2

Getting to Know Your Wireless Router

To prepare your router for installation:

1.

Carefully peel off the protective film covering the sides of your router.

2.

Set up your wireless router by inserting the router into the stand supplied with it.

3.

Place your router in a suitable area for installation (near an AC power outlet and accessible to

the Ethernet cables for your wired computers).

Hardware Features

Before you install and connect your router, take a moment to become familiar with the front and

back panels of the router—especially the status lights on the front panel.

Figure 1

Getting to Know Your Wireless Router

3

Front Panel

The router front panel, shown in

Figure 2

, contains status lights. (For more information on

interpreting the status lights, see

“Verifying Your Connection” on page 17

and

“Checking Basic

Router Functions” on page 30

.)

You can use the status lights to verify various conditions.

Figure 2

Table 1.

Status Light Descriptions

Label

Activity

Description

1.

Power

Solid Amber

Solid Green

Blinking–Amber

Blinking–Green

Off

The router is performing the power-on self-test diagnostic.

The power is on and the router is ready.

A software update is in progress.

Firmware is corrupted. See

“Checking Basic Router Functions” on

page 30

for instructions on restoring your router firmware.

Power is not being supplied to the router

2.

Push 'N'

Connect

Solid Green

Blinking Green

Off

Indicates a (WPS) connection to a WPS-capable device.

WPS-capable device can associate with the router within 2 minutes.

No WPS connection exists.

3.

Wireless

Solid Blue

Blinking Blue

Off

The wireless interface is enabled.

Data is being communicated over the wireless network.

The wireless interface is turned off.

4

Getting to Know Your Wireless Router

Back Panel

The router back panel, shown in

Figure 3

, contains port connections.

Viewed from left to right, the rear panel contains the following elements:

1.

AC power adapter outlet for connecting the power adapter.

2.

Power on/off push-button.

3.

Four Local Area Network (LAN) 10/100 Mbps Ethernet ports for connecting the router to

your local computers.

4.

Internet/Wide Area Network (WAN) Ethernet port for connecting the router to a cable or DSL

modem.

5.

Restore factory settings button. Press for approximately 5 seconds to reset the router to the

factory default settings.

6.

Push 'N' Connect (WPS) push-button.

4.

Internet

Solid Amber

Solid Green

Blinking Green

Off

No IP address acquired.

The wireless router has acquired an Internet address.

Data is being communicated with the Internet.

No Ethernet cable is connected to the modem.

5.

LAN

(Ports 1–4)

Solid Green

Blinking Green

Solid Amber

Blinking Amber

Off

The local port is connected to a 100 Mbps device.

Data is being transmitted at 100 Mbps.

The local port is connected to a 10 Mbps device.

Data is being transmitted at 10 Mbps.

No link is detected on this port.

Figure 3

Table 1.

Status Light Descriptions

(continued)

Label

Activity

Description

1

4

3

2

6

5

Getting to Know Your Wireless Router

5

Router Label

The label on the bottom of the wireless router shows the router’s MAC address, serial number,

security PIN, and factory default login information.

The ports on the router are color-coded to distinguish your Internet port from the other four ports

that connect to the wired computer(s) on your Local Area Network (LAN).

Positioning Your Wireless Router

The wireless router lets you access your network from virtually anywhere within the operating

range of your wireless network. However, the operating distance or range of your wireless

connection can vary significantly depending on the physical placement of your router. For

example, the thickness and number of walls the wireless signal must pass through might limit the

range. For best results, place your router:

•

Near the center of the area where your computers and other devices will operate, preferably

within line of sight to your wireless devices.

•

Accessible to an AC power outlet and near Ethernet cables for wired computers.

•

In an elevated location such as a high shelf, keeping the number of walls and ceilings between

the wireless router and your other devices to a minimum.

Figure 4

6

Getting to Know Your Wireless Router

•

Away from electrical devices which are potential sources of interference, such as ceiling fans,

home security systems, microwaves, or the base for a cordless phone.

•

Away from any large metal surfaces, such as a solid metal door or aluminum studs. Large

expanses of other materials such as glass, insulated walls, fish tanks, mirrors, brick, and

concrete can also affect your wireless signal.

Installing Your Wireless Router

To help you set up your router and get on the Internet quickly, the

Resource CD

contains a Smart

Wizard™ Installation Assistant. The Installation Assistant walks you through the steps required to

connect your router, modem, and PC(s); configure your wireless settings; and enable wireless

security for your network. When you have finished, you will be Internet ready!

You can set up your wireless router using one of two methods:

•

Smart Wizard Setup

: The Smart Wizard Installation Assistant setup is available on your

Resource CD

. See

“Installing Your Router Using the Smart Wizard” on page 9

to use the

Smart Wizard Installation Assistant.

–

This is the easiest option. The wizard guides you through the setup process. It automates

many of the steps and verifies that the steps have been successfully completed.

–

Smart Wizard requires a PC running Microsoft Windows.

•

Manual Setup

: If you cannot or prefer not to use the Smart Wizard Installation Assistant, see

“Manually Installing Your Router” on page 13

. For example, if you are connecting to a Mac,

are using a Linux operating system, or are technically knowledgeable, select this option. If you

choose to use this option and install your router manually, for best results, install and set up

your router in this order:

Failure to follow these guidelines can result in significant performance degradation

or an inability to wirelessly connect to the Internet.

NETGEAR does not recommend or support adding a NETGEAR router behind

another router, or replacing a gateway with a a NETGEAR router.

If you have a Macintosh or Linux system, you must use the manual installation

method (see

“Manually Installing Your Router” on page 13

).