Can I have security enabled on router AND XBOX Live working?!

GibsonSt19

Anyone know whether I can do this?

I have a Netgear DG834GT Modem/Router, and can access Live without probs is security is disabled on the router.

I really would like to have security enabled permenantly, so if anyone knows about this I'd be so grateful to hear from you!

Ta

Darksun

What security is it? If it's a firewall, I assume that if you set up to allow whatever ports X-Box live uses, then it should still work. Try google, you should be able to get a list of the ports you need to allow.

GibsonSt19

Hi there, it's not firewall security, but router security. I only want it on a WPA level, and I can confirm that my router is configured to allow Live on all required ports.

GibsonSt19

Anyone know about this? Whether xbox live works under secure conditions with a Netgear (or specifically the DG834GT)?

Toxteth_OGrady

Is your x-box connected wirelessly to the router?

:cool:

TOG

GibsonSt19

It is indeed connected wirelessly.

Cat72

We had similar problems with our router ( but it was not wireless).The security settings meant we were unable to join certain games and even accept friend invites.We disabled the security settings and have been like that for a year with no problems.As far as I know it is the only way to access xbox live fully.I have my own security settings in my computer ,so that was ok.
The xbox live team told us how to do it- but it was a very lengthy process to get the information.The recommend disabling all security on the router too. Give them a phone.

Toxteth_OGrady

Your wireless WPA encryption should not affect your x-box.

If you imagine your x-box connected by cable instead of wireless from its network port to the router's network port, then there would be a flow of data packets between the two.

When you replace the cable with wireless all that happens is that as the data goes in or out of the respective ports on the two devices it gets encrypted/decrypted by the WPA.

So the data is only encrypted when it's travelling wirelessly through the ether between the 2 devices. Providing both wireless adapters share the same encryption method and key it will work.

As far as processing the data once it's inside the x-box or router there's no difference between the wired or wireless situation as the data will have been already decoded by the wireless adapters in the latter case.

So if you can connect you x-box live to the internet via ethernet cable to the router, then equally you will be able to connect wirelessly.

This works fine if the x-box is sending out game data to the web game servers because the NAT function of the router will forward the replies back to the x-box.

However many online games rely on the web game server providing a "heartbeat" data packet to the client application (i.e. your x-box). Because these heartbeats are unsolicited (they are not a response to a data packet sent out by your x-box) when they come into the router it cannot workout which machine on your network it needs to forward them to, so it will just drop them.

This would stop the game from running.

This problem is overcoming by telling the router to always forward the heartbeat data packets received on the port used by the server directly to the x-box. This is Port Forwarding.

HTH

:cool:

TOG

GibsonSt19

Thank you for this, I have port forwarding set up for LIVE (info taken from https://www.portforward.com), (working for eMule, MSN, various other softwares).

It just doesn't work for WEP, and I understand why it should, but it just doesn't

Toxteth_OGrady

Is this your wireless adapter for the x-box??

GibsonSt19

No, I have THIS