Wow, I'm going to have to wade through 17 pages of arguments just to implement this and I probably do need to implement this [...]
After almost two years of frustrating trial and error and A WHOLE LOT OF READING, I finally accomplished this
just this past Saturday in these 7 "
simple" steps.
(click on pics to blow out)
1) Launched the game to main menu, went to
Options > Network, and changed these two settings, hit
Apply, then exited to Desktop:
2) Went into my router's Local Network settings and changed this From ISP to Static:
3) Installed the
Port Forward Network Utilities app (PFNU). Scroll all the way down and choose
Free Trial:
4) Launched PFNU's
Static IP Address Tool and clicked
"Make it Static" (shown here after the fact. It originally said "This IP address is currently dynamic. Make it static").
Yes, I trusted the app blindly and let it do its magic. I didn't copy, write down, or back up any of the original settings. However,
I do strongly advise you do so. "Do as
everyone says, don't do as I do", blah, blah, blah.
5) Checked my
Network > Ethernet settings in Windows and verified that IP assignment was changed from Automatic to Manual, and that everything else matched the PFNU's new settings,
then wrote down my new IPv4 address.
6) Went into my router's Port Mapping settings and set up the ED 5100 port like this, entering my new IPv4 address in the appropriate field. After saving changes, I rebooted my router:
7) Launched PFNU's Port Checker app, entered the port number, ticked "UDP", hit "Check Me" and voilá, my port was open.
That was it. I've played for hours since Saturday, not a single connection issue, and no problem seeing/instancing with other players in private groups. I haven't tried in Open but I have no reason to think it would be any different. Also, load screens while on-foot (disembarking/boarding from/to ship/SRV) now are A LOT SHORTER than before. Same with menus at stations and loading of system maps; no more loading icons spinning for ages. Not sure if it's got anything to do with port forwarding but I don't think it's a coincidence.
Anyway, this is what worked for me. Hope it works for you. Good luck! o7