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If you work at a small business and have only one static IP address assigned by your Internet Service Provider (ISP), the static IP is typically attached to your router, which then issues internal IPs to the machines in your local network. But, suppose you want to make some of your internal Domino servers visible to the outside world. The servers might be for your own use when you're out of the office, or for customers to access a Lotus Notes application hosted at your office.
This situation also applies to organizations that own more than one IP address, but have used up all their IP numbers for existing machines. How do you host more externally visible servers than the number of IPs you have?
The standard answer is to set up a virtual private network (VPN), and many routers have this capability built in. The problem with VPNs, however, is that they require more work for the person logging in. Some VPNs require special client-side software; and all require you to issue username/password pairs to each person who connects.
In some cases, the security gains from the VPN are worth this effort. (And, indeed, are the reasons for the effort.) In many cases, though, you want people to connect to your Lotus Domino servers without any special setup on the client side -- other than possessing a valid Notes ID file.
This tip describes how to host more than one Domino server at a single IP address without using a VPN.
A couple points to keep in mind:
Perform the following on each server that you want to expose to outside Lotus Notes
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connections:
Some readers are probably screaming right now about how insecure this configuration is, since anyone in the world can see the Domino server and attempt to connect to it.
My response is twofold:
If the data on the Domino server is extremely sensitive, you might want to consider a layered approach, such as VPN or smart cards to gain access to the network. But a properly set up Domino server and Lotus Notes application is very secure in itself. To break in, an attacker needs a valid Notes ID file, issued by the same organization that signed the server's ID. This is tough to fake. I trust a well-designed Notes/Domino server on the public Internet much more than I trust most bank computers on the Internet.
Some additional notes that may be helpful:
For more information see Domino Administration Help -> Index -> Ports -> TCP, and your router's documentation.
About the author: Chuck Connell is president of CHC-3 Consulting, which helps organizations with all aspects of Lotus Notes and Domino..
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This tip is very good! I've been searching for this answer for a long time. I should only add that for HTTP servers, you can also host multiple Domino servers, (serving HTTP files) using only one static IP address.
—Fredy K.
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