09-06-2020, 12:17 AM
I wanted to follow up on this thread after figuring this out.
I all but gave up, but recently started revisiting my network config after dealing with some other issues trying to map ports for gaming. The clue came when Xbox Live and PS4 configs kept reporting NAT Type as strict ... XBOX network test reported "double NAT". Why the hell would I have double NAT? Just about every home network is going to have NAT in place, but double NAT?
So here's the deal- some time ago, I gave up my static IP address because I didn't really need it. Turns out, my provider started implementing CGNAT (Carrier Grade Network Address Translation) for dynamic addresses to help them deal with growth. This adds another layer of NAT to anything you have configured in your own network and it really screws up your ability to do any kind of direct communications -- even if you map ports and tweak your router every way you are supposed to.
So I changed back to my static IP and it fixed ... everything.
Jamkazam just works now. First try -- connections work, audio works. It was always a gamble before.. sometimes it would work, sometimes not... always had trouble with audio even when sessions would get setup.
Related - It also seems to have fixed a lot of issues we had with calls over wi-fi (if you have this turned on you cell phone) where the first or second call attempt would always fail and we'd miss calls (would never ring). Games consoles will now report open or type-2 NAT and all the manual port mapping works as expected now.
So ... long story short, if nothing else is working for you, check if your provider is using CGNAT (both xbox and PS4 network tests may give you a clue here). Double NAT will seriously screw you up.
I all but gave up, but recently started revisiting my network config after dealing with some other issues trying to map ports for gaming. The clue came when Xbox Live and PS4 configs kept reporting NAT Type as strict ... XBOX network test reported "double NAT". Why the hell would I have double NAT? Just about every home network is going to have NAT in place, but double NAT?
So here's the deal- some time ago, I gave up my static IP address because I didn't really need it. Turns out, my provider started implementing CGNAT (Carrier Grade Network Address Translation) for dynamic addresses to help them deal with growth. This adds another layer of NAT to anything you have configured in your own network and it really screws up your ability to do any kind of direct communications -- even if you map ports and tweak your router every way you are supposed to.
So I changed back to my static IP and it fixed ... everything.
Jamkazam just works now. First try -- connections work, audio works. It was always a gamble before.. sometimes it would work, sometimes not... always had trouble with audio even when sessions would get setup.
Related - It also seems to have fixed a lot of issues we had with calls over wi-fi (if you have this turned on you cell phone) where the first or second call attempt would always fail and we'd miss calls (would never ring). Games consoles will now report open or type-2 NAT and all the manual port mapping works as expected now.
So ... long story short, if nothing else is working for you, check if your provider is using CGNAT (both xbox and PS4 network tests may give you a clue here). Double NAT will seriously screw you up.