What is NAT?

If you have ever used your computer at home behind a cable/DSL router and had IP addresses of the form 10.0.x.x or 192.168.x.x, then you've used a network that employed NAT. For web surfing, streaming media, file downloading, chat, gaming, and most other common tasks, NAT is transparent to you.

However, if you connect to your computer remotely from off-campus (via remote desktop, VNC, etc.) then NAT will make this difficult. It prevents inbound connections to your computer. From a security perspective, this is a good thing, since it helps isolate your PC from a lot of the viruses and worms that plague the Internet.

There are a few options for those who need direct access to their residence hall computer from off-campus. Services like GoToMyPC (gotomypc.com) offer alternatives for users in NAT environments. You can also use USF's VPN client to connect to the campus network and then access your computer using your computer's 10.247.x.x address. Finally, if you are using wireless, you can use the Eduroam network which will not be NATed.

Game Console

Some game consoles, most notably the XBox, can have trouble operating through NAT. If you are affected by this, please visit Game Console Registration page.

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