Is my relay working?

Question

I am not sure whether or not my relay is working. I see messages in the log file saying something like "Tor has successfully created a circuit. Looks like client is functioning." (I'm not sure exactly what it said because it just made a new log file, but I know it said something very similar to that if not that). That message makes me think that the relay is working. But then I get another message: "Your server has not managed to confirm that its ORPort is reachable." This message leads me to believe that the relay isn't working. I checked the Atlas, but my relay does not show up there. I have forwarded the ORPort through VirtualBox (I am running the relay on a Ubuntu VM), I have opened the port in my firewall, and I have forwarded it in my router. Am I missing something? Do I have to trigger it instead of forwarding it? I currently have it set as TCP everywhere, it is TCP and not UDP, correct?

Answer 1

So - let's take a look at it step by step. The message "Tor has successfully created a circuit. Looks like client is functioning." tells you that tor instance was able to make a connection with the rest of the network, but the message "Your server has not managed to confirm that its ORPort is reachable." tells you that something is defenately wrong with your port forwarding. It's a TCP-only forward, to check it - open something like a lighttpd or any other kind of a webserver on it from inside your VM without starting tor(to keep the port free) - and just try to open it in wget request from another network location: i.e. vps or remote server, or some online port checking services. If it will work, but your tor won't be working still - drop a comment here, we will fix it!