Connecting to the Internet

6

NETGEAR DOCSIS 3.0 N450 Wi-Fi Data Gateway

Gateway Front Panel

WPS LED

Wireless LED

USB port

Power LED

Downstream LED

Upstream LED

Internet LED

LAN Ethernet LEDs

Figure 1. Gateway front view

You can use the LEDs to verify status and connections. The following table lists and describes

each LED and button on the front panel of the gateway.

Table 1.

LEDs and buttons

LED

Description

Power

•

Solid green

. Power is supplied to the cable modem.

•

Blinking

. The modem is performing a power-on self-test.

•

Red

. The unit is performing a self-test, or the thermal cutoff circuit has been triggered.

•

Off

. The modem is not receiving power.

Downstream

•

Blue

. More than one downstream channel is locked.

•

Green

. One downstream channel is locked.

•

Blinking green

. The unit is scanning for a downstream channel.

•

Off

. No downstream channel is locked.

Connecting to the Internet

7

NETGEAR DOCSIS 3.0 N450 Wi-Fi Data Gateway

Upstream

•

Blue

. More than one upstream channel is locked.

•

Solid

. One upstream channel is locked.

•

Blinking green

. The unit is ranging on the upstream.

•

Off

. No downstream channel is locked.

Internet

•

Solid green

. The cable modem is online.

•

Slow blink

. The cable modem is receiving DHCP information.

•

Fast blink

. The cable modem is downloading the configuration file.

•

Off

. The cable modem is offline.

LAN (Ethernet)

Green indicates 1,000 Mbps. Amber indicates 100/10 Mbps.

•

Solid

. An Ethernet device is connected and powered on.

•

Blinking

. Data is being transmitted or received on the Ethernet port.

•

Off

. No Ethernet device is detected on the Ethernet port.

Wireless

On/Off

•

Solid green

. The wireless card is plugged in and enabled.

•

Blinking

. There is traffic on the wireless card.

•

Off

. The wireless card is either disabled or not plugged in.

To enable or disable the card, press this button for 3 seconds.

WPS

Pressing this button opens a 2-minute window for the gateway to connect with other

WPS-enabled devices. For more information, about using the WPS method to implement

security, see the

Use Push 'N' Connect (WPS) Wireless Setup

on page

15.

LED

Description (continued)

Connecting to the Internet

8

NETGEAR DOCSIS 3.0 N450 Wi-Fi Data Gateway

Gateway Rear Panel

Ethernet LAN ports

Coaxial cable connector

USB port

Power adapter input

Reset button

Figure 2. Gateway rear panel

The rear panel includes the following connectors, viewed from top to bottom:

•

Four Gigabit Ethernet LAN ports

. To connect local computers, use these ports.

•

USB port

. To connect a USB hard drive, flash drive, or printer, use this port.

•

Reset

.

To set the gateway to the original factory settings, press and hold the

Reset

button for over 7 seconds. See

Factory Default Settings

on page

54.

•

Coaxial cable connector

. Attach a coaxial cable to the cable service provider’s

connection.

•

Power

. Power adapter input.

Connecting to the Internet

9

NETGEAR DOCSIS 3.0 N450 Wi-Fi Data Gateway

Label

The label on the bottom of the gateway shows the router’s Restore Factory Settings button,

WiFi network name (SSID), serial Number, and MAC address.

Figure 3. Label on router bottom

See

Factory Default Settings

on page

54 for information about the Restore Factory Settings

button and the factory setting values.

W

ireless Performance and Gateway Location

The range of your wireless connection can vary based on the physical placement of the

gateway. The latency, data throughput performance, and notebook power consumption of

wireless adapters also vary depending on your configuration choices.

For best results, place your gateway according to the following guidelines:

•

Near the center of the area in which your computers operate.

•

In an elevated location such as a high shelf where the wirelessly connected

computers have line-of-sight access (even if through walls).

•

Away from sources of interference, such as computers, microwave ovens, and

2.4

GHz cordless phones.

•

Away from large metal surfaces.

•

To provide the best side-to-side coverage, put the gateway in a vertical position.

The time it takes to establish a wireless connection can vary depending on both your security

settings and the gateway location. WEP connections can take slightly longer to establish. Also,

WEP encryption can consume more battery power on a notebook computer.

MAC Address

WiFi Network Name (SSID)

Serial Number

Connecting to the Internet

10

NETGEAR DOCSIS 3.0 N450 Wi-Fi Data Gateway

Log In to

Y

our Gateway

Log in to the gateway to view or change its settings.

Note:

To connect to the gateway, use a computer configured for DHCP

(most computers are). For help with configuring DHCP, see the

instructions that came with your computer.

If you do not click

Logout

,

when you have logged in, the gateway waits for activity for 5

minutes before it automatically logs you out.



To log in to the gateway:

1.

On the computer that is connected to the gateway with an Ethernet cable, type

in the address field of your Internet browser.

A login window displays.

2.

Log in with the user name

admin

and the default password,

password

.

When you connect to the gateway, the Modem Status screen displays.