netgear – The Net Gate

Netgear Nighthawk AC1900 R7000

AC1900 WiFi—600+1300 Mbps speeds

Simultaneous dual-band
Wireless AC, Wireless G, Wireless N
1 USB 3.0 port
4 Gigabit Ethernet (1000 Mbps) LAN Ports
64/128-bit WEP,WPA / WPA2,WPA-PSK / WPA2-PSK encryption
SPI-Firewall, NAT-Firewall

Netgear Firmware Version V1.0.9.34_10.2.36
GUI Language Version V1.0.7.6_2.1.38.1

Firmware Version: DD-WRT v3.0-r39960M kongac (06/08/19)
Kernel Version: Linux 4.4.180 #666 SMP Sat Jun 8 11:15:19 CEST 2019 armv7l

excellent performance and coverage – performs extremely well with dd-wrt firmware

Netgear’s firmware has well advanced with extra features for convenience and VPN support however wifi connection issues randomly may arise

Upgrade to dd-wrt firmware

This router has been upgraded from Netgear Firmware Version V1.0.9.34_10.2.36 to a dd-wrt firmware.

Please refer to the dd-wrt.com site for the detailed documentation and instructions.

Check also the articles on MyOpenRouter.com.

This R7000 model was initially flashed with the dd-wrt.K3_R7000.chk. Once this was succesfully completed and tested, it was upgraded to the Firmware Version: DD-WRT Kong Mod for NETGEAR R7000 (2018-05-31) (dd-wrt.K3_R7000_20180531). Subsequently the Kong Summer Update was applied (DD-WRT v3.0-r39960M kongac (06/08/19))

The dd-wrt firmware works stable and provides an equal perfomance as the stock firmware but with more features for wireless channel controls and use of VPNs. The user interface is the big drawback and is not recommended for novice users.

Netgear GS108Ev1

Netgear ProSAFE Plus 8-port Switch – GS108Ev1

8 Gigabit Ethernet ports deliver up to 2000Mbps of dedicated, non-blocking bandwidth per port
Small and silent desktop form factor
VLAN and QoS support

Netgear EX6100 – AC750 WiFi Range Extender

802.11ac, Dual Band, Gigabit, 1-port, Wall-plug, External Antennas

tedious setup but once configured correctly it works well with the NETGEAR R6300 router – stable connections

works well as extender for the Telenet as well as the Proximus/Scarlet residential router in Belgium

use the WPS (Wifi Protected Set-up) function to synchronise

NETGEAR R6300 Dual Band WiFi 802.11AC Router

AC1750 WiFi—450+1300 Mbps speeds

Broadcom BCM5300 chip rev 1
5GHz: IEEE^® 802.11 a/n/ac
2.4GHz: IEEE^® 802.11 b/g/n
2 USB Ports: one USB 3.0 and one USB 2.0 port
4 10/100/1000Mbps LAN Ports
64/128-bit WEP,WPA / WPA2,WPA-PSK/ WPA2-PSK encryption

Firmware Version: DD-WRT v24-sp2 (04/17/14) kongac – build 23900M
Kernel Version: Linux 3.11.10 #109 Thu Apr 17 20:39:01 CEST 2014 mips

Works well with Windows XP and Windows 7 and 10 clients, OS X, Android, iOS, Blackberry and Playstations. USB keys may get hot when remained inserted for a long period. Supports three simultaneous networks, including a guest network. Great network performance for speed and coverage.

performs extremely well with dd-wrt firmware

Upgrade to dd-wrt firmware

This router has been upgraded from Netgear Firmware Version V1.0.2.78_1.0.58 to a dd-wrt firmware.

Please refer to the dd-wrt.com site for the detailed documentation and instructions.

Check also the articles on MyOpenRouter.com (Downloads are here).

The key to a successful upgrade is to reset the router before and after each step. Hence, after each step, the router will restore its default values. This R6300 V1 model was initially installed with the Kong K3-AC version. Once this was succesfully completed and tested, it was upgraded to the Firmware Version: DD-WRT v24-sp2 (10/06/14) kongac – build 25015M-SP1. Later I tried with DD-WRT v3.0-r40672 giga (08/17/19) but found it unstable and returned to DD-WRT v24-sp2 (04/17/14) kongac.

Read also The Silicon Underground articles about DD-WRT settings recommendations.

Wireless settings used, based on other user’s recommendations:

Basic Settings:
Regulatory Domain – EUROPE (change this to your country’s setting)
Regulatory Mode – off
TPC Mitigation Factor – 0

wl0 (2.4ghz)

Wireless Mode – AP

Wireless Network Mode – Mixed

Wireless Channel – Auto (a weekly reboot selects the best for the area)

Channel Width – 20mhz

wl1 (5 ghz)
Wireless Mode – AP
Wireless Network Mode – AC-Only
Wireless Channel – 108 (DD-wrt exposes the middle frequencies under 149 and above 48 as selectable [per DFS preemption])
Channel Width – 80mhz
Extension Channel – Upper Lower (depends on the channel you use. lower lower for above 149, upper upper for below 48 )
Optimize Multicast Traffic – enabled
Explicit Beamforming – enabled
Implicit Beamforming – enabled
Airtime Fairness – disabled (this currently causes wireless dropouts over time)

Wireless Security:
WPA2 Personal with AES only (unless you run a RADIUS server or something, in which case choose enterprise..)

Advanced Settings (both bands):

Basic Rate – All
Transmission Rate – Auto
CTS Protection Mode – Auto
Frame Burst – Enabled

Beacon Interval – 100 (set this a bit higher than 100 to save mobile clients some battery. Not too high so that wireless client’s don’t drop out from missed beacons)
DTIM interval – 1 (set this higher for battery saving of mobile clients, but since it works in tandem with beacon interval, it can cause drop outs if set too high as well)
Fragmentation Threshold – 2346
RTS Threshold – 2347
Max Associated Clients – 128 (Personal preference. Say you want to restrict a certain number of IP’s for wired clients only. This setting would prevent wireless clients from taking all the IP addresses in the address range from the DHCP server)

AP Isolation – Disabled
TX Antenna – Auto
RX Antenna – auto
Preamble – Long (Long is for compatibility with older wireless devices. Most everything within 15 years works with short)
Shortslot Override – Short (another compatiblity setting that affects G-clients in relation to older B-clients. Reduces the time in between sending packets to clients after collisions)
TX Power- Auto (This will change as needed for the client while obeying regulatory domain)
Bluetooth Coexistence Mode – Preemption (tells a bluetooth client which 2.4ghz channel the router is using to avoid transmitting on that frequency)
Wireless GUI access – enabled (else your wireless clients can’t configure the router)

Radio Time Restrictions – Disabled (personal preference)

WMM Support – Enabled (Wireless-N and newer require this for higher transmission rates)
No-Acknowledgement – Disabled (disable this if you are getting frequent throughput drops from a noisy wireless environment)

Configure a Guest WiFi network with dd-wrt firmware

Refer to the the tutorial: ‘Guest WiFi + abuse control for beginners‘

My objective of a guest network is to offer isolated, yet protected, access to the Internet. Guest users should not have access to my private LAN. This can be achieved with the following settings:
Wireless Basic Settings (‘Virtual Interfaces’): AP isolation enabled.
Network Configuration: Unbridged, NAT enabled.
Enable Forced DNS Redirection and fill in the Optional DNS target field.
You will need to assign a dedicated network range and enable DHCP.

VPN added to the 2.4 GHz wireless network

Netgear wndr3700

Hardware Version WNDR3700

CPU Model: Atheros AR7161 rev 2 (0xaa)

Stock firmware: Netgear Firmware Version V1.0.16.98 – GUI Language Version V1.0.0.64

WiFi performance: N600 (300 Mbps + 300 Mbps) – 802.11n Dual Band Gigabit
Simultaneous dual band 2.4GHz & 5GHz
Five (5) 10/100/1000 (1 WAN and 4 LAN) Gigabit Ethernet ports with auto-sensing technology

This RangeMax™ Dual Band Wireless-N Gigabit Router offers shared access to an external USB storage device (ReadyShare™) and ReadyDLNA— for streaming videos, photos, and music to a wide range of networked media players.

While the router performs well, the USB storage device sharing is not flawless. It is recommended not to share too many files and, if possible to disable the media server.

performs extremely well with dd-wrt firmware

Firmware Version DD-WRT v3.0-r30082 (07/01/16)
Kernel Version: Linux 3.10.102 #25675 Fri Jul 1 04:34:55 CEST 2016 mips

Check also the articles on MyOpenRouter.com (Downloads are here).

Upgrade to dd-wrt firmware

These are the steps you may follow to migrate this WNDR3700 V1 model to a dd-wrt firmware.

Prepare for a roll-back and make a backup of your current (Netgear) firmware version and configuration. Keep note of the particular settings, like SSID, wireless security settings and router IP addresses. All your current settings will be lost.

Download from the dd-wrt.com site a copy of the firmware for first time installation. Look for version 07-01-2016-r30082 and select the file wndr3700-factory.img from the netgear-wndr3700 directory.

Connect your workstation to the router with an Ethernet cable (wired) and check if the connection is stable (disable your workstation wifi if appropriate).

Launch a web browser (I used Firefox 48.x) and logon to the router. Select (in Advanced; Administration) the Firmware Update option. Locate and highlight the wndr3700-factory.img file on your workstation and click Open > Upload. If you get a warning about installing an (older) version, you may ignore it and proceed.

Be patient and do not interrupt the process. Keep your browser open and keep an eye on the router leds. The process will take several minutes. The router will reboot after the firmware is uploaded (wait at least 1 minute after 100% is reached). The lights should flash, and eventually the status light should go solid green.

Check the Router Status page to confirm whether the new firmware is uploaded: open http://192.168.1.1 in your browser, and if a DD-WRT screen appears, the upgrade is complete and successful. If this is not the case, troubleshoot first your workstation’s IP address and if odds are against you, read the recovery instructions.

The next step is to restore your particular settings like router name, SSID, wireless security, LAN IP Subnet(s), DNS, etc. It is recommended to make intermediate copies of your configuration (go to the Administration tab and select Backup).

The most common WAN Connection Type setting is “Automatic Configuration – DHCP”

LAN

Firmware version DD-WRT v3.0-r30082 (07/01/16) works very well for me and offers a better performance for the basic router functions than the Netgear Firmware Version V1.0.16.98. You may need to get used to the GUI though. Read also KONG’s Wireless starters guide for first time dd-wrt users. A donation was made to show my appreciation for the developers 🙂

VPN Clients with dd-wrt firmware

Check my post for VPN Clients use.

Wireless AP configuration (with dd-wrt Firmware)

following settings do the job for me:

Wireless Mode: AP
SPI Firewall: enabled
Disable WAN connection
DHCP Server: Disabled

Local IP Address: <fixed ip in your router LAN IP range>
Gateway: <your router IP address>
Local DNS: <your router IP address>

Extend your wireless coverage (with Netgear Firmware)

Netgear Firmware Version V1.0.16.98

GUI Language Version V1.0.0.64

There are several ways to extend your wireless coverage at home. These are the onces that did the job for me.

The easiest way was to use the Netgear EX6100 – AC750 WiFi Range Extender.

A more challenging way was to use a TP-LINK TL WDR3600 . I made it work nicely by using a second subnet as explained in this article by Tom’s Guide (version 2). The Netgear and TP-LINK router settings are shown below:

Netgear (router 2) Basic Settings

Netgear Wireless Settings Overview

Netgear Wireless Settings Details

TP-LINK (router 1) Wireless Settings Details

Important notice: use different Channels for each router.

With the latest firmware, this router can also be used as a Wireless Access Point or Wireless Repeater. To make it work properly with your main router, you may need to tweak some of the Wireless settings, like the channels etc. To avoid conflicts, use static IP addresses on the WNDR3700 as Access Point (see example below):

WNDR3700_wap

In case of ‘total loss’ of control (i.e. your router does not reset to the factory settings), you can refer to these instructions (it did the job for me, anyway), which I found on the netgear forum:

Step 1: Setting Your Static IP AddressIt is important that you setup a static IP address on your computer. Navigate to: “Start” -> “Control Panel” -> “Network and Internet” -> “Network and Sharing Center” -> “Change adapter settings” (left side). Now right click on your local area connection and open up the properties window. Select “Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4)” and click on properties. Enter the following information then click “OK”.Quote:IP address: 192.168.1.2
Subnet mask: 255.255.255.0
Default gateway: <leave blank>
Preferred DNS server: <leave blank>
Alternate DNS server: <leave blank>

Step 2: Placing the Router Into Recovery ModeStart by turning off the router using the power button on the back of the device. Now, using the small object of your choice, press and hold the “Restore Factory Settings”, also known as the Reset button located on the bottom of the router (there is a red ring around it). While holding the rest button, turn the router back on. Continue to hold the reset button for approximately 45 seconds then release it.

** NOTE: Before you release the reset button, just be sure the power LED light on the router is flashing. If it isn’t, continue to hold it for about another 15 seconds until it is flashing.

Step 3: Enable the TFTP Client in Windows

If you are using Windows Vista or Windows 7, you will need to enable the TFTP client. To do this, navigate to: “Start” -> “Control Panel” -> “Programs” -> “Programs and Features” -> “Turn Windows features on or off” (left side). From there, scroll down until you spot “TFTP Client”. Check the box if it isnt already and click “OK”. Exit the control panel.

Note: I used the TFTP Util Client for Windows

Step 4: Flash the FirmwareStart by opening up a command prompt. From there you will want to type “cd desktop” in order to change your working directory to your desktop. Assuming of course that is where you saved the firmware download. Now for the fun bit. In the command window type:Quote:
tftp -i 192.168.1.1 put WNDR3700-V1.0.4.68NA.img** NOTE: Be sure to use the appropriate name of the file you are trying to flash. It may be a later version then the one I used as an example.

Step 5: The Waiting GameThis would be the perfect time to go grab a drink or hit the washroom. You need to be patient. Do not turn off, restart, unplug cables or otherwise interact with your router. It may take a little while; this is normal! Watch the power LED light on the front of the router. It should remain orange throughout the process. Once it is complete, it will turn green. At this point you may proceed to point your browser to “192.168.1.1” and continue to setup your router.

Netgear WPN802v2 – invalid security certificate

Using Firefox 3.0.x to connect to the Netgear Wireless Accesspoint WPN802v2, may fail due to an invalid security certificate error (see picture below):

Alert: <ip address> uses an ivalid security certificate

When this error occurs, you won’t be able to connect to the admin interface of the Wireless Accesspoint. I managed to fix this by creating a security exception in the Firefox Certificate Manager:

Select in ‘Tools‘ from the Menu bar, ‘Options’:

Select in the ‘Advanced’ tab – the ‘Encryption’ tab. Next, select ‘View Certificates‘.

In the Certificates Manager, select the ‘Servers’ tab. Next, select ‘Add Exception‘

Enter the IP Address of the Wireless Access Point in the ‘Add Security Exception’ window and select the ‘Get Certificate‘ button.

The Certificate Status will be displayed.

Select ‘Confirm Security Exception‘ and exit the Certificate Manager.

You should now be able to logon the Admin interface.

Netgear Wireless Access Point

netgearap The Netgear WPN802v2 is a powerful Wireless Access Point based on RangeMax Technology, supporting Centrino®, 802.11b, 802.11g and SuperG (108 Mbit/s). Works well in combination with the Thomson SpeedTouch 510 and Philips ADSL modem/router PSTN Blue/Brown and the Belgacom b-box/b-box2.

The default adress of the Access Point is http://192.168.0.231 (factory setting).

Works fine with Windows XP, Vista Home Premium and Windows 7.

Supports the WPA wireless clients authentication and encryption methods.

The ideal companion to extend your indoor wi-fi reach.

Check the ‘invalid security certificate‘ post.

Netgear Wireless Access Point

The default adress of the Access Point is http://192.168.0.231 (factory setting).

Works fine with Windows XP, Vista Home Premium and Windows 7.

Supports the WPA wireless clients authentication and encryption methods.

The ideal companion to extend your indoor wi-fi reach.

Check the ‘invalid security certificate‘ post.

Netgear ADSL Modem, Router and Wireless Access Point

netgear The Netgear DG834v2 (and DG834G) is a combined ADSL Modem, Router and Wireless Access Point.

The default adress of the Access Point is http://192.168.0.1 (factory setting).

Works fine with Windows XP, Vista Home Premium and Windows 7.

Supports the WPA wireless clients authentication and encryption methods.

Netgear ADSL Modem, Router and Wireless Access Point

netgear The Netgear DG834v2 (and DG834G) is a combined ADSL Modem, Router and Wireless Access Point.

The default adress of the Access Point is http://192.168.0.1 (factory setting).

Works fine with Windows XP, Vista Home Premium and Windows 7.

Supports the WPA wireless clients authentication and encryption methods.

Tag Archives: netgear