Request to fix Dreamcast online servers that requires “DMZ hosting” optional.

[CutieJoey]

VERY IMPORTANT NOTE! Please read!

I really know what is the problem. It’s the DMZ hosting and port forwarding itself. Just to let you know that using DMZ host is not only a pain for my Dreamcast, but it will mess up my electronics and that’s a bad situation. The Dreamcast games that requires DMZ/port forwarding needs to be optional ASAP! So the question is, can you please fix and make DMZ/PF optional? Using DMZ is not recommended for me at all and I can’t afford to buy new Windows PC’s because they are very expensive and also we don’t have that kind of money to buy one. Please make the DMZ host/port forward optional so I can play 2K and Alien Front Online once more. And the Dreamcast online games that doesn’t require DMZ are Quake III Arena, 4x4 evolution, Phantasy Star Online, Maximum Pool and others that doesn’t requires DMZ.

[CutieJoey]

Is it impossible to make DMZ hosting optional for Dreamcast online servers that requires it? That would require server maintenance.

[BlueCrab]

To put it lightly, it's probably unlikely that things could be done to the servers themselves to solve this problem.

Most Dreamcast games were set up assuming people were using dial-up internet, and not broadband with a home network. With dial-up, you only had a single device assigned to a public IP (which essentially is equivalent to DMZing a host on a modern home network). Thus, some games assume this is the case and make connections on just about any port assuming that there will no restrictions.

With some games, this can be worked around using port forwarding rather than having to DMZ your Dreamcast, but this might very well be a spotty solution to any games that use matchmaking type systems (i.e, where the server essentially acts only as a way to find other clients, not as a full server), just by the nature of how such games work.

Games that were designed to work with the Broadband Adapter (PSO and Q3A) don't have this problem at all -- even with DreamPi.

There's a list (I don't know how complete/up-to-date it is) of ports to try forwarding in lieu of setting up the DMZ on this page: https://dreamcastlive.net/connection-guide/ .

[mistamontiel]

Right when I started out port unblock/forward wasn't budging only for PS2 and everything I throw @ my PC

DMZ is 200% golden I jus hate that I am not sure for everyone but I'm only allowed to DMZ one device one IP..

[BlueCrab]

DMZ is 200% golden I jus hate that I am not sure for everyone but I'm only allowed to DMZ one device one IP..

That's just how the DMZ works -- it effectively puts that one host outside of firewall for anything that isn't specifically port forwarded. That's why you can only have one DMZed host -- otherwise you could have multiple hosts potentially responding to the same packets (if they were both up at the same time), which would be problematic.

[Scrivani]

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[Scrivani]

Is it impossible to make DMZ hosting optional for Dreamcast online servers that requires it? That would require server maintenance.

Hi !

While is not optional, you just need resilience and correct instructions to achieve your dmz objective.

If you have a Modem (from your InternetServiceProvider [ISP]) + Router (seems to be Netgear), there's something important:

Is modem in Brigde mode or not? If the ISP Modem is like Brigde, you just need to set the dreamcast IP on Netgear Router dmz section

If ISP Modem is in "Router mode", you can use your internet on it, without Netgear, like doing a direct cable connection between ISP Modem and your PC.


Well, if is that the case, your ISP Modem in "router mode", little bit more complicated, your NETGEAR have a IP(address) coming from ISP Modem, and this IP need to be in ISP Modem DMZ Section. Example:

ISP Modem 192.168.0.1
--------ISP clients: NETGEAR Router, receive IP 192.168.0.2, but have other internal IP address pattern for new clients, like 10.0.0.1
-----------------------------NETGEAR Clients: PC receive IP 10.0.0.2
---------------------------------------------------Rasbperry receive IP 10.0.0.3
---------------------------------------------------Dreamcast when connected receive IP 10.0.0.98 or 10.0.0.97 (look in quake connection process)

Enter in ISP Modem page , DMZ Section and put Netgear IP on it.

Enter in NETGEAR page, DMZ Section and put Dreamcast IP on it.

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