ESP32 and LabVIEW have to be connected to the same network?

[NataliaB14]

Im creating a system in which I was planning tu use the ESP32 as a controller and I wanted to send the LabVIEW code through wifi or TCP/IP protocol. My plan was to leave the controller on the field where i have sensors and actuators and connect it to the network of the place, and to keep my computer with the labview code at home which is quite far from the place where the proyect is so I would be connected to a different wifi network. Is this possible? Or do both things (ESP ans computer with LabVIEW code) have to be connected to the same wifi?

[Bob_Schor]

Talk to your IT Folks, and learn a bit (more) about TCP/IP and Networking.  

Do you know about IP Addresses?  They are basically sets of (mostly 4) 8-bit numbers (0..255) in the form 192.168.1.1 (which is probably the address of your Wireless Router.  A 32-bit number (another way to look at an IP address) can handle just over 4 billion addresses, hardly enough in today's "connected" world.  To get around that, the Internet is broken down into a "network of networks", of which your Wireless Router is a small part.  Its 192.168 subnet can handle 65,536 devices (probably more than you have!), and it "talks to" another "node" in the network that connects to other nodes ... until finally it arrives at the destination you want.  [It is more complicated than that, but your IT folks will help you understand].

Basically what you need to do is to know how to "get into" your company's IT network.  One way of doing this (which I use to "phone home") is through VPN.  When I'm not on VPN, if I tell Google to go to "Toyota.com", it will look up "how to get there" and take me there.  But if I want to read my corporate e-mail, and ask it to go to "mail@mycompany.com", it will deny me access to the network.  So I go on VPN, and now all TCP/IP traffic is routed into my company's network, "plugging me in" to their system, and making my use of the Network follow their rules (so no shopping at Amazon!).  Now I can see the Servers where our data are stored, can read my Company e-mail, etc.

So talk to your IT guys.

Bob Schor

[GRCK5000 · Accepted solution]

Like Mr. Bob said, you should talk to your IT guys. Both your computer using LabVIEW and ESP32 needs to be under the same network. 

Once your IT people gives your ESP32 permission to connect. I believe an IP address and port # will be assigned to your ESP32. So with this IP address and port#,  you can try to interface ESP32 and LabVIEW using different computers. 

I think your job should have a virtual private network (VPN) that can allow you to use your job network from home. 

Again, just talk to your IT and tell them what you want to do. Let them know that you want to be able to use your network from home. 

[NataliaB14]

Thank you! I´ll look more into it to understand