Forwarding router ports
If you use a wire or wireless router or are on a network, it is likely that you have an assigned IP address that is only meaningful to your network. Attempts to reach that address from outside the network will fail. Addresses that begin with "192.168" are local network addresses. You can check for this by clicking the "Preview" button in Share and comparing the text in your browser's address field to the graphic below.
If your address begins with "192.168", you will need to forward a port on your router. Port forwarding is a fairly straightforward process but it requires some familiarity with how routers work. In essence, when someone attempts to connect to a specific port on your router, the router will try to pass the request to your computer.
Share may not be able to reliably guess your router's IP address. If you have trouble connecting to the address that Share provides, you should find out your router's IP address for yourself. Information on obtaining this IP address is located in the last step of the tutorial below.
How to forward ports
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Connect to your router. Instructions for accessing your router's administrative controls should be in the documentation included with your router or written underneath (or behind) the router itself. This tutorial uses a Netgear router. You can connect to a Netgear router by going to "routerlogin.net" in a web browser. Instructions for other routers can be found at Port Forward.
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Navigate to the port forwarding controls.
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You will need to create a new forward. Click the "Add custom service" button (or similar button for non-Netgear routers).
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Enter the required information. The most important items are the port numbers and the server IP address. In case a router allows for a range of ports, you may see two entries for a port number. For Share, simply use the same port number for both. You can find the port number from the IP address in your browser when you preview your share (see top of the page) or by opening Share's preferences. Note that the IP address for your computer must also be completed. Your network IP address can be found by previewing your Share (again, you may refer to the image at the top of the page). Once you have applied your settings, the service should appear the services table of the port forwarding admin page.
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Since Share may not be able to reliably locate your router's IP address and your computer's IP address is only meaningful for your local network, you will have to locate your router's IP address yourself. This is usually found in some "Settings", "Summary", or "Description" page in the router admin panel. There are also web services that will tell you your router's IP number. Can You See Me will provide your router's IP number as well as check whether certain ports have been properly opened.