FTP newbie needs setup help

[jrv3034]

Hello, all. I'm trying to set up my PowerMac as an FTP server to share files with someone in Florida (I'm in NY,) and I can't get this to work right.

I'm turning on FTP Access in the System Preferences "Sharing" panel, and it says the following:

Other people can access your FTP server at ftp://xxx.xxx.x.x/ or browse for "xxx xxx’s Computer" by choosing Network from the Go menu in the Finder.

(I changed the names and numbers in this post into Xs for security, of course)

So, yeah. Theoretically, anyone that visits ftp://xxx.xxx.x.x/ should get access to my computer's public folder, right? Well, for some reason it doesn't work.

I should mention that there is a wireless router connected to the cable modem, for my wife's notebook. I'm assuming this has something to do with the FTP address not being accessible somehow, but I'm not sure how to fix it. Any help is greatly appreciated!

Thanks in advance.

[edesignuk]

You will need to configure port forwarding on the router to direct requests to TCP/IP port 21 to the IP address of your Mac.

This will make requests to your WAN IP address, say ftp://80.195.248.32 direct to your Mac on your LAN, ftp://10.0.0.2 or whatever.

[jrv3034]

Thanks, edesignuk. OK, I did that. Now, um, feel free to call me stupid, but where do I find my WAN IP address? On the Netgear setup page there's a billion numbers...

There's MAC addresses, IP addresses, DHCP, IP Subnet Mask, Domain Name Server... and that's just under the Internet Port section of the page, there's also the LAN Port section... HELP!

[edesignuk]

On the router config page it should say somewhere:

IP Address
Subnet Mask
Default Gateway

It shouldn't be too hard to miss.

[solaris]

http://www.whatismyip.com

[jrv3034]

Ok,there's a section called Internet IP Address, but underneath it there's a check box next to:
"Get Dynamically From ISP"

I tried checking the one that says "Use static IP address", but it tells me I have to put one in provided by my ISP, and it reverts to the "Get Dynamically From ISP".

Hmm. Do I have to call Earthlink? Or am I missing something?

[edesignuk]

Don't change to manual static config! Best bet is to do as solaris has sugested.

[jrv3034]

OK. I have the IP address (thanks Solaris for that link), but whenever I type the address into Safari on my wife's PowerBook, it says:

Sorry, the operation could not be completed because an unexpected error occurred (Error code -41).

Any ideas? Do I need to turn on "Personal File Sharing" in System Preferences, in addition to FTP Access?

BTW, thanks again edesign and Solaris for your time.

[edesignuk]

And what happens if you use your internal LAN IP address? Same error?

[jrv3034]

Well, it asked me my name and password (after about a minute of "connecting to ftp://blahblah"), and after I put it in it says:

Could not connect to the server because the name or password is not correct.

But I know the name and passsword are correct. Or do I need the name and password of the Wireless Router?

[jrv3034]

Here's some screenshots that might help us figure this out.

[jrv3034]

Here's some more.

[jrv3034]

This is what happens when I put the IP address on the "LAN IP Setup".