Motorola MG7540 User manual

User Manual
16x4 Cable Modem
plus
AC1600 Wireless
Router
MG7540

NOTICE
This document contains proprietary information protected by copyright, and this Manual and all
the accompanying hardware, software, and documentation are copyrighted. No part of this
document may be photocopied or reproduced by mechanical, electronic, or other means in any
form.
The manufacturer does not warrant that the hardware will work properly in all environments and
applications, and makes no warranty or representation, either expressed or implied, with respect
to the quality, performance, merchantability, or fitness for a particular purpose of the software or
documentation. The manufacturer reserves the right to make changes to the hardware, software,
and documentation without obligation to notify any person or organization of the revision or
change.
All brand and product names are the trademarks of their respective owners.
© Copyright 2016 MTRLC LLC
All rights reserved.
SAFETY
This equipment is designed with the utmost care for the safety of those who install and use it.
However, special attention must be paid to the dangers of electric shock and static electricity when
working with electrical equipment. All guidelines of this and of the computer manufacture must
therefore be allowed at all times to ensure the safe use of the equipment.
CAUTION:
 Do not put the cable modem in water.
 Do not use the cable modem outdoors.
 Keep the cable modem in an environment that is between 0°C and 40°C (between 32°F
and 104°F).
 Do not place any object on top of the cable modem since this may cause overheating.
 Do not place the cable modem in a confined space that may cause overheating.
 Do not restrict the flow of air around the cable modem.
 MOTOROLA and MTRLC assume no liability for damage caused by any improper use of the
cable modem.
Table of Contents
Introduction 4
Quick Start 4
Alternate Ways to Connect Your Coax Cable 13
Connecting Devices to Your Cable Modem/Router 14
CONNECTING A DEVICE VIA ETHERNET ................................................................................. 14

CONNECTING A SMARTPHONE, TABLET OR OTHER WIRELESS DEVICE VIA WIRELESS ........................... 14
Setting up an HDTV, Streaming Media Device, or Other Device 16
Accessing the Configuration Manager by Using a Browser 17
Configuring Your MG7540 to Support Devices and Applications with Special
Requirements 23
FOR GAMES PLAYED ON GAME CONSOLES AND PCS, AND SECURITY CAMERAS .................................. 23
TO CREATE A PORT FORWARDING RULE ................................................................................ 26
Changing Wireless Settings 30
TO CHANGE THE NETWORK NAME AND PASSWORD ................................................................... 32
WIRELESS GUEST NETWORKS ............................................................................................ 32
Changing Firewall Settings 35
Tuning Wireless Performance 37
WI-FI MULTIMEDIA (WMM) ............................................................................................. 42
Parental Control 43
SETTING UP A BLACKLIST ................................................................................................. 45
SETTING UP A WHITELIST ................................................................................................. 47
SETTING UP TIMES WHEN INTERNET ACCESS IS ALLOWED AND NOT ALLOWED .................................. 49
Changing Your MG7540’s Username and Password, and Resetting to Factory
Defaults 56
CHANGING YOUR MG7540’S USERNAME AND PASSWORD .......................................................... 56
RESETTING TO FACTORY DEFAULTS ...................................................................................... 57
Configuring Alternate Wi-Fi Security Settings 58
ALTERNATIVES TO WPA2--WPA, WEP, AND RADIUS .............................................................. 58
Troubleshooting Tips 61
WHAT IF I CAN’T MAKE AN INTERNET CONNECTION RIGHT AFTER INSTALLATION? ............................... 61
WHAT IF MY MG7540 HAS BEEN WORKING THEN STOPS WORKING? .............................................. 61
WHAT IF I’M GETTING INTERNET SERVICE BUT MY SPEED IS DISAPPOINTING? ................................... 62
WHAT IF I'M TOLD THAT MY MG7540 ISN'T APPROVED BY MY CABLE SERVICE PROVIDER? .................... 62
WHAT IF I AM CONNECTED WIRELESSLY BUT MY CONNECTION SEEMS SLOW OR KEEPS DROPPING? ........... 62
WHAT IF I DON’T KNOW MY MG7540’S WIRELESS NETWORK NAMES/SSIDS OR SECURITY KEY/PASSWORD?
................................................................................................................................ 63
WHAT IF I THINK THAT WIRELESS DEVICES ARE INTERFERING WITH MY MG7540 WIRELESS ROUTER? ...... 63
Support 64
WE LIKE TO HELP. .......................................................................................................... 64
LIMITED WARRANTY ....................................................................................................... 64
Compliance 65

Introduction
The Motorola Model MG7540 is a 16x4 DOCSIS 3.0 cable modem with a built-in
AC1600 Wi-Fi router that has 4 Gigabit Ethernet ports. This model connects to
standard cable company Internet service. Model MG7540 can provide shared
Internet access to Ethernet-capable and Wi-Fi devices including computers,
smartphones, tablets, HDTVs, game consoles, security cameras, and streaming
media devices. The MG7540 is a dual-band Wi-Fi router, and supports clients that
operate on both the 2.4 and 5 GHz bands.
Basic Installation instructions for Model MG7540 are in the Quick Start that comes
with Model MG7540 and that is duplicated in Chapter 2 of this User Guide.
Model MG7540 has a Configuration Manager that provides a lot of technical
information about Model MG7540 and that tells you how to do some useful things
as summarized below. Please note that some users will never need to use the
Configuration Manager.
Chapter 3: Alternate Ways to Connect Your Coax Cable
Chapter 4: Connecting Devices to Your Cable Modem/Router
Chapter 5: Setting up an HDTV, Streaming Media Device, or Other Device
Chapter 6: Accessing the Configuration Manager by Using a Browser
Chapter 7: Configuring Your MG7540 to Support Devices and Applications with
Special Requirements, like Games Played on Game Consoles and PCs, and
Security Cameras
Chapter 8: Changing Wireless Settings
Chapter 9: Changing Firewall Settings
Chapter 10: Tuning Wireless Performance
Chapter 11: Parental Control
Chapter 12: Troubleshooting Tips
Quick Start

Packaged with your MG7540 modem/router
Power Cube Coax Wrench
Ethernet Cable Velcro
®
Cable Tie

Let’s get started
If you don’t have cable Internet service, please order that from your cable service
provider.
Now connect your MG7540 as shown on the next panel.
Connecting to a Coax Cable
Soon you’ll need to connect your MG7540 to a
“live” coax cable. Sometimes a cable will already
be available. Sometimes there’s a coax wall jack
available, and you connect to the jack with a coax
cable. Your MG7540 can also share a coax cable
attached to a TV by using a coax splitter.
-

ETHERNET (LAN 1-4)
You can connect a computer, HDTV,
game station, or other
Ethernet-capable device to any of
these 4 LAN ports.
WLAN button
Wi-Fi on/off button
WPS button
RESET
COAX
Connect a “live” coax cable to the
modem’s COAX connector as
discussed above. (Tighten the nut
so it’s finger tight. You may want to
use the supplied wrench. Make the
connection snug but not
over-tight.)
ON/OFF button
POWER
Connect the supplied power cube
between the power jack and an
electrical outlet.
Prepare to activate
By now you should have:

 Subscribed to cable Internet service.
 Connected your MG7540.
 Powered up your MG7540. To do this, the On/Off button needs to be On. Wait for
the green online connection light to stop flashing and remain solidly lit. This
may take up to 15 minutes.
You should have a recent cable bill handy because it has your account number and
you’ll probably need that.
If you’re asked for information about the MG7540, you can find this on the label on
the bottom of the MG7540.
Activate
For some service providers, you activate by calling them. Many service providers
including Comcast and Cox prefer that you activate by opening the Web browser
of a computer that’s plugged into one of the MG7540’s Ethernet ports.
If you don’t have a computer, you can use the Web browser of a Wi-Fi device such
as a smartphone or tablet. In that case you’ll need the unique Wireless Network
Names (SSIDs) and Password printed on the bottom of your MG7540. Note that
your MG7540 supports two Wi-Fi bands, and there are separate SSIDs for these
bands. The bands are 2.4 and 5 GHz. Both bands use the same Password by
default. You’ll use these in setting up your wireless device to connect to the
MG7540. Once you’ve connected, you can open the browser of that wireless
device.

For Comcast XFINITY Users Only :
If the activation page does not appear, please go to
www.xfinity.com/internetsetup for more information and to activate your
modem.
Here is a list of phone numbers for some major cable service
providers . (Note that this list is subject to change.)
Comcast 1 [phone]
Time Warner
1 [phone]
Bright House 1 [phone]
Suddenlink 1 [phone]
Cable One 1 [phone]
Cox 1 [phone]
RCN 1 [phone]
Once your MG7540 is activated either online or by phone, your
service provider will provision your MG7540 service. Typically this
takes less than 5 minutes, but in some cases this may take 30
minutes or longer to complete.
Try to browse the Web using a device connected via Ethernet or Wi-Fi to the
MG7540. If browsing works, Congratulations! Your MG7540 is working.
If your MG7540 is NOT working, see Troubleshooting Tips below.

Configuration Manager
Most MG7540 users never use the Configuration Manager. Here are some reasons
for using the Configuration Manager:
 You want to change the wireless router setup. For instance, maybe you’re
replacing a router and want to use your existing Wireless Network Name(s) and/or
Password(s) instead of the unique ones that come with the MG7540.
 You want to set up special Internet gaming settings.
 You want to set up parental controls including white lists and/or black lists for
certain users and times.
 You want to get performance information about the MG7540 modem and/or
built-in router. This can be helpful in optimizing wireless performance.
If you need to access the MG7540 Configuration Manager, open your Web
browser. Type http://192.168.0.1 in the address bar and press the Enter key.
In the login dialog box, type the following User Name and Password in lower case,
then click OK.
User Name: admin
Password: motorola
The status page will appear. If the Status page doesn’t appear, please see the
Troubleshooting Tips below.
For details about the Configuration Manager, please see Chapter 6 in this
manual.

Wireless Router
As noted before, the MG7540 has unique Wireless Network Names/SSIDs and a
unique WPA/WPA2 Wireless Security Key/Password printed on the MG7540’s
bottom label. If you don’t change these, you should set up your wireless devices to
work with these SSIDs and security key.
Note that wireless performance depends on a number of factors. Please keep
these things in mind:
 Where possible, put the MG7540 in a central place so that it’s not too far away
from your other wireless devices.
 Try to avoid interference from other wireless devices such as Bluetooth headsets
and stereos, and 2.4 GHz and/or 5 GHz cordless phones and base stations. Don’t
put the MG7540 close to these interfering devices.
 Sometimes it helps to change the MG7540 wireless channel frequencies to reduce
interference with neighbors’ wireless networks. This is discussed in the
Troubleshooting section.

Front Panel Lights
During Power up, the lights will blink for about a minute.
LIGHT COLOR DESCRIPTION
Power Green
ON:
MG7540 power on
OFF:
MG7540 power off
Upstream
Green or
Blue
Green Blinking: Ranging in progress
Gree
n ON:
C
onnected
on 1 channel
Blue Blinking:
Negotiating bonded channel(s)
†
Blue ON:
Bonded with 2 or more channels
OFF: Upstream not connected
Downstream
Green or
Blue
Green Blinking: Scanning for DS channel
Green ON:
Connected on 1 downstream channel
Blue Blinking:
Negotiating bonded channel(s)
†
Blue ON:
Bonded with 2 or more channels
Online Green
Blinking:
Trying to go online
ON: Online
OFF: Offline
1 2
3 4
Ethernet
LAN ports
Green or
Amber
Blinking: Ethernet data is flowing
Green:
Connected at highest LAN speed, 1 Gbps
Amber: Connected at 10 or 100 Mbps
OFF: No connection
2.4 GHz
WLAN
Green
Blinking: Data is flowing
ON: 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi is enabled
OFF: 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi is not enabled
5 GHz
WLAN
Green
Blinking: Data is flowing
ON: 5 GHz Wi-Fi is enabled
OFF: 5 GHz Wi-Fi is not enabled
WPS Green
Blinking: WPS is in discovery mode
ON: Light will remain solid after
WPS configuration is successful
† If a blue light blinks continuously, this indicates partial service (at least one designated channel has not completed
bonding). You should still get high Internet speeds, but your service provider may want to know so they can adjust
their network.

Alternate Ways to Connect Your Coax Cable
As summarized in the Quick Start, one important connection is the coaxial cable
connection that carries your cable Internet service to your MG7540. Here are the
main ways you can make that connection:
1) Use the loose end of an available “live” coaxial cable from your cable
service provider. Plug the loose end into the Coax jack of your cable
modem.
2) If there’s a “live” coax jack in your wall, connect a coax cable between that
jack and the Coax jack of your cable modem.
3) Use a “live” cable that’s plugged into one of your televisions. If you still
want cable TV to go to that TV set, you can get a coaxial splitter and two
cables of the right length as shown below.

Connecting Devices to Your Cable Modem/Router
You can connect computers, smartphones, tablets, game consoles, security
cameras, streaming media devices (like Roku, Chromecast & AppleTV),
Internet-enabled HDTVs and other devices to your cable modem/router.
You can connect these devices either with an Ethernet cable (a wired connection),
or via Wi-Fi (a wireless connection).
An Ethernet connection is normally a faster, more reliable connection than a
wireless connection. To make an Ethernet connection, you need a device with an
Ethernet connector and a cable to connect between that device and your cable
modem. In some cases, this may be impossible because of the location of the
devices. In those cases, or if the device doesn’t have an Ethernet connector, you
will need to create a wireless connection as described below.
Connecting a Device via Ethernet
To make the connection at the Ethernet-capable device, simply plug in one end of
the Ethernet cable to an Ethernet jack on the device. At the cable modem, plug
the other end of the cable into any of the cable modem’s LAN jacks. You can
connect up to four devices by using the four LAN jacks.
Connecting a Smartphone, Tablet or Other Wireless Device
via Wireless
You will need to enter one or both of your wireless network names (SSIDs) and

passwords into each client device that you want to connect to your network.
Typically, you should enter SSIDs and Passwords for both the 2.4 and 5 GHz bands
into client devices that support both bands. If you haven’t changed the factory
settings, you can find these on a label on the bottom of your modem’s stand. If
you have changed the network names and/or passwords, use your new values.
(See Chapter 8 if you want to change your wireless settings).
If you want to connect devices to a Guest Network, use the Network Name and
Password for that network. (See Chapter 8 if you want to set up a Guest
Network).
Wireless devices vary, but they all have a Wireless Settings area. There you should
first select the wireless network you want, namely the wireless network name or
Guest network name of the MG7540. Now enter the password for your wireless
network. Make sure to turn wireless ON on your client devices. Normally that’s all
you need to do.

Setting up an HDTV, Streaming Media Device, or
Other Device
A typical HDTV, for instance, has an Input or Setup section. Within that section
there’s normally a Network section. In that section you may need to specify that
you have an Ethernet connection if that’s how you connect to the MG7540. If you
want to connect wirelessly to the MG7540, you’ll need to select its wireless
network name and then enter its wireless password.

Accessing the Configuration Manager by Using a
Browser
Model MG7540 has a Configuration Manager that provides a lot of technical
information about Model MG7540 and that tells you how to do some useful things.
Please note that some users will never need to use the Configuration Manager.
You can access the Configuration Manager from a computer or any other device
that has a browser and that is connected via Ethernet or wirelessly to your cable
modem. If you will be changing wireless settings, it’s much better to use a device
that connects via Ethernet while you make these changes.
To access the Configuration Manager, do the following:
1) Open your browser.
2) Type 192.168.0.1 into your browser’s address bar and press Enter.

You should see this page:
3) Type admin in the Username field.
4) Type motorola in the Password field.

5) Click the Login button.

This should bring you to the Basic Status and Settings page shown below.
The Basic Status and Settings page gives you information about your Internet
connection, lets you view and modify your Wi-Fi privacy settings, and shows you
basic information about your cable modem’s addresses and software version. The
logout link lets you end your session with the Configuration Manager.
The Advanced button at the top of the page takes you to pages with more
extensive information and options to configure your cable modem/router.