AppleWatcher,
This topic has been addressed on this site before.
Do a search for Router and you should hit several responses.
I'll give you the cliff notes for now:
First to find your ip do the following:
From your OSX machine, open System Preferences
- Look for the 'network' icon and click it.
- Show your "Built-in Ethernet" settings
- Select TCP/IP tab
- Look at the number next to the "IP Address" listing
- Write that number down somewhere.
More then likely that number is NOT a real world IP address.
The short of this is that there are two types of IP addresses... "real world" and "virtual"
When your machine has a real world ip address eveyone in the entire world will reach that machine when addressing those numbers in a browser for example.
All web services have to traffic to a real world ip address at some point.
Since everybody in the world would see the same result. Real world ips have to be unique. And as such usually cost money. But put away your check book... because you already have an address. You got one from your ISP when you purchased your internet connection.
But there's a problem, you can't use it. Your router is already using it. Your router uses that 'real world' ip address to traffic information to any from your ISP.
So how do you solve this problem then?
Enter in virtual ip addresses.
Every machine connected to your router more then likely has been asigned an ip address (a virtual ip address) by your router.
This is probably the number you wrote down earlier.... something like 10.0.0.101 or some low number like that. Each router will be different.
What you wrote down is that machine's virtual ip address. Every machine you add to your router will be assigned an virtual ip address... This addressing system only means something to your router and the machines on your local area network (LAN).
The virtual ip addresses are used for traffic between your router and computer(s) AND NOT the outside world. (Wide Area Network (WAN)).
So all you have to do is to tell your router that you want all (in this case) web traffic to go to your web server. Then those people from the outside world who want to connect to your web server will have to use your Real World IP (which your router is using.)
When you purchased your router you should have had some utility or administrative options... one of which should be DMZ hosting.
Turn DMZ hosting on from your router (each brad is a bit different or else I'd give you step by step instructions).
You should have to specify your DMZ host address... enter the ip address you wrote down earlier.
If you have port forwarding, make sure port 80 is pointing to that same address and also make sure you don't have that port (80) closed, if your router acts as a firewall like mine does.
Bam, you're done... router now knows that when it gets a request for information on port 80 to route that traffic to your webserver.
Again this is really the short of it.. I'm assuming your router is acting as a DHCP server and you that you know how to configure your router.
Hope this helps...
),