XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router User Manual Model XR500 April 2018 202-11808-03 350 E.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Support Thank you for purchasing this NETGEAR product. You can visit www.netgear.com/support to register your product, get help, access the latest downloads and user manuals, and join our community. We recommend that you use only official NETGEAR support resources. Conformity For the current EU Declaration of Conformity, visit http://kb.netgear.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/11621. Compliance For regulatory compliance information, visit http://www.netgear.
Contents Chapter 1 Hardware Setup Unpack Your Router.............................................................................................10 LEDs, Buttons, and Ports on the Front Panel, Top Panel, and Left Side Panel....11 Rear Panel...........................................................................................................13 Attach the Antennas.............................................................................................14 Router Label...................................
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Configure and Use the Geo Filter....................................................................43 Ping a Device and Allow or Deny the Device a Connection............................45 Add a Device to the Geo Filter........................................................................45 Remove a Device From the Geo Filter............................................................46 Manage the General Geo Filter Map Settings...........................................
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Set Up an IPTV Port to Lease an Intranet Port...............................................81 Manage Custom Static Routes............................................................................82 Set Up a Static Route......................................................................................83 Change a Static Route....................................................................................83 Delete a Static Route.....................................
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Display Internet Port Statistics...........................................................................116 Check the Internet Connection Status, View Details, and Release and Renew the Connection.........................................................................................................116 Restart the Router From Its Web Interface........................................................117 View Router Notifications...........................................
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Chapter 13 Share a USB Printer Install the Printer Driver and Cable the Printer..................................................144 Download the ReadySHARE Printer Utility........................................................144 Install the ReadySHARE Printer Utility..............................................................144 Print Using the NETGEAR USB Control Center................................................145 View or Change the Status of a Printer.........
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Application Example: Port Triggering for Internet Relay Chat........................171 Chapter 17 Troubleshooting Quick Tips..........................................................................................................174 Sequence to Restart Your Network...............................................................174 Check Ethernet Cable Connections..............................................................174 Check the Network Settings...................
Hardware Setup 1 ® This user manual is for the NETGEAR XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router. This chapter contains the following sections: • • • • • • • • Unpack Your Router LEDs, Buttons, and Ports on the Front Panel, Top Panel, and Left Side Panel Rear Panel Attach the Antennas Router Label Position Your Router Cable Your Router Turn the LEDs On or Off Using the LED On/Off Switch For more information about the topics covered in this manual, visit the support website at netgear.com/support.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Unpack Your Router Your package contains the XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router, the four antennas, the power adapter, and an Ethernet cable. Figure 1.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router LEDs, Buttons, and Ports on the Front Panel, Top Panel, and Left Side Panel The status LEDs are located on the front panel, two buttons with LEDs are located on the top panel, and two USB 3.0 ports are located on the left side panel of the router. Figure 2. Front view Table 1. LED descriptions LED and Button Description Power LED Solid amber. The router is starting. Blinking amber. The firmware is upgrading, or the Reset button was pressed. Solid white.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Table 1. LED descriptions (Continued) LED and Button Description 2.4 GHz WiFi LED Solid white. The 2.4 GHz WiFi radio is operating. Blinking white. The router is sending or receiving WiFi traffic. Off. The 2.4 GHz WiFi radio is off. 5 GHz WiFi LED Solid white. The 5 GHz WiFi radio is operating. Blinking white. The router is sending or receiving WiFi traffic. Off. The 5 GHz WiFi radio is off. Guest WiFi LED Solid white. The guest WiFi network is operating.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Rear Panel The following figure shows the rear panel connectors and buttons. Figure 3. Rear panel Viewed from left to right, the rear panel contains the following components: • LED On/Off switch. If this switch is in the Off position, all the router’s LEDs, including the LEDs on the four active antennas, but not the Power LED, are turned off. • Reset button. Pressing the Reset button resets the router.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Attach the Antennas The router comes with four antennas. Attach two antennas to the rear panel and attach one antenna to each side panel. Figure 4. Attach the antennas and position them for best WiFi performance To attach the antennas: 1. Align the antennas with the antenna posts on the router. 2. Attach the antennas on the threaded antenna posts. 3. Position the antennas for the best WiFi performance.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Router Label The router label on the top panel of the router shows the login information, WiFi Network Name (SSID), network key (password), serial number, and MAC address. Figure 5. Router label Figure 6. Location of the router label Position Your Router The router lets you access your network anywhere within the operating range of your WiFi network.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router In addition, position your router according to the following guidelines: • Place your router near the center of the area where your computers and other devices operate, and within line of sight to your WiFi devices. • Make sure that the router is within reach of an AC power outlet and near Ethernet cables for wired computers. • Place the router in an elevated location, minimizing the number walls and ceilings between the router and your other devices.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Cable Your Router Power on your router and connect it to a modem. Figure 7. Cable your router To cable your router: 1. Unplug your modem, remove and reinsert the backup battery if it uses one, and then plug the modem back in. 2. Use the Ethernet cable to connect the modem to the yellow Internet port on the router. Note If your Internet connection does not require a modem, connect your main Ethernet cable to the yellow Internet port on the router. 3.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router To turn the LEDs on or off using the LED On/Off switch: Move the LED On/Off switch on the rear panel to the On or Off position.
Connect to the Network and Access the Router 2 You can connect to the router’s WiFi networks or use a wired Ethernet connection. This chapter describes the ways you can connect and how to access the router and log in.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Connect to the Network You can connect to the router’s network through a wired or WiFi connection. If you set up your computer to use a static IP address, change the settings so that it uses Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP). Wired Connection You can connect your computer to the router using an Ethernet cable and join the router’s local area network (LAN). The router provides four Ethernet ports. To connect your computer to the router with an Ethernet cable: 1.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Types of Logins Separate types of logins serve different purposes. It is important that you understand the difference so that you know which login to use when. Several types of logins are associated with the router: • ISP login. The login that your ISP gave you logs you in to your Internet service. Your service provider gave you this login information in a letter or some other way. If you cannot find this login information, contact your service provider.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router 3. Launch a web browser. The page that displays depends on whether you accessed the router before: • • The first time you set up the Internet connection for your router, the browser goes to http://www.routerlogin.net and the Configuring the Internet Connection page displays. If you already set up the Internet connection, enter http://www.routerlogin.net in the address field for your browser to start the installation process. 4. Follow the instructions on the page.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Note You can also enter http://www.routerlogin.com or http://192.168.1.1.The procedures in this manual use http://www.routerlogin.net. A login window opens. 3. Enter the router admin user name and password. The router admin user name is admin. The password is the one that you specified the first time that you logged in. The user name and password are case-sensitive. The Dashboard displays.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router The NETGEAR Up app is available for iOS and Android mobile devices. To install your router using the NETGEAR Up app: 1. Cable your router. For more information, see Cable Your Router on page 17. 2. On your iOS or Android mobile device, go to the app store, search for NETGEAR Up, and download the app. 3. On your iOS or Android mobile device, tap Settings > Wi-Fi and find and connect to your router’s WiFi network.
Specify Your Internet Settings 3 Usually, the quickest way to set up the router to use your Internet connection is to allow the installation assistant to detect the Internet connection when you first access the router with a web browser (see Automatic Internet Setup on page 21). You can also customize or specify your Internet settings.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Use the Internet Setup Wizard You can use the Setup Wizard to detect your Internet settings and automatically set up your router. The Setup Wizard is not the same as the pages that display the first time you connect to your router to set it up. To use the Setup Wizard: 1. Launch a web browser from a computer or mobile device that is connected to the router network. 2. Enter http://www.routerlogin.net. A login window opens. 3. Enter the router admin user name and password.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router 4. Select Settings > Internet Setup. The Internet Setup page displays. 5. In the Does your Internet connection require a login? section, leave the No radio button selected. 6. If your Internet connection requires an account name or host name, click the Edit button in the Account Name section and enter the account name. 7. If your Internet connection requires a domain name, type it in the Domain Name (If Required) field.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router 4. Select Settings > Internet Setup. The Internet Setup page displays. 5. In the Does your Internet connection require a login? section, select the Yes radio button. 6. From the Internet Service Provider menu, select the encapsulation method: PPPoE, L2TP, or PPTP. 7. In the Login field, enter the login name that your ISP gave you. This login name is often an email address. 8. In the Password field, type the password that you use to log in to your Internet service. 9.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Specify IPv6 Internet Connections You can set up an IPv6 Internet connection if the router does not detect it automatically. To set up an IPv6 Internet connection: 1. Launch a web browser from a computer or mobile device that is connected to the router network. 2. Enter http://www.routerlogin.net. A login window opens. 3. Enter the router admin user name and password. The user name is admin. The password is the one that you specified the first time that you logged in.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Use Auto Detect for an IPv6 Internet Connection To set up an IPv6 Internet connection through autodetection: 1. Launch a web browser from a computer or mobile device that is connected to the router network. 2. Enter http://www.routerlogin.net. A login window opens. 3. Enter the router admin user name and password. The user name is admin. The password is the one that you specified the first time that you logged in. The user name and password are case-sensitive.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Use Auto Config for an IPv6 Internet Connection To set up an IPv6 Internet connection through autoconfiguration: 1. Launch a web browser from a computer or mobile device that is connected to the router network. 2. Enter http://www.routerlogin.net. A login window opens. 3. Enter the router admin user name and password. The user name is admin. The password is the one that you specified the first time that you logged in. The user name and password are case-sensitive.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router • Use DHCP Server. This method passes more information to LAN devices but some IPv6 systems might not support the DHCv6 client function. • Auto Config. This is the default setting. This setting specifies how the router assigns IPv6 addresses to the devices on your home network (the LAN). 10. (Optional) Select the Use This Interface ID check box and specify the interface ID to be used for the IPv6 address of the router’s LAN interface.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router • Static IP Address. Enter the static IPv4 address of the remote relay router. Your IPv6 ISP usually provides this address. 7. Select an IPv6 Domain Name Server (DNS) Address radio button: • Get Automatically from ISP. This is the default setting. Your ISP uses DHCP to assign your DNS servers. Your ISP automatically assigns this address. • Use These DNS Servers. If you know that your ISP requires specific servers, select this option.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router 4. Select Settings > Advanced Settings > IPv6. The IPv6 page displays. 5. From the Internet Connection Type menu, select 6rd. The page adjusts. The router automatically detects the information in the following sections: • • 6rd (IPv6 Rapid Development) Configuration. The router detects the service provider’s IPv4 network and attempts to establish an IPv6 6rd tunnel connection.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Set Up an IPv6 Pass Through Internet Connection In pass-through mode, the router works as a Layer 2 Ethernet switch with two ports (LAN and WAN Ethernet ports) for IPv6 packets. The router does not process any IPv6 header packets. To set up a pass-through IPv6 Internet connection: 1. Launch a web browser from a computer or mobile device that is connected to the router network. 2. Enter http://www.routerlogin.net. A login window opens. 3.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router • Primary DNS Server. The primary DNS server that resolves IPv6 domain name records for the router. • Secondary DNS Server. The secondary DNS server that resolves IPv6 domain name records for the router. Note If you do not specify the DNS servers, the router uses the DNS servers that are configured for the IPv4 Internet connection on the Internet Setup page (see Manually Set Up the Internet Connection on page 26). 7.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router The router automatically detects the information in the following fields: • Router’s IPv6 Address on WAN. This field shows the IPv6 address that is acquired for the router’s WAN (or Internet) interface. The number after the slash (/) is the length of the prefix, which is also indicated by the underline (_) under the IPv6 address. If no address is acquired, the field displays Not Available. • Router’s IPv6 Address on LAN.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Set Up an IPv6 PPPoE Internet Connection To set up a PPPoE IPv6 Internet connection: 1. Launch a web browser from a computer or mobile device that is connected to the router network. 2. Enter http://www.routerlogin.net. A login window opens. 3. Enter the router admin user name and password. The user name is admin. The password is the one that you specified the first time that you logged in. The user name and password are case-sensitive. The Dashboard displays. 4.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router 7. Select an IPv6 Domain Name Server (DNS) Address radio button: • Get Automatically from ISP. This is the default setting. Your ISP uses DHCP to assign your DNS servers. Your ISP automatically assigns this address. • Use These DNS Servers. If you know that your ISP requires specific servers, select this option. Enter the IP address of your ISP’s primary DNS server. If a secondary DNS server address is available, enter it also. 8.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router - A secure website that does not open, or displays only part of a web page - Yahoo email - MSN portal • You use VPN and experience severe performance problems. • You used a program to optimize MTU for performance reasons and now you are experiencing connectivity or performance problems. Note An incorrect MTU setting can cause Internet communication problems.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Table 2. Common MTU sizes (Continued) MTU Application 1436 Used in PPTP environments or with VPN. 1400 Maximum size for AOL DSL. 576 Typical value to connect to dial-up ISPs.
Customize Quality of Service Settings and Optimize Gaming You can customize Quality of Service (QoS) settings and optimize gaming by preventing network lag and congestion, by allocating bandwidth to specific devices, and by prioritizing traffic for specific devices.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Improve Response Time by Using the Geo Filter The main cause of lag in console games such as Call of Duty, Destiny, FIFA, and many others, is the distance from you to the host or server of the game. The Geo Filter can limit the distance of these hosts or servers by blocking all hosts or servers outside the range that you can specify. This allows for improved response time and might lead to fairer games.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router 7. Set the distance radius by moving the Set Distance slider. We recommend that you set a distance radius in the range from 500 km to 3,000 km (311 mi. to 1,864 mi.). All connections outside the radius are prevented from hosting your game. If you set a radius that is less than 500 km (311 mi.), you might not find games. If you set a radius that is more than 3,000 km (1,864 mi.), you might not find a high-quality connection. 8.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Ping a Device and Allow or Deny the Device a Connection You can allow (whitelist) or block (blacklist) connections to individual devices, regardless of the distance radius of your Geo Filter. If you allow an individual connection, the device can connect to your device, even if is outside the radius of your Geo Filter. If you deny an individual connection, the device cannot connect to your device, even if is inside the radius of your Geo Filter.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router To add a device to the Geo Filter: 1. Launch a web browser from a computer or mobile device that is connected to the router network. 2. Enter http://www.routerlogin.net. A login window opens. 3. Enter the router admin user name and password. The user name is admin. The password is the one that you specified the first time that you logged in. The user name and password are case-sensitive. The Dashboard displays. 4. Select Geo-Filter. 5. Click the ADD DEVICE button.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router The user name is admin. The password is the one that you specified the first time that you logged in. The user name and password are case-sensitive. The Dashboard displays. 4. Select Geo-Filter. 5. In the Devices pane, below the device that you want to remove, click the DELETE button. The device is removed from the Geo Filter.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Note The Flush Cloud button is for use under guidance from NETGEAR Technical Support. (Clicking the Flush Cloud button reloads the IP addresses for the Geo Filter.) 7. To close the Settings pane, click the X. Manage Bandwidth Allocation The router supports a Quality of Service (QoS) feature that lets you prevent network congestion with the Anti-Bufferbloat feature (which is a way to control the total bandwidth) and allocate bandwidth to specific devices.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router 8. Click the X to close the Options pane. 9. Select how you want to apply Anti-Bufferbloat: • Apply. Select this radio button if you want to always apply Anti-Bufferbloat. If Anti-Bufferbloat is always applied, you can play games without any devices or applications causing you to lag but your total bandwidth speeds is reduced so you must change the setting back to Never when you finish gaming. • When High Priority Traffic Detected.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Allocate Bandwidth to Devices Some devices on your network need more bandwidth than others. For example, a device that you use for gaming or media streaming requires more bandwidth than a device that is mostly used for browsing and emails. You can allocate a percentage of the total router bandwidth to each of the devices on your network. Doing so guarantees bandwidth for a device when it needs it. You can set different allocations for upload and download bandwidths.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router a. Above the graph, select the Upload radio button. The Bandwidth Allocation pane shows as the Bandwidth Allocation - Upload pane. b. For each device to which you want to allocate upload bandwidth, move the associated white circle to the bandwidth percentage that you want to allocate. As you move the white circle, the download percentages in the white circles for other devices change.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Reset the Bandwidth Distribution You can reset the bandwidth to default settings so that the router allocates each device an equal share of the bandwidth. You can reset the bandwidth distribution for download bandwidth and upload bandwidth separately. To reset the bandwidth to default settings: 1. Launch a web browser from a computer or mobile device that is connected to the router network. 2. Enter http://www.routerlogin.net. A login window opens. 3.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router To prioritize traffic for a device and view prioritization information: 1. Launch a web browser from a computer or mobile device that is connected to the router network. 2. Enter http://www.routerlogin.net. A login window opens. 3. Enter the router admin user name and password. The user name is admin. The password is the one that you specified the first time that you logged in. The user name and password are case-sensitive. The Dashboard displays. 4. Select QoS. 5.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router To add a device for traffic prioritization: 1. Launch a web browser from a computer or mobile device that is connected to the router network. 2. Enter http://www.routerlogin.net. A login window opens. 3. Enter the router admin user name and password. The user name is admin. The password is the one that you specified the first time that you logged in. The user name and password are case-sensitive. The Dashboard displays. 4. Select QoS. 5.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router 4. Select QoS. 5. Scroll down to the Traffic Prioritization pane and click the trash icon next to the device. The device is removed from the Traffic Prioritization pane. Disable Automatic Traffic Prioritization By default, the router automatically prioritizes high-priority traffic such as games.You can disable this option. To disable the automatic traffic prioritization: 1. Launch a web browser from a computer or mobile device that is connected to the router network. 2.
Monitor Devices and the Network and View Router Information 5 This chapter describes how to monitor the devices on your network and the network itself and how to view the router system information. For more information about viewing the router logs, statistics, and network connection, see Maintain the Router on page 102.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router View and Manage Devices Currently on the Network You can view all computers and devices that are currently connected to your router network.You can change the settings that display on the page (you cannot change the actual settings for a device through the router), prevent a device from being displayed, and block a device from connecting to the Internet through router. To view and manage devices on the network: 1.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router View Network Usage Information The router integrates deep packet inspection (DPI) so that you can view the devices, traffic categories, and applications that are using the upload and download bandwidth in your router network. You can then use this information to apply your Quality of Service (QoS) settings and optimize gaming (see Customize Quality of Service Settings and Optimize Gaming on page 42).
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router The Category Breakdown pane displays and shows the traffic categories that are using download or upload bandwidth for your selection. You can take any of the following actions in the Category Breakdown pane: • To view traffic category volume details, point to the graph. A small pop-up window displays volume details. • To exclude a traffic category from the graph, above the graph, click the name for the traffic category.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router The name is crossed out and the graph excludes information about the CPU. Click the name of the CPU again to redisplay information about the CPU. - • • To view usgae details about a CPU, point to a node on the graph. A small pop-up window displays usage details. RAM Usage. This pane shows usage information about the three random access memory (RAM) categories on the router.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Customize the Dashboard By default, the Dashboard includes the following panes: • Internet Status • Wireless Status • Guest Wireless Status • Network Overview • CPU Usage • Installed R-Apps For information about these panes, see View Router System Information on page 59. You can customize the panes that display on the Dashboard by adding panes that are useful to you and removing panes that are not useful to you. You also rearrange and resize the panes.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router a. Point to a pane until the diagonal double-headed arrow displays at the lower right corner of the pane. b. Click the arrow and move the pane horizontally, vertically, or both. c. Release the pane.
Control Access to the Internet 6 The router comes with a built-in firewall that helps protect your home network from unwanted intrusions from the Internet.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Block Access to Internet Sites You can block keywords and domains (websites) to prevent certain types of HTTP traffic from accessing your network. By default, keyword blocking is disabled and no domains are blocked. Add Keywords and Block Access to Specific Internet Sites You can add keywords to block specific Internet sites from your network. You can use blocking all the time or based on a schedule. To add keywords and block access to select Internet sites: 1.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Delete Keywords From the Blocked List To delete one or all keywords from the list: 1. Launch a web browser from a computer or mobile device that is connected to the router network. 2. Enter http://www.routerlogin.net. A login window opens. 3. Enter the router admin user name and password. The user name is admin. The password is the one that you specified the first time that you logged in. The user name and password are case-sensitive. The Dashboard displays. 4.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Your settings are saved. Block Services and Applications With Simple Outbound Firewall Rules A firewall protects one network (the trusted network, such as your LAN) from another (the untrusted network, such as the Internet), while allowing communication between the two. The router provides one default outbound firewall rule: It allows all access to the Internet (that is, the WAN).
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router 7. To add a service that is in the Service Type menu, select the application or service. The settings for this service automatically display in the fields. 8. To add a service or application that is not in the menu, select User Defined, and do the following: a. If you know that the application uses either TCP or UDP, select the appropriate protocol from the Protocol menu. Otherwise, select TCP/UDP (both). b. Enter the starting port and ending port numbers.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router For more information about the settings, see Block a Service or Application From Accessing the Internet on page 66. 8. Click the Accept button. Your settings are saved. The changed rule displays in the Service Table on the Block Services page. Remove an Outbound Firewall Rule for a Service or Application You can remove an outbound firewall rule that you no longer need. After you remove the rule, the service or application is no longer blocked.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router The user name is admin. The password is the one that you specified the first time that you logged in. The user name and password are case-sensitive. The Dashboard displays. 4. Select Settings > Content Filtering > Schedule. The Schedule page displays. 5. Set up the schedule for blocking: • Days to Block. Select the check box for each day that you want to block access or specify that blocking occurs on every day by selecting the Every Day check box.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router The E-mail page displays. 5. Select the Turn E-mail Notification On check box. 6. In the Primary E-mail Address field, enter the email address that you want to send alerts and logs to. 7. In the Your Outgoing Mail Server field, enter the name of your ISP outgoing (SMTP) mail server (such as mail.myISP.com). You might be able to find this information in the configuration window of your email program. If you leave this field blank, log and alert messages are not sent. 8.
Manage the Router’s Network Settings 7 The router comes ready for WiFi, Ethernet, and USB connections. You can customize the router’s network settings. We recommend that you install the router and connect it to the Internet before you change its network settings.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router View or Change WAN Settings You can view or configure wide area network (WAN) settings for the Internet port. You can set up a DMZ (demilitarized zone) server, change the maximum transmit unit (MTU) size, and enable the router to respond to a ping to its WAN (Internet) port. To view or change the WAN settings: 1. Launch a web browser from a computer or mobile device that is connected to the router network. 2. Enter http://www.routerlogin.net. A login window opens. 3.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Set Up a 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 other applications might not function well.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router To change the router’s device name: 1. Launch a web browser from a computer or mobile device that is connected to the router network. 2. Enter http://www.routerlogin.net. A login window opens. 3. Enter the router admin user name and password. The user name is admin. The password is the one that you specified the first time that you logged in. The user name and password are case-sensitive. The Dashboard displays. 4. Select Settings > Setup > Device Name.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router 6. In the IP Subnet Mask field, type the subnet mask of the router. The IP address and subnet mask identify which addresses are local to a specific device and which must be reached through a gateway or router. 7. Router Information Protocol (RIP) allows a router to exchange routing information with other routers. To change the RIP settings, do the following: a. Select the RIP direction: • Both.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router The user name is admin. The password is the one that you specified the first time that you logged in. The user name and password are case-sensitive. The Dashboard displays. 4. Select Settings > Setup > LAN Setup. The LAN Setup page displays. 5. Make sure that the Use Router as DHCP Server check box is selected. 6. Specify the range of IP addresses that the router assigns: a. In the Starting IP Address field, type the lowest number in the range.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router The LAN Setup page displays. 5. Clear the Use Router as DHCP Server check box. 6. Click the Apply button. Your settings are saved. 7. (Optional) If this service is disabled and no other DHCP server is available on your network, set your computer IP addresses manually so that the computers can access the router.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router 7. Click the Add button. The LAN Setup page displays again and the address is entered into the Address Reservation table on that page. 8. Click the Apply button. Your settings are saved. The reserved address is not assigned until the next time the computer contacts the router’s DHCP server. You can restart the computer, or access its IP configuration and force a DHCP release and renew. Change a Reserved IP Address To change a reserved address entry: 1.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router 3. Enter the router admin user name and password. The user name is admin. The password is the one that you specified the first time that you logged in. The user name and password are case-sensitive. The Dashboard displays. 4. Select Settings > Setup > LAN Setup. The LAN Setup page displays. 5. Select the radio button next to the reserved address. 6. Click the Delete button. The address is removed from the Address Reservation table. 7. Click the Apply button.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router 4. Select Settings > Advanced Settings > VLAN/Bridge Settings. The VLAN/Bridge Settings page displays. 5. Select the Enable VLAN/Bridge group check box. The page expands. 6. Select the By bridge group radio button. The page expands. 7.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router The page expands. 6. Select the By VLAN tag group radio button. The page expands. 7. Click the Add button. The Add VLAN Rule page displays. 8. Specify the following settings: • Name. Enter a name for the VLAN tag group. The name can be up to 10 characters. • VLAN ID. Enter a value from 1 to 4094. • Priority. Enter a value from 0 to 7. • Select the check box for a wired LAN port or WiFi port.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router The Dashboard displays. 4. Select Settings > Advanced Settings > VLAN/Bridge Settings. The VLAN / Bridge Settings page displays. 5. Select the Enable VLAN/Bridge Group check box. The page expands. 6. Select the By bridge group radio button. The page expands. 7.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Set Up a Static Route To set up a static route: 1. Launch a web browser from a computer or mobile device that is connected to the router network. 2. Enter http://www.routerlogin.net. A login window opens. 3. Enter the router admin user name and password. The user name is admin. The password is the one that you specified the first time that you logged in. The user name and password are case-sensitive. The Dashboard displays. 4.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router The user name is admin. The password is the one that you specified the first time that you logged in. The user name and password are case-sensitive. The Dashboard displays. 4. Select Settings > Advanced Settings > Static Routes. The Static Routes page displays. 5. In the table, select the radio button for the route. 6. Click the Edit button. The Static Routes page adjusts. 7. Edit the route information. 8. Click the Apply button. Your settings are saved.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router To manage Universal Plug and Play: 1. Launch a web browser from a computer or mobile device that is connected to the network. 2. Enter http://www.routerlogin.net. A login window opens. 3. Enter the router user name and password. The user name is admin. The default password is password. The user name and password are case-sensitive. The Dashboard displays. 4. Select Settings > Advanced Setting > UPnP. The UPnP page displays. 5.
Manage the Router’s WiFi Settings The router comes ready for WiFi connections. You can customize the router’s WiFi settings.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Specify Basic WiFi Settings The router comes with preset security. This means that the WiFi network name (SSID), network key (password), and security option (encryption protocol) are preset in the factory. You can find the preset SSID and password on the router label. Note The preset SSID and password are uniquely generated for every device to protect and maximize your WiFi security.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router To specify a separate SSID and security option for each WiFi band, clear the Enable Smart Connect check box. 7. To control the SSID broadcast, select or clear the Enable SSID Broadcast check box. When this check box is selected, the router broadcasts its SSID so that it displays when you scan for local WiFi networks on your computer or mobile device. 8. To control 20/40 MHz coexistence, select or clear the Enable 20/40 MHz Coexistence check box.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Change the WiFi Password or Security Level The WiFi password is different from the admin password that you use to log in to the router. Your router comes with preset WPA2 or WPA security. We recommend that you use the preset security, but you can change the settings. We recommend that you do not disable the preset security.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Change the WiFi Mbps Mode for Download and Upload Speeds The data rate for high-speed transmissions is commonly identified as megabits per second (Mbps). By default, the router is set to operate with up to 800 Mbps in the 2.4 GHz WiFi band and up to 1,733 Mbps in the 5 GHz WiFi band. You can select slower settings. To change the WiFi Mbps settings: 1. Launch a web browser from a computer or mobile device that is connected to the router network. 2. Enter http://www.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router 3. Enter the router admin user name and password. The user name is admin. The password is the one that you specified the first time that you logged in. The user name and password are case-sensitive. The Dashboard displays. 4. Select Settings > Setup > Guest Network. The Guest Network Settings page displays. 5. Scroll to the section of the page for the guest WiFi network that you want to set up. 6. Leave the Enable SSID Broadcast check box selected.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Tip If you want to change the WiFi settings of the router’s main network, use a wired connection to avoid being disconnected when the new WiFi settings take effect. To configure WPA and WPA2 enterprise security: 1. Launch a web browser from a computer or mobile device that is connected to the router network. 2. Enter http://www.routerlogin.net. A login window opens. 3. Enter the router user name and password. The user name is admin.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router • • Is your computer or mobile device connected to another WiFi network in your area? Some mobile devices automatically connect to the first open network without WiFi security that they discover. Is your computer or mobile device trying to connect to your network with its old settings (before you changed the settings)? If so, update the WiFi network selection in your computer or mobile device to match the current settings for your network.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router 6. From the Authentication Type menu, select one of the following types: • • Automatic. Clients can use either Open System or Shared Key authentication. Shared Key. Clients can use only Shared Key authentication. 7. From the Encryption Strength menu, select the encryption key size: • • 64-bit. Standard WEP encryption, using 40/64-bit encryption. 128-bit. Standard WEP encryption, using 104/128-bit encryption. This selection provides higher encryption security. 8.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Enable or Disable the WiFi Radios If you used the WiFi On/Off button to turn off the WiFi radios, you can’t log in to the router to turn them back on. You must press the WiFi On/Off button again for two seconds to turn the WiFi radios back on. To enable or disable the WiFi radios: 1. Launch a web browser from a computer or mobile device that is connected to the router network. 2. Enter http://www.routerlogin.net. A login window opens. 3.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router The page adjusts. 6. Select a setup method: • • Push button. Click the WPS button on this page. PIN Number. The page adjusts again. Enter the client security PIN and click the Next button. 7. Within two minutes, go to the WPS-enabled device and use its WPS software to connect to the WiFi network. The WPS process automatically sets up your WPS-enabled device with the network password when it connects. The router WPS page displays a confirmation message.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Specify WPS Settings Wi-Fi Protected Setup (WPS) lets you join the WiFi network without typing the WiFi password. In most situations, you do not need to change these settings. If you need to change the settings, you can do so only after you disable the Smart Connect feature (see Specify Basic WiFi Settings on page 87). To specify WPS settings: 1. Launch a web browser from a computer or mobile device that is connected to the router network. 2. Enter http://www.routerlogin.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router To disable implicit beamforming: 1. Launch a web browser from a computer or mobile device that is connected to the router network. 2. Enter http://www.routerlogin.net. A login window opens. 3. Enter the router user name and password. The user name is admin. The password is the one that you specified the first time that you logged in. The user name and password are case-sensitive. The Dashboard displays. 4. Select Settings > Advanced Settings > Advanced Wireless.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Manage HT160 for 160 MHz WiFi Support HT160 supports 160 MHz for WiFi traffic, reducing lag and improving gaming and streaming data speeds. Note that the WiFi clients that connect to the router must be capable of supporting 160 MHz, and they must be connected to the 5 GHz WiFi network. By default, HT160 is disabled, but you can enable it. To enable HT160: 1. Launch a web browser from a computer or mobile device that is connected to the router network. 2. Enter http://www.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router 3. Enter the router admin user name and password. The user name is admin. The password is the one that you specified the first time that you logged in. The user name and password are case-sensitive. The Dashboard displays. 4. Select Settings > Advanced Settings > Advanced Wireless. The Advanced Wireless Settings page displays. 5. Clear the Enable WMM (Wi-Fi multimedia) settings (2.4GHz b/g/n) check box. 6. Click the Apply button. Your settings are saved.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Note To avoid interference with other routers or gateways in your network, we recommend that you use different WiFi settings on each router. You can also turn off the WiFi radio on the other router, access point, or gateway and use this router only for WiFi client access. 8. Click the Apply button. The IP address of the router changes, and you are disconnected. 9. To reconnect, close and restart your browser and type http://www.routerlogin.net.
Maintain the Router 9 This chapter describes the settings for administering and maintaining your router. For information about monitoring devices and the network and viewing the router system information, see Monitor Devices and the Network and View Router Information on page 56.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Update the Router Firmware You can log in to the router and check to see if new firmware is available, or you can manually load a specific firmware version to your router. Check for New Firmware and Update the Router The router firmware (routing software) is stored in flash memory. You might see a message at the top of the router pages when new firmware is available.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router a. If the login window does not open automatically, enter http://www.routerlogin.net in your web browser. b. Enter the router admin user name and password. The user name is admin. The password is the one that you specified the first time that you logged in. The user name and password are case-sensitive. The Dashboard displays. c. Select System Information. The page that displays shows multiple panes. The firmware version is listed in the System Info pane. 8.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router The Firmware Update page displays. 7. Click the Browse button. 8. Find and select the saved firmware file on your computer. 9. Click the Upload button. The router begins the update. WARNING: To avoid the risk of corrupting the firmware, do not interrupt the update. For example, do not close the browser, click a link, or load a new page. Do not turn off the router. The router restarts after the firmware is uploaded and updated.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router The Dashboard displays. 4. Select Settings > Administration > Set Password. The Set Password page displays. 5. Type the old password in the Old Password field. This is the password that you specified the first time that you logged in to the router. 6. Type the new password in the Set Password and Repeat New Password fields. 7. Click the Apply button. Your settings are saved.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router A login window opens. 3. Click the Cancel button. If password recovery is enabled, you are prompted to enter the serial number of the router. The serial number is on the router label. 4. Enter the serial number of the router. 5. Click the Continue button. A window opens requesting the answers to your security questions. 6. Enter the saved answers to your security questions. 7. Click the Continue button. A window opens and displays your recovered password. 8.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Restore the Configuration Settings To restore the configuration settings that you backed up: 1. Launch a web browser from a computer or mobile device that is connected to the router network. 2. Enter http://www.routerlogin.net. A login window opens. 3. Enter the router admin user name and password. The user name is admin. The password is the one that you specified the first time that you logged in. The user name and password are case-sensitive. The Dashboard displays. 4.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router WARNING: Do not interrupt the restart process. After the restart process is complete, the user name is admin, the password is password, and the LAN IP address is 192.168.1.1. DHCP is enabled. Manage Remote Access You can access your router over the Internet to view or change its settings. You must know the router’s WAN IP address to use this feature.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router 7. Specify the port number for accessing the router web interface. Normal web browser access uses the standard HTTP service port 80. For greater security, enter a custom port number for the remote router web interface. Choose a number from 1024 to 65535, but do not use the number of any common service port. The default is 8443, which is a common alternate for HTTP. 8. Click the Apply button. Your settings are saved. Use Remote Access To use remote access: 1.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router 3. Enter the router admin user name and password. The user name is admin. The password is the one that you specified the first time that you logged in. The user name and password are case-sensitive. The Dashboard displays. 4. Select Settings > Monitoring > Traffic Meter. The Traffic Meter page displays. 5. Select the Enable Traffic Meter check box. By default, no traffic limit is specified and the traffic volume is not controlled. 6.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router 10. In the Traffic Counter section, set the traffic counter to begin at a specific time and date. 11. In the Pop up a warning message field, enter a value in minutes to specify when the router issues a warning message before the monthly limit in hours is reached. This setting is optional. The router issues a warning when the balance falls below the number of minutes that you enter. By default, the value is 0 and no warning message is issued. 12.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router 8. In the Traffic Counter section, set the traffic counter to begin at a specific time and date. 9. In the Pop up a warning message field, enter a value in minutes to specify when the router issues a warning message before the monthly limit in hours is reached. This setting is optional. The router issues a warning when the balance falls under the number of minutes that you enter. By default, the value is 0 and no warning message is issued. 10.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Unblock the Traffic Meter After the Traffic Limit Is Reached If you configured the traffic meter to disconnect and disable the Internet connection after the traffic limit is reached, you cannot access the Internet until you unblock the traffic meter. CAUTION: If your ISP set a traffic limit, your ISP might charge you for the overage traffic. To unblock the traffic meter: 1. Launch a web browser from a computer or mobile device that is connected to the router network. 2.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router 4. Select Settings > Monitoring > Logs. The Logs page displays. Depending on the type of log entry, a log entry can show any of the following information: • Action. The action that occurred, such as whether Internet access was blocked or allowed. • Source IP. The IP address of the initiating device for this log entry. • Target address. The name or IP address of a website or news group visited or to which access was attempted. • Date and time.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Display Internet Port Statistics To display Internet port statistics: 1. Launch a web browser from a computer or mobile device that is connected to the router network. 2. Enter http://www.routerlogin.net. A login window opens. 3. Enter the router admin user name and password. The user name is admin. The password is the one that you specified the first time that you logged in. The user name and password are case-sensitive. The Dashboard displays. 4.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router A login window opens. 3. Enter the router admin user name and password. The user name is admin. The password is the one that you specified the first time that you logged in. The user name and password are case-sensitive. The Dashboard displays. 4. Click Settings > Monitoring > Connection Status. The Connection Status page displays. The information that shows on the page depends on the type of WAN Ethernet interface connection for the router.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router The Dashboard displays. 4. Select System Information. The page that displays shows multiple panes. 5. In the System Info pane, click the System Info menu icon. The Options pane displays. 6. Click the REBOOT button. A pop-up window displays a warning. 7. In the pop-up window, click the REBOOT button. The router restarts. View Router Notifications The router might generate notifications. To view router notifications: 1.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router A login window opens. 3. Enter the router admin user name and password. The user name is admin. The password is the one that you specified the first time that you logged in. The user name and password are case-sensitive. The Dashboard displays. 4. Select Settings > Advanced Settings > LED Control Settings. The LED Control Settings page displays. 5.
Share USB Storage Devices Attached to the Router 10 ® This chapter describes how to access and manage storage devices attached to your router. ReadySHARE lets you access and share USB storage devices connected to the router. (If your storage device uses special drivers, it is not compatible.) Note The USB ports on the router can be used only to connect USB storage devices like flash drives or hard drives. Do not connect computers, USB modems, CD drives, or DVD drives to the router USB port.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router USB Device Requirements The router works with most USB-compliant external flash and hard drives. For the most up-to-date list of USB devices that the router supports, visit kb.netgear.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/18985/~/readyshare-usb-drives-compatibility-list. Some USB external hard drives and flash drives require you to load the drivers onto the computer before the computer can access the USB storage device. Such USB storage devices do not work with the router.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router When you connect the USB storage device to the router’s port, it might take up to two minutes before it is ready for sharing. By default, the USB storage device is available to all computers on your local area network (LAN). 3. Select Start > Run. 4. Enter \\readyshare in the dialog box. 5. Click the OK button. A window automatically opens and displays the files and folders on the USB storage device.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Access a Storage Device That Is Connected to the Router From a Mac From a computer or device on the network, you can access a storage device that is connected to the router. To access the device from a Mac: 1. Connect a USB storage device to a USB port on your router. 2. If your USB storage device uses a power supply, connect it. You must use the power supply when you connect the USB storage device to the router.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router 3. Download ReadySHARE Vault from netgear.com/readyshare and install it on each Windows-based computer. 4. Launch ReadySHARE Vault. 5. Use the dashboard or the Backup tab to set up and run your backup. Back Up Mac Computers With Time Machine You can use Time Machine to back up your Mac computers onto a USB hard drive that is connected to one of the router’s USB ports. You can access the connected storage device from your Mac with a wired or WiFi connection to your router.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Prepare to Back Up a Large Amount of Data Before you back up a large amount of data with Time Machine, we recommend that you follow this procedure. To prepare to back up a large amount of data: 1. Upgrade the operating system of the Mac computer. 2. Verify and repair the backup disk and the local disk. 3. Verify and repair the permissions on the local disk. 4. Set Energy Saver: a. From the Apple menu, select System Preferences. The System Preferences page displays. b.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router 4. On a Mac computer that is connected to the network, launch Finder and select Go > Connect to Server. The Connect to Server window opens. 5. Type smb://routerlogin.net and click the Connect button. 6. When prompted, select the Registered User radio button. 7. Enter admin for the name and the router admin password for the password and click the Connect button. A list of USB devices connected to your router displays. 8. From the Apple menu, select System Preferences.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router 5. To specify a name for the workgroup that the USB device or devices are members of, in the Workgroup field, enter a name. By default, the name is Workgroup. The name works only in an operating system that supports NetBIOS, such as Microsoft Windows. If you are using a Windows workgroup rather than a domain, the workgroup name is displayed here. The router supports the following access methods: • Network Neighborhood/MacShare.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Use FTP Within the Network File Transfer Protocol (FTP) lets you send and receive large files faster. To set up FTP access: 1. Launch a web browser from a computer or mobile device that is connected to the router network. 2. Enter http://www.routerlogin.net. A login window opens. 3. Enter the router admin user name and password. The user name is admin. The password is the one that you specified the first time that you logged in.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router The Available Networks Folder section shows the following information for an attached USB device: • Share Name. The default share name is USB_Storage (as in \\readyshare\USB_Storage). • Read Access and Write Access. Show 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.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Change a Network Folder on a USB Storage Device You can change network folders on a USB storage device that is connected to a router USB port. To change a network folder: 1. Launch a web browser from a computer or mobile device that is connected to the router network. 2. Enter http://www.routerlogin.net. A login window opens. 3. Enter the router admin user name and password. The user name is admin.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router By default the Yes radio button is selected. This setting lets you connect and access all your USB devices. 6. Click the Approved Devices button. The USB Drive Approved Devices page displays. 7. In the Available USB Devices table, select the USB device that you want to approve. If a single USB device is attached to the router, the radio button is selected automatically. 8. Click the Add button. The USB device is added to the Approved USB Devices table. 9.
Use Dynamic DNS to Access USB Storage Devices Through the Internet 11 With Dynamic DNS, you can use the Internet to access USB storage devices that are attached to the router’s USB ports when you are not home.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Set Up Your Personal FTP Server With a customized free URL, you can use FTP to access your network when you are not home through Dynamic DNS. Before you set up your FTP server, register for a NETGEAR Dynamic DNS (DDNS) service account and specify the account settings. Note The router supports only basic DDNS, and the login and password might not be secure. You can use DDNS with a VPN tunnel for a secure connection.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router If your ISP assigns a private WAN IP address (such as 192.168.x.x or 10.x.x.x), the Dynamic DNS service does not work because private addresses are not routed on the Internet. Set Up a New Dynamic DNS Account To set up Dynamic DNS and register for a free NETGEAR account: 1. Launch a web browser from a computer or mobile device that is connected to the router network. 2. Enter http://www.routerlogin.net. A login window opens. 3.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router The Dashboard displays. 4. Select Settings > Advanced Settings > Dynamic DNS. The Dynamic DNS page displays. 5. Select the Use a Dynamic DNS Service check box. 6. From the Service Provider menu, select your provider. 7. Select the Yes radio button. The page adjusts and displays the Show Status, Cancel, and Apply buttons. 8. In the Host Name field, type the host name (sometimes called the domain name) for your account. 9.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Access USB Storage Devices Through the Internet If you connect a USB storage device to the router, you can access the USB device through the Internet when you are not home. After you gain access, you can use FTP to share files on the USB device. Access USB Storage Devices From a Remote Computer To access USB storage devices from a remote computer: 1. Launch a web browser on a computer that is not on your home network. 2.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router 10. From the Write Access menu, select admin. 11. Click the Apply button. Your settings are saved and the Edit Network Folder window closes. Use FTP to Access Storage Devices Through the Internet If you attached a storage device to the router, before you can access the storage device through the Internet with FTP, you must first set it up (see Set Up FTP Access Through the Internet on page 136).
Use the Router as a Media Server 12 The router comes set up to work as a ReadyDLNA media server. You can set up the router to play music from iTunes server and media from TiVo.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Specify ReadyDLNA Media Server Settings By default, the router functions as a ReadyDLNA media server, which lets you view movies and photos on DLNA/UPnP AV–compliant media players, such as Xbox360, Playstation, and NETGEAR media players. To specify media server settings: 1. Launch a web browser from a computer or mobile device that is connected to the router network. 2. Enter http://www.routerlogin.net. A login window opens. 3.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router iPad. You can also use the Apple Remote app from an iPhone or iPad to play music on any AirPlay devices, such as Apple TV or AirPlay-supported receivers. Supported music file formats are MP3, AAC, and FLAC. The maximum number of music files supported is 10,000. Set Up the Router’s iTunes Server With iTunes You can play music from a USB storage device that is connected to your router with iTunes on your Windows-based or Mac computer using Home Sharing.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Set Up the Router’s iTunes Server With the Remote App You can play music from a USB storage device that is connected to your router on your iPhone or iPad using the Apple Remote app. To set up the router’s iTunes server to play music on your iPhone or iPad: 1. Connect a USB storage device to a USB port on your router. 2. If your USB storage device uses a power supply, connect it. You must use the power supply when you connect the USB storage device to the router.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Set Up the Router to Work With TiVo You can set up your TiVo to access media files stored on a USB storage device that is connected to your router. The TiVo must be on the same network as the router. This feature supports the following file formats: • Video. See and play mpeg1, and mpeg2 files. • Music. See and play MP3 files. • Pictures. View images in .jpg format.
Share a USB Printer 13 The ReadySHARE Printer utility lets you share a USB printer that is connected to the USB port on your router. You can share this USB printer among the Windows-based and Mac computers on your network. For more information about the features available in the NETGEAR USB Control Center, see the ReadySHARE Printer User Manual, which is available at http://downloadcenter.netgear.com.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Install the Printer Driver and Cable the Printer Some USB printer manufacturers (for example, HP and Lexmark) request that you do not connect the USB cable until the installation software prompts you to do so. To install the driver and cable the printer: 1. On each computer on your network that shares the USB printer, install the driver software for the USB printer. If you cannot locate the printer driver, contact the printer manufacturer. 2.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Some firewall software, such as Comodo, blocks the NETGEAR USB Control Center from accessing the USB printer. If you do not see the USB printer displayed on the page, you can disable the firewall temporarily to allow the utility to work. 5. Select the printer and click the Connect button. The printer status changes to Manually connected by Mycomputer. Now only the computer that you are using can use this printer. 6. Click the Disconnect button.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router View or Change the Status of a Printer To view or change the status: 1. Click the NETGEAR USB Control Center icon . The NETGEAR USB Control Center page displays. The Status column shows the status for each device: • Available. No print jobs are in progress. You can use the USB printer from any computer in the network. • Connected. Your computer is connected to the printer and will be released when your print job is done. • Manually Connected by.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router 3. Click the Network Scanner button. 4. If a Select a Device window opens, select the scanner and click the OK button. The scanner window opens so that you can use the USB printer for scanning. Change NETGEAR USB Control Center Settings You can stop the NETGEAR USB Control Center from starting automatically when you log in to Windows. You can also change the language and specify the time-out to release the printer connection.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Specify the USB Control Center Time-Out Specify the time-out to release the printer connection. To specify the time-out: 1. Click the NETGEAR USB Control Center icon . 2. Select Tools > Configuration. The NETGEAR USB Control Center page displays. 3. In the Timeout field, type the number of minutes. The time-out is the number of minutes that a computer holds its connection to the printer when the connection isn’t being used. 4. Click the OK button.
Use VPN to Access Your Network 14 You can use OpenVPN software to remotely access your router using virtual private networking (VPN). This chapter describes how to set up VPN service in the router and use VPN access.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Set Up a VPN Connection A virtual private network (VPN) lets you use the Internet to securely access your network when you are not home. This type of VPN access is called a client-to-gateway tunnel. The computer is the client, and the router is the gateway that provides the VPN service. To use the VPN feature, you must log in to the router and enable VPN, and you must install and run VPN client software on the computer.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Note By default, the Auto radio button is selected, which lets the router use an automatic detection system that enables VPN access only for necessary services and sites and might not include full Internet access. For information about the other options, see Allow VPN Client Internet Access in the Router on page 157 and Block VPN Client Internet Access in the Router on page 157. 8. Click the Apply button. Your settings are saved.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router 10. To install the OpenVPN client utility on your computer, click the openVPN-install-xxx.exe file. 11. Click the Next button. 12. Read the License Agreement and click the I Agree button. 13. Leave the check boxes selected as shown in the previous figure, and click the Next button. 14. To specify the destination folder, click the Browse button, select a destination folder, and click the Next button. 15. Click the Install button.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router The window displays the progress of the installation and then displays the final installation window. 16. Click the Finish button. 17. Unzip the configuration files that you downloaded in Step 6 and copy them to the folder in which the OpenVPN client utility is installed on your computer. If your device is a Windows 64-bit system, the OpenVPN client utility is installed by default in the C:\Program files\OpenVPN\config\ folder. 18.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router 4. Select Settings > Advanced Settings > VPN Service. The VPN Service page displays. 5. If you did not yet enable VPN service, select the Enable VPN Service check box and click the Apply button. Your settings are saved. For information about the advanced configuration options on this page, see Specify VPN Service in the Router on page 150. 6. Click the FOR MACOSX button to download the OpenVPN configuration files. 7. Visit https://tunnelblick.net/index.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Note that when you open the .ovpn file, a list of apps displays. Select the OpenVPN Connect app to open the .ovpn file. For more information about using OpenVPN on your iOS device, visit http://www.vpngate.net/en/howto_openvpn.aspx#ios. Install OpenVPN Software on an Android Device You must install this software on each Android device that you plan to use for VPN connections to your router. To install VPN client software on an Android device: 1.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router same LAN IP scheme, when the VPN tunnel is established, you cannot access your home router or your home network with the OpenVPN software. The default LAN IP address scheme for the router is 192.x.x.x. The most common IP schemes are 192.x.x.x, 172.x.x.x, and 10.x.x.x. If you experience a conflict, change the IP scheme either for your home network or for the network with the client VPN computer.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Then router lets you use a VPN connection to access your own Internet service when you are away from home. You might want to do this if you travel to a geographic location that does not support all the Internet services that you use at home. For example, your Netflix account might work at home but not in a different country.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router access. You can change the settings to allow access to your home network only and block access to the Internet. To allow VPN clients to access your home network only: 1. Launch a web browser from a computer or mobile device that is connected to the router network. 2. Enter http://www.routerlogin.net. A login window opens. 3. Enter the router admin user name and password. The user name is admin. The password is the one that you specified the first time that you logged in.
Use VPN to Access An External Network 15 You can use the router as a VPN client (as opposed to a VPN server) to let devices on the router s network securely access an external network using virtual private networking (VPN). This chapter describes how to set up the router as a VPN client and use VPN access. For information about using the router as a VPN server, see Use VPN to Access Your Network on page 149.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Set Up a VPN Client Connection In addition to using a virtual private network (VPN) to securely access your own network over the Internet when you are not home (see Use VPN to Access Your Network on page 149), you can also set up the router as a VPN client to let devices on the router s network securely access an external network, while protection your own network identity and preventing a distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router 4. Select Settings > Advanced Settings > VPN Client. The VPN Client page displays. 5. Select the Enable VPN Client check box. The VPN settings on the page becomes available. 6. If you do not own a license a predefined VPN services, do the following: a. From the VPN Server menu, select a VPN provider. b. Click the Buy a License link. A provider web page opens that lets you choose a price plan and purchase a license. c. Follow the instructions on the web page. d.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Disconnect the Router From the VPN Server To disconnect the router from the VPN server and terminate the VPN connection: 1. Launch a web browser from a computer or mobile device that is connected to the router network. 2. Enter http://www.routerlogin.net. A login window opens. 3. Enter the router admin user name and password. The user name is admin. The password is the one that you specified the first time that you logged in. The user name and password are case-sensitive.
Manage and Customize Internet Traffic Rules for Ports 16 You can use port forwarding and port triggering to set up rules for Internet traffic.You need networking knowledge to set up these features.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Manage Port Forwarding to a Local Server for Services and Applications If your home network includes a server, you can allow certain types of incoming traffic to reach the server. For example, you might want to make a local web server, FTP server, or game server visible and available to the Internet. The router can forward incoming traffic with specific protocols to computers on your local network.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Add a Custom Port Forwarding Service or Application The router comes with default services and applications that you can use for port forwarding. If the service or application is not predefined, you can add a custom port forwarding service or application. To add a custom service or application: 1. Find out which port number or range of numbers the application uses.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Change a Port Forwarding Service or Application To change a port forwarding service or application: 1. Launch a web browser from a computer or mobile device that is connected to the router network. 2. Enter http://www.routerlogin.net. A login window opens. 3. Enter the router user name and password. The user name is admin. The password is the one that you specified the first time that you logged in. The user name and password are case-sensitive. The Dashboard displays. 4.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Application Example: Make a Local Web Server Public If you host a web server on your local network, you can use port forwarding to allow web requests from anyone on the Internet to reach your web server. To make a local web server public: 1. Assign your web server either a fixed IP address or a dynamic IP address using DHCP address reservation. In this example, your router always gives your web server an IP address of 192.168.1.33. 2.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router router temporarily opens the incoming port or ports that you specify for your port triggering service or application and forwards that incoming traffic to that destination. Port forwarding creates a static mapping of a port number or range of ports to a single local computer. Port triggering can dynamically open ports to any computer when needed and close the ports when they are no longer needed.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Your settings are saved, the page closes, the Port Triggering page displays again, and the service or application is added to the Port Triggering Portmap Table. You must make sure that port triggering is enabled before the router can use port triggering. See Enable Port Triggering and Specify the Time-Out Value on page 169.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router The user name is admin. The password is the one that you specified the first time that you logged in. The user name and password are case-sensitive. The Dashboard displays. 4. Select Settings > Advanced Settings > Port Triggering. The Port Triggering page displays. 5. In the Port Triggering Portmap Table, select the radio button next to the service or application name. 6. Click the Edit Service button. The Port Triggering - Services page displays. 7. Change the settings.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Disable Port Triggering By default, port triggering is enabled. You can disable port triggering temporarily without removing any port triggering services or applications from the Port Triggering Portmap Table. To disable port triggering: 1. Launch a web browser from a computer or mobile device that is connected to the router network. 2. Enter http://www.routerlogin.net. A login window opens. 3. Enter the router admin user name and password. The user name is admin.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router 5. The IRC server sends a return message to your router using the NAT-assigned source port (for example, port 33333) as the destination port and sends an “identify” message to your router with destination port 113. 6. When your router receives the incoming message to destination port 33333, it checks its session table to see if a session is active for port number 33333.
Troubleshooting 17 This chapter provides information to help you diagnose and solve problems you might experience with your router. If you do not find the solution here, check the NETGEAR support site at netgear.com/support for product and contact information.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Quick Tips This section describes tips for troubleshooting some common problems. Sequence to Restart Your Network If you must restart your network, follow this sequence: 1. Turn off and unplug the modem. 2. Turn off the router. 3. Plug in the modem and turn it on. Wait two minutes. 4. Turn on the router and wait two minutes. Check Ethernet Cable Connections If your device does not power on, make sure that the Ethernet cables are securely plugged in.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Standard LED Behavior When the Router Is Powered On After you turn on power to the router, verify that the following sequence of events occurs: 1. When power is first applied, verify that the Power LED is lit. 2. After about two minutes, verify the following: • • • The Power LED is solid white. The Internet LED is solid white. The WiFi LED is solid white unless you turned off the WiFi radios. Power LED Is Off or Blinking This could occur for a number of reasons.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router When you connect the router’s Internet port to a modem, use the cable that was supplied with the modem. This cable can be a standard straight-through Ethernet cable or an Ethernet crossover cable. WiFi LEDs Are Off If the WiFi LED, 2.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router To check the WAN IP address: 1. Launch a web browser from a computer or mobile device that is connected to the router network. 2. Select an external site such as netgear.com. 3. Type http://www.routerlogin.net. A login window opens. 4. Enter the router user name and password. The user name is admin. The password is the one that you specified the first time that you logged in. The user name and password are case-sensitive. The Dashboard displays. 5.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router If your computer obtains its information from the router by DHCP, reboot the computer and verify the gateway address. • You might be running login software that is no longer needed. If your ISP provided a program to log you in to the Internet (such as WinPoET), you no longer need to run that software after installing your router. If you use Internet Explorer, select Tools > Internet Options, click the Connections tab, and select Never dial a connection.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router of the router and computer or mobile device must match exactly. The default SSID and password are on the router label (see Router Label on page 15). • Does the computer or mobile device that you are using find your WiFi network? If not, check the WiFi LED on the front of the router.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router • Check to see that IP address of your router is listed as the default gateway for your computer. If DHCP assigns the IP configuration of your computers, this information is not visible in your computer Network Control Panel. Verify that the IP address of the router is listed as the default gateway.
Supplemental Information This appendix includes technical information about your router.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Factory Settings You can return the router to its factory settings. Use the end of a paper clip or a similar object to press and hold the Reset button on the back of the router for up to 30 seconds or until the Power LED starts blinking amber. The router resets and returns to the factory configuration settings shown in the following table. Table 3.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Table 3. Router model XR500 factory default settings (Continued) Feature General WiFi settings Default Setting WiFi communication Enabled Smart Connect Enabled 20/40 MHz Coexistence Enabled SSID name See router label Broadcast SSID Enabled Security WPA2-PSK (AES) RF channel 2.4 GHz: Auto 5 GHz for products for world wide use: Channel 44 5 GHz for products for use in North America: Channel 153 Operating mode 2.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Technical Specifications Table 4. Router model XR500 technical specifications Feature Description Data and routing protocols TCP/IP, RIP-1, RIP-2, DHCP, PPPoE, PPTP, Bigpond, Dynamic DNS, UPnP, and SMB Power adapter North America: 100–240V, 50/60 Hz input UK, Australia: 100–240V, 50/60 Hz, input Europe: 100–240V, 50/60 Hz input All regions (output): 13V/3.5A DC output Dimensions 12.7 x 9.6 x 2.2 in. (321.9 x 243.7 x 55.0 mm) Weight 1.
XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router Table 4. Router model XR500 technical specifications (Continued) Feature Description Operating frequency range 2.4 GHz band: • US: 2.412–2.462 GHz • Europe: 2.412–2.472 GHz • Australia: 2.412–2.472 GHz • Japan: 2.412–2.472 GHz 5 GHz band: 802.11 security • US: 5.18–5.24 + 5.745–5.825 GHz and DFS (5.25–5.35 + 5.50–5.70) • Europe: 5.18–5.24 GHz and DFS (5.25–5.35 + 5.50–5.70) • Australia: 5.18–5.24 + 5.745–5.825 GHz and DFS (5.25–5.35 + 5.50–5.
