In the complex network environment of Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), 4g cellular router play a crucial role. However, in practical applications, we often encounter a challenge: how to perform port forwarding to enable remote access and data transmission when an industrial router does not have a public IP address? This article, will explain in detail how to achieve port forwarding on an industrial router without a public IP address.
Port forwarding, or port redirection, is a technique of Network Address Translation (NAT) that allows incoming connections to a specific port on a router's public IP address to be forwarded to an internal IP address. Simply put, when an external device attempts to access a specific port on a public IP address, the router redirects this request to the corresponding port on a designated IP address within the internal network.
In traditional network architectures, public IP addresses are essential as they serve as the unique identifier for external networks to access internal networks. However, with the depletion of IPv4 address resources and the gradual promotion of IPv6, more and more enterprises are adopting NAT technology to conserve IP addresses. In such cases, 4g cellular router may have only one or no public IP address, posing challenges for port forwarding.
When 4g cellular router do not have a public IP, we can utilize internal network penetration technology to achieve port forwarding. Internal network penetration technology enables internal devices to be accessed by the public network without changing the existing network structure. Here are a few common internal network penetration techniques and their applications in 4g cellular router:
1. Reverse Proxy Technology: By deploying a reverse proxy server on a public server, external access requests can be forwarded to the industrial router within the internal network. The industrial router then forwards the requests to the target device. This technique requires a fixed IP address or domain name on the public server, but the industrial router itself does not need a public IP.
2. P2P Penetration Technology: Utilizing nodes in a Peer-to-Peer (P2P) network for penetration. When an external device attempts to access the internal network, the P2P network finds a node connected to the industrial router within the internal network and forwards the request to that node. The node then forwards the request to the industrial router, achieving penetration. This technique does not require a public server, but the industrial router needs to have a P2P client software installed.
3. VPN Technology: VPN (Virtual Private Network) technology establishes encrypted channels over the public network to transmit data, enabling remote access to internal network devices. By configuring a VPN server on the industrial router, external devices can access devices within the internal network by connecting to the VPN server. This technique requires the industrial router to support VPN functionality, and external devices need to install VPN client software.
1. Choose an appropriate internal network penetration technology based on actual needs and network environment.
2. Configure the industrial router according to the requirements of the selected technology. This may involve configuring the address and port of the reverse proxy server, installing P2P client software, or configuring the VPN server.
3. Configure the target device to ensure that it can be correctly identified and forwarded by the industrial router. This may require setting a static IP address and opening the corresponding ports on the target device.
4. Test and verify the configuration to ensure successful port forwarding. Network diagnostic tools or remote access software can be used to test connectivity and access functionality.
1. Security: Pay special attention to security issues when configuring port forwarding. Ensure that only necessary ports and services are open and set appropriate access permissions and firewall rules to prevent unauthorized access and attacks.
2. Stability: Internal network penetration technology may be affected by network environment, network quality, and other factors, resulting in instability. Therefore, consider these factors during implementation and take appropriate measures to ensure system stability and reliability.
3. Scalability: As the business develops and the network environment changes, there may be a need to adjust or expand port forwarding configurations. Therefore, consider the scalability and flexibility of the internal network penetration technology when making your choice.
