Getting through the anti-virus or firewall to connect to on-line database

[J Trahair]

Hi

I have a VB.Net application which runs on the local machine and connects to an on-line MySQL database. What do I have to do to get the customer's computer to allow the program through the firewall (if that's the right expression) so it connects to the database?

This customer uses Windows Defender, but it might equally well be any other make/model.

Thank you.

 

[jmcilhinney]

Are you saying that you used a valid MySQL connection string and were unable to connect? If not then I suggest that you use a valid MySQL connection string and try to connect. If you have tried and it failed, tell us what happened. Any machine that has access to the internet should be able to connect to an online database if it has the appropriate connection parameters.

 

[J Trahair]

I have successfully used the connection string to access the MySQL database on my development machine since May 2016, and other customers in the UK and Italy have successfully connected for several months. However, a day or two ago a new user has tried to connect and cannot, even though they use the same connection string as all the others.

 

[jmcilhinney]

However, a day or two ago a new user has tried to connect and cannot, even though they use the same connection string as all the others.

And what actually happens that makes you think a firewall or antivirus is responsible for that? If you have no evidence and are just making an assumption then you're asking us to solve a problem that you don't even know exists and potentially wasting our time and yours.

 

[J Trahair]

I ran a tracert at the command prompt and got this reply from godaddy support:

Yes this confirms you are not being blocked and it is issue with Visual Studio.
Thanks
Bret
xxx@godaddy.com

I attach the code I am using to upload a file to the existing godaddy ftp area. It works perfectly (and quickly) on my development machine but takes a long time on a customer's computer running the same code but based elsewhere in Europe. Also, on the customer's machine it garbles the file so it can't be read even if downloaded.

Please assume the necessary ftp folders are already in place and usernames and passwords are correct.

            Dim request2 As FtpWebRequest = DirectCast(WebRequest.Create("ftp://123.456.789.000/public_ftp/Customers/Prospects/TRA001/Flight tickets/Ticket.pdf"), System.Net.FtpWebRequest)
            request2.Credentials = New NetworkCredential("qwerty", "qwerty")
            request2.KeepAlive = True
            request2.Method = WebRequestMethods.Ftp.UploadFile
            request2.Proxy = Nothing   'skips long lookup
            request2.Timeout = 120000     'any big number
            ''request2.KeepAlive = False
            request2.ReadWriteTimeout = 120000    'any big number

            Dim file() As Byte = System.IO.File.ReadAllBytes(strPathOnlyEndsInSlash & strFileNameOnly)

            Dim strz As System.IO.Stream = request2.GetRequestStream()
            strz.Write(file, 0, file.Length)
            strz.Close()
            strz.Dispose()

Why might this code not work properly on the customer's computer?

Thanks in advance.

 

[jmcilhinney]

Can a regular FTP client be used to successfully upload a file on that machine?

 

[J Trahair]

Yes, I installed Core FTP Lite (similar to Filezilla) on the customer's computer and it connected straight away.