Introduction

Far and away the largest number of support emails we receive for Cheetah Sync have to do with connection issues. Our users will download and install the Cheetah Sync Server on their Mac, then open up the Cheetah Sync app on their Android device and hit the Sync Jobs button, and... the Mac cannot be found.

We wrote the server and app code specifically to try and make it easy and painless for the Android app to auto-discover the computer, and most of the time it works. However, for users for whom it doesn't work right away, almost always it's a firewall issue, either on their wireless router or their computer. This guide is intended to show our users the optimal firewall configuration so that their Android device can easily talk to their Mac.

Home Networks vs. Public Networks

It's worth mentioning that corporate, university, or public WiFi hotspots often have a built-in firewall in the wireless router which automatically prevents any kind of network traffic between connected devices. Unfortunately, Cheetah Sync cannot circumvent this kind of network restriction; for this reason we generally recommend our users to use a home wireless network if at all possible.

Mac OS X Firewall

Follow these steps to configure your firewall on Mac OS X:

1. Open up your System Preferences (Apple -> System Preferences).
   
   
2. Click on "Security".
   
   
3. Click on Firewall.
   
   
4. Now you have two options:
   
   
   1. Click on "Allow all incoming connections". Click the red X. You're done!
      
      
   2. Click on "Set access for specific services and applications".
   • Click the "+" button to add an application to configure settings for.
     
     
   • Select Cheetah Sync.
     
     
     
     
     
   • Click on "Allow incoming connections". Click the red X. You're done!
     
     
     
     
     

Wireless Router Configuration

In some cases, you might need to tweak your wireless router settings in order for Cheetah Sync to connect. This is because some wireless routers might have a built-in firewall preventing traffic, or it might be preventing multicast packets. Steps for configuring your wireless router:

1. Access your wireless router's settings.
   
2. Enable multicast packets. This eHow guide should give you a good idea of how to do this.
   
3. Configure the firewall. Routers vary greatly from model to model, but there may be an option to allow traffic to the Cheetah Sync port (35000 by default).
   

Other Connection Tips

• Make sure you're close enough to your wireless router to have a strong WiFi signal.
  
• Rebooting the router, phone, and/or computer sometimes helps.
  
• Turning Bluetooth off sometimes improves WiFi connectivity.
  
• Changing the router's wireless security type sometimes helps.
  
• Changing the router's wireless speed sometimes helps.
  
• Changing the router's wireless channel sometimes helps.
  

Problems? Questions?

If you need help using Cheetah Sync, or if you have any questions or comments, please email [email protected] for support.