INTERACT FORUM

Media Server would be running on a machine with your media files and Media Center would connect to it from any other machine.

If you are behind a firewall (or using a NAT router) then you will need to make sure that it is configured to allow incoming traffic to the Media Server machine on the port that is listening for the Media Center clients (port 80 by default).  You will also need to make sure that no other applications are using the Media Server port or you will get connection problems.  If you are opening this to the internet I would recommend setting it to a less common port number.  Port 80 is used by web servers and could open your system to more frequent security attacks.  You could also considering creating an encrypted tunnel (like SSH) for maximum security, although this implementation is a little more complicated.

If you have a dynamic IP address then you will need to use a solution like DynDns.org offers to maintain a DNS name for your internet address.  Then there are small programs that run on your server to keep the DNS record up to date with the current IP address that is allocated by your ISP.

You can test this out first on one machine to make sure you have the Media Center/Server part setup right.  Then you can try connecting from another machine later.  This will tell you if the problem is in your Media Server setup or if it is in your networking setup.

Can I use any port number? Can I just pick a number out of the blue? Is it just a matter of having the number I route to my computer be the same as the number Media Server says it is using?

Yes, any unused port number.  If any other program is also using the same port as Media Server then when traffic is received, both application would try to answer.  (For example, some download managers, and ad-blocking programs also use port 80 by default).

How do I check this with only one computer? I have a network at home (hence the router), but only one computer (I also hook my handheld to the network for synching, etc.).

From the Media Server machine you need to setup the library with your media files, then start the Media Server program, then goto File-Library-Search for Media Servers.  If everything is setup correctly, then you should see that you are connected to the machine you are on in the top of the window.  This indicates that the Media Server is setup correctly.  Any other problems after this would have to be network related.

I have a Linksys wireless router, hooked to a DSL modem and my home computer. I don't have anything special set up in terms of security, although I think (not home so I can't check), I have WinXP internet security turned on.

If you are connecting from behind a NAT router then you really do not need to run any additional firewall software on the PC.  That would include the firewall that is built-in to Windows XP.  With NAT, your computer is invisible to people outside of your network except for ports that you specifically allow though.  

Also remember, if you are trying to connect from a computer on another network (like at work) you will have a problem if that computer is behind a firewall with blocked ports.

Let me know if you have any other questions.

--Shadowen

3)  installed MC on my work PC and tried to connect to URL:8081

It sounds like port 8081 is blocked on your work network.  Try using port 80, this is usually open on corporate firewalls to allow for web traffic.  You could also try port 22, normally used for SSH connections this is often left open also.

Further when I try to ping my home PC, it doesn't work.  Should I be able to ping it?  

Many NAT routers disable incoming pings (ICMP traffic) to protect from DoS (Denial of Service) attacks.