RFNet APRT-2801 User manual

RFNET TECHNOLOGIES PTE LTD
USER MANUAL
RFNet 802.11g Wireless Router
With Wireless Network Storage Sharing
APRT-2801
Revision : 1-15
Updated: 04 Oct 2006

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CONTENT PAGE
1IMPORTANT NOTE .................................................................................................4
2INTRODUCTION.......................................................................................................5
T HE P RODUCT ....................................................................................................................5
P RODUCT F EATURES ..........................................................................................................5
2PACKAGE CONTENTS ...........................................................................................6
C ONTENTS OF P ACKAGE ....................................................................................................6
S YSTEM R EQUIREMENTS FOR C ONFIGURATION .................................................................6
3CONNECTIONS.........................................................................................................7
4LED ..............................................................................................................................7
5BASIC IP NETWORKING .......................................................................................8
W IRELESS LAN B ASICS .....................................................................................................9
6GETTING STARTED..............................................................................................11
7CONFIGURATION WIZARD................................................................................14
8CONFIGURATION MENU ....................................................................................19
S YSTEM S UMMARY > C ONFIGURATION ............................................................................19
S YSTEM S UMMARY > A SSOCIATIONS ...............................................................................20
S YSTEM S UMMARY > S TATISTICS ....................................................................................20
S YSTEM S UMMARY > S ITE S CAN .....................................................................................20
B ASIC > SNTP S ETTING ...................................................................................................20
B ASIC > LAN S ETTING ....................................................................................................21
B ASIC > WAN S ETTING ...................................................................................................21
B ASIC > MAC CLONE....................................................................................................23
W IRELESS > B ASIC S ETTING ............................................................................................24
S ECURITY > O PEN -S YSTEM /S HARED KEY ........................................................................25
S ECURITY > WPA-PSK...................................................................................................26
S ECURITY > WPA............................................................................................................26
S ECURITY > WPA 2-PSK ................................................................................................27
S ECURITY > WPA 2.........................................................................................................27
W IRELESS > A DVANCE S ETTING ......................................................................................28
W IRELESS > MAC A CCESS C ONTROL ..............................................................................29
USB S ETTINGS > B ASIC S ETTINGS ...................................................................................30
USB S ETTINGS > U SER S ETTINGS ....................................................................................31
USB S ETTINGS > S HARE S ETTINGS ..................................................................................32
DHCP > DHCP S ERVER ..................................................................................................35
DHCP > DHCP L IST .......................................................................................................36
P ORT F ORWARD > V IRTUAL S ERVER ...............................................................................36
P ORT F ORWARD > S PECIAL A PPLICATION ........................................................................37

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P ORT F ORWARD > ICMP F ORWARD ................................................................................37
P ORT F ORWARD > DMZ S ETTING ....................................................................................38
P ORT F ORWARD > UP N P S ETTING ...................................................................................38
P ORT F ORWARD > A DVANCED S ETTING ..........................................................................38
F IREWALL > MAC F ILTER ...............................................................................................39
F IREWALL > IP F ILTER .....................................................................................................39
F IREWALL > URL BLOCKING.......................................................................................40
F IREWALL > A DVANCE ....................................................................................................41
M ISCELLANEOUS > D YNAMIC DNS.................................................................................42
S YSTEM T OOLS > S YSTEM L OG .......................................................................................43
S YSTEM T OOLS > S YSTEM A DMIN ...................................................................................43
S YSTEM T OOLS > B ACKUP /R ESTORE S ETTINGS ...............................................................44
S YSTEM T OOLS > F IRMWARE U PDATE .............................................................................45
S YSTEM T OOLS > R EBOOT ...............................................................................................45
9FACTORY RESET...................................................................................................46
10 PC CONFIGURATION .......................................................................................47
S ETTING DHCP IP A DDRESS ...........................................................................................47
M Y IP A DDRESS ...............................................................................................................49
P ING ! ...............................................................................................................................51
W EB B ROWSER S ETTINGS ................................................................................................53
11 TECHNICAL SUPPORT.....................................................................................55
12 DISCLAIMER.......................................................................................................55

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1 IMPORTANT NOTE
1)External power supply for your external USB harddisk is recommended.
2)Regular data backup of your external USB harddisk is recommended.

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2 INTRODUCTION
The Product
The product is based on the IEEE 802.11g standard, which is the latest 54Mbps Wireless LAN
(WLAN) standard. This standard is five times faster than the widely deployed WiFi (802.11b)
products that are found in homes, airport and public wireless hotspots. Because 802.11g uses the
same 2.4GHz frequency band, the product is fully interoperable with existing WiFi cards and
devices.
Having two wireless protocols in one product ensure that your investments are protected, while
enabling you to enjoy the fastest Wireless LAN speed.
The product is a combination of 3 devices:
a. Wireless LAN Access Point (AP) compliant to 802.11b and 802.11g standards.
b. 4-port Auto MDI/MDIX Switch
c. Router with NAT, DHCP Server built-in.
The product is an all-in-one device that allows multiple PCs to share a common broadband
(ADSL/Cable) modem. It can serve up to 4 Ethernet-PCs and many WLAN-notebooks. The built-
in NAT and DHCP Servers ensure almost plug-and-play convenience for your home network.
Advanced features such as Firewall, DMZ and WPA/WPA 2 Encryption make this a product
equally suitable for your office needs.
Product Features
Fully compatibility with IEEE 802.11g WLAN standard
Utilize OFDM (Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing)
Wireless data rate of up to 54Mbps for APRT-2801G and 108Mbps for APRT-2801GS
Operates in the 2.4GHz license-free frequency band
Connects multiple computers to a broadband modem to share Internet connection
Equipped with 4 10/100 Ethernet ports and 1 WAN port, Auto MDI/MDIX
Full backward compatibility with 802.11b standard (WiFi 11Mbps)
WEP (Wired Equivalent Privacy) authorizes users based on a simple WLAN encryption
standard to protect wireless data from sniffers.
WPA (WiFi Protected Access) authorizes users and identifies users based on an
improved WLAN encryption standard where the secret key changes dynamically at
regular intervals
TKIP (Temporal Key Integrity Protocol), when used in conjunction with a corporate
RADIUS server, ensure higher security for enterprise networks.
Pre Shared Key, suitable for home user, without a RADIUS server. A new key is
generated each time the PC connects to the network, vastly improving the safety of
information exchange within the network
WPA 2 is the enhancement of WPA which uses the AES encryption algorithm.
Advance Firewall features to protect your network from the Internet.
NAT with VPN pass through to provide higher security.
MAC filtering
IP filtering
Built-in DHCP Servers that distributes IP addresses automatically to computers,
simplifying network setup.

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User-friendly web-based interface for managing and configuring the Router
Integrated USB 2.0 port allows plug-in storage device with:
• Data transfer speeds that are double that of 802.11g equipment.
• Long-range wireless transfer of bandwidth-intensive multimedia applications including
digital images, videos and MP3 files.
2 PACKAGE CONTENTS
Contents of Package
2.4GHz High Speed Wireless Router with attached Antenna
Power Adaptor-DC
User Manual
Quick Install Guide
Ethernet cable – 1m
Note: Using a power adaptor with a power rating other than the one included in the package will
cause serious damage to the Router and void the warranty for this product.
System Requirements for Configuration
Computers with Windows or Linux-based operating systems and with an Ethernet
adaptor
Internet Explorer version 5.5 and above or Netscape Navigator that supports Java.

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3 CONNECTIONS
4 LED
LAN LED
Blinking
:
Indicates
connection to a
Ethernet-enable
computer
WLAN LED
Blinking
:
Indicates wireless
LAN is ready
Power LED
A solid light
indicates a proper
connection to the
power supply
USB LED
A solid light
indicates conne
ction
to a USB
thumbdrive/harddisk
WAN LED
Blinking
: Indicates
connection on the
WAN port
Auto MDI/MDIX LAN
port. It is to be connected
to PC via Ethernet cable
Auto MDI/MDIX
WAN port. It is to be
connected to DSL or
cable modem via
Ethernet cable
DC receptor for
power adaptor
Reset switch to restore
the Router’s setting to
factory default setting
USB port for
connecting a
USB drive

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5 BASIC IP NETWORKING
Internet Protocol (IP)
IP stands for Internet Protocol. In an IP network, every device has a unique IP Address (For
example: 192.168.1.35) to identify itself. There are two ways of assigning an IP address to a PC
or Router: Static and Automatic (DHCP). Static IP addresses are keyed-in manually, while
Dynamic IPs are distributed by a DHCP Server.
Ports
Every packet of traffic is identified by its Source and Destination Addresses, which would ensure
that the packet arrives at the correct destination. A Port Number is also embedded in each
packet; to identify which software application that generated and uses that packet. Therefore, if
the Router blocks a certain port number, it denies the particular software from using the
connection.
Static IP Address
Static IP addressing ensures that the device will always have the same IP address. Static
addressing is commonly used for your servers.
Dynamic IP Address
A dynamic IP address is one that is automatically assigned to a PC. These IP addresses are
“dynamic” because they are only temporarily leased to the PC when it connects to the network.
This is the most convenient and common way of managing IP addresses in a network. The
Server that manages this pool of IP addresses is called the DHCP Server. The product has a
DHCP Server built-in to simplify the network management.
DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol)
The PC obtaining an IP address from the Server is called the DHCP Client. If there is already a
DHCP Server running on your network, you must disable one of the two DHCP servers. Running
more than one DHCP server together will cause network problems!
What is a Router?
A router is a network device that connects two networks together, to let them communicate. All
the PCs in your home or office would be considered to be in one network: the Local Area Network
(LAN). The Internet (including the ADSL modem) is considered to be another network: the Wide
Area Network (WAN). The Router serves 2 purposes:
Connect all the PCs in the LAN together, allowing them to communicate with one
another. (File sharing, Printer sharing etc.)
Connect all the PCs in the LAN to the Internet, allowing them to simultaneously surf the
web and access e-mails.
The Router is connected to 2 networks at the same time. Therefore, it has two IP addresses: one
for the LAN, and one for the WAN. The Router’s LAN IP address can be configured, but it is best
to use the default settings. The WAN port is a DHCP client by default.

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Wireless LAN Basics
A Wireless LAN (WLAN) is a computer network that transmits and receives data with radio
signals instead of using cables. WLANs have become common in homes, offices, airports and
public Hotspots. WLAN can support the same applications and software that run on a wired
network (LAN). Besides supporting the same software and functions, WLAN brings greater
convenience and eliminates the need to lay Ethernet cables in a home or office.
The Router is based on the finalised 802.11g standard. The IEEE 802.11g standard is an
improvement on the 802.11b (WiFi) standard. It increases the data rate up to 54 Mbps within the
2.4GHz band. As the 802.11b standard is also using the 2.4GHz frequency band, the product is
fully backward compatible with the older 802.11b devices. WiFi cards can be used to connect to
the Router at 11Mbps.
The Router can even support 108Mbps WLAN if the user is using a recommended Turbo-capable
Cardbus.
The Router is also known as the Wireless Access Point (AP). The PC using the Cardbus is
known as the Client. WLAN networking involves a few additional parameters to be configured:
SSID
The SSID is the “network name” for the WLAN network. The SSID is any name, and can be any
set of characters or numbers, and must be configured on both the AP and Client. The Client sniffs
the radio frequencies for an AP with the same SSID with itself. The client locks onto the AP and
they are “associated”.
To enable plug-and-play convenience, most client cards can sniff the frequencies to extract the
available SSIDs to let the user choose from. Alternatively, setting the client’s SSID to “ANY” can
allow it to connect to most APs regardless of the AP’s SSID setting.
Encryption
WLAN traffic can be captured by anybody to be read! The solution is to use encryption to make
the traffic appear as random characters to the eavesdropper. Both the AP and client must use the
same encryption standard and key to enable them to decode the “rubbish”. If the encryption
settings are mismatched, the client and AP cannot associate. WEP (Wired Equivalent Privacy) is
the most common WLAN encryption standard.
MAC Address Control
Every client card has a unique MAC Address. This MAC Address can be input into the AP
(Router), such that the AP only allows this pool of MAC Addresses to use the WLAN.
Channel
There are a total of 11 channels in the 2.4GHz band. Depending on regulation, not all the
frequencies may be available in every country. Frequency is configured on the AP only. The client
searches for the AP and locks onto that AP’s channel.
Signal Strength
Radio signals drop in power over a distance. Even if all the settings are correct, a low signal
strength makes association impossible. The usable distance between the AP and client can
range from a few meters indoor to 200m outdoors maximum. When setting up the AP, make sure
that you:

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Keep the distance from the AP to the clients as short as possible.
Make sure that the WLAN signals do not have to pass through too many concrete walls
and metal structures to reach the client.
Make sure that APs are located far away from one another to avoid interference.
Interference
Interference happens when 2 APs with the same channels are placed near to one another. The
speed of the network drops and the signal strength fluctuates wildly.
Roaming
Association happens when the SSID, Encryption and MAC Address Control settings are correct
between the AP and client. If 2 APs with these same settings are located in the same area, the
client would choose to associate to the one which gives it a better signal strength. The client
would roam over to the 2nd AP when he moves nearer to it. The client switches AP and
frequency as he does so.

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6 GETTING STARTED
The router is connected to the WAN and LAN networks.
The cables are all connected to the back-panel of the Router. The PCs and Modem are
connected to the Router via Ethernet cables. Take note that the head of the Ethernet Cable looks
similar to a phone connector but is bigger. Your notebook can also be connected to the Router by
installing and plugging in the CardBus Card on your notebook.
Note : USB print sharing feature is an optional upgradeable features.
Modems that connect using a USB cable cannot be used.
Use only modems that have Ethernet connectors.
USB Modem Ethernet connector
Internet Modem Router
WAN LAN

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To access the Configuration menu of the Router,
connect the router as shown in the previous section.
Open the web browser.
Type the Router’s default IP address (192.168.1.20)
into the browser’s Address field.
Note: If you have changed the default IP of the Router, make sure you enter the correct IP
address.
Type in admin for user name.
Type in admin for the password.
Click on Log In.
Note: If you have changed the default user name and password of the Router, make sure you
enter the correct user name and password.
Once the login is successful, you’ll see a configuration menu and a pop up window for wizard
setup. The wizard is a quick guide to run you through the configuration process so as to setup
your system in the shortest time. After the initial setup, you may wish to turn off the setup wizard
by removing the tick on Run This Wizard At Start. Click on Next to proceed with the setup wizard.
Note: If you have pop-ups blocker installed on your computer, it may prevent the Wizard window
from functioning properly.

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Detailed configuration for the Router can be found at the configuration menu. The Configuration
menu consists of a navigation menu and a configuration panel. The configuration panel is a place
to set the entire detailed configuration.
These buttons will appear at most configuration pages.
Help: Clicking help will bring up helpful
information on the functions.
Save: Click to save the configuration. Do a
reboot when you have configured all the
parameters.
Reset: Click to reset all the parameters on the page.
Navigation
panel
Configuration
panel

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7 CONFIGURATION WIZARD
Once you have
logged in, the
Wizard screen will
appear.
Set up your new
password
The default User
Name and
password is
admin and admin.
Click Next
Click Next

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Choose your Time
Zone
Enter the SNTP
Server. If you do not
know of any SNTP
Server, you can use
the default.
Choose your time
zone from the drop
down list.
Select your Internet
connection
- For DSL user, choose
PPPoE.
- For Cable user,
choose Dynamic
- Choose Static
connection only if
your ISP provide you
with the IP address,
subnet mask,
gateway and DNS
server IP address.
Click Next
Click Next

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If your ISP requires
static IP and you
have chosen this
option, this screen will
appear.
Enter the IP address,
network mask,
gateway address,
DNS server IP
address as provided
by your ISP in the
relevant fields.
If you are a
DSL
user
and you have chosen
PPPoE option, this
screen will appear.
Enter the user name
and password
provided by your ISP.
Click Next
Click Next

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Wireless Setup
Enter the SSID you
preferred for your
network.
You can manually
select the channel
you wish to use or
allow the Router to
select a clean
channel to use by
selecting
SmartSelect.
Wireless Security
Enter the type of
security mode you
wish to use. Take
note that if you are
using a 802.11b
card, it does not
support WPA-PSK
or WPA or WPA 2-
PSK or WPA 2
Click Next
Click Next

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Click Reboot to
finish the setup
Wizard
Click Discard to
cancel all settings
End of Setup
Click on Reboot to
save the setting and
reboot the Router. If
y
ou wish to discard all
the setting, click on
Discard.
Click Next
USB Setup
Enter name of
the
server
& the name of
the workgroup.
The server name seen
on the network
& the
PC is a member of the
workgroup.
FTP access is enabled
or disabled for the login
account listed.

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8 CONFIGURATION MENU
System Summary > Configuration
This page presents a convenient overview of the overall status of the Router. The most common
configuration parameters are shown here, for a quick look.
(18dBm)

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System Summary > Associations
This page allows you to view the MAC address of all the wireless laptop and PC connected to the
Router. ID AP is the MAC address of the Router itself. Any wireless computers or laptop
associated with the Router will have a ID of STA.
System Summary > Statistics
This page allows you to view the packets and bytes receive and transmit by the Router.
System Summary > Site Scan
Using the site scan, you can scan for the presence of other AP near you. The ESSID, BSSID,
wireless mode, channel, signal strength, security mode and network mode of the surrounding AP
will be display in the table. You can use this function to select a clean channel for your Router.
Take note that there would not be any result if the wireless function of the Router is disable.
Basic > SNTP Setting
Simple Network Time Protocol (SNTP) allows the Router to set its internal clock based on
periodic updates from the specified timeserver (SNTP or NTP). The time is useful in the IP filter
section, where you can configure to block certain IP address daily at a certain time.