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How to Give Your HFS File Server a Host Name with DynDNS

This tutorial is the third part of my HFS file server setup series. It’s been long overdue (lol!) and only now that I have the time (and motivation!) to complete it. In the first part, I’ve written an introduction to HFS and how to install it inside your computer. The second part shows you how to share your HFS file server with the world, via an external IP address and some router configuration. With DynDNS, this post will solve the problem encountered on the second part of the series - where you have to change and announce your new external, dynamic IP address each time you restart your Internet router, before you can start sharing your files.

First things first, I am going to assume these things:

• You have completed the first part and now you can now access and share your HFS shared files within a local area network.
• You have completed the second part and you can now access and share your HFS shared files with an external IP address mapped to a private IP address using a router.
• You have started your HFS server and test them to comply with the above requirements.
• Your know how to follow instructions (kidding!)

To achieve the objective, we are going to use a web service called DynDNS. It does two things:

• Give / maps your HFS server IP address to a host name, for example: techmalaya.kicks-ass.org. Therefore, your friends can access your server with an easy-to-remember name, instead of some weird IP numbers.
• By downloading and installing the DynDNS Updater, you don’t have to repetitively change your IP address to match a chosen hostname each time you restart your Internet router.

Steps to Access Your HFS Server with a Hostname with DynDNS

Give your HFS server a name

1- First, you need to register for a DynDNS account.

2- Once completed, activate your account by clicking on the provided activation link inside your account confirmation email.

3- Next, click on the “Create a dynamic DNS host within our domains” link to choose a domain name for your HFS server.

4- Click on “Manage Hosts“.

5- Login to your DynDNS account with the login details that you’ve provided during the registration process.

6- At the “Add a Hostname” page, fill in these details and click “Create Host“:

• Enter a hostname for your HFS server. You can choose from any of the 88 domain name in the combo box next to your hostname. For example, my HFS server will be named techmalaya.kicks-ass.org.
• Select the “Wildcard” option.
• For host type, choose “Host with IP address“.
• For IP address, click on the “Use auto detected IP address (depends on what will appear at your screen”)

7- At the “Host Services” screen, make sure you get what you have typed previously. For example:

8- Using a proxy server such as HideMyAss.com, you can test accessing your HFS server from within your computer. Just enter the host name that you have entered previously. Make sure that you can successfully access your server before proceeding to the next section.

Automatically Sync your Hostname and Dynamic IP Address

9- Download DynDNS Update Client here.

10- Install it as any Windows program and just select whatever options you see on the installer screen, including the option to “Run DynDNS Updater” right before installation ends. The client should then launch successfully.

11- Enter your DynDNS login name and password. The client will attempt to grab your current IP address and registered host name automatically. Select your hostname from the list and click “Apply“. Make sure the DynDNS Updater status icon changes to green (Status: Good).

Completely Test your DynDNS Setup

12- Turn off the DynDNS Updater client and your HFS server. Restart your physical Internet router or modem as well.

13- Launch your HFS server. Next, launch your DynDNS updater. Make sure the DynDNS Updater status is still green.

14- Repeat step 8. If you can successfully access your HFS server with your desired host name e.g. techmalaya.kicks-ass.org, go treat yourself an ice-cream!

Congratulations! You now have a full blown HFS file server with your own choice of host name. With the DynDNS client turned on, you don’t ever need to worry about having to check and announce your external IP address again. You can now broadcast your host name to all of your friends and let the file sharing party begins!

Tags: hfs, hfs file server, file server, file server dyndns, dyndns, dynamic dns

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