Aquatronica Ethernet Module - Faulty?

[instantsquid]

I have had the Aquatronica Ethernet Module for a couple of weeks now. It works fine over my local network, but I cannot access it over the internet.

Now before anyone posts a reply - here is what I have done!

From my PC, I can access the EM (Ethernet Module) by typing in it's IP address to Internet Explorer (192.168.2.30)

In my router setup (it's a Belkin) they call port forwarding "Virtual Servers". I have simply routed Port 80 on the external IP address to Port 80 on the EM. I have a fixed IP address, so from work (for example) I should be able to access the EM using my external IP address.

But it doesn't work. :(

I know my router supports port forwarding as I have a Windows web server which I can forward Port 80 to without a problem. I also have a wireless web cam which has it's own web server (so is much like the EM) - I can access that over the internet too.

This evening I borrowed a colleague's modem/router (a Netgear one) and swapped that for mine. Everything remained the same, i.e. the EM was accessible internally but not externally.

I'm now at my wit's end and can only assume that the EM is at fault - is it possible it will only respond to requests coming from the local network?

I would very much like to do a test and try mine in place of someones who has got theirs working, or vice versa. I'm not sure who else has got an EM within a sensible distance of me!

Thanks in advance (especially for not posting obvious replies ;) )

- Ian

[MaidstoneMarine]

ian,

are you using the same address to access it over the internet? if so it won't work. 192.168.xxx.xxx are non routable addresses over the internet. you'll be assigned an ip address by your broadband provider and it's this one you'll need to be using. i've not got an aquatronica so I can't help with that directly but at least it's a starting point!

Cheers

Chris

[instantsquid]

I have a fixed IP address and it is this I am using over the internet (eg. 62.49.63.xxx)

- Ian

[wavey]

Send an enquiry to service@aquatronica they will get back to you ASAP, I cant really help as I am yet to have a serius play with this bit of kit.

[instantsquid]

Ok - I'll drop them a line.

[instantsquid]

Just received this from Aquatronica:
Hello,
Sorry for the delayed response, but we have been looking into your problem and it may be a defect in our software, we kindly ask you to be patient while we resolve this problem. We will let you know when we have found a solution.
Best Regards,
Aquatronica
Technical Assistance

Fingers crossed, but it sounds hopeful....

[Robbyg]

If you have any other device using port 80 it wont work, and in some cases even the router may be using it.

What you need to do is go into port forwarding and forward another port to the EM.

Eg. forward port 2230 to 192.168.2.30

So from work you type in http://62.49.63.xxx:2230

and that will forward you to port 80 on 192.168.2.30

BTW you cant access the remote IP 62.49.63.xx from your local network so you can only test this from work or if you have a laptop seperately dialed into your isp

[instantsquid]

Thank you for your input.

I really thought I'd put enough information in my first post for people to realise that I'm not a complete moron and I do know how to set up a router. The point of mentioning other devices on Port 80 was to indicate that I'm confident port forwarding does work on my router. I wasn't trying to forward Port 80 to two internal devices.
Oh, and I used my laptop on a dial-up connection to test this.

The fact that Aquatronica stated "it may be a defect in our software" and "we kindly ask you to be patient while we resolve this problem. We will let you know when we have found a solution" leads to me suspect that there is a problem here. I don't know how many people have told me "Oh, it'll just be that you haven't set your router up properly" - I will eat my own leg if that turns out to be the case!

I played around with some port forwarding tools during the week. Basically, you can set up a service which listens on any port, and then forwards the request on any other port - but packages up the request so that the receiving device thinks the request has come from the same subnet. Hey, guess what? The Aquatronica Ethernet Module responds to that! Yet more evidence that it's not a happy bunny...

- Ian

[james141]

Ian, just a thought, you said you had the Draytek router, did you try setting up the PPTP VPN and connect with that and see if it works. That would be a much more secure way of doing it and it might actually work :)

[instantsquid]

Hi James,
No I borrowed a Daytek to see if it made a difference (it was suggested my router could be doing something odd to the TCP request). It didn't make any difference so I returned the Draytek - I only have a Belkin all-in-one job and that doesn't support VPN :(
- Ian

[Bat]

Hi,
I've just set up a server with Server 2003 OS. If there's one thing I've learnt in the process is that your router causes things like what you describe. I also believe as someone else stated that you'll need to use a different port number, as 80 is used for internet.
My streaming web cam is on 9990, I've had no success trying to forward anything through port 80, I think the routers built in firewall will only allow HTTP traffic through.
Cheers,
Gavin :)

[instantsquid]

Thanks, but that's still not very useful.

It is HTTP traffic that's coming through on Port 80, and as I said in my previous reply, I'm not trying to use Port 80 for anything else - but just to be sure, I have tried other ports too.

The fact that I am able to use a piece of software to do the port forwarding for me (i.e. make the Aquatronica web server think the request is coming from the same subnet) pretty much confirms that there is a problem.

But by all means, please keep suggesting that I don't know what I'm doing - it's so much fun!

- Ian

[Robbyg]

I don't know how many people have told me "Oh, it'll just be that you haven't set your router up properly" - I will eat my own leg if that turns out to be the case!
- Ian

When the time comes how do you wan't that served?

Well Done
Medium Rear
Juicy and Rear

I guess you can eat the Toe's last, as a kind of Cheesy Dessert :)

It's always the Routers Fault...

[instantsquid]

It's always the Routers Fault...
Then why haven't Aquatronica told me that?
And how come I've tried three (now!) different makes of router, all with the same outcome?
And why does forwarding the http request to any number of other IP devices work?
I could go on...

I've had this device for well over a month now and have tried so many different configurations, pieces of equipment, and so on. Everyone seems to assume I don't know an HTTP request from my own backside! I'm an internet software developer, plus I've had our company network and infrastructure guru look at it. But by all means, blame the router...

- Ian

[Hairy Monster]

Ah, but have you tried turning off then back on again?! PMSL its what the It support at the software house I used to work always said!

Sorry I'm not helping am I, trying to lighten the mood! Im no techie, not even that good with pc's but as Ian said it doesnt sound to me like its the router, and if im wrong I'll watch him eat his leg! :p

[instantsquid]

Ah, but have you tried turning off then back on again?!
I'll just go and try that... :D Have some mayonnaise ready when I return... :p

[Bat]

Hi,
I can tell you're getting more than a little fed up with this now. When you try to access it from your laptop via dial up what are you actually getting, 404 or something else?
I take it the aquatronica is on the same subnet mask as the rest of your network, and within the DHCP range of your router?
Just read ther first page again, have Aquatronica said there is a fault or not yet?
Cheers,
Gavin :)

[craigg]

yes they have said there is probably a fault.

[Robbyg]

I honestly dont know Ian. I just said that because I have spent so many hours in the past trying to get Routers to work right, At this point I think they are made by the Devil to torment computer techies :D

Then why haven't Aquatronica told me that?
And how come I've tried three (now!) different makes of router, all with the same outcome?
And why does forwarding the http request to any number of other IP devices work?
I could go on...

I've had this device for well over a month now and have tried so many different configurations, pieces of equipment, and so on. Everyone seems to assume I don't know an HTTP request from my own backside! I'm an internet software developer, plus I've had our company network and infrastructure guru look at it. But by all means, blame the router...

- Ian

[instantsquid]

Hopefully Aquatronica will get to back to me soon....

The whole point of buying this bit of kit was so I could keep an eye on the tank (quite literally, when combined with the IP cameras) while I was away on holiday. If I don't get it sorted soon, it'll have just been a waste of cash.
I'm already starting to think that for £100 or so I could have bought a cheapo PC and had it permanently connected to the Aquatronica, and then used a VPN and Remote Desktop to connect to it from anywhere.

- Ian

[Dave_P]

Have you tried using a router that supports VPN connections? That way the Aquatronica should be completely oblivious to the outside world.

I started on this before I went away, only to find that the VPN software on my phone (windows ce) was not compatable with the linux based router I have. Microsoft had modified the standard :mad:, the linus router would be compatable in the next release.

Dave

P.S. Ian If you reply and get no response from me, it's because I cannot get internet access on holiday, at the moment killing time in an airport.

[instantsquid]

Email just received from Aquatronica
We have identified the problem for the moment, and we will soon be testing out the solution.
We apologize once again for this inconvenience.
Best Regards,
Aquatronica

[james141]

Interesting, I would love to know exactly what the problem is :)

[instantsquid]

Will keep you posted!

[Dave_P]

Ian

Have you got any further with this?

Dave

[instantsquid]

Nope. Still waiting for Aquatronica to get back to me.

[instantsquid]

Latest email from Aquatronica
Hello,
We are sorry for the time it is taking us to resolve this problem, but we have discovered that there are multiple factors involed with this defect including certain types of Routers. We may have a solution shortly which will likely be in the form of a FW update but we will need to test it properly. We kindly ask you to hold on for a while longer.

Best Regards,
Aquatronica
Technical Assistance

[Will]

send it back ian for a refund till they sort it out, and buy some more gadgets :D

[instantsquid]

I like to think I'm being a pioneer here for the members of UltimateReef - bug-testing new products for companies contributing to our hobby :D Hopefully they'll appreciate my efforts and let me have future products to test for free..... :p

[instantsquid]

Latest email from Aquatronica:
Unfortunately this problem seems to be, in part, due to the type of router being used, and we believe that you can understand that this is a new product and that we were not able to test it on every router available on the market.
We are currently testing a new Ethernet Firmware, this will be available within the next few weeks. Hopefully this update will resolve the problem
Best Regards,
Aquatronica,
Technical Assistance

Hmmmm... so now it is my fault for using the wrong router! Doh! :o If only they'd specified on the box which router it does work with! :annoyed:

[Phyto]

The Italians have great idea's , shame they can't build like the Germans

[instantsquid]

A quick update - just got this from Aquatronica
We are about to release a new Firmware version for the Ethernet module which we believe will solve your problem. We have seen that this defect is sometimes due to the Router, so we would appreciate it if you let us know if this defect is resolved by the new version.
Best Regards,
Aquatronica
Technical Assistance

[instantsquid]

Latest Aquatronica email (sent to all their registered customers)

Aquatronica would like to inform its customers that new updates are available for the Aquarium Controller System, specifically the updates are for the Aquarium Controller, Ethernet module, and PC software.

Since these updates contain numerous improvements, we suggest that everyone performs these updates.
The new versions are:
Firmware v. 3.11 for the Aquarium Controller
- Corrects a few "minor bugs"
Firmware v. 2.0 for the Ethernet module (ACQ225)
- Corrects a few "bugs" which should improve compatibility with numerous Router models, and in the SMTP server set-up
- Implements the new periodic status e-mail function
PC software v. 5.6
- Manages the periodic status e-mail option
- Improves SMTP server set-up


Best regards
Aquatronica

[instantsquid]

Guess what?









It works! :dance:

I finally gave in and bought a new router, a Draytek. I went into NAT settings, added an entry and BAM! my Aquatronica Ethernet Module is accessible from outside my network. Literally took a couple of minutes.

So it quite clearly was a problem with my old router. Aquatronica claimed they had fixed this incompatibility, but obviously hadn't.

Well, anyway - there you go. If you've got a Belkin router - don't expect it to work with the Aquatronica Ethernet Module. :whistling:

[Robbyg]

You certainly held out long enough:laugh:
Just kidding, glad to see you got it working :dance: