Peer Host NAT Compatibility Reference

The following section outlines peer host Network Address Translation (NAT) compatibility for applications that follow the guidelines recommended in previous sections.

Windows 98 Second Edition Internet Connection Sharing

The following table shows the default support for hosts using Microsoft® Windows® 98 Second Edition Internet Connection Sharing (ICS).

	Join from behind ICS computer	Join from ICS computer	Join from external network
Host behind ICS computer	Yes	Yes	Not without manual port forwarding
Host on ICS computer	Yes	Yes	Not without manual port forwarding or by discovering game via broadcast

Windows 98 Second Edition ICS supports joining a host on or behind the ICS computer from the Internet only with manual port forwarding.

The Advanced NAT Techniques for Peer Hosts section describes methods that might be used to allow external clients to join the host without manual port forwarding in some scenarios.

Windows 2000 Internet Connection Sharing

The following table shows the default support for hosts using Windows 2000 ICS.

	Join from behind ICS computer	Join from ICS computer	Join from external network
Host behind ICS computer	Yes	Yes	Not without manual port forwarding
Host on ICS computer	Yes	Yes	Yes

Windows 2000 ICS supports joining a host on the ICS computer from the Internet. Joining a host behind the ICS computer requires manual port forwarding.

The Advanced NAT Techniques for Peer Hosts section describes methods that can be used to allow external clients to join the host without manual port forwarding in some scenarios.

Windows Millennium Edition Internet Connection Sharing

The following table shows the default support for hosts using Windows Millennium Edition (Windows Me) ICS.

	Join from behind ICS computer	Join from ICS computer	Join from external network
Host behind ICS computer	Yes	Yes	Yes
Host on ICS computer	Yes	Yes	Yes

Hosting behind or on a Windows Me ICS computer is fully supported using Microsoft DirectPlay®'s automatic traversal.

Windows XP Internet Connection Sharing

The following table shows the default support for hosts using Windows XP ICS.

	Join from behind ICS computer	Join from ICS computer	Join from external network
Host behind ICS computer	Yes	Yes	Yes
Host on ICS computer	Yes	Yes	Yes

Hosting behind or on a Windows XP ICS computer is fully supported using DirectPlay's automatic traversal.

Non-Microsoft NAT Device with Universal Plug and Play

Hosting behind a non-Microsoft NAT device that is compatible with DirectPlay's automatic traversal using Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) is supported. Refer to the NAT device's documentation for UPnP compatibility information.

Non-Microsoft NAT Device without Universal Plug and Play

Clients can join a host behind a non-Microsoft NAT device without UPnP support if the clients are behind the same device. External clients cannot join by default unless port forwarding is manually configured. Refer to the NAT device's documentation for information on enabling port forwarding.

The Advanced NAT Techniques for Peer Hosts section describes methods that can be used to allow external clients to join the host without manual port forwarding in some scenarios.