Hi,
I’m trying to share dialup internet access to the clients attached to my playground Windows 2003 domain. I understand NAT will help me out here so I’ve been looking at ISA Server 2006 and the Routing and Remote Access service built into W2k3.
Seeing as how I’m dealing with a dialup net connection coming over a modem instead of a high speed connection coming in over a standard network interface, everything I’ve read suggests my life is going to be difficult.
So first things first: is RRAS (or ISA Server) going to do what I want, considering the details of my situation? I’m running a Windows 2003 domain controller with DNS and DHCP; client computers are XP and Vista. I recognise a shared dialup connection isn’t going to perform very well but it’s a starting point…
Ignoring ISA Server for the moment (which I’ve already played around with and got hung up by the firewall rules), I’ve cobbled together a W2k3 virtual PC and configured RRAS. In so doing, I created created a ‘Dialup Internet Connection’ interface and entered the ISP’s phone number and my account details (I left the Domain box empty). I set this interface as a Public interface connected to the internet and enabled NAT and basic firewall. I also set ‘Local Area Network’ as a Private interface connected to private network. The RRAS server is using a static IP and I made a few other DNS changes. I can’t remember if I created it manually or not, but I have a static route using the ‘Dialup Internet Connection’ interface and 0.0.0.0 as the destination and mask.
The problem I’m facing is the RRAS’ failure to connect to my ISP. The specified number is dialed but the ISP rejects the connection. A normal dialup connection made from the same VPC is successful.
So question number two: why can’t RRAS establish a connection and is it because RRAS expects to connect to my ISP as though it were another RRAS box (i.e. as though this were a remote office connection)?
Finally question number three: are there any good, free alternatives to RRAS that meet my requirements? I don’t want to use Windows ICS.
Ps. This is only a test situation at the moment… I’m planning to replace the dialup stuff with a proper ADSL hardware router in the future.
TIA,
Michhes