Wireless Router

Setup Manual

NETGEAR, Inc.
4500 Great America Parkway
Santa Clara, CA 95054 USA

208-10082-02
2006-04
© 2006 by NETGEAR, Inc. All rights reserved.

Trademarks

NETGEAR is a trademark of Netgear, Inc. Microsoft, Windows, and Windows NT are registered trademarks of
Microsoft Corporation. Other brand and product names are registered trademarks or trademarks of their
respective holders.

Statement of Conditions

In the interest of improving internal design, operational function, and/or reliability, NETGEAR reserves the right
to make changes to the products described in this document without notice.
NETGEAR does not assume any liability that may occur due to the use or application of the product(s) or
circuit layout(s) described herein.
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 Chapter 1
Connecting the Router to the Internet

This chapter describes how to connect your router and how to access the Internet through it.

What’s in the Box?

The product package should contain the following items:

• The wireless router
• An AC power adapter (varies by region)
• A blue Ethernet cable
• Resource CD, including:
— The Smart Wizard Installation Assistant
— This manual
• Warranty and Support Information cards

If any of the parts are incorrect, missing, or damaged, contact your NETGEAR dealer. Keep the
carton, including the original packing materials, in case you need to return the product for repair.

The Wireless Router Label

View the label on the back of the wireless router to identify the serial number, port
connectors, status lights, and default login information.

Figure 1-1

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The Front of the Wireless Router

Figure 1-2

You can use the status lights on the front of the wireless router to verify various conditions.
Table 1-1.

Status Light Activity Description

On -- Amber The router integrity test is running.
On -- Green Power is on and the router is ready.
1. Power Fast blink -- Green Software update is in progress.
Slow blink -- Green There is a problem with the wireless router software.
Off Power is not supplied to the router.
On -- Amber The Ethernet cable is connected but the wireless router has
not gotten an Internet address.
2. Internet On -- Green The wireless router has an Internet address.
Blink -- Green Data is being communicated with the Internet.
On Indicates that the Wireless port is enabled.
3. Wireless Blink Traffic is being transmitted or received.
Off Indicates that the Wireless port is disabled.
On (Green) The local port is connected to a 1000 Mbps device.
4. LAN (Local Area Blink (Green) Data is being transmitted at 1000 Mbps.
Network) Lights On (Amber) The local port has detected a link with a 10/100 Mbps device.
1-4 Blink (Amber) Data is being transmitted at 10/100 Mbps.
Off No link is detected on this port.

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The Back of the Wireless Router

3
4

Figure 1-3
The back of the wireless router has the following port connections:
1. Factory default reset button
2. Four local Ethernet ports for connecting the local computers
3. Internet port for connecting to a cable or ADSL modem
4. Power adapter port

What You Need Before You Begin

Prepare the following before you set up your router:

• Internet service.
• The configuration information your Internet Service Provider (ISP) gave you. Depending
on how your Internet account was set up, your may need one or more of these settings for
the wireless router to access the Internet:
— Host and Domain Names
— Internet Login Name and Password (frequently an email address and password)
— Domain Name Server (DNS) Addresses
— Fixed or Static IP Address

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Your ISP should have provided you with all the information needed to connect to the Internet.
If you cannot locate this information, you can ask your ISP to provide it.
• For cable modem service, use the computer you first used to set up your Internet service.

Two Setup Methods: 1) Smart Wizard Setup 2) Manual Setup

You have two methods available for setting up your wireless router.
• Smart Wizard Setup: Click Setup on the CD to use the Smart Wizard.
— This option is the easiest. The wizard guides you through the setup process, automates
many of the steps, and verifies that necessary conditions exist and that steps you
perform have been successfully completed.
— This option requires a PC running Microsoft Windows.
• Manual Setup: This option is best if you cannot use the wizard on the CD, are replacing
an existing wireless router, or are technically knowledgeable. Follow the instructions in
this manual to set up your wireless router.
Use the setup option that best suites you.

Smart Wizard Setup

The wizard setup process should take about 20 minutes to complete.

1. Insert the NETGEAR CD into a Windows PC. The CD will automatically start and detect
the language you are using on your PC. Accept the language option or change to a different
language.

Note: If the CD does not automatically start, browse the CD and double-click
on Autorun.

2. Click Next to proceed.

3. Click Setup to start the Smart Wizard installation assistant. Follow the wizard instructions.

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Manual Setup

There are two steps to setting up your wireless router:

1. Connect the router to the ADSL or cable modem, and connect a computer to the router.

Note: Your computer has to be set to automatically get its TCP/IP network settings
from the router via DHCP. This is usually the case. If your are unsure about this, use the
wizard on the CD which automatically takes care of this for you,
or refer to the documentation for your computer.

2. Configure the router to use your Internet service.

To Connect Your Wireless Router

1. Connect the wireless router, the computer, and the modem.
a. Turn off your computer.
b. Turn off and unplug the cable or ADSL broadband modem.
c. Locate the Ethernet cable (1) that connects your computer to the modem.

Figure 1-4

d. Disconnect the cable at the computer end only (2).

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e. Securely insert the Ethernet cable from your modem into the Internet port of the wireless
router (3).

Figure 1-5

f. Securely insert the blue cable (4) that came with your wireless router into a LAN port
on the router such as LAN port 1 (5), and the other end into the Ethernet port of your
computer (6).

Figure 1-6

Your network cables are connected and you are ready to start your network.
2. Start your network in the correct sequence

Warning: Failure to start or restart your network in the correct sequence

could prevent you from accessing the Internet.

a. First, plug in and turn on the cable or DSL modem. Wait 2 minutes.

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b. Now, plug the power cord into your wireless router and into a power outlet. Wait 1 minute.
c. Last, turn on your computer.

Note: For DSL customers, if software logs you in to the Internet, do not run that
software. You may need to go to the Internet Explorer Tools menu, Internet
Options, Connections tab page where you can select “Never dial a connection.”

Figure 1-7

d. Check the wireless router status lights to verify the following:

• Power: The power light (1) should turn amber and then solid green. If it does not,
see “Quick Tips” on page 2-1.
• Wireless: The wireless light (2) should be lit after turning on the router.
• Internet: The Internet port light (3) should be lit. If not, make sure the Ethernet cable
is securely attached to the wireless router Internet port and the modem, and the
modem is powered on.
• LAN: A LAN light (4) should be lit. Green indicates your computer is
communicating at 1000 Mbps; amber indicates 10/100 Mbps. If a LAN light is not
lit, check that the Ethernet cable from the computer to the router is securely attached
at both ends, and that the computer is turned on.

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3. Connect to the wireless router by typing http://www.routerlogin.net in the address field

of your browser, then click Enter.

Figure 1-8

Tip: Connect to the wireless router by typing any one of these three URLs in the address
field of your browser, then clicking Enter:
• http://www.routerlogin.net
• http://www.routerlogin.com
• http://192.168.1.1
The wireless router will prompt you to enter the user name of admin and the password.

A login window like the one shown below opens:

Figure 1-9

4. For security reasons, the router has its own user name and password. When prompted,
enter admin for the router user name and password for the router password, both in lower
case letters.

Note: The router user name and password are not the same as any user name
or password you may use to log in to your Internet connection.

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After logging in, you will see the menu below

Figure 1-10

If you cannot connect to the wireless router, verify your computer networking setup. It
should be set to obtain both IP and DNS server addresses automatically, which is usually so.
For help with this, consult the documentation that came with your computer or see the links
in Appendix B, “Related Documents”.
5. Click Next. The wizard will assist you with configuring your wireless router to access the
Internet.
Advanced users who want to manually configure the router can select the No radio
button, enter admin and password as the user name and password when prompted, and
fill in the required information on the Basic Settings page.
6. Click Done to finish.
You are now connected to the Internet!

Product Registration, Support, and Documentation

Register your product at http://www.NETGEAR.com/register. Registration is required before

you can use our telephone support service. Product updates and Web support are always
available by going to: http://kbserver.netgear.com/.
Documentation is available on the CD, on the support Web site, and on the documentation
Web site. When the wireless router is connected to the Internet, click the Knowledge Base or
the Documentation link under the Web Support menu to view support information or the
documentation for the wireless router.

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How to Access the Wireless Router Again Later

The configuration assistant wizard only appears when the router is in its factory default state, and
access to the router does not require a login name or password. After you configure the wireless
router (or bypass the configuration assistant wizard), it will not appear again, and you will have
to log in to the your wireless router to make changes to it.

Note: The factory default state is restored when you use the factory reset button. See “Restoring the
Default Configuration and Password” on page 2-6 for more information on this feature.

To access the router using its login name and password, follow these instructions.
1. Connect to the wireless router by typing http://www.routerlogin.net in the address field
of your browser, then click Enter.

Figure 1-11

Tip: Connect to the wireless router by typing any one of these three URLs in the address
field of your browser, then clicking Enter:
• http://www.routerlogin.net
• http://www.routerlogin.com
• http://192.168.1.1
The wireless router will prompt you to enter the user name of admin and the password.

2. For security reasons, the router has its own user name and password. When prompted,
enter admin for the router user name and password for the router password, both in lower
case letters.

Note: The router user name and password are not the same as any user name
or password you may use to log in to your Internet connection.

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A login window like the one shown below opens:

Figure 1-12

Enter the user name and password. The wireless router will display its home page.
When the wireless router is connected to the Internet, click the Knowledge Base or
the Documentation link under the Web Support menu to view support information or
the documentation for the wireless router.
If you do not click Logout, the wireless router will wait 5 minutes after there is no activity before
it automatically logs you out.

How to Set Up and Test Basic Wireless Connectivity

Follow the instructions below to set up and test basic wireless connectivity. Once you have established
basic wireless connectivity, you can enable security settings appropriate to your needs.
1. Log in to the router at http://www.routerlogin.net with its default user name of admin and
default password of password, or using whatever LAN address and password you have set up.
2. Click the Wireless Settings link in the main menu of the router.
3. Note that the default SSID is NETGEAR.

Note: The SSID of any wireless adapters must match the SSID you configure in
the router. If they do not match, you will not get a wireless connection.

4. Set the Region. Select the region in which the wireless interface will operate.

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5. Click Apply to save your changes.

Note: If you are configuring the router from a wireless computer and you change
the router’s SSID, channel, or security settings, you will lose your wireless
connection when you click Apply. You must then change the wireless
settings of your computer to match the router’s new settings.

6. Configure and test your computers for wireless connectivity.

Program the wireless adapter of your computers to have the same wireless network name
(SSID) as the router. Check that they have a wireless link and are able to obtain an IP
address by DHCP from the router.

Implement Appropriate Wireless Security

Warning: Indoors, computers can connect over wireless networks at a range of

several hundred feet. Such distances can allow for others outside of your
immediate area to access your network.

Unlike wired network data, your wireless data transmissions can extend beyond your walls and
can be received by anyone with a compatible adapter. For this reason, use the security features of
your wireless equipment. The router provides highly effective security features which are
covered in detail in full reference manual that is available from a link on the CD as well as a link
in the main menu of your router. Follow the instructions in the full manual and in the router help
screens to deploy the security features appropriate to your needs.

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 Chapter 2
Troubleshooting

This chapter gives information about troubleshooting your wireless router.

Quick Tips

Here are some tips for correcting simple problems you may have.

Be sure to always start your network in this sequence:

1. Turn off and unplug the modem from it’s power outlet, and turn off the wireless router
and computer.
2. Turn on the modem, and wait two minutes
3. Turn on the wireless router and wait 1 minute
4. Turn on the computer.

Make sure the Ethernet cables are securely plugged in.

• The Internet status light on the wireless router will be lit if the Ethernet cable to the
wireless router from the modem is plugged in securely and the modem and wireless router
are both turned on.
• For each powered on computer connected to the wireless router with a securely plugged in
Ethernet cable, the corresponding wireless router LAN port status light will be lit. The label
on the bottom of the wireless router identifies the number of each LAN port.

Make sure the network settings of the computer are correct.

• LAN connected computers must be configured to obtain an IP address automatically via DHCP.
Please see the links see links in Appendix B, “Related Documents” for help with this.

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• Some cable modem services require you to use the MAC address of the computer registered
on the account. If so, in the Router MAC Address section of the Basic Settings menu, select,
“Use this Computer’s MAC Address.” Click Apply to save your settings. Restart the
network in the correct sequence.

Check the router status lights to verify correct router operation.

If the Power light does not turn solid green within 2 minutes after turning the router on, reset
the router according to the instructions in “Restoring the Default Configuration and Password”
on page 2-6.

To Verify Basic Functioning

After you turn on power to the router, the following sequence of events should occur:
1. When power is first applied, verify that the power light is on (see “The Front of the
Wireless Router” on page 1-2 for an illustration).
2. Verify that the power light turns amber within a few seconds, indicating that the self-
test procedure is running.
3. After approximately 30 seconds, verify that:
a. The color of the power light changes to green.
b. The LAN port lights are lit for any local ports that are connected.
c. The Internet port is connected and its light is lit.
If a port’s light is lit, a link has been established to the connected device. If a LAN port is
connected to a 1000 Mbps device, verify that the port’s light is green. If the port is
10/100 Mbps, the light will be amber.

Power Light Not On

If the Power and other lights are off, check the following:
• Make sure that the power cord is properly connected to your router and that the power
supply adapter is properly connected to a functioning power outlet.
• Check that you are using the power adapter supplied by NETGEAR for this product.

If the error persists, you have a hardware problem and should contact technical support.

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Power Light Stays Amber

When the router is turned on, the power light turns amber for about 30 seconds and then
turns green. If the light does not turn green the router has a problem.
If the power light is still amber one minute after power up
• Turn the power off and back on to see if the router recovers.
• Clear the router’s configuration to factory defaults. This will set the router’s IP address
to 192.168.1.1. This procedure is explained in “Restoring the Default Configuration and
Password” on page 2-6.
If the error persists, you might have a hardware problem and should contact technical support.

LAN or Internet Port Lights Not On

If either the LAN or Internet lights do not light when the Ethernet connection is made, check the
following:
• Make sure that the Ethernet cable connections are secure at the router and at the computer.
• Make sure that power is turned on to the connected computer.
• Be sure you are using Ethernet cables like the cable that was supplied with the wireless router.

Power LED Blinks Green Once Per Second

If the Power LED keeps blinking once every second, there is a problem with the wireless
router software. Go to http://kbserver.netgear.com/products/WNR854T.asp for instructions on
how to load new software into your wireless router.

Troubleshooting Logging In to the Wireless Router

If you are unable to log in to the wireless router, check the following:
• If you are using an Ethernet-connected computer, check the Ethernet connection between
the computer and the router as described in the previous section.
• Make sure you are using the correct login information. The factory default login name is
admin and the password is password. Make sure that CAPS LOCK is off when entering
this information.

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• Your computer’s address should be in the range of 192.168.1.2 to 192.168.1.254. Refer to

your computer’s documentation for help with finding your computer’s IP address.

Note: If your computer’s IP address is 169.254.x.x, verify that you have a good
connection from the computer to the router, then restart your computer.

• Make sure your browser has Java, JavaScript, or ActiveX enabled. If you are using
Internet Explorer, click Refresh to be sure the Java applet is loaded. Try quitting the
browser and launching it again.

Troubleshooting the Internet Service Connection

If your router is unable to access the Internet, check that the Internet connection is working,
and then check that the wireless router can get an Internet address.

Internet Connection
First verify that your cable or ADSL modem has a successful connection. The cable or ADSL
modem status lights indicate if the modem connection is successful or not. Check your modem
documentation or call your Internet service provider for help with verifying that the modem has
a successful connection.

Wireless Router Internet Light is Green or Blinking Green

If your Internet light is green or blinking green, then you have a good Internet connection,
and your wiring is correct.

Wireless Router Internet Light Off

If the Internet light is off, verify that the Ethernet cable is securely connected between the cable
or ADSL modem, and that both the modem and wireless router are turned on.

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Obtaining an Internet IP Address

If your wireless router is unable to access the internet, and your Internet light is amber, check
the wireless router to see if it is able to get an Internet IP address from your service provider.
Unless you have a static IP address, your wireless router automatically requests an IP address
from your service provider.
To check the Internet IP address from the browser interface:
1. Log in to the wireless router.
2. Use the Router Status link under the Maintenance heading to check that an IP address is
shown for the Internet Port. If 0.0.0.0 is shown, your wireless router has not obtained an IP
address from your service provider.
If your router is unable to obtain an IP address from the your service provider, the problem may
be one of the following:
• Your service provider may require a login. Ask your service provider whether they
require PPP over Ethernet (PPPoE) login.
• You may have incorrectly set the Service Name, User Name and Password.
See “Troubleshooting PPPoE”, below.
• Your service provider may check for your computer's host name.
Assign the computer Host Name of your ISP account to the wireless router in the
browser-based Basic Settings menu.
• Your service provider only allows one Ethernet MAC address to connect to Internet, and
may check for your computer’s MAC address.
In this case, inform your service provider that you have bought a new network device, and
ask them to use the wireless router’s MAC address.
OR
Configure your router to spoof your computer’s MAC address. This can be done in the
Basic Settings menu. Refer to the online help in the wireless router main menu.

Troubleshooting PPPoE
Troubleshoot a PPPoE connection in this way:
1. Log in to the wireless router.
2. Under the Maintenance heading, select the Router Status link.

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3. Click the Connection Status button.

4. If all of the steps indicate “OK” then your PPPoE connection is up and working.
5. If any of the steps indicates “Failed”, you can attempt to reconnect by clicking “Connect”.
The wireless router will continue to attempt to connect indefinitely.
If you cannot connect after several minutes, you may be using an incorrect Service Name,
User Name or Password. There also may be a provisioning problem with your ISP.

Note: Unless you connect manually, the wireless router will not authenticate using
PPPoE until data is transmitted to the network.

Troubleshooting Internet Browsing

If your wireless router can obtain an IP address but your computer is unable to load any Web
pages from the Internet, check the following.
• Your computer may not recognize any DNS server addresses.
A DNS server is a host on the Internet that translates Internet names (such as www
addresses) to numeric IP addresses. Typically your ISP will provide the addresses of one or
two DNS servers for your use. If you entered a DNS address during the wireless router’s
configuration, restart your computer. Alternatively, you can configure your computer
manually with DNS addresses, as explained in the documentation for your computer.
• Your computer may not have the wireless router configured as its default gateway.
Reboot the computer and verify the wireless router address (192.168.1.1) is listed by
your computer as the default gateway address.

Restoring the Default Configuration and Password

This section explains how to restore the factory default configuration settings, changing the
router’s administration password to password and the IP address to 192.168.1.1. You can erase
the current configuration and restore factory defaults.
To restore the factory default configuration settings, use the Default Reset button on the rear
panel of the router.

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1. Use a sharp object like a pen or a paper clip to press and hold the default reset button for
about 20 seconds (see page 1-3).
2. Release the reset button and wait for the router to reboot.

Advanced Troubleshooting Using the Ping Utility

Most computers and routers have a diagnostic utility called ping that sends an request to a
target device. The device then replies. The ping utility makes it easy to troubleshoot a network.

Testing the Path from a PC to Your Router

You can ping the wireless router to verify that the LAN path from your computer to your router
is set up correctly.
1. From the Windows toolbar, click Start and select Run.
2. In the field provided, type Ping followed by the address of the router, as in this example:
ping www.routerlogin.net
or
ping 192.168.1.1
3. Click OK.
You should see a message like this one:
Pinging 192.168.1.1 with 32 bytes of data
If the path is working, you see this message:
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=NN ms
TTL=xxx If the path is not working, you see this message:
Request timed out
If the path is not functioning correctly, you could have one of the following problems:
• Wrong physical connections
— Make sure the LAN port light is on. If the light is off, follow the instructions in “LAN
or Internet Port Lights Not On” on page 2-3.
— Check that the corresponding lights are on for your computer’s network interface card.
• Wrong network configuration
— Verify that the Ethernet card driver software and TCP/IP software are both installed
and configured on your computer.

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— Verify that the IP address for your router and your computer are correct and that the
addresses on both begin with 192.168.1.

Testing the Path from a PC to the Internet

After verifying that the path between your computer and the wireless router works correctly,
test the path from your PC to the Internet. From the Windows run menu, type:
PING -n 10 <IP address>

where <IP address> is the IP address of a remote device such as your ISP’s DNS server.

If the path is functioning correctly, replies as in the previous section are displayed. If you do
not receive replies:
— Check that your PC has the IP address of your router listed as the default gateway. If the
IP configuration of your PC is assigned by DHCP, this information will not be visible in
your PC’s Network Control Panel. Verify that the IP address of the router is listed as the
TCP/IP default gateway.
— Check to see that the network address of your PC (the portion of the IP address specified
by the netmask) is different from the network address of the remote device.
— If your ISP assigned a host name to your PC, enter that host name as the Account Name
in the Basic Settings menu.

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 Appendix A
Technical Specifications

This appendix provides technical specifications for the wireless router.

Network Protocol and Standards Compatibility

Data and Routing Protocols: TCP/IP, RIP-1, RIP-2, DHCP, PPPoE, PPTP, Bigpond, Dynamic
DNS, and UPnP
Power Adapter
North America: 120V, 60 Hz, input
UK, Australia: 240V, 50 Hz, input
Europe: 230V, 50 Hz, input
Japan: 100V, 50/60 Hz, input
All regions (output): 12 V DC @ 1.5A output
Physical
Dimensions: 8.9" x 6.8" x 1.5"
225.5 x 172 x 39 mm
Weight: 1.24 lbs.
0.56 kg
Environmental
Operating temperature: 0° to 40° C (32º to 104º F)
Operating humidity: 90% maximum relative humidity, noncondensing

Regulatory Compliance
Designed to conform to FCC Part 15; EN 55022/24 (CISPR 22/24); EN 60950 (CE LVD)
the following standards:
Interface Specifications
LAN: 10BASE-T , 100BASE-Tx, or 1000BASE-T, RJ-45
WAN: 10BASE-T, 100BASE-Tx, or 1000BASE-T, RJ-45

Technical Specifications A-1

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A-2 Technical Specifications

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 Appendix B
Related Documents

This appendix provides links to reference documents you can use to gain a more
complete understanding of the technologies used in your NETGEAR product.

Document Link
Internet Networking and
TCP/IP Addressing
http://documentation.netgear.com/reference/enu/tcpip/index.htm

Preparing a Computer for http://documentation.netgear.com/reference/enu/wsdhcp/index.htm

Network Access
Glossary http://documentation.netgear.com/reference/enu/glossary/index.htm

Related Documents B-1

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B-2 Related Documents

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