there
has to be a more elegant solution to the problem.
Click to expand...

Take a look at the readme inside the zip.

http://www.filelibrary.com:8080/cgi-bin/freedownload/Windows/j/112/rwpvtnet.zip
 
I had a quick go with VNC, but it didn't work. I'm not sure VNC is an
approriate solution anyway, as it doesn't actually transfer files.

I'm thinking that home being behind a firewall isn't the problem. It's
on the server side. Like I say, I can ssh from home to my server. So
that bit works, and isn't phased by my network at home. The problem is
that I need to hop from the work Linux firewall to the work Windows file
server in one fell swoop. It's got something to do with "tunneling";
forwarding ports and suchlike. And instead of using ssh, I need a nice
GUI file browser that makes file transfers easy. The problem is, the
whole is just too confusing for me to get my head around.
Click to expand...

eSVNC and UltraVNC both have file transfer support if the OS is Windows
based.
I'm assuming, of course, that you only have simple port forwarding (NAT)
installed in the Linux box. If you have more than that, perhaps sharing
some of the current config details will help us to guide the operations
necessary in allowing some of this to work. Also, please note that just
because you can ssh to the Linux box, does not mean that you have an
appropriate configuration to either VNC or VPN. You will have to open
appropriate ports to allow for these protocols to do their thing
 
Mark said:
Networks are a crock.
Click to expand...

I once installed SshSentinel on my computer at home. It's a commercial
offering, but my company had the license for it so it was OK. I was
given instructions by our sysadmin; but I think she was a bit lazy and
disinterested, because on one occasion I tried it and it just didn't
work. I tried it on a completely separate occasion and it just brought
down my entire computer.

Since then, I get a sinking feeling whenever I get the idea of trying to
perform remote connections. Like I say, I can log onto the remote Linux
box, and I can use smbclient to push and pull files from the Windows
server to Linux. Then I can FTP from home to work. But that's a really
long way of going about it.

A real problem is that when things go wrong - which they most definitely
will do - it's nigh on impossible to diagnose what the problem is.
Things either work, or they don't. And if they don't, well, that's Life.

I think our office is migrating from a Windows server to Linux sometime
in the future, so maybe things will magically get better when the switch
is made.
 
H-Man said:
eSVNC and UltraVNC both have file transfer support if the OS is Windows
based.
I'm assuming, of course, that you only have simple port forwarding (NAT)
installed in the Linux box. If you have more than that, perhaps sharing
some of the current config details will help us to guide the operations
necessary in allowing some of this to work. Also, please note that just
because you can ssh to the Linux box, does not mean that you have an
appropriate configuration to either VNC or VPN. You will have to open
appropriate ports to allow for these protocols to do their thing
Click to expand...

For example, if I click on "New Connection Wizard", I get a dialog box
appearing called "Location Information". This is completely naff,
because I'm using broadband, so the area codes and tone/pulse dialling
options have nothing to do with it. So I click Cancel.

Clicking on Next in "New Connection Wizard" gives me a list of options
to choose from. One of them is "Connect to a the network at my
workplace", which looks right, especially since it uses the word VPN in
its descriptive text. The problem is, when I select that, and click
Next, the options on the next page are greyed out. Bummer.

Also, if there needs to be an inbound port to my computer, what port
number should it be. I'm assuming it's just the "usual" port that
Windows uses.

It's a complete mystery.
 
Mark said:
I once installed SshSentinel on my computer at home. It's a commercial
offering, but my company had the license for it so it was OK. I was
given instructions by our sysadmin; but I think she was a bit lazy and
disinterested, because on one occasion I tried it and it just didn't
work. I tried it on a completely separate occasion and it just brought
down my entire computer.

Since then, I get a sinking feeling whenever I get the idea of trying to
perform remote connections. Like I say, I can log onto the remote Linux
box, and I can use smbclient to push and pull files from the Windows
server to Linux. Then I can FTP from home to work. But that's a really
long way of going about it.

A real problem is that when things go wrong - which they most definitely
will do - it's nigh on impossible to diagnose what the problem is.
Things either work, or they don't. And if they don't, well, that's Life.

I think our office is migrating from a Windows server to Linux sometime
in the future, so maybe things will magically get better when the switch
is made.
Click to expand...
Hello All,

I am new lurker and really enjoy this group! Keep up the great work. I
don't have too much to add yet but you never know. I have also used a
commercial product GoToMyPc and it did exactly what Mark was trying to
accomplish. [There is a free trial for it.] Is there a freeware
alternative to GoToMyPc?

Cheers,
Ray
 
Except that it only works on Windows. Doesn't the whole thing fall to
bits as soon as Linux gets involved somewhere along the chain?

I had a quickie browse on Sourceforge, and cam up with WinSCP:
http://winscp.sourceforge.net/eng/docs/introduction
but even that doesn't really do what I want it to do.

Dunno. I should have thought that what I'm trying to accomplish would be
fairly common. I had a hunt around, and saw terms like IPSec, L2TP, PPTP
and TFTP sprinkled around. So many protocols, so little understanding.
Couldn't make head nor tails of it. Networks are a crock.
Click to expand...
If you simplify a little you are actually going Windows XP to Windows
2000, and the Linux Gateway is a passthru so to speak. Sort of like you
going from your home computer to http://some.website.com. (Along the way
you passthru all kinds of servers)

Since you want to do this thru a Machine located at work you should
probably get the Network Administrator involved. Not doing so may breach
the Network Security of your Employer and possibly expose you to
dismissal for unauthorized access of the Employers Network.
 
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