DDNS host update package

D

Digon

New Member
My HDR FOX T2 connects to the internet through a Three MiFi and while this works great for connecting to BBC iplayer etc. I can't connect in to my box from outside through the internet due to the constantly changing IP address. I've got the modified software and Webif etc working fine on it however the Huawei 586 MiFi router I'm using doesn't have the facility to update my DynDns account so I've been looking into getting the Humax to do it.
After much googling I came upon ddclient http://sourceforge.net/apps/trac/ddclient
and a ddclient config file creator at DynDns http://www.dyndns.com/support/tools/clientconfig.html
The problem is my linux skills are limited. Can somebody help me with the syntax to load this package onto my box and also how to copy the config file over to the /etc/ directory.

If this or some other DDNS update tool could be added to the hummypkg repository that would be even better.

Thanks.
 
I've add a DDNS utility to the repository for you. I've used inadyn rather than ddclient for various reasons.

After installing the package, you need to modify the default configuration file, /mod/etc/inadyn.conf to include your username, password and host name. The easiest way is to enable the FTP server via the Humax settings menu (using TV remote) and then use FTP to transfer the file off, make the modifications using something like wordpad, then transfer it back on. Restart the Humax and check the file /tmp/inadyn.log to see if it's working properly (again FTP can be used to retrieve this log file).

I can add web-based configuration for this is there's enough demand and I get enough time but in the meantime this should be enough to get you up and running.

If you're not familiar with FTP then let us know and someone will help you with that bit (if you use Firefox then the FireFTP plugin is very good at this). The default username for the FTP server is HumaxFTP and the password is the PIN that is set on your box (default is 0000).

HTH.
 
af123 said:
I've add a DDNS utility to the repository for you. I've used inadyn rather than ddclient for various reasons.
Click to expand...

Thanks af123, thats great.
I got it loaded on the Humax no problems. After trying to get Win7 and then XP to FTP the conf file without success I tried FTP commander and downloaded it, modified it, and then transfered it back without problems. I then rebooted the box but I can't find the inadyn.log file to check if it's working.
 
Digon said:
I can't find the inadyn.log file to check if it's working.
Click to expand...

Did you do a full reboot, i.e shut down with the remote and wait for the hard disk to turn off with an audible click before turning it back on again? If so, the log file should be in the /tmp directory. If not, have a look at the /tmp/modinit.log file which may have some details on why it failed.
 
af123 said:
Did you do a full reboot, i.e shut down with the remote and wait for the hard disk to turn off with an audible click before turning it back on again?.
Click to expand...
I turned the box off with the switch on the back of the unit, does that do a full reboot?
I tried with two different conf files. The first one was edited in notepad with word wrap on. In the second file I turned off word wrap and took out all the line feeds/ returns. I couldn't find the inadyn.log file on both attempts.
I'll have a look at the modinit.log file when I get home this evening.
 
Digon said:
I turned the box off with the switch on the back of the unit, does that do a full reboot?
Click to expand...

Yes.. although if you haven't waited for the disk to stop spinning first it can cause corruption.
 
af123 said:
Yes.. although if you haven't waited for the disk to stop spinning first it can cause corruption.
Click to expand...
I think I found the problem with my .conf file, I'd left the # signs around my password. Now I've found the log file but I am not sure if it is reporting other errors or if it is working. af123 does the attached log file look ok? (It's not my real alias name in the file.)
 

Attachments

  • inadyn.log.txt
    3.9 KB · Views: 12
It's not working and it looks like you have a problem in the configuration file. It thinks your hostname is digonshumax.dyndns-home.comckground - I know you've changed it for here but the 'ckground' at the end used to be part of a separate line which said just background.

Here's what a fully working file should look like - replace the af123/letmein/myhumax parts appropriately

Code: 
username af123
password letmein
alias myhumax.dyndns-home.com
update_period_sec 600
dyndns_system dyndns@dyndns.org
background
log_file /tmp/inadyn.log
 
I will add a web configuration page to the package over the weekend to make it less error prone.
 
af123 said:
It's not working and it looks like you have a problem in the configuration file. It thinks your hostname is digonshumax.dyndns-home.comckground - I know you've changed it for here but the 'ckground' at the end used to be part of a separate line which said just background.
Click to expand...

af123 thanks for your help.
It was a cut and paste error I made. I've modified the file to be the same as your example and it's now working great.
It's still reporting errors in the log file but the IP address is being updated automatically.
I read earlier that these errors where related to v1.96 and that they where addressed in v1.97.3 IIRC.
 

Attachments

  • inadyn.log.txt
    2.1 KB · Views: 7
If you update the inadyn package then you will find a section on the webif settings page which allows you to configure it for basic operation with DynDNS.

Screen Shot 2011-10-28 at 21.27.41.png
 
af123 said:
If you update the inadyn package then you will find a section on the webif settings page which allows you to configure it for basic operation with DynDNS.

View attachment 70
Click to expand...
I updated the package and created a new conf file with the webif buttons and it now works perfectly with no errors.
Thanks af123
 
Background information: what does this do? I presume it gets around the problem of ones external IP address not being fixed at the ISP if you want to access your home network via the Internet, but what do you do with it?
 
Black Hole said:
Background information: what does this do? I presume it gets around the problem of ones external IP address not being fixed at the ISP if you want to access your home network via the Internet, but what do you do with it?
Click to expand...

Exactly. If you register with a dynamic IP address service such as http://dyn.com/dns/dyndns-free/ (others are available but this is the most common) then you get an easy-to-remember internet host name that points to your dynamic IP address (e.g. you could have something like blackhole.dyndns.org). The trick then is to have something on your home network that regularly updates the name-to-IP address mapping. A lot of ADSL routers have this functionality built-in but if not, this package allows you to have your Humax doing the same job.
 
af123 said:
Exactly. If you register with a dynamic IP address service such as http://dyn.com/dns/dyndns-free/ (others are available but this is the most common) then you get an easy-to-remember internet host name that points to your dynamic IP address (e.g. you could have something like blackhole.dyndns.org). The trick then is to have something on your home network that regularly updates the name-to-IP address mapping. A lot of ADSL routers have this functionality built-in but if not, this package allows you to have your Humax doing the same job.
Click to expand...

I tried to get my head around dyndns before the rs service appeared but got hung up on port forwarding - my BT HH3 doesn't allow it for some reason as far I my research could tell me. This could be a really daft question (a speciality of mine) but does putting dyndns capability on the box negate the need for port forwarding if the dyndns reference points straight at the box instead of at the router? And if so does that make the box vulnerable?
 
oijonesey said:
I tried to get my head around dyndns before the rs service appeared but got hung up on port forwarding - my BT HH3 doesn't allow it for some reason as far I my research could tell me. This could be a really daft question (a speciality of mine) but does putting dyndns capability on the box negate the need for port forwarding if the dyndns reference points straight at the box instead of at the router? And if so does that make the box vulnerable?
Click to expand...
No, unfortunately not. The IP address registered with DDNS is the internet-side one that your ISP allocates to your connection, it doesn't point specifically to any devices on your internal network. So you would still need port forwarding to direct any incoming requests to your Hummy, but then in turn this does mean the box is less vulnerable. In theory any device on your network could be set up to do the DDNS registering, I think all it does is log in to the DDNS server with your DDNS account details (which will include your 'hostname'). The server then looks at the IP address this connection is coming from (your internet-side dynamic IP address) and maps it to your host name.
 
keytouch said:
Have you checked out http://btybb.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/32211/~/how-to-set-up-game-and-application-sharing/port-forwarding-facilities-on-the-bt
and http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?p=18478829
Click to expand...

Thanks keytouch - yes I'd seen the first one but as I'd found it only seems to want to start with selecting a game or application - but I want to forward a port to the box's IP address not an application. Is this right or am I completely mis-understanding port forwarding?

So far I have a dyndns account and name setup, and my understanding is that the HH3 will keep dyndns updated (it does have a dyndns option built in) so I can enter myddns.whatever:xxx where xxx is the port number I've set up to forward to the Hummy, and on the port forwarding on the router I've told it that port xxx goes to 192.168.0.0 or whatever my hummy ip address is - but on the HH3 it just seems to give a great long list of games or applications to choose from - is there somewhere to enter a port number and the hummy ip address?

Now of course having said all that we now have the RS Service so being able to get to the webif on the box to program it so it is sort of defunct (and RS doesn't involve installing a door to the web and all necessary securities) but hey mountains get climbed and people still keep going up just because they're there so maybe the fun is in proving it is possible rather than actually doing it??.......
 
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