Netgear N150 Cable Router set up - help required

[Osem]

I've just been sold one of these for £30 by a clever sounding chap in Maplins who reckoned it'd easily solve my problems of setting up a very basic wired network to connect my 2 pcs via my standalone cable modem and give me wireless capability if/when I want it.

Having downloaded the 'manual', however, I'm a bit concerned that what he said was an easy task (and probably would be for him) won't be for me. The computers I want to connect are just a few feet apart so cable connections will be fine for now and once I feel more confident with all this I can explore the wi-fi stuff if I want to. The instructions seem to concentrate on setting up the wireless side (for obvious reasons) so I'm none the wiser about how to set this thing up for my requirements i.e. wired connections only. Do I have to go through the whole process and then disable wireless or can I go through a simpler procedure to set it up for wired connection only? Never having done any of this before it's a bit disconcerting and the jargon used throughout the manual is quite confusing. Since I rely on you guys to keep me in the 21st C (just) I don't want to cock everything up and then find I can't even get online to seek help.

So, any advice on how to set this thing up would be more than gratefully received.

Cheers as always.

[qasdfdsaq]

1) Plug PCs into router's LAN ports
2) Plug router into cable modem WAN port

Done.

[ZrByte]

Originally Posted by qasdfdsaq

1) Plug PCs into router's LAN ports
2) Plug router into cable modem WAN port

Done.

not forgetting the following steps....
0)power down modem.
3)power up modem and router.

[Osem]

Seriously guys, can it really be as simple as that? No need to use the supplied CD, configure things, set settings, enter codes, tweak, fiddle or faff about?.... The router has a wireless on/off button so when I connect everything and power the moden and router up will I need to switch the wireless off or won't it even be enabled at that point?

Oh one other question. The router comes with some ethenet cable to connect it to the cable modem I guess. I already have ethernet cable connecting that to this pc and presumably will need another length of the same for the other pc but can someone confirm what type I need.

Cheers

[ZrByte]

Originally Posted by Osem

Seriously guys, can it really be as simple as that? No need to use the supplied CD, configure things, set settings, enter codes, tweak, fiddle or faff about?.... The router has a wireless on/off button so when I connect everything and power the moden and router up will I need to switch the wireless off or won't it even be enabled at that point?

Oh one other question. The router comes with some ethenet cable to connect it to the cable modem I guess. I already have ethernet cable connecting that to this pc and presumably will need another length of the same for the other pc but can someone confirm what type I need.

Cheers

Its that simple if you just want to connect your wired devices. If you want to disable wireless in software or add a key (May already have one) to stop unauthorised use then it gets a little more complicated. Though if it has a hardware wireless on/off switch then it should be as simple as switching that to the off position if you don't want any wireless connectivity at all for now.

And the cabling you need is standard Cat 5 or 5e Ethernet. There aren't really different types anymore just different grades. And Cat 6 doesn't seem to offer any improvements over cat 5e that any home user would notice.

[Osem]

Cheers ZrByte

I've just been in contact with VM about my services and upgraded to 10mb BB. They're going to send me a free Netgear wireless router so I'll wait to get that in a few days, follow your setup advice and then, hopefully, just return the one I bought to Maplin.

TVM

[Osem]

Ahhhh..... The promised 'Netgear' router just arrived from VM and it turns out to be a D-Link DIR-615.....

There's no mention of simple wired connection via ethernet anywhere in the set-up manual, so can I assume the process is the same as above i.e. just turn everything off, connect the router to the cable modem and to the PC via one of its 4 ports then switch everything on starting from the modem and finishing with the PC?

When I then want to connect a second PC, is it just a case of turning off everything as above, connecting the second PC to another of the 4 router ports and then firing it all back up in sequence again? Once connected to the router, presumably each computer can access the web independently and at the same time as the others on the network.

Unlike the Netgear router, there's no simple wi-fi on/off button so do I assume connecting stuff as above doesn't activate the router's wi-fi side of things in the first place? If not, do I need to do something else to stop the router's wi-fi running away in the background when I don't need or want that? I'm just a tad worried about security issues etc.

Sorry to ask such simple questions but, when it comes to this stuff, simple is what I am...

[Peter_]

Originally Posted by Osem

Ahhhh..... The promised 'Netgear' router just arrived from VM and it turns out to be a D-Link DIR-615.....

I am shocked and surprised, Not.

Originally Posted by Osem

There's no mention of simple wired connection via ethernet anywhere in the set-up manual, so can I assume the process is the same as above i.e. just turn everything off, connect the router to the cable modem and to the PC via one of its 4 ports then switch everything on starting from the modem and finishing with the PC?

Connect the router to the cable modem and to the PC via one of its 4 numbered ports then you go online by opening a browser and in the address bar you put 192.168.0.1 and press enter/return, you will then be asked for a username which is admin and password which you leave blank, and then click login and they will be presented with a Dlink screen on the left chose wireless setup and then go to manual setup at the bottom and you will be presented with the setup screen

At the top we have Wi-Fi Protected Setup also known as WCN2, remove the Enable Pin tick and then go the Wireless Network Settings section and go to the box with the SSID which by default will be dlink and change it to one of your own choice.

Then click on the security options drop down and choose WPA/WPA2 wireless security enhanced, then the Network key box will appear and in here they enter a password with a minimum length of 8 characters then click save settings and wait for it to finish.

You can now look for their newly named network and connect using their password.

You should now be connected and it should have taken between 5 and 10 minutes to achieve this and the disk will make a nice coaster.

[Osem]

Originally Posted by Masque

I am shocked and surprised, Not.



Connect the router to the cable modem and to the PC via one of its 4 numbered ports then you go online by opening a browser and in the address bar you put 192.168.0.1 and press enter/return, you will then be asked for a username which is admin and password which you leave blank, and then click login and they will be presented with a Dlink screen on the left chose wireless setup and then go to manual setup at the bottom and you will be presented with the setup screen

At the top we have Wi-Fi Protected Setup also known as WCN2, remove the Enable Pin tick and then go the Wireless Network Settings section and go to the box with the SSID which by default will be dlink and change it to one of your own choice.

Then click on the security options drop down and choose WPA/WPA2 wireless security enhanced, then the Network key box will appear and in here they enter a password with a minimum length of 8 characters then click save settings and wait for it to finish.

You can now look for their newly named network and connect using their password.

You should now be connected and it should have taken between 5 and 10 minutes to achieve this and the disk will make a nice coaster.

Thanks Masque! Sorry but I don't understand much of that. Do I have to really do all that just to connect my PCs with wires? It's all that stuff that I wanted to avoid and I won't be using wireless at all. Is what I was told about setting up the Netgear router (with wired connections only) wrong? If not I am tempted just to use that router as installing it seems a lot simpler.

Cheers.

[Peter_]

The router has 5 ports on the back, one is blue and connects to the modem, the other four are grey and numbered 1 to 4 you connect any of these to the PC and now reboot the modem and wait until it settles after 2 minutes.

Then go online with the PC and click this link http://192.168.0.1/ you will then be asked for a username which is admin and password which you leave blank, and then click login and they will be presented with a Dlink screen on the left chose wireless setup and then go to manual setup at the bottom and you will be presented with the setup screen

At the top we have Wi-Fi Protected Setup also known as WCN2, remove the Enable Pin tick and then go the Wireless Network Settings section and go to the box with the SSID which by default will be dlink and change it to one of your own choice like Osem1234.

Then click on the security options drop down and choose WPA/WPA2 wireless security enhanced, then the Network key box will appear and in here they enter a network key/password with a minimum length of 8 characters then click save settings and wait for it to finish.

You can now look for their newly named network with the other machines and connect using the network key/password.

Try it you will be surprised at how easy it is to set up.

[ZrByte]

Originally Posted by Osem

When I then want to connect a second PC, is it just a case of turning off everything as above, connecting the second PC to another of the 4 router ports and then firing it all back up in sequence again? Once connected to the router, presumably each computer can access the web independently and at the same time as the others on the network.

You only have to power down the router and modem the first time you connect them together. Plugging other devices into the router wont require switching them off.
Unfortunately switching off the wireless or setting a key will require you to do what masque said unless the DIR-615 has a default random key or detachable antennas. (Though taking off the antennas doesn't stop access, just reduces the range and eliminates outdoor signal almost altogether).

[Peter_]

Originally Posted by ZrByte

You only have to power down the router and modem the first time you connect them together. Plugging other devices into the router wont require switching them off.
Unfortunately switching off the wireless or setting a key will require you to do what masque said unless the DIR-615 has a default random key or detachable antennas. (Though taking off the antennas doesn't stop access, just reduces the range and eliminates outdoor signal almost altogether).

The D Link DIR615 is an open network by default and setting up security is a must as the first job.

I would never use the disk as it makes a much better coaster which I tell all callers.

[Osem]

Thanks so much for your patience Masque and ZrByte.

Just to be clear then, if I want to use the D-Link router from Virgin for purely wired use I need to follow Masque's instructions to set it all up as he described and then switch off wireless once everything else is running?

However, if I want to use the Netgear, wired only, I don't need to worry about set up discs, I just turn everything off, connect up the various ethernet cables then turn it all back on again as ZrByte wrote and just use the router's wi-fi on/off button to disable the wireless function?

If I do either of the above wired only options, when I power up the PC will it just connect to the internet when I click on the IE icon or do I have to do something else first?

Oh and just in case I manage to cock it all up and cannot connect can I just turn everything off, unplug the new router and restore my current PC to cable modem via ethernet connection to get back online or will I have to fiddle about with my computer/modem settings somewhere first?

TVM

[Peter_]

Originally Posted by Osem

Thanks so much for your patience Masque and ZrByte.

Just to be clear then, if I want to use the D-Link router from Virgin for purely wired use I need to follow Masque's instructions to set it all up as he described and then switch off wireless once everything else is running?

However, if I want to use the Netgear, wired only, I don't need to worry about set up discs, I just turn everything off, connect up the various ethernet cables then turn it all back on again as ZrByte wrote and just use the router's wi-fi on/off button to disable the wireless function?

If I do either of the above wired only options, when I power up the PC will it just connect to the internet when I click on the IE icon or do I have to do something else first?

Oh and just in case I manage to cock it all up and cannot connect can I just turn everything off, unplug the new router and restore my current PC to cable modem via ethernet connection to get back online or will I have to fiddle about with my computer/modem settings somewhere first?

TVM

My instructions give you wired and wireless access and you can just remove and reboot everything to get online.

Try the D Link set up above and you will be surprised how easy it is or just let your son do it for you.

HI...
I have a prepaid wireless broadband(4 a lappy) but have trouble most days getting connected. Will a wireless broadband router(booster) aid reception.
I've tried sittin' near windows-it don't work...};-)
Thanx 4any replies...
T1.