If you want to connect to your home network remotely, you need to use its public IP address or, better still, a domain name that can be resolved to that address using DNS, the Domain Name System. Unfortunately, most public IP addresses are assigned dynamically, so your address can and will change over time. One solution is to use a dynamic DNS (DDNS) service to update the address associated with your domain when that happens.

Numerous DDNS services are available, many free, such as DynDNS . All work in much the same way, using a . network client to check your public IP address and update your DNS records on a regular basis or when changes occur. Some internet routers will have a DDNS client built in, otherwise you'll need to download a client from the provider and run it on a network PC.

Dynamic DNS can be used for remote Lan access and to host public websites and email servers. However, compatibility can be an issue with built-in hardware clients, and with many of the free services you're limited to using an existing hosted domain, such as homedns sites, for example, a domain maintained by DynDNS. To use your own custom domain name you're likely to have to pay extra, in which case you might want to switch to a fixed address instead. Not all providers offer this option but many do, either for a small monthly fee or in some cases no extra charge at all.