Setting up Remote Web Access on SBS 2011 Essentials Part 2

In the last part of this post, i went through how, and how not to setup RWA on SBS 2011.

I had problems with the GoDaddy process, so wanted to give eNom a try.

So i had just removed the domain from the RWA site, and i am starting afresh.

This time i am going to purchase the domain name through the wizard.

1

I want to use one of the supported providers..

2

I want to use eNom

3

This is the domain name i want to try…

4

Aha, it is available – great i want to register it, so i click on Register Now.

5

I am taken to eNom’s website..

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I wont bore you with setting up an account, but i also chose their very kind offer of an SSL certificate as well!

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(i can see here it is actually saying ‘transfer’ i believe this is related to something a little further along. At this point i did everything i was prompted to do, and did not change anything)

Purchase complete, and i am now back to the wizard. You need to enter the credentials you created when signing up with eNom and click next.

8

9

What’s that now? Invalid, surely not, i just purchased this domain with your wizard?

So it would seem, that at this point, something went wrong with eNom, as i review my emailed receipt and i was only charged for the SSL, not the domain. Weird!

OK i thought, no big deal.

I went to the site directly and registered the domain name manually. Restarted the wizard, of course this time i already owned the domain.

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I am lazy, so i want to setup my domain automatically..

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Hmm, i was expecting this to pickup the fact my domain was at eNom.. it didn’t. So i choose eNom and click Next.

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Eh, what now?

Transfer? What Transfer? i just bought the domain.

I thought for a few moments, and figured, well it is a new domain, maybe it is not setup – so yeah ok, lets continue..

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Now the interesting point, it shows my domain as co.uk – which obviously is not right.

14

This appears to be a problem with the wizard itself, not handling second level domains correctly.

This is an annoyance of course, however we can work around this.

So let’s review at this point.

We have purchased an SSL Certificate and a domain name.

I am restarting the wizard..

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If you choose to manually setup the domain you will need to be able to edit the DNS records for your domain and point them to your router.

You will need at the very least to add an A record for ‘remote.yourdomain.com’ for the public IP of your router, and make sure that email is either being forwarded to another provider, or set MX records to go to your preferred email provider.

You may also need an A record for WWW to point your public website.

That is beyond the scope of todays debacle however..

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You will need to confirm that you have setup your domain name manually, and then you can click next.

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Now for the SSL, as we already purchased our SSL Cert, the options here are not straight forward.

We have purchased our certificate, but it is not ‘existing’.

Existing is for certificates already in place on the server. You need to select, i want to purchase..

20

Before you click next, you need to click Advanced. If you don’t then the Certificate Signing Request (CSR) will be for the domain shown – not the full name we want to use.

Click Advanced, then fill out the domain name as shown – we need to have our prefix as shown, and you can see below how the domain name for RWA will actually look..

21

Click on OK, and you are back to the previous page.. this time with the correct name for your CSR.

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When you click Next you will be presented with your CSR. You can copy this or save it to a file for later use.

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So i copy this info to my clipboard and go to the eNom site, login and head for SSL Certificates..

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Click on the RapidSSL option..

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You need to choose Outside Hosting, and i also chose the type of server i have..

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Delete the text in the CSR field, and paste in your CSR.

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Scroll down and click Submite Certificate.

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At this point you may say something rude – if you dont have email already setup for your domain, as i didnt. Of course i was forgetting that the SSL authorisation procedure will require authorisation from the domain owner, which is usually done by email. I quickly had to go and setup email forwarding for this test domain to my actual email address..

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I chose a suitable email address and submitted the details..

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You are then returned to your Manage SSL home page, and the status is now Processing.

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Switch over to your email client and keep an eye out for a SSL Certificate request type email..

IMG_0864

Scroll down and follow the link to approve..

You will be taken to a GeoTrust website and have to click on the Approve button.

IMG_0865

Your certificate will then be emailed to you as plain text, and it will look almost identical to your CSR.

IMG_0866

My advice here is to copy and paste this into a new text file and save it as SBS.cer

Now back to our Wizard.. we can now choose that we have our SSL information and click Next.

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As i saved my certificate to a file, i can now browse to it, alternatively you can just paste that info into this box..

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Click next, and we are all done!

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Click Close to go back to the Server Settings\RWA page.

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So what has all of this taught me?

I am afraid i can only so far draw a negative conclusion on this process.

I think Microsoft have to be applauded for the idea, and the theory is sound, however in practice i think this is a huge undertaking, and as always the more you try to cater for, the more variables you have to account for – the more places something can fall down.

I do not think a DIY’er (or off the shelf purchase of essentials) would have got through this without resorting to calling in an expert, giving up, or died of old age waiting for a non existent certificate to show up.. Smile with tongue out

Having said that, i am also confident that this can be resolved with feedback given to the right people.

So to end on a positive, soothing that people do not seem to be aware of yet – is that Microsoft are giving away a free domain name, AND, a free SSL certificate with SBS Essentials.

Yes, you heard me right!

So, how do i get one?

Just like this…

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Choose a new domain name…

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You want the free one!

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You will need a Windows LIVE ID!!

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Read and accept the license agreement…

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Choose your prefix. All of the free domains will be domain.remotewebaccess.com

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Click to check availability.. if it is available, click Set Up!

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DONE!

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Is it ironic that i am using firefox in this shot?

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That is a number of ways the RWA wizard can work out for you!

As i said above, you have to applaud the idea, the execution at this time has been poor.

But on a plus, the freebie domain and SSL work perfectly, and who can argue with that price?

About Robert Pearman
Robert Pearman is a UK based IT worker bee. He has been working within the IT Industry for what feels like forever. Robert likes Piña colada and getting caught in the rain, he also enjoys writing about Technology like PowerShell or System Automation but not as much as he used to. If you're in trouble, and you can find him, maybe you can ask him a question.

102 Responses to Setting up Remote Web Access on SBS 2011 Essentials Part 2

  1. David says:

    I would say this is an absolutely exemplary post: clear, funny, really helpful and well structured. Many thanks to Rob

  2. Pingback: SBS 2011 Essentials : Update Rollup 1 Releasing 23rd August 2011 « Title (Required)

  3. John says:

    Hi Robert, nice article as usual.
    regarding the free remotewebaccess.com setup, how does it know your WAN IP address? Is there a dynamic dns client built into SBS essentials or do you have to enter it somewhere?

    • Hi John, thank you.

      I don’t know for 100% but will check.

      I can tell you it is automated, and it ‘knows’ your public ip, I can only assume it is supported on a dynamic connection so some sort of periodic ‘phone home’ with your live-Id and *.remotewebacess.com name.

      You certainly don’t need to do anything further than what I have outlined to get it working.

      Thanks for your comment, good question.

    • Hey John,

      Microsoft owns the remotewebaccess.com domain, it also runs the dns for this domain.

      A process runs every 10 minutes on the server to check the current wan ip, and updates records as needed.

      Hope that helps.

  4. robert,
    great article i have trying to setup with microsoft domain it says cannot connect to domian service any ideas

    • Hi James,

      This could be a temporary service outage, or more likely something else wrong with your setup.

      Did you complete the Router setup wizard?

      • Hi Robert,
        thank you for your reply, i replaced router with one that does dhcp and reserves server ip now all is rosy all i have to is run connector on client pcs so they are able to connect when on the road..Thank You again for your and advice

        Regards,
        James

  5. The RWA works on computers that are connected to the office domain but when I try to access from home it doesn’t recognize my https://cliftoneyecenter.remotewebaccess.com. Does the computer have to be added to the server to use the remote web access. I was just using my laptop at home and put in the address in IE and it doesn’t resolve the name.

    • Hi Richard.

      I have seen it can take some time for the domain name to resolve correctly outside of your own network.

      Best thing to do is use a web based dns lookup tool and see if you can resolve your custom rwa.com address to the ip address of your Internet connection.

      I’m assuming that your router is being configured by the server, or that you have made sure you have the correct ports open for rwa to function.

  6. Anuj says:

    Richard,
    Great Article. I followed every step as described above (using Windows Live ID) to configure RWA. My 2011 SBS Essential server configured my router (via UPnP). The message on the server display “Available” (for remote connection). But, I have tried from different computers (and even from the server itself), I am unable to remotely access the server. As suggested earlier in one of the post, I have also checked using network-tools.com to trace/lookup my rwa address, which can trace and lookup. Could you please shed somelight on this? I would highly appreciate your help.
    Thanks.

  7. miles267 says:

    I have tried this process also and am noticing that my WHS 2011 box is passing my internal IP 192.168.0.100 to the xxxx.homeserver.com DDNS service. Instead of my external, internet IP address. It lets me obtain a free, custom xxxx.homeserver.com domain however if you ping it, it doesn’t point to my public internet IP. Is there any way to manually correct this?

    • I have not seen this issue before, so when you do an nslookup of your xxx.homeserver.com name, it shows your internal IP?

      What sort of router do you have?

      • miles267 says:

        robertpearman, I apologize. my earlier report was incorrect. instead the built-in windows dynamic dns updater isn’t updating the xxx.homeserver.com domain at all. So when I do an NSLOOKUP, it has no knowledge of my IP at all.

        [67.222.132.199] returned a non-authoritative response in 313 ms:
        Answer records
        [none]
        Authority records
        [none]
        Additional records
        [none]

        The free WHS godaddy.com SSL cert does reflect my domain name xxxx.homeserver.com but it doesn’t appear the my windows box is either not reporting back the IP to the server (bug) or something else. I am using pfsense for my router and can verify that all ports are forwarded correctly and windows firewall is completely disabled.

      • No problem.

        Afaik the windows firewall is not disabled by default, so I would check that.

        Not suggesting that is the issue but it may not be helping.

        Do you have Update Rollup 1 installed? I believe there is a WHS specific version available.

        Aside from that I would probably look at using a packet analyser to see if the WHS actually attempts to update the dns.

        I’m on a train right now so don’t have full access to things to offer suggestions.

  8. Jason Webb says:

    Great Post I have Followed the Live.com way and got it looking like it all worked and could get to the home screen but when i put in my user name and password it gives me the error of “Remote Web Access is not allowed for your user account. Contact the person who manages your server.” i have gone into my username setup to make sure that i am allowed to use remote web access. Any help would be great.

    Thanks
    Jason

  9. Andy says:

    This is a great article – I am about to set up SBS2011 Essentials in a small office with RWA, and this has prepared me for some of the pitfalls, so I will follow this carefully. Will let you know how smoothly it goes!

  10. Artillery Captain says:

    Hi Andy any luck? Robert is a great guy, very helpful indeed.

    Robert, setting up SBS 2011 Essentials has proven to be an epic challenge for me. SBS Standard is a champ, but SBS Essentials, one of the hardest install challenges I have ever had to experience – and I have been doing this for 20 years – RWA access still not working after at least 20 attempts (I am talking complete barebones reinstalls!) over several days. Great product terrible RWA install.

    • What is the current situation of your RWA?

      • Andy says:

        RWA went very smoothly. I used the free domain name service from Microsoft, using https://domain_name.remotewebaccess.com/ This installed with no problem. I was able to access remotely the same evening. (Although the next morning I could not connect at all!- Hopefully a glitch with the internet!!)
        Setting up SBS2011 Essentials was very easy on a small network, all done in about 5 hours including scheduling backup, adding users, setting up RWA etc.

  11. Andy says:

    An issue with RWA – it worked for about 24hours after setting up, but them RWA was not accessible. At the server, onsite, I had to “Repair” RWA in server settings. It then worked OK for 48hours and stopped again. I am using Microsoft https://domain_name.remotewebaccess.com/ Any ideas why this is happening? Thanks

  12. Which bit is actually not working, can you login or not?

    Might be better to post on the TechNet Forum

  13. Andy says:

    Robert, where is the best location on the server to install an application that can be accessed and used by users across the internet using RWA? How do these users see it when they login with RWA? Thanks

    • RemoteApp is not supported on the SBS Server. You would need a second server running RDS (Terminal Services) and then publish the App through there.

      They can of course RDP to their internal machines and access the app installed locally. What’s the app in question?

      • Andy says:

        The app is called Vbase – a package for volunteer organisations. Currently users have the app installed on their local PC accessing a shared dbase on their network. The plan is to move the dbase onto the SBS server at a different location and access it using RWA. Is there any way we can do this?

      • The database can certainly sit on the SBS.

        The app would have to stay on the client machines.

        Not sure I follow your comment.

        Drop me an email if you want more detailed thought!

      • Andy says:

        Robert, does this mean that we cannot install applications on the SBS server for onsite users to run them from the one location, rather than installing on each machine? If we can where can we store them, and how does the local user access them?

  14. If i understand what you are saying correctly, what you are hoping to do is terminal services, which you cannot do with an SBS Server.

    This is where an app is installed on the server, and the users logon to the server using Remote Desktop and run the program there.

  15. Andy says:

    Thank you Robert. Can I raise another problem. I followed your steps, exactly, to enable Gateway-UI for RWA using the elevated command prompt. But I get the error that this command is not recognised. I think the error is 76?

  16. Thank you for the detailed explanation.

    I need to fix my certificate because it still shows as a self-assigned one and even by installing a copy locally, it doesn’t let remote users connect to their pc.

    I have SBS essentials with Office 365 & the Integration Module

    1) Domain is by Godaddy.com
    2) DNS is on Office 365
    3) Exchange is Office 365

    I went through the process with the automated GoDaddy.com SSL certificate.

    Weird item #1) The wizard with godaddy forwarded remote.domain.com to my server… so it should have worked because redirection is working..but it’s not

    Weird item #2) I check on DNS manager in office 365, no log, nothing stating its redirected…strange

    Before touching anything / retrying the process.

    Should I just install the certificate manually as per your post?http://titlerequired.com/2012/03/05/sbs-2011-essentials-manually-installing-ssl-certificate/

    if I do, should I ask for a new certificate with the manual request?

    SBS essentials is supposed to be made for DIY but I still see some remaining settings and features of WHS that should have been taken care of.

  17. Sara Anahory says:

    Hi Robert,
    I should have read your forum before :-( . I have been trying to setup users to access their email from anywhere but so far no luck. I installed a goDaddy certificate on the server, opened and redirected traffic on firewall (80, 443) but when I try to access https://remote.mydomain.com/owa it does not find the site (http 404) I am lost !!!

    • Hi Sara,

      Are you sure you have SBS Essentials?

      Exchange is not included with SBS Essentials.

      If you are using SBS Standard, Exchange is included, and I would be happy to try and help you solve your issue.

  18. Sara Anahory says:

    Thank you for your prompt reply.
    I am sorry, I meant Small Business Server 2011 Standard Edition.
    Thanks.

  19. Hans Wind says:

    After setting up a xxxx.remotewebaccess.com domain I can access the RWA page although with certificate error. Installing the certificate in IE9 under Win7 doesn’t help.

    Remote desktop attempts to SBS 2011 Essentials Server give an RD gateway error (“can’t verify identify of RD gateway) which prevents connection.

    Is there anyway to export certificates from SBS 2011E and import on the remote client?
    Any help will be appreciated.

    • The remotewebaccess domain (provided by Microsoft) should install a trusted SSL for you.

      You would be better off troubleshooting that instead of worrying about a self signed cert.

      • Hans Wind says:

        Thanks Robert. I’ll focus on that. Is it correct that this approach works on all versions of Win7 (including Home premium)?

  20. If using the trusted SSL it works on any platform to access the server. However you can only remote access IN TO a Pro / Business or higher SkU.

  21. Andy says:

    Robert, I have successfully set up RWA following the advice here. However, the Users folders which are created when the user is setup, cannot be accessed by the user – it says access denied. Administrators can open these folders. What needs to be done?

  22. David Ledbetter says:

    Robert,
    I’m running SBS2011 Standard and have configured my internet domain name, but would like to change it. I’ve tried to re-run the wizard, but it states “you must run the connect to internet wizard”. This wizard errors with a message stating email is not properly configured… All I want to do is change my internet domain name, which was provisioned through godaddy. Any help/guidance would be greatly appreciated.

  23. shawn says:

    i have a dsl/router that has port 80 locked for its web. I can forward any other port, is there a way to use a different port like 8080 with the remotewebaccess domain (provided by Microsoft).

    • You should use port 443, and tell the server you want to manually configure you’re router. However it may still fail, if so i would consider using a different router.

  24. Craig says:

    Very well written post… one of the best I have read in many years. You are to be congratulated for your patience, depth of understanding, and most importantly, your wonderful sense of humor clearly refined over several years dealing with these issues. Well done. I have just read what I have just experienced personally attempting the same outcome. Not gratifying by any means but just goes to show us technicians in the field lose a good part of our life supporting well intentioned concepts but poorly provisioned tools.

  25. Ben says:

    That’s an awesome post. That was like an M. Night Shyamalan twist at the end. Here I was going through your post getting frustrated along with you and BOOM! Microsoft goes and completely redeems themselves with their own easier, FREE, way of doing it. Thanks for the post! It saved me, money, time, frustration, and added years to my life! Thanks!!!

  26. Alan says:

    Wow what a n00b. It’s people like you that make the Internet so insecure.

  27. Tom says:

    i’m having problems with the remotewebacces.com service
    everything is setup correct (server side) but when i go to : https://bekaert.remotewebacces.com
    nothing happens, “cannot display web page”

    i’ve linked up a dydns to my router and this works fine
    https://bks.dynalias.com/

    is there some website where i can check the remotewebacces service?
    any help is more than welcome

    • Does your remote web access address tie up to the right ip? Remember that will work with a dynamic ip so no need to use an additional third party dynamic dns service.

      • Tom says:

        the remotewebacces.com adres is not even resolving .. do know where it goes wrong and i dont know how to troubleshoot this.
        I’m sure my port configuration is correct because my server is reachable true dynalias…
        so anybody???

      • Port config is correct if it works via the other address.

        Use the logs under, c:\programdata\Microsoft\windowsserver\

        There should be some (obvious names) relating to the RWA domain config.

        Does the wizard all complete correctly?

      • Tom says:

        wizard is ok , only thing to know is that i configured my router myself. i”m cheking the logs to see if i can find out more

    • Stu says:

      Did you resolve this issue? I set up my *.remotewebaccess.com address this morning, and although I can access the server through my dyndns address, the rwa address fails like yours.

  28. Brandy says:

    do you have to purchase a statis ip address in order to use the remote web access function?

  29. Pankaj Kumar says:

    Hi Robert PearMan Thanks for a valueable Technical Notes The RWA works on computers that are connected to the office domain or Network its working fine but when I try to access from home or outside the office Domain or Network it doesn’t work for my http://remote.example.net. i want to know what is the reason and How to sort out this issue. Please Help i am awaiting for your Reply !!!

  30. James says:

    I currently have SBS2011 Essentials setup in an office on an internal domain with user accounts and such. I did not however setup Remote Web Access during initial setup (this has been about 6 months now). If I do now go in and setup RWA, setup domain and such, will this have any affect on the current domain name for the internal setup? This would end up being a nightmare if it did affect anything as the users are just now comfortable with the current setup but are requesting to be able to use RWA.

    Thanks for any help on this.

    James

  31. B Donald says:

    Well, I blowed if I can get port forwarding for RWA to work. Either using UPnP or manually port forwarding. Tried two different modem/routers, but it just won’t do it. Got your book, but it just goes through how to do it normally – no troubleshooting.

    I also find for a server OS supposedly for non-tech people, options aren’t explained at all. The whole domain name thing – does putting in the details of your existing domain name mean it gets managed by the server INSTEAD of your existing domain name manager? If so, what impact does that have on your domain name email? Thank goodness you explain that the Microsoft one is ok for remote access (except it won’t work!).

    • yes there is a lot that needs more explanation. what errors do you have when setting up rwa?

      • Bill Donald says:

        Port forwarding not configured correctly on the router & Remote Web Access to your server is blocked ( though I don’t get the latter if I manually enter ports 80 & 443 in the modem). I’m trying this at home before setting up a duplicate system on a job (non profit company with half a dozen computers). Using an HP microserver. I do mostly standalone computers ( self employed, self taught tech) never done a server before, so not overly familiar with server jargon. That’s why I chose Essentials. Finding Microsofts advertising does not match reality (shocker, I know). Netcomm NF3ADV adsl modem/router (also tried a Billion 7700n). Gave the server a fixed IP address in the modem. Modem is supposed to do UPnP (and it’s on). Also tried forwarding ports 80 & 443 to the server. I think ports 80 & 443 might be blocked by my ISP. Did find the troubleshooting bits in your book, but they don’t go into this. SSL Certificate & domain seemed to work ok. Remotewebaccess does not work from computer to server. Thanks for the response.

      • does it work if you go to your external ip? can you confirm if the isp is blocking the ports?

      • B Donald says:

        Just realised I have been attributing the ‘Working with SBS 2011 Essentials’ book to you (and slagging you off for the shoddy troubleshooting section). Not sure where I got that idea. Sorry. :-)

        Rang my ISP (Bigpond Australia) and they reckon they don’t block any ports.

        Do you mean if I type https:///connect

        I’ve worked out how to get the Launchpad installed on a Mac and Windows 7 computer and it works, so I’m only talking about (Remote Web Access) RWA now.

      • I did work on the book. as Technical Reviewer :)

        Sorry you don’t like the troubleshooting section.

  32. B Donald says:

    That was meant to be https://myIPaddress/connect

  33. B Donald says:

    Another question – The non profit that this little server is for use a database program that runs the central database on the server using SQL (SQL Express is ok). They have a 3 user license. Can SBS 2011 Essentials do that? Or do they need the Premium Add On?

    • It should be ok to do that, but generally i would advise against running LOB Apps on the same server. Appreciate it is difficult in NFP scenarios.

      • B Donald says:

        Ha ha so it is you. Found something that could cause trouble for Mac users (page 76):

        Removing the Connector from a Mac
        You can remove the SBS 2011 Essentials Connector from a Mac by following these steps:
        1. From the Mac computer, open the Applications folder and locate Launchpad.
        2. Drag Launchpad to the Trash.
        3. Empty the Trash on your Mac to reclaim the disk space.

        Since there is an Apple application called Launchpad, the book should say they mean Windows Server Launchpad.

        No – https://myexternalIPAddress/remote doesn’t work. Just won’t load anything when I try RWA.

        There’s only 4-6 computers involved there so demand on the server will not be great, but I could put the database program on a Windows 7 Pro machine.

        BTW – Hunted high and low for a free antivirus program for my server. Finally found Rising Antivirus. Looks a little hinky, but unless it’s a Chinese government trojan, better than nothing.

      • The launch pad is a bit of a gimmick anyway to be honest.

        Where are you testing the connection from?

        You can mail me your details and i could help try and troubleshoot it.

        You need to verify that the router is configured correctly, and that the server can access the internet.

      • B Donald says:

        Do you mean the Apple one, or the Server one? I never use the Mac one (my main computer is a Mac).

        Testing at home. I have the server at home too. Server can access the internet. I’ve tried the modem/router all ways. My email is wfdonald at yahooooooo.com.au (that’s yahoo of course)

        Server is https://dontech.remotewebaccess.com

        external IP is 124.187.232.112 (at the moment, it’s not Static)

        Ta.

      • The logon screen comes up for me.

  34. B Donald says:

    Interesting. Did you use the URL or IP address? Any ideas why it isn’t working here? I thought it might be because I was using my Mac so I tried a Win 7 Pro machine, but it’s the same.

    • B Donald says:

      Another interesting thing – if I log in via the Windows Server Launchpad (as the server Admin) on the Mac, I don’t get the Dashboard option, I do on the Win7 Pro machine. Dashboard opens in it.

    • Either.

      I would suspect your router is not allowing NAT Loopback.

      • B Donald says:

        Had to google that.

        From here:
        http://opensimulator.org/wiki/NAT_Loopback_Routers

        ‘Many DSL routers/modems prevent loopback connections as a security feature. This means that a machine on your local network (e.g. behind your DSL router/modem) cannot connect to a forward facing IP address (such as 199.149.252.44) of a machine that it also on your local network. Connecting to the local IP address (such as 192.168.2.40) of that same machine works fine.

        This is an issue since each region has to specify an IP address for the client to connect. This is the ExternalHostName parameter in a regions config file (e.g. bin/Regions/Regions.ini). In the absence of NAT loopback, if a forward facing IP address is specified (such as 199.149.252.44) then external clients will be able to connect to the region but clients on your local network will not. If the internal address were put in ExternalHostName instead (e.g. 192.168.2.40) then viewers on the local network will be able to connect but viewers from an external network would not.’

        If I type https://serverIPaddress/remote it works and I can login.

        So just need to bookmark that for internal use (on site) and use the normal way for external (off site). Unless I can work out how to allow Nat loopback and if that has no drawbacks.

      • You could also do some stuff with DNS so that they resolve the external name to an internal IP when inside the office.

        But whatever solution you are comfortable with is the best.

  35. B Donald says:

    I did get a certificate error in the browser. IE on Win7 Pro says ‘Mismatched Address’. On the Mac I get:

    192.168.1.107 uses an invalid security certificate.

    The certificate is only valid for dontech.remotewebaccess.com

    (Error code: ssl_error_bad_cert_domain)

    When installing SBS Essentials I did the standard domain setup and got the Microsoft free certificate.

    • This is because you are entering the IP, not the name on the certificate. This is expected behaviour.

      • B Donald says:

        Thought so. Think I’ll leave the DNS stuff. As you may have gathered this is at the edge of my knowledge. If I change something now I could mess it up.

        Thanks so much from the other side of the world (Tasmania). I reckon I can install the server now.

        Also got them a Cisco 800 series router (very cheap through a corporate donation program), but that really is wierd. I thought it would be just like a big, normal modem/router but no way. I can’t work out how to drive the sodding thing without a lot of work. I’ll just stick to the domestic one they have now.

      • Good’ol Cisco.

        No worries hope it goes smoothly.

      • B Donald says:

        Oh sod it – set up the server at the job and tried Remote Web Access (RWA) from home. Got to the Log In page, but no log ins work. Get this message (and user/password are correct)

        Cannot connect to Remote Web Access. Please contact the person who manages the server.

  36. Make sure you open port 80 &443 in firewall as well..that was the issue I had but after doing former RWA works like a chance ..good luck

    • B Donald says:

      Moved the server from being connected to a switch (which is connected the modem/router) to being connected straight to the modem/roouter and I was able to log in once. Since then not able to. Could be a bandwidth issue though both ends have adsl2.

  37. Damiaan van Vliet says:

    Thank you very much for this tutorial, it helped me enormous.

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