Gateway solutions
1
Managing external connections using Symantec
pcAnywhere
Symantec pcAnywhere supports TCP/IP network connections over a local area network (LAN), wide area network
(WAN), or the Internet. To establish a connection with a host, pcAnywhere must be able to determine the IP address
and port number of the host computer. If the host and remote computers are attached to the same network and are
using the default pcAnywhere ports, establishing a connection is straightforward. The remote user can either specify
the IP address of the host or browse one or more subnets for all advertised pcAnywhere hosts that are waiting for a
connection. The session begins once the host computer validates the authentication credentials sent by the remote
user.
Connecting to a host computer that is behind a firewall or that has a hidden IP address from outside the network
poses a challenge. The security mechanisms that are designed to protect network resources from unauthorized access
can also limit a remote user’s ability to access the network for legitimate business purposes. Another challenge arises
when the remote user must connect by modem but needs to reach a network computer that does not have a modem.
To make the connection, the remote user must be able to connect through a gateway or other device capable of
handling the translation.
Why the pcAnywhere gateway is no longer supported
Early versions of pcAnywhere let administrators configure a host computer on the network to serve as a gateway
between modem and network connections. The pcAnywhere gateway enabled all users within the network to share a
single modem. The pcAnywhere gateway handled the translation between the TAPI or CAPI communications
protocols and TCP/IP, enabling one-way and two-way communications between these devices. Users within the
network who did not have modem access could connect to other modems (for example, access a bulletin board system
[BBS]) via the gateway, and modem users outside the network could connect to network users within the network via
the gateway. Technological advances in networking, the advent of virtual private networks (VPN) and remote access
servers (RAS), and growing security concerns about controlling access to the network through modems are some of
the factors that influenced Symantec’s decision to stop supporting the pcAnywhere gateway.