Connecting to iSCSI over the internet

[MWCS_Service]

Hello.  Here's our device information:

 

Buffalo TeraStation Model: TS-RIXL

Firmware Version: 1.57

 

We have this device working and I've created a volume on it and can access the unit on our local network using the Windows 7 iSCSI Initiator.  I have a username and password setup on the iSCSI Volume and I can access it on the local network via the iSCSI Initiator no problem.

 

What I need to do is access it from a Windows 2008 server using the iSCSI Initiator over the internet.

 

I have port 3260 open and the iSCSI Initiator at the remote site can SEE the TeraStation, but it can't actually LOG IN using the username and password, I get a box that says "Connection Failed."  I'm not doing it any differently than I did on my local PC.

 

Looking for some help/ideas to make this work.  I've failed in my searches of google, the manual for the device, and these tech forums.

 

Thanks!

 

[Jotin]

Check the advanced settings for the volume and check the max connections. By default it is set to one. You should only connect one computer per volume depending on the format to avoid file corruption. 

[MWCS_Service]

I had already set it to 16 per a colleague's advice.  Changing it (and disconnecting my local PC) didn't make any difference.  I can see it across the internet, but I can't authenticate.  Thanks for your help...  :)

 

Also please note that I'm a total newb when I comes to this iSCSI stuff.  So, I could be doing something wrong even though I got it to connect from my local PC.  :)

[Jotin]

If you remove the encryption does it work? Maybe you put in the username and or password in an incorrect format?

[csylvain]

having a direct connection from the big wide nasty Internet to your iSCSI device is probably not a good idea.

 

a tunnel via ssh or a vpn at a minimum is what i would recommend.  once you've established a proper tunnel, the same settings that work on the iSCSI device's LAN should work then.

[MWCS_Service]

It doesn't work without the username and password either.  I can connect to it (without username/password) via the LAN just fine.  But when I connect the same exact way from a PC in a remote location it doesn't work.  I know the port is open because the iSCSI Initiator can see the name of the device, just not fully connect to it.

[MWCS_Service]

I just called Buffalo Tech Support and they told me that the iSCSI devices are not accessible via the internet and that we *HAVE* to access it via the local LAN from a VPN connection.  Doesn't that defeat the whole purpose of the i in iSCSI?

[csylvain]

only if the 'i' is meant to suggest the big fluffy internet cloud.  but it doesn't stand for the nebulous Internet.

 

it's the 'i' of TCP/IP which is used instead of some other sort of cable to connect disks to a system within the temperature-controlled and access-controlled confines of your datacenter.  of course, TCP/IP permits a more flexible realization of your datacenter than that which fits within the maximum length of a cable.

 

iSCSI is an abbreviation of Internet Small Computer System Interface, an Internet Protocol (IP)-based storage networking standard for linking data storage facilities. Unlike traditional Fibre Channel, which requires special-purpose cabling, iSCSI can be run over long distances using existing network infrastructure.

 ( from  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISCSI )