Connecting two different T1s to two different ethernet ports on one Mac.

[quakingbog]

I am trying to configure our MacBook web server (running regular OS X, *not* OS X Server) to utilize two different ethernet ports connected to two separate T1s. My goal is to increase bandwidth by connecting to two separate T1's each with its own set of IPs and its own dedicated connection to the Internet. I will have one T1 to handle email only, the other T1 to handle our web traffic.

I've added a second ethernet port to my MacBook using Apple's own USB Ethernet adapter. It is marketed for the MacBook Air but is supposed to work with any Mac.

After installing this adapter, my understanding is that my MacBook should now operate similar to a Mac Pro which is sold with two separate, built-in ethernet connections.

If I program network preferences appropriately and then connect one of my T1's only to the INTERNAL ETHERNET it works fine. If I then unplug it and plug it only into the USB ETHERNET, and program network preferences appropriately it still works. So I know that both INTERNAL and USB ethernet connections are working fine, as long as only one is used at a time.

If I then connect one T1 to the INTERNAL ETHERNET *AND* the other T1 to the USB ETHERNET, I can connect LOCALLY to any of the IP addresses associated with either T1. The problem is this only works locally.

When both T1s are connected at once, the USB ETHERNET is no longer accessible over the Internet. (The T1 connected to the INTERNAL ETHERNET is still accessible over the Internet.) I can't even ping any of the IP addresses on the USB ETHERNET. Then if I disconnect the INTERNAL ETHERNET, the USB ETHERNET is then visible again over the web.

So in summary, pardon my repeating myself to make sure I am being clear... one or the other ethernet networks works fine on its own using either built-in or USB ethernet. I can also get both networks to work at the same time with all their associated IP addresses, but only locally. As soon as I plug into both the internal ethernet and USB ethernet at the same time with separate T1s, the USB ethernet is no longer visible over the Internet, only locally, but the internal ethernet T1 is still visible over the web.

Any ideas...???

Best wishes,

- Jeff Gold

[quakingbog]

Hello,

Thanks to everyone for the suggestions on how to accomplish this. I have learned that Mac OS X -- as is -- is not capable of handling this. I did, however, find an excellent software product which helped me accomplish the connection of two separate Internet connections to one mac using ethernet.

My server has now be running for 24 hours, serving 50,000 page views from iTools version of Apache on one T1 connection, and handling some 3,000 email messages on an entirely separate ethernet connection to the Internet.

For anyone who wants to try this in the future, the product is called IPNetRouterX. Here's a link:

http://www.sustworks.com/site/prod_ipnrx_overview.html

In order to get this to work, I obtained excellent guidance from the creator of IPNetRouterX, Peter Sichel. This product comes with a 21-day free trial if you want to see how it works.

Here's what to do if you want to try this:

1) I am using Apple's own USB Ethernet Adapter. Apple doesn't support this for models other than the MacBook Air, however, I have learned it can be used successfully to add a second Ethernet port to any Mac using Mac OS X 10.5.2 or later.

2) Configure ethernet for both ports using the built-in Mac network preferences. I configured additional IP addresses on one of the networks using Tenon's iTools Network settings.

3) Make sure both ethernet ports are connected to the networks you want to use them with.

4) Launch IPNetRouterX. You need to follow the next configuration steps for it in precise order.

5) Select from the pull-down menus Tool->Expert View.

6) Click in the upper right to turn IPNetRouter ON.

7) Deselect all checkboxes, then check four boxes. Check BOTH "External" and "NAT" checkboxes for BOTH ethernet ports you will be using.

8) Make sure IP Forwarding is checked in the lower left (it should be already).

9) Click APPLY in the lower right.

10) Select from the pull-down menus Tool->Alternate Route.

11) Use the + symbol to add each of your ethernet connections to the display. If properly plugged in, the Gateway IP and Gateway HA fields should be filled in automatically as you do this.

12) Click on the box which says Source Aware Routing.

13) Click Apply. That's it!

14) In my case, it didn't work fully the first time I did this until I then selected File-->Save to save my settings, quit IPNetRouterX then relaunched it. It will automatically launch with your configured settings in operation.

15) To make IPNetRouterX launch each time your server boots, which will be necessary for the two ports to run properly together, go to Accounts in your System Preferences of Mac OS X and add IPNetRouterX as a Login Item.

Have fun with twice the Internet connectivity on one computer. For the adventurous, this software tool also offers Load Balancing and Automatic Failover.

Best wishes,

- Jeff