Archived from groups: alt.internet.wireless,comp.sys.mac.system (
More info?)
In article <0001HW.BDAF964300413E41F04075B0@news.individual.net>,
DaveC <me@privacy.net> wrote:
> WLAN consists of 2 laptops: 1 Mac, 1 Dell (WIn XP Pro) served by AirPort
> (snow) AP. Mac has FTP mode where others can log in.
>
> Is access between computers possible via the AP? Or must I enable the
> "peer-to-peer" mode in the wireless configurations for each computer?
>
> Thanks,
I think we need pictures.
The WLAN generally means the port that is connected to the internet via
your ISP. It also generally means that the devices on the LAN side of
the router are using non-routing IP addresses.
In a home situation, the typical setup if
dialup Modem or
DSL modem or
Cable modem
to ISP and internet
|
|
WLAN Port
Home Router
maybe with
WiFi (802.11b/g) \/\/\/ WiFi laptop(s) or computer(s)
LAN Port(s) Optional Printer port -> printer
|
|___ Computer
|
|___ Computer
|
|___ Network capable printer
The only time the WLAN port is just another LAN port is if the router
has disabled DHCP and NAT services.
Now in this environment, then ftp can be done between computers at home,
just use the 10.0.1.* or 192.168.*.* type addresses that are assigned to
the home computers by the home router's DHCP service. The Mac OS TCP/IP
Control Panel, or the Mac OS X Network System Preferences will tell you
the IP address assigned to your Mac by the Router's DHCP service.
Classic Mac OS does not have an ftp server or ftp client, but they can
be obtained (http://MacOrchard.com would be good place to look for
these). Mac OS X ftp server is enabled via the Sharing System
Preferences, and there are command line ftp commands as part of Mac OS
X, and you can get GUI ftp clients for Mac OS X
(http://versiontracker.com/macosx is a good place to look for those).
Oh yea, most browsers can be FTP clients by using the syntax
ftp://server.mumble.com/path/to/file/to/download
If you are trying to do ftp from the Mac across the router to a system
on the internet, that should just work.
If you are trying to access your Mac on the LAN side of a home router
from outside your home, then you need to tell the router to forward the
ftp port(s) to your Mac. Your Macs DHCP assigned IP address will not be
directly visible via the internet. Use
http://whatismyip.com to find
out the IP address assigned to your router by your ISP.
Now if you have some computers on the LAN side of a home router and some
computers on the WLAN side of a home router and the home router is still
performing routing services (it has not been turned into a bridge), then
you can not easily access non-routing home IP addresses (10.*.*.* or
192.168.*.* type addresses are non-routing).
Basically we need to know what your configuration looks like before we
can accurately answer your question.
Bob Harris
snow) AP. Mac has FTP mode where others can log in. 
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