Computer Setup

 

Setting up your computer hardware and software to enable MyCourts web server to serve your web pages to your LAN and the Internet is not difficult. The following information and links should help you particularly if you do not have an IT consultant or web designer handy.

 

 

All configuration is done via the MCA windows. You will need to complete all of them (except the Offline Setup) before MyCourts Web Server is fully operational.

 

Once configured and running, you can access the web service by browsing to http://localhost .

 

 

If you are operating on a LAN and wish to have other computers on the LAN access the web service then you will need to know the IP address of the computer that is running MyCourts. This information will be displayed in IP Address list box.

 

If the computer running MyCourts has an IP address of 192.168.0.2, then to access MyCourts web service from other computers on your LAN you will need to browse to http://192.168.0.2 .

 

If your computers are named and DNS is running then you can use the name that is displayed in the text box eg. http://home.myclubsdomainname.com .

 

 

People outside of your LAN need to know a web address to access your computer with. This is achieved as follows:

 

1. First you obtain a fixed IP address from the people you currently get your internet access from (your ISP). They will then assign that address to your router. The router is the box that connects you to the internet although the router may also be incorporated into your computer particularly if it is a laptop. The external address will most likely be a combination of 4 groups of up to 3 digits eg 57.4.123.78 . This will likely cost you USD$2 per month extra.

 

2. As people find it difficult to remember numbers, you need to alter your DNS (Domain Name Service) to include the newly acquired fixed IP address as a name. For example, our web server is known as "mybookings". You can access "mybookings" at 58.6.121.54 by browsing to http://58.6.121.54 but because we have configured our DNS you can also browse to http://mybookings.mycourts.com.au and get to the same site.

 

Your DNS will most likely be managed by whoever you purchased your domain name from in the first place. You will need to contact them (or log on to their server) to have them include your new fixed IP address and your chosen name to the DNS.

 

If you have lost contact with those people then we can do it for you but we will need your domain name host's web address, your logon name and password.

 

Your web designer can also probably help you with this.

 

Now you have your DNS setup and working (it can take several hours for the DNS changes to be discovered by the whole of the internet), whenever people browse to your new site they will only get as far as your router because that's what your ISP has set the IP address for.

 

 

You need to now setup your router to transfer any information that it received for your new IP address and pass it on to the appropriate computer on the LAN for processing. This is called PORT FORWARDING on most routers and also involves NAT (Network Address Translation). You don't really have to understand all this in any detail because your router will have a web interface that you can use.

 

Log on to your router, search for NAT and turn it on. Then find Port Forwarding (or redirecting or similar) and then for the port number select or insert 80 and then insert the first IP address of your computer (192.168.0.2 in the above screen shot) where it asks you for a destination computer.

 

Your router manual or help menu is the place to start however if you cannot locate them you might like to visit the following free website and see if they have a guide available for your router: http://www.portforward.com/english/routers/port_forwarding/routerindex.htm

 

 

Firewalls are used in Routers as well as software like Windows XP and are designed to make sure your computer is protected from malicious software attacks. These attacks are almost always made possible by the fact that the malicious software opens ports other than port 80 on your computer and router and does the damage. Port 80 is already managed by your software so direct attacks are unlikely. MyCourts web server uses Port 80 and therefor your firewall will not normally pose any additional problems. You may need to check with your firewalls documentation (or the above web site) if you are experiencing any firewall problems.