I have a network of about 35 PCs in a Win2003 SBS domain. In addition, I have
two remote offices of four PC's each, also on the domain but via hardware
VPN. The main office does have DHCP running on the server, but all the PC's
have static IP's, for the reason below. The two remote offices have their own
DHCP servers (i.e. the router in each office), but the PC's, again, are all
assigned static IP's.

In order for users to access their PC's when working from home, I have set
each PC's RDP port to something other than 3389, then forwarded that port
through the firewall to the static IP address of the PC.

Problem: I have one laptop. It also has a static IP address so the user can
access it remotely; however, the user took it to one of the remote offices.
It could not get an IP address because it is set static, and the users are
all set up as Power Users (no local Admin membership).

How should I configure this laptop so that it has the correct static IP when
in the office by is dynamic when not in the office. Will I need to set it as
a DHCP client, but do a MAC reservation on the SBS DHCP server so that it
always gets the correct IP address when in the main office?

I wish there was a way for Alternate IP Configuration to work in reverse: go
to DHCP if the system determines that it is not in the network where its
static IP would work.

crossposted to the windows.server.sbs newsgroup for a more comprehensive answer

--
Peter

Please Reply to Newsgroup for the benefit of others
Requests for assistance by email can not and will not be acknowledged.

"Brian" <Brian@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message news:0F0D78F7-381A-4AC5-B677-C80D3B8BC93C@microsoft.com...
>I have a network of about 35 PCs in a Win2003 SBS domain. In addition, I have
> two remote offices of four PC's each, also on the domain but via hardware
> VPN. The main office does have DHCP running on the server, but all the PC's
> have static IP's, for the reason below. The two remote offices have their own
> DHCP servers (i.e. the router in each office), but the PC's, again, are all
> assigned static IP's.
>
> In order for users to access their PC's when working from home, I have set
> each PC's RDP port to something other than 3389, then forwarded that port
> through the firewall to the static IP address of the PC.
>
> Problem: I have one laptop. It also has a static IP address so the user can
> access it remotely; however, the user took it to one of the remote offices.
> It could not get an IP address because it is set static, and the users are
> all set up as Power Users (no local Admin membership).
>
> How should I configure this laptop so that it has the correct static IP when
> in the office by is dynamic when not in the office. Will I need to set it as
> a DHCP client, but do a MAC reservation on the SBS DHCP server so that it
> always gets the correct IP address when in the main office?
>
> I wish there was a way for Alternate IP Configuration to work in reverse: go
> to DHCP if the system determines that it is not in the network where its
> static IP would work.

Use a reserved rather than static IP?

--
David Olsen
www.powerbits.com.au


"Peter Foldes" <okf22@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:%2328nwCCKJHA.4772@TK2MSFTNGP03.phx.gbl...
crossposted to the windows.server.sbs newsgroup for a more comprehensive
answer

--
Peter

Please Reply to Newsgroup for the benefit of others
Requests for assistance by email can not and will not be acknowledged.

"Brian" <Brian@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:0F0D78F7-381A-4AC5-B677-C80D3B8BC93C@microsoft.com...
>I have a network of about 35 PCs in a Win2003 SBS domain. In addition, I
>have
> two remote offices of four PC's each, also on the domain but via hardware
> VPN. The main office does have DHCP running on the server, but all the
> PC's
> have static IP's, for the reason below. The two remote offices have their
> own
> DHCP servers (i.e. the router in each office), but the PC's, again, are
> all
> assigned static IP's.
>
> In order for users to access their PC's when working from home, I have set
> each PC's RDP port to something other than 3389, then forwarded that port
> through the firewall to the static IP address of the PC.
>
> Problem: I have one laptop. It also has a static IP address so the user
> can
> access it remotely; however, the user took it to one of the remote
> offices.
> It could not get an IP address because it is set static, and the users are
> all set up as Power Users (no local Admin membership).
>
> How should I configure this laptop so that it has the correct static IP
> when
> in the office by is dynamic when not in the office. Will I need to set it
> as
> a DHCP client, but do a MAC reservation on the SBS DHCP server so that it
> always gets the correct IP address when in the main office?
>
> I wish there was a way for Alternate IP Configuration to work in reverse:
> go
> to DHCP if the system determines that it is not in the network where its
> static IP would work.

"Peter Foldes" <okf22@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:%2328nwCCKJHA.4772@TK2MSFTNGP03.phx.gbl...
crossposted to the windows.server.sbs newsgroup for a more comprehensive
answer

--
Peter

Please Reply to Newsgroup for the benefit of others
Requests for assistance by email can not and will not be acknowledged.

"Brian" <Brian@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:0F0D78F7-381A-4AC5-B677-C80D3B8BC93C@microsoft.com...
>I have a network of about 35 PCs in a Win2003 SBS domain. In addition, I
>have
> two remote offices of four PC's each, also on the domain but via hardware
> VPN. The main office does have DHCP running on the server, but all the
> PC's
> have static IP's, for the reason below. The two remote offices have their
> own
> DHCP servers (i.e. the router in each office), but the PC's, again, are
> all
> assigned static IP's.
>
> In order for users to access their PC's when working from home, I have set
> each PC's RDP port to something other than 3389, then forwarded that port
> through the firewall to the static IP address of the PC.
>
> Problem: I have one laptop. It also has a static IP address so the user
> can
> access it remotely; however, the user took it to one of the remote
> offices.
> It could not get an IP address because it is set static, and the users are
> all set up as Power Users (no local Admin membership).
>
> How should I configure this laptop so that it has the correct static IP
> when
> in the office by is dynamic when not in the office. Will I need to set it
> as
> a DHCP client, but do a MAC reservation on the SBS DHCP server so that it
> always gets the correct IP address when in the main office?
>
> I wish there was a way for Alternate IP Configuration to work in reverse:
> go
> to DHCP if the system determines that it is not in the network where its
> static IP would work.


You are making something very hard that is actually very easy with SBS.
Instead of RDP set all the computers in the main office to use DHCP from the
SBS server and use Remote Web Workplace to access the computers from home.

http://blogs.technet.com/sbs/archive...25/443383.aspx

This is a much more secure and easier way to do it, at least for the main
office.


For the remote offices I'd use a VPN router and have the home users
establish a VPN connection to the router then RDP to their desktop. The
desktops would still need static (or better reserved IPs) with individual
ports for RDP but you could block RDP access from outside the network at the
router.

--
Kerry Brown
MS-MVP - Windows Desktop Experience: Systems Administration
http://www.vistahelp.ca/phpBB2/
http://vistahelpca.blogspot.com/

as long as you get the routing and registration to DNS right _all_ members
of the domain (local and remote) will be available via RWW.

"Kerry Brown" <kerry@kdbNOSPAMsys-tems.c*a*m> wrote in message
news:ecoSrgCKJHA.2208@TK2MSFTNGP02.phx.gbl...
> "Peter Foldes" <okf22@hotmail.com> wrote in message
> news:%2328nwCCKJHA.4772@TK2MSFTNGP03.phx.gbl...
> crossposted to the windows.server.sbs newsgroup for a more comprehensive
> answer
>
> --
> Peter
>
> Please Reply to Newsgroup for the benefit of others
> Requests for assistance by email can not and will not be acknowledged.
>
> "Brian" <Brian@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
> news:0F0D78F7-381A-4AC5-B677-C80D3B8BC93C@microsoft.com...
>>I have a network of about 35 PCs in a Win2003 SBS domain. In addition, I
>>have
>> two remote offices of four PC's each, also on the domain but via hardware
>> VPN. The main office does have DHCP running on the server, but all the
>> PC's
>> have static IP's, for the reason below. The two remote offices have their
>> own
>> DHCP servers (i.e. the router in each office), but the PC's, again, are
>> all
>> assigned static IP's.
>>
>> In order for users to access their PC's when working from home, I have
>> set
>> each PC's RDP port to something other than 3389, then forwarded that port
>> through the firewall to the static IP address of the PC.
>>
>> Problem: I have one laptop. It also has a static IP address so the user
>> can
>> access it remotely; however, the user took it to one of the remote
>> offices.
>> It could not get an IP address because it is set static, and the users
>> are
>> all set up as Power Users (no local Admin membership).
>>
>> How should I configure this laptop so that it has the correct static IP
>> when
>> in the office by is dynamic when not in the office. Will I need to set it
>> as
>> a DHCP client, but do a MAC reservation on the SBS DHCP server so that it
>> always gets the correct IP address when in the main office?
>>
>> I wish there was a way for Alternate IP Configuration to work in reverse:
>> go
>> to DHCP if the system determines that it is not in the network where its
>> static IP would work.
>
>
> You are making something very hard that is actually very easy with SBS.
> Instead of RDP set all the computers in the main office to use DHCP from
> the SBS server and use Remote Web Workplace to access the computers from
> home.
>
> http://blogs.technet.com/sbs/archive...25/443383.aspx
>
> This is a much more secure and easier way to do it, at least for the main
> office.
>
>
> For the remote offices I'd use a VPN router and have the home users
> establish a VPN connection to the router then RDP to their desktop. The
> desktops would still need static (or better reserved IPs) with individual
> ports for RDP but you could block RDP access from outside the network at
> the router.
>
> --
> Kerry Brown
> MS-MVP - Windows Desktop Experience: Systems Administration
> http://www.vistahelp.ca/phpBB2/
> http://vistahelpca.blogspot.com/
>
>
>
>

"SuperGumby [SBS MVP]" <not@your.nellie> wrote in message
news:O0$9VvEKJHA.5904@TK2MSFTNGP02.phx.gbl...
> as long as you get the routing and registration to DNS right _all_ members
> of the domain (local and remote) will be available via RWW.
>


It's tricky to set this up for remote offices unless they have a DC. I have
done it and then found it was a better user experience to RDP directly to
the remote office rather than RWW to the main office then RDP via RWW (over
a VPN) to the remote office. There was too much lag. I guess it all depends
on the speed of the links between the main and the remote offices.

--
Kerry Brown
MS-MVP - Windows Desktop Experience: Systems Administration
http://www.vistahelp.ca/phpBB2/
http://vistahelpca.blogspot.com/