Port Forwarding for PlayStation 2 Network Games

Author: James Saunders Date: Tue, 16 Dec 2003 12:00:00 CET

The following Cisco tutorial has been written to help PlayStation 2 gamers who wish to use the PlayStation Network Adapter and connect it to the internet via a Cisco router for multiplayer network games. This tutorial is of particular help for those using NAT (Network Address Translation) setups, for example those using a Cable Modem to access the internet.

1. Port Forwarding and NAT

The problem with running NAT on a router is that it is only able to translate and forward packets from the internet to a machine within the 'inside' network with prior knowledge of who it is intended for. When a machine within the 'inside' network (i.e. the PlayStation 2 or Home PC) sends packets out through the router to a machine on the internet and the internet machine replies, the router is able to work out who the reply is intended for.

But if a computer out on the internet wants to start sending packets to a machine within the 'inside' network (i.e. the PlayStation 2 or Home PC) it would try and initiate a new session, in this case the router has no previous knowledge of who the packets are intended for. Port forwarding is used to allow you to 'hard code' a specific a destination address and port within the 'inside' network, for all packets sent to the Cisco router from the internet on a specific port.

Using a Cisco router it is easy to forward specific ports.

2. Equipment Setup

Install and Configure the PlayStation 2 Network Adapter as per the instructions supplied, also see Playstation.com Installing the Network Adaptor (Ethernet) for PlayStation 2.

Other computers may also be connected along with the PlayStation 2 to the router using a Switch or Hub.

3. PlayStation 2 Network Address Setup

To be able to use port forwarding the PlayStation 2 must have a static IP address, as a dynamic IP address assigned with DHCP may change and this would mean that the Port Forward address would be incorrect. Setup a static IP address on the PlayStation 2 as follows..

1. Switch on your PlayStation 2 and insert your Network Access Disc.

2. In the initial menu options, select Get Connected, then Advanced.

3. Select Edit Network Settings and Manual Settings

4. Enter a Static IP Address (for this example we will use 192.168.0.60)

5. Once you enter an IP Address, Netmask, and Default Router IP address, proceed to enter the DNS numbers.

6. From here you will also be able to go through the Network Adaptor setup, and be told of the MAC address of your Network Adaptor. It may be a good idea to write this MAC address and keep it somewhere safe, for future reference.

4. Which Ports do you need to forward?

The basic ports that you will need to open in order to play PlayStation 2 network games are:

• Basic PS2 Ports
• TCP: 53
• TCP: 80
• TCP: 443
• As well as allowing ICMP

There may be other ports needed for specific games, the game manual should state which ports are required in order to play the game networked. The following games need ports opened:

• FIFA 2004
• TCP: 10400
• TCP: 10401
• UDP: 6000
• UDP: 3658

• Final Fantasy XI
• TCP: 25
• TCP: 80
• TCP: 110
• TCP: 50000-65535
• UDP: 50000-65535

• Frequency and Amplitude
• TCP: 10070 - 10080
• UDP: 10070

• Madden NFL 2003 and 2004
• TCP: 13505
• TCP: 14300
• UDP: 1791
• UDP: 1792
• UDP: 9995
• UDP: 9996

• Medal of Honor: Rising Sun
• UDP: 3658
• UDP: 3659
• UDP: 6000
• UDP: 6000
• UDP: Also, if using a router or a firewall, you MAY want to forward port 28500 to address 10.14.248.177

• SOCOM: US Navy Seals
• TCP: 10070 - 10080
• UDP: 6000 - 6999

• Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 4 and Tony Hawk's Underground
• UDP: 5150

• Twisted Metal Black Online
• TCP: 10070 - 10080
• UDP: 6000 - 6999

5. Cisco Configuration

In order for you to setup the router to allow the specific PS2 ports above you will need to Log into the router and enter into Configuration Mode... The configuration below assumes that you have a working NAT configuration on the Cisco router, for more information see the Cable Modem Setup.

Add the following lines to the Cisco configuration:

! Port forward basic TCP ports needed for PlayStation 2 Network Gaming 
ip nat inside source static tcp 192.168.1.60 53 interface Ethernet0/1 53 
ip nat inside source static tcp 192.168.1.60 80 interface Ethernet0/1 80 
ip nat inside source static tcp 192.168.1.60 443 interface Ethernet0/1 443 
! Port forward UDP port for Tony Hawks Pro Skater 4 
ip nat inside source static udp 192.168.1.60 5150 interface Ethernet0/1 5150

This will take any packets sent from the internet to the router on the specific ports used by the games, and forward them onto the PlayStation 2 (which in this example is the IP address 192.168.1.60). In this example, due to the DHCP assigned IP address for the 'ouside' WAN interface, you can only map it to the interface itself (Ethernet0/1) as the address may change.

It is also suggested that you make sure all ICMP packets are accepted, to do this add the following line to your access-lists.

access-list 102 permit icmp any any

note: Any other firewalls will also need to unblock the ports above.

For More Information

• Playstation.com Network Gaming Guides
• JLSNet Cisco Configs - Cable Modem
• JLSNet Cisco Configs - Configuring DHCP Server
• JLSNet Projects - PlayStation Technical Specifications

"Playstation" is a registered trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.