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Trapper · Sep 5, 2007, 12:03 PM

I'm sure this must have been answered somewhere, but I have searched through the forums and can't seem to find an answer. I've also done a Google search, and I can't seem to find what I'm looking for. I have a Macintosh at home (Intel MacMini 1.5) connected to the internet through a cable hook-up and I have a Mac at the office (a new 20" iMac). I would like to access my home computer when I'm at the office and my office computer when I'm at home. Oddly enough, my search has returned a few hits on how to do this with a PC and a Mac (though not exactly written in an easy to understand manner; I'm not a programmer or a software engineer - just a normal computer user), but not on how to do a Mac-Mac network. I can't be the only person who has a Mac at both the home and the office!! So my question is this: where can I find a straightforward tutorial on how to set up such a network. I know it can't be too hard - this is Macintosh we're talking about, after all. Please help or point me to a webpage that can. Thanks in advance.

-Travis

pixelbaker · Sep 5, 2007, 12:47 PM

to remotely control: enable Apple Remote Desktop and VNC in the Sharing tab in System Preferences on both macs, forward port 5900 on each respective router at home and office to the macs, then download an OS X VNC client (ie: Chicken of the VNC) and connect using the home/office IP

Trapper · Sep 5, 2007, 05:04 PM

I'm not sure if I understand any of that. Do I have a router at work? I just plug into the wall. How do I forward a port 5900? What is a port? Where do I find them/it? Perhaps there's a more basic tutorial that someone can direct me to...

pixelbaker · Sep 5, 2007, 06:08 PM

Basically, the issue is that you would need to get around any home and work firewalls that you have in place before you can do any remote control. If you're just wanting to access some files, I'd suggest an online file storage space or start carrying a thumbdrive. We have to know what you're wanting to accomplish more specifically.

Is there maybe a network operator at your work that could give you some more hands-on assistance setting it up how i mentioned? if not, maybe ask them about using some VPN software if they use it, or possibly using Hamachi by LogMeIn to setup a personal VPN between your work and home macs that you can use without circumventing the firewall. Hamachi is only available for OS X in a console version atm though so you'd have to get into the terminal a little. not sure if you want to do that.

besson3c · Sep 5, 2007, 08:04 PM

Google port forwarding. You need to configure your router on your home Mac to forward requests on port 5900 for VNC, port 22 for SSH, port 548 for AFP, any other ports corresponding to network services you wish to access from work.

Trapper · Sep 5, 2007, 08:57 PM

Okay, thanks for all of your help. I can see that this is beyond me. I had hoped that it would be as simple as most other mac things are, but I guess I have too much to learn and not necessarily the interest to do so. I have no idea how to do any of these things. I looked at my cable modem and it doesn't have ports on it that I can see - certainly nothing labelled 5900, so I guess that the whole 'port' thing is software based. But my cable modem didn't come with any software; I just plugged it in. And I have no idea what a VNC is. I had hoped I could just somehow bring up an icon of my 'away' hard drive on my desktop and access whatever files I needed when I needed them. The thumb drive idea is something I've been doing, but it kind of sucks; it sort of depends on the ability to see into the future to be of any real use, and my abilities in that regard are rather poor.

Again, though, thanks for your advice, and I'm sure that for someone whose knowledge is of these issues is more advanced than mine these posts will prove helpful.