N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 User Manual 350 East Plumeria Drive San Jose, CA 95134 USA December 2011 202-10875-04 v1.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 ©2011 NETGEAR, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, transmitted, transcribed, stored in a retrieval system, or translated into any language in any form or by any means without the written permission of NETGEAR, Inc. Technical Support Thank you for choosing NETGEAR. To register your product, get the latest product updates, or get support online, visit us at http://support.netgear.com.
Contents Chapter 1 Hardware Setup Unpack Your Router . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Position Your Router . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Hardware Features. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Front Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Back Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Chapter 4 Genie Advanced Home Setup Wizard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 WPS Wizard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 Setup Menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 WAN Setup. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Chapter 8 Administration Upgrade the Router Firmware . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .71 View Router Status. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72 Router Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .72 Internet Provider (WAN) Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .72 Wireless Settings (2.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Chapter 10 Troubleshooting Quick Tips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105 Sequence to Restart Your Network . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105 Check Ethernet Cable Connections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105 Wireless Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105 Network Settings . . . . . . . . . .
1. Hardware Setup 1 Getting to know your router The N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 provides you with an easy and secure way to set up a wireless home network with fast access to the Internet over a high-speed digital subscriber line (DSL). It is compatible with all major DSL Internet service providers, lets you block unsafe Internet content and applications, and protects the devices (PCs, gaming consoles, and so on) that you connect to your home network.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Unpack Your Router Open the box and remove the router, cables, and installation guide. Figure 1. Check the package contents Your box should contain the following items: • N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 • AC power adapter (plug varies by region) • Category 5 (Cat 5) Ethernet cable • Installation guide with cabling and router setup instructions If any parts are incorrect, missing, or damaged, contact your NETGEAR dealer.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 • In an elevated location such as a high shelf, keeping the number of walls and ceilings between the router and your other devices to a minimum. • Away from electrical devices that are potential sources of interference, such as ceiling fans, home security systems, microwaves, PCs, or the base of a cordless phone or 2.4 GHz cordless phone. • Away from any large metal surfaces, such as a solid metal door or aluminum studs.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Table 1. Front panel LED descriptions LED Description Power/Test • • • • • Solid amber. The unit is starting up after being powered on. Solid green. The power is on, and the router is ready. Blinking amber. A firmware update is in progress. Blinking green. The firmware is corrupt. Off. Power is not supplied to the router. Internet • Solid amber. The IP address has not been acquired. • Solid green. An IP address has been received; ready to transmit data.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Back Panel The back panel has the connections shown in the following figure. USB ports LAN Ethernet ports 1–4 Internet port Reset button Power Power On/Off button Figure 3. Router, rear view See Factory Settings on page 114 for information about restoring factory settings.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Label The label on the bottom of the router shows the WPS PIN, login information, MAC address, and serial number. Default Access Information Serial number MAC address Preset WiFi Password Preset SSID Figure 4.
2. Getting Started with NETGEAR Genie Connecting to the router 2 This chapter explains how to use NETGEAR Genie to set up your router after you complete cabling as described in the installation guide and in the previous chapter in this book.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Router Setup Preparation You can set up your router with the NETGEAR Genie automatically, or you can use the Genie menus and screens to set up your router manually. However, before you start the setup process, you need to have your ISP information on hand and make sure the laptops, PCs, and other devices in the network have the settings described here.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 NETGEAR Genie Setup NETGEAR Genie runs on any device with a web browser. It is the easiest way to set up the router because it automates many of the steps and verifies that those steps have been successfully completed. It takes about 15 minutes to complete. To use NETGEAR Genie to set up your router: 1. Turn the router on by pressing the On/Off button, if not done yet. 2.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Use NETGEAR Genie after Installation When you first set up your router, NETGEAR Genie automatically starts when you launch an Internet browser on a computer that is connected to the router. You can use NETGEAR Genie again if you want to view or change settings for the router. 1. Launch your browser from a computer or wireless device that is connected to the router. 2. Type http://www.routerlogin.net or http://www.routerlogin.com.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Router Dashboard (Basic Home Screen) The router Basic Home screen has a dashboard that lets you see the status of your Internet connection and network at a glance. You can click any of the six sections of the dashboard to view more detailed information. The left column has the menus, and at the top there is an Advanced tab that is used to access additional menus and screens.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Add Wireless Devices or Computers to Your Network Choose either the manual or the WPS method to add wireless devices and other equipment to your wireless network. See Guest Networks on page 27 for instructions on how to set up a guest network. Manual Method To connect manually: 1. Open the software that manages your wireless connections on the wireless device (laptop computer, gaming device, iPhone) that you want to connect to your router.
3.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Internet Setup The Internet Setup screen is where you view or change ISP information. 1. From the Home screen, select Internet. The following screen displays: Scroll to view more settings The fields that display in the Internet Setup screen depend on whether or not your Internet connection requires a login. • Yes. Select the encapsulation method and enter the login name. If you want to change the login time-out, enter a new value in minutes. • No.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 • Internet Service Provider Encapsulation. ISP types. The choices are PPPoE, PPTP, or L2TP. • Login. The login name provided by your ISP. This is often an email address. • Password. The password that you use to log in to your ISP. • Idle Timeout (In minutes). If you want to change the login timeout, enter a new value in minutes. This determines how long the router keeps the Internet connection active after there is no Internet activity from the LAN.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Attached Devices You can view all computers or devices that are currently connected to your network here. From the Basic Home screen, select Attached Devices to display the following screen: Wired devices are connected to the router with Ethernet cables. Wireless devices have joined the wireless network. • # (number). The order in which the device joined the network. • IP Address.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Parental Controls The first time you select Parental Controls from the Basic Home screen, you are automatically directed to the Internet, where you can learn more about Live Parental Controls or download the application. The following screen displays: ReadySHARE USB Storage You can view information about a USB storage device that is connected to the router’s USB port here.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 This screen displays the following: • Network/Device Name. The default is \\readyshare. This is the name used to access the USB device connected to the router. • Available Network Folders. The folders on the USB device. Share Name. If only one device is connected, the default share name is USB_Storage. You can click the name shown, or you can type it in the address field of your web browser.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 If you use a wireless computer to change the wireless network name (SSID) or other wireless security settings, you are disconnected when you click Apply. To avoid this problem, use a computer with a wired connection to access the router. 1. On the Basic Home screen, select Wireless to display the Wireless Settings screen. You can scroll down to view the 5 GHz wireless network settings.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Enable Wireless Isolation. If this check box is selected, then wireless clients (computers or wireless devices) that join the network can use the Internet, but cannot access each other or access Ethernet devices on the network. Enable SSID Broadcast. This setting allows the router to broadcast its SSID so wireless stations can see this wireless name (SSID) in their scanned network lists. This check box is selected by default.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Guest Networks Adding a guest network allows visitors at your home to use the Internet without giving them your wireless security key. You can add a guest network to each wireless network: 2.4 GHz b/g/n and 5.0 GHz a/n. To set up a guest network: 1. Select Basic > Guest Network to display the following screen: 2. For a 5 GHz network, scroll down to view that section of the Guest Network screen. 3.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Guest Network Wireless Security Options A security option is the type of security protocol applied to your wireless network. The security protocol in force encrypts data transmissions and ensures that only trusted devices receive authorization to connect to your network. Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA) has several options including pre-shared key (PSK) encryption.
4. Genie Advanced Home 4 Specifying custom settings This chapter explains the features available from the Genie Advanced Home screen, shown in the following figure: This screen is also displayed through the Administration menu. This chapter contains the following sections: • Setup Wizard • WPS Wizard • Setup Menu • WAN Setup • LAN Setup • Quality of Service (QoS) Setup Some selections on the Advanced Home screen are described in separate chapters: • USB Storage.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Setup Wizard The NETGEAR Genie installation process is launched the first time you set up the router. After setting up the router the first time, if you want to perform this task again, you can run Setup Wizard from the Advanced tab of the Genie. 1. Select Setup Wizard to display the following screen: 2. Select either Yes or No, I want to configure the router myself.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 WPS Wizard The WPS Wizard helps you add a WPS-capable client device (a wireless device or computer) to your network. On the client device you need to either press its WPS button or locate its WPS PIN. To use the WPS Wizard: 1. Select Advanced > WPS Wizard. 2. Click Next. The following screen lets you select the method for adding the WPS client (a wireless device or computer). You can use either the push button or PIN method. 3.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Within 2 minutes, go to the client device and use its WPS software to join the network without entering a password. The router attempts to add the WPS-capable device. The WPS LED on the front of the router blinks green. When the router establishes a WPS connection, the LED is solid green, and the router WPS screen displays a confirmation message. 4. Repeat Step 2 and Step 3 to add another WPS client to your network.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 WAN Setup The WAN Setup screen lets you configure a DMZ (demilitarized zone) server, change the Maximum Transmit Unit (MTU) size, and enable the router to respond to a ping on the WAN (Internet) port. Select Advanced > Setup > WAN Setup to view the following screen: • Disable Port Scan and DoS Protection.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Default DMZ Server The default DMZ server feature is helpful when you are using some online games and videoconferencing applications that are incompatible with Network Address Translation (NAT). The router is programmed to recognize some of these applications and to work correctly with them, but there are other applications that might not function well.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 - America Online’s DSL service • You use VPN and have severe performance problems. • You used a program to optimize MTU for performance reasons, and now you have connectivity or performance problems. Note: An incorrect MTU setting can cause Internet communication problems such as the inability to access certain websites, frames within websites, secure login pages, or FTP or POP servers.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 LAN Setup The LAN Setup screen allows configuration of LAN IP services such as Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) and Routing Information Protocol (RIP). The router is shipped preconfigured to use private IP addresses on the LAN side and to act as a DHCP server. The router’s default LAN IP configuration is: • LAN IP address. 192.168.1.1 • Subnet mask. 255.255.255.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 LAN Setup Screen Settings LAN TCP/IP Setup • IP Address. The LAN IP address of the router. • IP Subnet Mask. The LAN subnet mask of the router. Combined with the IP address, the IP subnet mask allows a device to know which other addresses are local to it, and which have to be reached through a gateway or router. • RIP Direction. Router Information Protocol (RIP) allows a router to exchange routing information with other routers.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 You can specify the pool of IP addresses to be assigned by setting the starting IP address and ending IP address. These addresses should be part of the same IP address subnet as the router’s LAN IP address. Using the default addressing scheme, you should define a range between 192.168.1.2 and 192.168.1.254, although you might want to save part of the range for devices with fixed addresses.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Quality of Service (QoS) Setup QoS is an advanced feature that can be used to prioritize some types of traffic ahead of others. The N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router can provide QoS prioritization over the wireless link and on the Internet connection. To configure QoS, use the QoS Setup screen.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 QoS for Applications and Online Gaming To create a QoS policy for applications and online games: 1. In the QoS Setup screen, select the Turn Internet Access QoS On check box. 2. Click the Setup QoS Rule button to see the existing priority rules. On this screen you can edit or delete a rule by selecting its radio button and clicking either the Edit or Delete button. You can also delete all of the rules by simply clicking the Delete All button. 3.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 a. If you add a new entry, the Priority Rules screen expands as shown: b. In the QoS Policy for field, enter a descriptive name for the new application or game. c. In the Connection Type list, select either TCP, UDP, or both (TCP/UDP), and specify the port number or range of port numbers used by the application or game. 7.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 4. From the Priority Category list, select Ethernet LAN Port, as shown in the following figure: 5. From the LAN port list, select the LAN port that will have a QoS policy. 6. From the Priority list, select the priority that this port’s traffic should receive relative to other applications and traffic when accessing the Internet. The options are Low, Normal, High, and Highest. 7.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 3. From the Priority Category list, select MAC Address to display the following screen: 4. If the device to be prioritized appears in the MAC Device List, select its radio button. The information from the MAC Device List populates the policy name, MAC Address, and Device Name fields. If the device does not appear in the MAC Device List, click Refresh. If it still does not appear, you have to complete these fields manually. 5.
5. USB Storage Accessing and configuring a USB storage drive 5 This chapter describes how to access and configure a USB storage drive attached to your router. Be aware that the USB port on the router can be used only to connect USB storage devices like flash drives or hard drives, or a printer. Do not connect computers, USB modems, CD drives, or DVD drives to the router USB port.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 USB Drive Requirements The router works with 1.0 and 1.1 (USB Full Speed) and 2.0 (USB High Speed) standards. The approximate USB bus speeds are shown in the following table. Actual bus speeds can vary, depending on the CPU speed, memory, speed of the network, and other variables. Table 3. USB Drive Speeds Bus Speed/Sec USB 1.1 12 Mbits USB 2.0 480 Mbits The router should work with most USB-compliant external flash and hard drives.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 • Sharing multimedia with friends and family such as MP3 files, pictures, and other multimedia with local and remote users. • Sharing resources on your network. You might want to store files in a central location so that you do not have to power up a computer to perform local sharing. In addition, you can share files between Macintosh, Linux, and PC computers by using the USB drive as a go-between across the systems.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 • There are two user accounts: admin and guest. The password for admin is the same one that you use to access the router. By default, it is password. The guest user account has no password. • On the FTP site, the person receiving the files should use the guest user account and enter any password (FTP requires that you type something in the password field). • Be sure to select the FTP (via Internet) check box in the USB Storage Advanced Settings screen.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 To access your USB device: 1. Click the network device name or the share name in your computer’s network folders list. 2. For SMB://readyshare, click Connect. Note: If you logged in to the router before you connected your USB device, you might not see your USB device in the router screens until you log out and then log back in again. Add or Edit a Network Folder 1.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 • To add a folder, click Create Network Folder. • To edit a folder, select its radio button, and then click Edit. 3. You can use this screen to select a folder, to change the share name, or to change the read Access or write access from All – no password to admin. The user name (account name) for All – no password is guest. The password for admin is the same one that is used to log in to the router. By default, it is password. 4.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 • Network Device Name. The default is readyshare. This is the name used to access the USB device connected to the router. • Workgroup. If you are using a Windows workgroup rather than a domain, the workgroup name is displayed here. The name works only in an operating system that supports NetBIOS, such as Microsoft Windows. • Access Method. The access methods are described here. Network Connection.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 • Read/Write Access. Shows the permissions and access controls on the network folder: All - no password (the default) allows all users to access the network folder. The password for admin is the same one that you use to log in to the router. • Folder Name. Full path used by the network folder. • Volume Name. Volume name from the storage device (either USB drive or HDD). • Total/Free Space. Shows the current utilization of the storage device.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Specify Approved USB Devices For more security, you can set up the router to share approved USB devices only. You can access this feature from the Advanced Setup menu on the Advanced tab. To set up approved USB devices: 1. Select Advanced > Advanced Setup > USB Settings. The following screen displays: 2. Click the Approved Devices button.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 4. Select the Allow only approved devices check box. 5. Click Apply so that your change takes effect. If you want to work with another USB device, you have to first click the Safely Remove USB Device button for the currently connected USB device. Connect the other USB device, and repeat this process.
6. ReadySHARE Printer 6 ReadySHARE Printer is compatible with Macs and Windows PCs. It lets you connect a USB printer to the router’s USB port, and access it wirelessly. This chapter contains the following sections: • ReadySHARE Printer • USB Control Center Utility • Desktop NETGEAR Genie For additional about ReadySHARE features, see www.netgear.com/readyshare.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 ReadySHARE Printer You can connect a USB printer to the router’s USB port, and share it among Windows and Mac computers on the network. To set up ReadySHARE Printer: 1. Connect the USB printer to the router’s USB port with a USB printer cable. 2. Install the USB printer driver software on each computer that will share the printer.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 4. Follow the instructions to install the NETGEAR USB Control Center utility. 5. After you have installed the utility, select the language.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 6. If this is the first time you are accessing the utility, you are asked to select the printer and click the Connect button. Once the connection is established, the status changes to Manually connected by xxx.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Note that you can click the Disconnect button at any time to release the connection. The status then changes to Available. Once the Connect button has been clicked once on all of the computers in the network, the utility on each of them automatically handles the printing queue and handling. The status of the printer should appear as Available on all of the computers. • When the status is Available, you can use the USB printer.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 • You can set the value for the default time-out time from the Tools > Configuration screen. • The USB Control Center utility must be running for the computer to be able to print to the USB printer attached to the router. If you exit the utility, printing does not work. • Some firewall software, such as Comodo, blocks the ReadySHARE Print utility from accessing the USB printer.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 USB Control Center Utility The USB Control Center Utility allows you to control a shared USB device from your computer that is connected to the USB port on your router. The utility allows you to control a printer, a scanner, or an audio speaker. The utility has to be installed on each computer on your network from which you want to control the device. You can download this utility for PC and Mac at www.netgear.com/landing/en-us/readyshare.aspx.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Control Center Configuration Select Tools >Configuration to display the following screen: Automatically execute when logging on Windows. Enable this utility to start automatically when you are logged in to Windows. Timeout. Specify the timeout value for holding the USB resource when it is not in use. Language. Select the display language for this utility. USB Printer The first time you use a printer, you need to click Connect.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Once the printer shows Available status, it is no longer grayed out in a Paused state in the Windows Printers window. This USB printer is ready. The utility does not need to always hold the connection of this USB printer. Once there is any print job for this printer, the USB utility connects to this USB printer automatically then prints. After the print job is done, the printer status returns to the Paused state.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Desktop NETGEAR Genie Desktop NETGEAR Genie is the easy dashboard for managing, monitoring, and repairing your home network. • Automatically repair common wireless network problems. • Have easy access to router features like Live Parental Controls, guest access, broadband usage meter, speed test, and more. • Use the Network map to see all devices on your home network. To download the free NETGEAR Genie, go to this page at the NETGEAR website: www.
7. Security Keeping unwanted content out of your network 7 This chapter explains how to use the basic firewall features of the router to prevent objectionable content from reaching the PCs and other devices connected to your network.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Keyword Blocking of HTTP Traffic Use keyword blocking to prevent certain types of HTTP traffic from accessing your network. The blocking can be always or according to a schedule. 1. Select Advanced > Security > Block Sites to display the following screen: 2. Select one of the keyword blocking options: • Per Schedule. Turn on keyword blocking according to the Schedule screen settings. • Always.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Block Services (Port Filtering) Services are functions performed by server computers at the request of client computers. For example, web servers serve web pages, time servers serve time and date information, and game hosts serve data about other players’ moves. When a computer on the Internet sends a request for service to a server computer, the requested service is identified by a service or port number.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 3. Click Add to add a service. The Block Services Setup screen displays: 4. From the Service Type list, select the application or service to allow or block. The list already displays several common services, but you are not limited to these choices. To add any additional services or applications that do not already appear, select User Defined. 5. If you know that the application uses either TCP or UDP, select the appropriate protocol.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 To schedule blocking: 1. Select Advanced > Security > Schedule to display the following screen: 2. Set up the schedule for blocking keywords and services. • Days to Block. Select days on which you want to apply blocking by selecting the appropriate check boxes, or select Every Day to select the check boxes for all days. • Time of Day to Block. Select a start and end time in 24-hour format, or select All Day for 24-hour blocking. 3.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 To set up email notifications: 1. Select Advanced > Security > Email to display the following screen: 2. To receive email logs and alerts from the router, select the Turn Email Notification On check box. 3. In the Your Outgoing Mail Server field, enter the name of your ISP’s outgoing (SMTP) mail server (such as mail.myISP.com). You might be able to find this information in the configuration screen of your email program.
8. Administration 8 Managing your network This chapter describes the router settings for administering and maintaining your router and home network. See also Remote Management on page 99 for information about upgrading or checking the status of your router over the Internet, and Traffic Meter on page 102 for information about monitoring the volume of Internet traffic passing through your router’s Internet port.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Upgrade the Router Firmware The router firmware (routing software) is stored in flash memory. You can update the firmware from the Administration menu on the Advanced tab. You might see a message at the top of the Genie screens when new firmware is available for your product. You can use the Check button on the Router Update screen to check and update to the latest firmware for your product if new firmware is available.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 View Router Status To view router status and usage information, select Advanced Home or select Administration > Router Status to display the following screen: Router Information Hardware Version. The router model. Firmware Version. The version of the router firmware. It changes if you upgrade the router firmware. GUI Language Version. The localized language of the user interface. LAN Port. • MAC Address. The Media Access Control address.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Connection. This shows if the router is using a fixed IP address on the WAN. If the value is DHCP Client, the router obtains an IP address dynamically from the ISP. IP Subnet Mask. The IP subnet mask being used by the Internet (WAN) port of the router. Domain Name Server. The Domain Name Server addresses being used by the router. A Domain Name Server translates human-language URLs such as www.netgear.com into IP addresses.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Connection Status Button On the Router Status screen in the Internet Connection pane, click the Connection Status button to view connection status information. Figure 7. View connection status information The Release button returns the status of all items to 0. The Renew button refreshes the items. The Close Window button closes the Connection Status screen. IP Address. The IP address that is assigned to the router. Subnet Mask.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Wireless Settings (2.4 GHz and 5 GHz) The following settings are displayed: Name (SSID). The wireless network name (SSID) used by the router. The default names for the 5 GHz ends in -5G to distinguish it from the 2.4 GHz network. Region. The geographic region where the router is being used. It might be illegal to use the wireless features of the router in some parts of the world. Channel. Identifies the operating channel of the wireless port being used.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Guest Network (2.4 GHz and 5 GHz) Name (SSID). The 11N wireless network name (SSID) used by the router. The default names are NETGEAR-Guest and NETGEAR-5G-Guest. Wireless AP. Indicates whether the radio feature of the router is enabled. If this feature is not enabled, the Wireless LED on the front panel is off. Broadcast Name. Indicates whether the router is broadcasting its SSID. Wireless Isolation.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Select Advanced > Administration > Logs. The Logs screen displays. The log screen shows the following information: • Date and time. The date and time the log entry was recorded. • Source IP. The IP address of the initiating device for this log entry. • Target address. The name or IP address of the website or news group visited or to which access was attempted. • Action. Whether the access was blocked or allowed.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Back Up Settings To back up the router’s configuration settings: 1. Select Advanced > Administration > Backup Settings to display the following screen: 2. Click Back Up to save a copy of the current settings. 3. Choose a location to store the .cfg file that is on a computer on your network. Restore Configuration Settings To restore configuration settings that you backed up: 1.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Set Password This feature allows you to change the default password that is used to log in to the router with the user name admin. This is not the same as changing the password for wireless access. The label on the bottom of your router shows your unique wireless network name (SSID) and password for wireless access (see Label on page 12). To set the password for the user name admin: 1.
9. Advanced Settings 9 This chapter describes the advanced features of your router. The information is for users with a solid understanding of networking concepts who want to set the router up for unique situations such as when remote access from the Internet by IP or domain name is needed.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Advanced Wireless Settings Select Advanced > Advanced Setup > Wireless Settings to display the following screen: Scroll to view more settings The following settings are available in this screen: Enable Wireless Router Radio. You can completely turn off the wireless portion of the wireless router by clearing this check box. Select this check box again to enable the wireless portion of the router.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Wireless Repeating Function (WDS) You can set the N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router up to be used as a wireless access point (AP). Doing this enables the router to act as a wireless repeater. A wireless repeater connects to another wireless router as a client where the network to which it connects becomes the ISP service. Wireless repeating is a type of Wireless Distribution System (WDS).
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 To configure this mode, you have to know the MAC addresses of the child repeater access point. Wireless Repeater. The router sends all traffic from its local wireless or wired computers to a remote access point. To configure this mode, you have to know the MAC address of the remote parent access point. The WNDR4500 router is always in dual band concurrent mode, unless you turn off one radio.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 • Wireless MAC of this router. This field displays the MAC address for your router for your reference. You will need to enter this MAC address in the corresponding Wireless Repeating Function screen of the other access point you are using. • Wireless Repeater. If your router is the repeater, select this check box. Repeater IP Address. If your router is the repeater, enter the IP address of the other access point. Disable Wireless Client Association.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 2. Select Advanced > Advanced Setup > Wireless Repeating Function to display the Wireless Repeating Function screen. Scroll to view more settings 3. In the Wireless Repeating Function screen (depending on the frequency you want to use), select the Enable Wireless Repeating Function check box and select the Wireless Base Station radio button. 4. Enter the MAC address for one or more repeater units. 5. Click Apply to save your changes.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 4. Click Apply to save your changes. 5. Verify connectivity across the LANs. A computer on any wireless or wired LAN segment of the router should be able to connect to the Internet or share files and printers with any other wireless or wired computer or server connected to the other access point. Port Forwarding and Triggering By default, the router blocks inbound traffic from the Internet to your computers except replies to your outbound traffic.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 information and then modifies the source information in the request message, performing Network Address Translation (NAT): • The source address is replaced with your router’s public IP address. This is necessary because your computer uses a private IP address that is not globally unique and cannot be used on the Internet. • The source port number is changed to a number chosen by the router, such as 33333.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 An example is Internet Relay Chat (IRC). Your computer connects to an IRC server at destination port 6667. The IRC server not only responds to your originating source port, but also sends an “identify” message to your computer on port 113. Using port triggering, you can tell the router, “When you initiate a session with destination port 6667, you have to also allow incoming traffic on port 113 to reach the originating computer.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Internet to initiate a connection to a server computer on your network. Normally, your router ignores any inbound traffic that is not a response to your own outbound traffic. You can configure exceptions to this default rule by using the port forwarding feature. A typical application of port forwarding can be shown by reversing the client-server relationship from the previous web server example.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 • Port triggering does require that you know the computer’s IP address in advance. The IP address is captured automatically. • Port forwarding requires that you specify the computer’s IP address during configuration, and the IP address can never change. • Port triggering requires specific outbound traffic to open the inbound ports, and the triggered ports are closed after a period of no activity.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 1. Select Advanced Setup > Port Forwarding/Port Triggering to display the following screen: Port Forwarding is selected as the service type. 2. From the Service Name list, select the service or game that you will host on your network. If the service does not appear in the list, see Add a Custom Service on page 91. 3. In the corresponding Server IP Address field, enter the last digit of the IP address of your local computer that will provide this service. 4.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 3. Click the Add Custom Service button to display the following screen: 4. In the Service Name field, enter a descriptive name. 5. In the Protocol list, select the protocol. If you are unsure, select TCP/UDP. 6. In the Starting Port field, enter the beginning port number. • If the application uses a single port, enter the same port number in the Ending Port field.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 2. In the Port Forwarding screen, configure the router to forward the HTTP service to the local address of your web server at 192.168.1.33. HTTP (port 80) is the standard protocol for web servers. 3. (Optional) Register a host name with a Dynamic DNS service, and configure your router to use the name as described in Dynamic DNS on page 95. To access your web server from the Internet, a remote user has to know the IP address that has been assigned by your ISP.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 2. Select the Port Triggering radio button to display the port triggering information. 3. Clear the Disable Port Triggering check box if it is selected. Note: If the Disable Port Triggering check box is selected after you configure port triggering, port triggering is disabled. However, any port triggering configuration information you added to the router is retained even though it is not used. 4.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 6. Click Add Service to display the following screen: 7. In the Service Name field, type a descriptive service name. 8. In the Service User list, select Any (the default) to allow this service to be used by any computer on the Internet. Otherwise, select Single address, and enter the IP address of one computer to restrict the service to a particular computer. 9. Select the service type, either TCP or UDP or both (TCP/UDP).
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 host name that you configure in the router. Then, whenever your ISP-assigned IP address changes, your router automatically contacts the Dynamic DNS service provider, logs in to your account, and registers your new IP address. If your host name is hostname, for example, you can reach your router at http://hostname.dyndns.org. On the Advanced tab, select Advanced Setup > Dynamic DNS to display the following screen: Figure 9.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Static Routes Static routes provide additional routing information to your router. Under usual circumstances, the router has adequate routing information after it has been configured for Internet access, and you do not need to configure additional static routes. You have to configure static routes only for unusual cases such as multiple routers or multiple IP subnets located on your network.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 To set up a static route: 1. Select Advanced > Advanced Setup > Static Routes, and click Add to display the following screen: 2. In the Route Name field, type a name for this static route (for identification purposes only.) 3. Select the Private check box if you want to limit access to the LAN only. If Private is selected, the static route is not reported in RIP. 4. Select the Active check box to make this route effective. 5.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Remote Management The remote management feature lets you upgrade or check the status of your N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router over the Internet. To set up remote management: 1. Select Advanced > Advanced Setup > Remote Management. Note: Be sure to change the router’s default login password to a very secure password.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Normal web browser access uses the standard HTTP service port 80. For greater security, enter a custom port number for the remote web management nterface. Choose a number between 1024 and 65535, but do not use the number of any common service port. The default is 8080, which is a common alternate for HTTP. 5. Click Apply to have your changes take effect. 6.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 To turn on Universal Plug and Play: 1. Select Advanced > Advanced Setup > UPnP. The UPnP screen displays. 2. The available settings and information in this screen are: Turn UPnP On. UPnP can be enabled or disabled for automatic device configuration. The default setting for UPnP is disabled. If this check box is not selected, the router does not allow any device to automatically control the resources, such as port forwarding (mapping) of the router.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 IPv6 You can use this feature to set up an IPv6 Internet connection type if NETGEAR Genie does not detect it automatically. To set up an IPv6 Internet connection type: 1. Select Advanced > Advanced Setup > IPv6 to display the following screen: 2. Select the IPv6 connection type from the list. Your Internet service provider (ISP) can provide this information. • If your ISP did not provide details, you can select IPv6 Tunnel.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 To monitor Internet traffic: 1. Click Advanced > Advanced Setup > Traffic Meter to display the following screen: Scroll to view more settings 2. To enable the Traffic Meter, select the Enable Traffic Meter check box. 3. If you would like to record and restrict the volume of Internet traffic, select the Traffic volume control by radio button. You can select one of the following options for controlling the traffic volume: No Limit.
10. Troubleshooting 10 This chapter provides information to help you diagnose and solve problems you might have with your router. If you do not find the solution here, check the NETGEAR support site at http://support.netgear.com for product and contact information.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Quick Tips This section describes tips for troubleshooting some common problems Sequence to Restart Your Network Be sure to restart your network in this sequence: 1. Turn off and unplug the modem. 2. Turn off the router and computers. 3. Plug in the modem and turn it on. Wait 2 minutes. 4. Turn on the router and wait 2 minutes. 5. Turn on the computers. Check Ethernet Cable Connections Make sure that the Ethernet cables are securely plugged in.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Troubleshooting with the LEDs 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/Test LED is on. 2. Verify that the Power/Test LED turns amber within a few seconds, indicating that the self-test is running. 3. After approximately 30 seconds, verify that: • The Power/Test LED is solid green. • The Internet LED is on.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 LEDs Never Turn Off When the router is turned on, the LEDs turn on for about 10 seconds and then turn off. If all the LEDs stay on, there is a fault within the router. If all LEDs are still on 1 minute after power-up: • Cycle the power to see if the router recovers. • Press and hold the Reset button to return the router to its factory settings as explained in Restore the Factory Settings and Password on page 111.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Cannot Log In to the Router If you are unable to log in to the router from a computer on your local network, 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 that your computer’s IP address is on the same subnet as the router.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 4. Check that an IP address is shown for the Internet port. If 0.0.0.0 is shown, your router has not obtained an IP address from your ISP. If your router cannot obtain an IP address from the ISP, you might need to force your cable or DSL modem to recognize your new router by restarting your network, as described in Sequence to Restart Your Network on page 105.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Troubleshooting PPPoE If you are using PPPoE, try troubleshooting your Internet connection. To troubleshoot a PPPoE connection: 1. Log in to the router. 2. Select Administration > Router Status. 3. Click Connection Status. If all of the steps indicate OK, then your PPPoE connection is up and working. If any of the steps indicate Failed, you can attempt to reconnect by clicking Connect. The router continues to attempt to connect indefinitely.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Changes Not Saved If the router does not save the changes you make in the router interface, check the following: • When entering configuration settings, always click the Apply button before moving to another screen or tab, or your changes are lost. • Click the Refresh or Reload button in the web browser. The changes might have occurred, but the old settings might be in the web browser’s cache.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 • Use the Reset button on the back of the router. See Factory Settings on page 114. If you restore the factory settings and the router fails to restart, or the green Power/Test LED continues to blink, the unit might be defective. If the error persists, you might have a hardware problem and should contact technical support at http://www.netgear.com/support.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Verify that the IP address for your router and your computer are correct and that the addresses are on the same subnet. Test the Path from Your Computer to a Remote Device After verifying that the LAN path works correctly, test the path from your computer to a remote device. 1. From the Windows toolbar, click the Start button, and then select Run. 2.
A. Supplemental Information A This appendix provides factory default settings and technical specifications for the N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500. Factory Settings You can return the router to its factory settings. Use the end of a paper clip or some other similar object to press and hold the Reset button on the back of the router for at least 7 seconds. The router resets, and returns to the factory configuration settings shown in the following table. Table 4.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Table 4. Factory default settings (Continued) Feature Default behavior Local network DHCP starting IP address (LAN) continued DHCP ending IP address 192.168.1.2 Firewall Wireless Firewall 192.168.1.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Technical Specifications Table 5. WNDR4500 Router specifications Feature Description Data and routing protocols TCP/IP, RIP-1, RIP-2, DHCP, PPPoE, PPTP, Bigpond, Dynamic DNS, UPnP, and SMB Power adapter • • • • Dimensions 8.8 in. x 6.8 in. x 1.2 in. (223 x 153 x 31 mm) Weight 1.2 lbs. (0.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Table 5. WNDR4500 Router specifications (Continued) Feature Description Operating frequency range 2.4 GHz 2.412–2.462 GHz (US) 2.412–2.472 GHz (Japan) 2.412–2.472 GHz (Europe ETSI) 5 GHz 5.18–5.24 + 5.745–5.825 GHz (US) 5.18–5.24 GHz (Europe ETSI) FCC: 5.25–5.35 GHz (DFS band) 5.47–5.725 GHz (DFS band) 5600–5650 MHz is disabled and unavailable for use CE (Europe ETSI): 5.25–5.35 GHz (DFS band) 5.47–5.725 GHz (DFS band) 802.
B. Notification of Compliance NETGEAR Dual Band - Wireless B Regulatory Compliance Information This section includes user requirements for operating this product in accordance with National laws for usage of radio spectrum and operation of radio devices. Failure of the end-user to comply with the applicable requirements may result in unlawful operation and adverse action against the end-user by the applicable National regulatory authority.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Español [Spanish] Por medio de la presente NETGEAR Inc. declara que el Radiolan cumple con los requisitos esenciales y cualesquiera otras disposiciones aplicables o exigibles de la Directiva 1999/5/CE. Ελληνική [Greek] ΜΕ ΤΗΝ ΠΑΡΟΥΣΑ NETGEAR Inc. ΔΗΛΩΝΕΙ ΟΤΙ Radiolan ΣΥΜΜΟΡΦΩΝΕΤΑΙ ΠΡΟΣ ΤΙΣ ΟΥΣΙΩΔΕΙΣ ΑΠΑΙΤΗΣΕΙΣ ΚΑΙ ΤΙΣ ΛΟΙΠΕΣ ΣΧΕΤΙΚΕΣ ΔΙΑΤΑΞΕΙΣ ΤΗΣ ΟΔΗΓΙΑΣ 1999/5/ΕΚ. Français [French] Par la présente NETGEAR Inc.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Íslenska [Icelandic] Hér með lýsir NETGEAR Inc. yfir því að Radiolan er í samræmi við grunnkröfur og aðrar kröfur, sem gerðar eru í tilskipun 1999/5/EC. Norsk [Norwegian] NETGEAR Inc. erklærer herved at utstyret Radiolan er i samsvar med de grunnleggende krav og øvrige relevante krav i direktiv 1999/5/EF. This device is a 2.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 • For product available in the USA market, only channel 1~11 can be operated. Selection of other channels is not possible. • This device and its antenna(s) must not be co-located or operation in conjunction with any other antenna or transmitter.
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 Interference Reduction Table The table below shows the Recommended Minimum Distance between NETGEAR equipment and household appliances to reduce interference (in feet and meters).
Index QoS 39 repeater unit 85 user-defined services 66 connecting wirelessly 8 country setting 30 crossover cable 107 CTS/RTS Threshold 81 custom service (port forwarding) 91 A access remote 99 viewing logs 76 access points 82 accessing remote computer 86 adding custom service 91 priority rules 40 address reservation 38 advertisement period 101 alerts, emailing 68 applications, QoS for online gaming 40 approved USB devices 52 attached devices 22 authentication, required by mail server 69 automatic firmware
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 F K factory default settings, restoring 78, 111 factory settings list of 114 resetting 12 file sharing 45 firmware version 72 firmware, upgrading 16, 71 fragmentation length 81 fragmented data packets 34 front panel 9 keywords 65 L H label, product 12 LAN port QoS for 41 settings 72 LAN setup 36 language setting 30 large files, sharing 46 lease, DHCP 74 LEDs described 10 troubleshooting and 106 local servers, port forwarding to 90 logging in 14, 16 logs
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 restoring configuration file 78 default factory settings 78, 111 router interface, described 17 router status, viewing 72 P packets, fragmented 34 Parental Controls 23 passphrases changing 26 product label 12 password recovery, admin 79 password, restoring 111 photos, sharing 46 poll interval 73 port filtering 66 port forwarding 86, 88, 89, 90 port numbers 66 port status 73 port triggering 86, 87, 89, 93 ports,listed, back panel 11 positioning the router 8 P
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 WPA2-PSK encryption 28 WPA-PSK/WPA2-PSK mixed mode 28 WPS button 18 WPS-PSK encryption 28 WPS-PSK+ WPA2-PSK encryption 28 U Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) 100 up time, system 73 upgrading firmware 16, 71 USB advanced configuration 49 basic storage settings 47 drive requirements 45 file sharing 45 ReadySHARE access 45, 48 remote computer connection 53 specifying approved devices 52 unmounting a USB drive 51 USB devices, approved 52 user-defined services 66 V