By now, you’ve realized that FSX requires some attention to detail to ensure the best overall experience. Well here’s one detail that thou shall not miss: Port Forwarding. You see, the network connection that your FSX makes to a multiplayer session is, in a word, unstable. It needs you to take charge and set some things on your home router. With those things set, you will experience far fewer disconnects!
Please note; This process varies according to the manufacturer of your router. For this reason, I will only include general instructions. Read what you see on your screen, and choose the closest option where necessary, and you should be fine. If all else fails, refer to google (search “How to forward ports on a [enter brand name and model here] router”). If, on the other hand, you are familiar with port-forwarding, skip to Step 9.
1. First, some homework. . . get a pencil and paper ready. . . seriously. Click ‘Start’ and type “command” (and hit enter).
2. In the command window, type “ipconfig” (enter)
3. Look for an entry that goes something like: “IPv4 Address……..: 192.168.x.x”. It will MOST LIKELY start with 192.168. Write down that entire IP address. This is your “Local IP.”
4. Now, look 2 lines lower, at “Default Gateway………: 192.168.x.xxx”. It will also most likely begin with 192.168. Write down that IP address, too!
5. Homework done! Close the Command Prompt (type “exit” or click the red X) and Open your favorite web browser.
6. Type the Gateway IP Address [step 4] in the address bar of your web browser and press [Enter]. This will take you to your router’s configuration page.
7. Enter the username and password to edit the router’s configuration. The default username/password varies per model/brand, but they usually consists of the words admin, user, password, or [blank], so try combinations of those. Of course, as stated earlier, you can Google your router’s model/brand and easily come across this login information.
8. Now that you’re in your router’s configuration page, find “Port Range Forwarding” or “Port Forwarding” in the configuration manager. If you don’t see it, keep looking! It’s there, somewhere (perhaps under applications, firewall, or security categories).
9. Add rules for each of the following ports/port-ranges.
* Label them anything you want (I used FSX1, FSX2, FSX3, etc.).
* Be sure to enter the right protocol (TCP / UDP / Both) for each port/port-range
* the IP address you’re forwarding to is your “Local IP Address” [Step 3]
* don’t forget to check “enable” or “on” or “active” for each rule, if your router has such an option
10. Save your changes and exit… DONE!
Hopefully this information helps you avoid any frustration. FSX can certainly be a handful at times, but it’s worth all the blood, sweat, and grey hairs!
-Wingman
Please note; This process varies according to the manufacturer of your router. For this reason, I will only include general instructions. Read what you see on your screen, and choose the closest option where necessary, and you should be fine. If all else fails, refer to google (search “How to forward ports on a [enter brand name and model here] router”). If, on the other hand, you are familiar with port-forwarding, skip to Step 9.
1. First, some homework. . . get a pencil and paper ready. . . seriously. Click ‘Start’ and type “command” (and hit enter).
2. In the command window, type “ipconfig” (enter)
3. Look for an entry that goes something like: “IPv4 Address……..: 192.168.x.x”. It will MOST LIKELY start with 192.168. Write down that entire IP address. This is your “Local IP.”
4. Now, look 2 lines lower, at “Default Gateway………: 192.168.x.xxx”. It will also most likely begin with 192.168. Write down that IP address, too!
5. Homework done! Close the Command Prompt (type “exit” or click the red X) and Open your favorite web browser.
6. Type the Gateway IP Address [step 4] in the address bar of your web browser and press [Enter]. This will take you to your router’s configuration page.
7. Enter the username and password to edit the router’s configuration. The default username/password varies per model/brand, but they usually consists of the words admin, user, password, or [blank], so try combinations of those. Of course, as stated earlier, you can Google your router’s model/brand and easily come across this login information.
8. Now that you’re in your router’s configuration page, find “Port Range Forwarding” or “Port Forwarding” in the configuration manager. If you don’t see it, keep looking! It’s there, somewhere (perhaps under applications, firewall, or security categories).
9. Add rules for each of the following ports/port-ranges.
* Label them anything you want (I used FSX1, FSX2, FSX3, etc.).
* Be sure to enter the right protocol (TCP / UDP / Both) for each port/port-range
* the IP address you’re forwarding to is your “Local IP Address” [Step 3]
* don’t forget to check “enable” or “on” or “active” for each rule, if your router has such an option
- FSX Ports to Forward -
Port(s)...................Protocol(s)
6667.....................TCP
3783.....................TCP
27900...................TCP
28900...................TCP
29900-29901.........TCP
13139...................Both
6515.....................Both
6500.....................TCP
2300-2400.............UDP
23456...................UDP
6073.....................UDP
6112-6122.............UDP
Port(s)...................Protocol(s)
6667.....................TCP
3783.....................TCP
27900...................TCP
28900...................TCP
29900-29901.........TCP
13139...................Both
6515.....................Both
6500.....................TCP
2300-2400.............UDP
23456...................UDP
6073.....................UDP
6112-6122.............UDP
10. Save your changes and exit… DONE!
Hopefully this information helps you avoid any frustration. FSX can certainly be a handful at times, but it’s worth all the blood, sweat, and grey hairs!
-Wingman
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