X10 Community Forum

🖥️ActiveHome Pro => Plug-ins => MyHouse Online => Topic started by: schmuttis on May 20, 2011, 12:51:34 PM

Title: Don't purchase MyHouse if you are running a webserver on port 80
Post by: schmuttis on May 20, 2011, 12:51:34 PM
I just want to save everyone who has a webserver on port 80 a lot of time. MyHouse must use port 80 - there is no option to use any other port. So don't bother purchasing it.
Title: Re: Don't purchase MyHouse if you are running a webserver on port 80
Post by: Deemar on May 20, 2011, 01:15:34 PM
Is there a reason I can't change the webserver port in Apache? Or use port forwarding? Doesn't really sound like much of a problem.
Title: Re: Don't purchase MyHouse if you are running a webserver on port 80
Post by: schmuttis on May 20, 2011, 01:27:57 PM
I assume you are saying to change the port of your webserver. I did that at one time and a lot of the people that rely on my website could no longer view it. I don't know if it is their company or connection that only permits port 80 website viewing but I learned the hard way not to change it again.
Title: Re: Don't purchase MyHouse if you are running a webserver on port 80
Post by: basecamp on May 22, 2011, 12:27:42 PM
I've noticed several threads on this forum that discuss inbound connection problems when using MyHouse.

If it's true that MyHome can use only port 80 (I haven't tried it myself), then I suspect the mostly like cause is that these folks' broadband ISP's are blocking all inbound traffic on that port.

The reason is that the user agreements of most residential-use broadband providers prohibit the implementation of public web servers on home networks. Actively blocking outside access on port 80 is the primary means of enforcing this restriction.

It's generally easy to move a home web server to another port, but at that point, it basically becomes a private server since users must know the port number in advance in order to connect.

I was considering the purchase of a MyHouse, but if port 80 is, in fact, the only port it can use, then it's a major problem for me (my ISP, Cox Communications, blocks inbound port 80 traffic) and probably for most other non-commercial broadband users as well.

X10 must implement an option to user other ports. I've used a lot of server software applications of various types on my home network over the years, and they ALL allow changing access port numbers.

By the way, one workaround to the problem is to try using remote control software, such as the many free versions of VNC, to gain remote access to Active Home Pro.


Title: Quote from X10 support
Post by: schmuttis on May 22, 2011, 08:07:43 PM
After jumping through all kinds of hoops to try to get MyHome working this is the response that I received from X10:

Quote
Greetings!

>We run a webserver on another server so port 80 points to that. This is part of what I sent to X10 support

I`m afraid that will prevent MyHouse or Vanguard`s remote connection from working. If you have any more questions, please reply to this email. Thanks for choosing X10!

Eric Boyd | ericb@x10.com | X10 Email Support | http://kbase.x10.com/


What X10 had to say about Vanguard (above) is not true. I currently have Vanguard running and also have my webserver up and running BUT I am unable to run MyHouse and use it remotely.

I just posted this statement about MyHouse and port 80 to save a lot of other people a lot of grief and lost time.

As things are right now, I doubt any type of remote control software will work. My Vanguard/AHP server CPU is totally maxed out. I tried to remote desktop into my X10 server and that just put it over the top. Other forum users, believe it is Vanguard that is sucking up all available CPU.
Title: Re: Don't purchase MyHouse if you are running a webserver on port 80
Post by: Deemar on May 24, 2011, 01:45:55 PM
What about modifying the DNS to point to another port based on the domain request? This still doesn't sound like a real problem if you know how to configure a web server.
Title: Re: Don't purchase MyHouse if you are running a webserver on port 80
Post by: schmuttis on May 24, 2011, 08:56:25 PM
I am not a network person. I have no knowledge or desire to muck around with any type of DNS server. I am running a volunteer web site with an average hit rate of around 400 unique visitors a day out of my house. I am running MyHouse on a different computer. My router only allows port forwarding of a single port to only one destination ip address. I am not about to deny service to people trying to access my web site by running on a nonstandard port. Many companies and ISP's don't allow outbound http calls on ports other than 80 for security reasons. If someone wants to run MyHouse on the same computer as their web site I would imagine they wouldn't have any problems sharing port 80.
Title: Re: Don't purchase MyHouse if you are running a webserver on port 80
Post by: greggday on June 07, 2011, 09:48:52 PM
I just forwarded my ports and solved all my issues with My House On line and make sure to download the new AHP update. Even if your system says you have the most current version of AHP. Go to the software page and down the "fix". I was having issues connecting to My House on line and after the download I am golden.