UNIX for Dummies Questions & Answers

I am attempting to set up port forwarding on my netgear DG834. I know I have everything set up perfectly in the router. However when I attempt to telnet into the unix machine through the router across the internet it will not. Connection times out after not connecting after a few minutes. I can however telnet to the unix machine when I am inside the network. I have an Static IP address 65.xxx.xxx.xxx for the internet.

Is there a setting in unix somewhere that allows or disallows telneting from outside the network? I am running UNIX SCO 5.0.6. Thanks to anyone who can help.

You need to look at the router configuration again. If you can telnet from inside the network that should tell you that telnet is set up properly on the server. Once you confirm the settings are correct on the router check to see if your internet service provider is allowing or blocking the port. Finally, if that checks out okay, make sure that the site from where you are telneting from is allowing or blocking the port.

In my experience I find that the router tends to be miss configured. Rarely have I seen port 23 blocked by ISPs.

thanks I will double check the router.

From a security point of view telnet is deprecated and you should instead be using SSH, especially when its being used over an unsecure network like the internet.

cheers,
Darwin

To add weight to what Darwin has said Telnet sends passwords in clear text so even the crudest of snooper can discover passwords easily. Also once the password is gained the telnet port is open to the world, a hackers dream!!!! I would think twice about this!!!

Well I work for a small computer company and this is the way they have done it for years. I am not even sure how to use SSH.

Back to my problem. It is definently a unix problem. I switch the destination IP address to a Windows 2000 machine on the same network and.... WALA! Access. The problem is not in the router. There has got to be something on the unix machine blocking internet access. After investigating more I now realize the UNIX machine can not even access the internet. But it can access networked devices.

ssh is quite similiar to telnet, with the difference that its traffic is encrypted. And its also not that hard setting it up. Its actually worth the time having a look at it.

Sounds like a routing problem. Did you set a default gateway on THAT unix machine?