Netgear N 900 Manual

							Troubleshooting111
 N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500
Quick Tips
This section describes tips for troubleshooting some common problems
Sequence to Restart Your Network
Be sure to restart your network in this sequence:
1.
Tu
rn off and unplug the modem. 
2.T
urn off the router and computers.
3.Plug in the modem and turn it 
 on. Wait 2 minutes.
4. T
urn on the router and wait 2 minutes.
5.T
urn on the computers.
Check Ethernet Cable Connections
Make sure that the Ethernet cables are securely plugged in. 
•T
he Internet LED on the router is on if the Ethernet cable connecting the router and the 
modem is plugged in securely and the modem and router are turned on. 
• F
or each powered-on computer connected to  the router by an Ethernet cable, the 
corresponding numbered router LAN port LED is on. 
Wireless Settings
Make sure that the wireless settings in the computer and router match exactly. 
• F
or a wirelessly connected computer, the wireless network name (SSID) and wireless 
security settings of the router and wireless computer need to match exactly. 
• I
f you set up an access list in the Advanc ed Wireless Settings screen, you have to add 
each wireless computer’s MAC address to the router’s access list.
Network Settings
Make sure that the network settings of the computer are correct. 
• W
ired and wirelessly connected computers need to have network (IP) addresses on the 
same network as the router. The simplest way to do this is to configure each computer to 
obtain an IP address automatically using DHCP. 
• Some cable
  modem service providers require you to use the MAC address of the 
computer initially registered on the acco unt. You can view the MAC address in the 
Attached Devices screen. 
						

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N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 
Troubleshooting with the LEDs
After you turn on power to the router, the following sequence of events should occur:
1.
When  power is first applied, verify that the Power/Test LED 
 is on.
2. Verify that the Power/Test LED turns amber within a few seconds, indicating that the self-test 
is runnin
 g.
3. After approximately 30 seconds, verify that:
• The Power/ T
 est LED is solid green.
• The  Internet LED is on.
• A numbered Eth ernet p
 ort LED is on for any local port that is connected to a 
computer. This indicates that a link has been established to the connected device.
The LEDs on the front panel of the router can be used for troubleshooting.
Power/Test LED Is Off or Blinking
• Make sure that the power cord is securely connected to your router and that the power 
adapter is securely connected to a functioning power outlet. 
• Check that  you 
 are using the 12V DC, 2.5A power adapter that NETGEAR supplied for 
this product.
• If the  Power/Test LED blinks slowly and cont inuously
 , the router firmware is corrupted. 
This can happen if a firmware upgrade is interrupted, or if the router detects a problem 
with the firmware. If the error persists, you have a hardware problem. For recovery 
instructions, or help with a hardware problem, contact technical support at 
www.netgear.com/support.
Power/Test LED Stays Amber
When the router is turned on, the Power/Test LED turns amber for about 20 seconds and 
then turns green. If the LED does not turn green, the router has a problem.
If the Power/Test LED is still amber 1 minute after you turn on power to the router:
1. Turn the power off and back on to see if the router recovers.
2. Press an d h
 old the Reset button to return the router to its factory settings. as explained 
in  Restore the Factory Settings and Password  on p
 age 11 7.
If the error persists, you might have a hardware problem and should contact technical support 
at www.netgear.com/support. 
						

							Troubleshooting11 3
 N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500
LEDs Never Turn Off
When the router is turned on, the LEDs turn on for about 10 seconds and then turn off. If all 
the LEDs stay on, there is a fault within the router.
If all LEDs are still on 1 minute after power-up:
•
Cycle
 the power to see if the router recovers.
•Pre
ss and hold the Reset  button to return the router to its factory settings as explained in 
Restore the Factory Settings and Password  on p
 age 11 7 .
If the error persists, you might have a hardware problem and should contact technical 
suppo
 rt at www.netgear.com/support .
Internet or Ethernet Port LEDs Are Off
If either the Ethernet port LEDs or the Internet LED does not light when the Ethernet 
connection is made, check the following:
•Make 
sure that the Ethernet cable connections are secure at the router and at the modem 
or computer.
• Make sure
  that power is turned on to the connected modem or computer.
• Be 
sure that you are using the correct cable:
When connecting the router’s Internet port to a
  cable or DSL modem, use the cable that 
was supplied with the cable or DSL modem. This cable could be a standard 
straight-through Ethernet cable or an Ethernet crossover cable.
Wireless LEDs Are Off
If the Wireless LEDs stay off, check to see if  the Wireless On/Off button on the router has 
been pressed. This button turns the wireless radios in the router on and off. The Wireless 
LEDs are lit when the wireless radio is turned on.
The Push N Connect (W PS) Button Blinks Amber
If after using the WPS function the button blinks amber, check the following:
•Make sure
  that you are using the button and not the router’s built-in registrar.
• Che
ck that PIN verification has succeeded for  the wireless device you are adding to the 
wireless network.
• Make 
sure you have not pressed the WPS button on the side of the router after disabling 
the WPS feature (you logged in to the router and disabled this previously).
• Che
ck that the router is not in the temporary AP setup locked state (if you are using the 
wireless repeater function). 
						

							Troubleshooting11 4
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 
Cannot Log In to the Router
If you are unable to log in to the router from
 a computer on your local network, check the 
following:
• If you are 
 using an Ethernet-connected computer, check the Ethernet connection 
between the computer and the router as described in the previous section.
• Make 
sure that your computer’s IP address is on the same subnet as the router. If you are 
using the recommended addressi ng scheme, your computer’s address should be in the 
range of 192.168.1.2 to 192.168.1.254. 
• If your co
 mputer’s IP address is shown as  169.254.x.x, recent versions of Windows and 
MacOS generate and assign an IP address if the computer cannot reach a DHCP server. 
These auto-generated addresses are in the range of 169.254.x.x. If your IP address is in 
this range, check the connection from the computer to the router, and reboot your 
computer.
• If your rout
 er’s IP address was changed and you do not know the current IP address, 
clear the router’s configuration to factory defaults. This sets the router’s IP address to 
192.168.1.1. This procedure is explained in  Factory Settings on p
 age 120.
• Make sure tha
 t your browser has Java, JavaScript, or ActiveX enabled. If you are using 
Internet Explorer, click  Refresh to be sure that the Java applet is loaded.
• T
ry quitting the browser and launching it again.
•Make su
 re that you are using the correct login information. The factory default login name 
is  admin, and the password is  password. Make sure that Caps Lock is off when you 
enter this information.
• If you are 
 attempting to set up your NETGEA R router as an additional router behind an 
existing router in your network, consider r eplacing the existing router instead. NETGEAR 
does not support such a configuration.
• If you are 
 attempting to set up your NETG EAR router as a replacement for an ADSL 
gateway in your network, the router cannot per form many gateway services, for example, 
converting ADSL or cable data into Ethernet networking information. NETGEAR does not 
support such a configuration.
Cannot Access the Internet
If you can access your router but you are unable to access the Internet, first determine 
whether the router can obtain an IP address from your Internet service provider (ISP). Unless 
your ISP provides a fixed IP address, your rout er requests an IP address from the ISP. You 
can determine whether the request was successful using the Router Status screen.
To check the WAN IP address: 
1. S
tart your browser, and select an external site such as www.netgear.com .
2. Acce
ss the router interface at  www.routerlogin.net.
3. Select  Ad
minstration > Router Status . 
						

							Troubleshooting11 5
 N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500
4.
Check that an IP address is shown for the Internet port. If 0.0.0.0 is shown, your router has 
not obtained an IP address from your ISP.
If your router cannot obtain an IP address from the ISP, you might need to force your cable or 
DSL modem to re
 cognize your new router by restarting your network, as described in 
Sequence to Restart Your Network  on p
 age 111 .
If your router is still unable to obtain an IP  a
 ddress from the ISP, the problem might be one of 
the following:
• Y
our Internet service provider (ISP) might require a login program.  
Ask your ISP whether they require PPP over Ethernet (PP
 PoE) or some other type of 
login.
• I
f your ISP requires a login, the login nam e and password might be set incorrectly.
• Y
our ISP might check for your computer’s host name.  
Assign the computer host name of your ISP ac coun
 t as the account name in the Internet 
Setup screen.
• Y
our ISP allows only one Ethernet MAC addre ss to connect to Internet and might check 
for your computer’s MAC address. In this case, do one of the following:
- I
nform your ISP that you have bought a new network device, and ask them to use the 
router’s MAC address.
- Con
figure your router to clone your computer’s MAC address.
If your router can obtain an IP address, but  your compu
 ter is unable to load any web pages 
from the Internet:
• Y
our computer might not recognize any DNS server addresses. 
A DNS server is a host on the Internet that  tr
 anslates Internet names (such as www 
addresses) to numeric IP addresses. Typically , your ISP provides the addresses of one or 
two DNS servers for your use. If you entered a DNS address during the router’s 
configuration, reboot your computer, and ve rify the DNS address.You can configure your 
computer manually with DNS addresses, as  explained in your operating system 
documentation .
• Y
our computer might not have the router configured as its TCP/IP gateway.
If your computer obtains its information from the router by DHCP, reboot the computer, 
a
nd verify the gateway address.
• Y
ou might be running login software that is no longer needed.
If your ISP provided a program to log you in  to th
 e Internet (such as WinPoET), you no 
longer need to run that software after installing your router. You might need to go to 
Internet Explorer and select  Tools > Internet Options, click the Connections  tab, and 
select  Never dial a connection . 
						

							Troubleshooting11 6
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 
Troubleshooting PPPoE
If you are using PPPoE, try troublesho
oting your Internet connection.
To troubleshoot a PPPoE connection:
1.Log in to the ro
 uter.
2. Select  Ad
 ministration > Router Status .
3. Click  Connecti
 on Status. If all of the steps indicate OK, then your PPPoE connection is 
up and working.
If any of the steps indicate Failed, you can attempt to reconnect by clicking  Connect.
  The 
router continues to attempt to connect indefinitely.
If you cannot connect after several minutes, you might be using an incorrect service name, 
use
 r name, or password. There also might be a provisioning problem with your ISP.
Note: Unless you connect manually, the router does not authenticate using 
PPPoE until data is transmitted to the network.
Troubleshooting Internet Browsing
If your router can obtain an IP address but your computer is unable to load any web pages 
from the Internet, check the following:
•Y
our computer might not recognize any DNS  server addresses. A DNS server is a host 
on the Internet that translates Internet names (such as www addresses) to numeric IP 
addresses.
Typically, your ISP provides the addresses of  one 
 or two DNS servers for your use. If you 
entered a DNS address during the router’s configuration, restart your computer.
Alternatively, you can configure your co mpu
 ter manually with a DNS address, as 
explained in the documentation for your computer.
• Y
our computer might not have the router configured as its default gateway.
Reboot the computer and verify that the router address (www.routerlogin.net) is listed by 
you
r computer as the default gateway address.
• Y
ou might be running log in 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. You might need to go to Internet Explorer and select 
Tools > Internet Options , click the Connections  tab, and select Never dial a 
connection . 
						

							Troubleshooting11 7
 N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500
Changes Not Saved
If the router does not save the changes you make in the router interface, check the following:
•
W
hen entering configuration settings, always click the  Apply button before moving to 
another screen or tab, or your changes are lost. 
• Click the  Refresh or Reload  butto
 n in the web browser. The changes might have 
occurred, but the old settings might be in the web browser’s cache.
Wireless Connectivity
If you are having trouble connec ting wirelessly to the router, try to isolate the problem. 
• Doe
s the wireless device or computer that  you are using find your wireless network?
If not, check the Wireless LEDs on the front of t
 he router. It should be lit. If it is not, you 
can press the  WiFi On/Off button on the back of the router to turn the router’s wireless 
radio back on.
If you disabled the router’s SSID broadcast, then your wireless network is hidden and 
d
 oes not show up in your wireless client’s scanning list. (By default, SSID broadcast is 
enabled.)
• Doe
s your wireless device support the security that you are using for your wireless 
network (WPA or WPA2)?
• I
f you want to view the wireless settings for the router, use an Ethernet cable to connect a 
computer to a LAN port on the router. Then log in to the router, and select  Wireless see 
(Basic Wireless Settings  on
  page 23). 
Note:  Be sure to click  Ap
 ply if you make changes.
Wireless Signal Strength
If your wireless device finds your network,  but the signal strength is weak, check these 
conditions:
• I
s your router too far from your computer, or too close? Place your computer near the 
router, but at least 6 feet away, and see whether the signal strength improves.
• I
s your wireless signal blocked by objec ts between the router and your computer?
Restore the Factory Settings and Password
This section explains how to restore the factor y settings, changing the router’s administration 
password back to  password. You can erase the current configuration and restore factory 
defaults in two ways:
• Use the 
 Erase function of the router (see Erase  on page 78). 
						

							Troubleshooting11 8
N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500 
•
Use the Reset button on the back of the router. See  Factory Settings on  page 120. If you 
restore the factory settings and the router fails to restart, or the green Power/Test LED 
con
 tinues to blink, the unit might be defective. If the error persists, you might have a 
hardware problem and should contact technical support at 
http://www.netgear.com/support .
Troubleshoot Your Network Using the Ping Utility
Most network devices and routers contain a ping utility that sends an echo request packet to 
the designated device. The device then res ponds with an echo reply. Troubleshooting a 
network is made very easy by using the ping  utility in your computer or workstation. 
Test the LAN Path to Your Router
You can ping the router from your computer to verify that the LAN path to your router is set up 
correctly.
To ping the router from a running Windows PC:
1.From the Win
 dows toolbar, click  Start, and then select Run .
2. In th
e field provided, type  ping followed by the IP address of the router, as in this example:
ping www.routerlogin.net
3. Click  OK.
You should see a message like this one:
Pinging  with 32 bytes of data
If the path is working, you see this message:
Reply from < IP address >: bytes=32 time=NN ms TTL=xxx
If the path is not working, you see this message:
Request timed out
If the path is not functioning correctly, you could have one of the following problems:
• W
rong physical connections
For a wired connection, make sure that the numbered LAN port LED is on for the port to 
which yo
 u are connected.
Check that the appropriate LEDs are on for your network devices. If your router and 
compute
 r are connected to a separate Ethernet switch, make sure that the link LEDs are 
on for the switch ports that are connected to your computer and router.
• W
rong network configuration
Verify that the Ethernet card driver software and TCP/IP software are both installed and 
con
figured on your computer.  
						

							Troubleshooting11 9
 N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router WNDR4500
Verify that the IP address for your router and your computer are correct and that the 
addresses are on the same subnet.
Test the Path from Your Co
mputer to a Remote Device
After verifying that the LAN path works correctly, test the path from your computer to a remote 
device.
1.F
rom the Windows toolbar, click the  Start button, and then select  Run.
2. I
n the Windows Run window, type:
ping -n 10  
where  is the IP address of a remote device such as your ISP’s DNS server.
If the path is functioning correctly, replies li ke th
 ose shown in the previous section are 
displayed.
If you do not receive replies:
• Che
ck that your computer has the IP address of your router listed as the default gateway. 
If the IP configuration of your computer is  assigned by DHCP, this information is not be 
visible in your computer’s Network Control Panel. Verify that the IP address of the router 
is listed as the default gateway.
• Che
ck to see that the network address of your computer (the portion of the IP address 
specified by the subnet mask)  is different from the network address of the remote device.
• Che
ck that your cable or DSL modem is connected and functioning.
•I
f your ISP assigned a host name to your  computer, enter that host name as the account 
name in the Internet Setup screen.
• Y
our ISP could be rejecting the Ethernet MAC addresses of all but one of your 
computers.
Many broadband ISPs restrict access by allowi ng tra
 ffic only from the MAC address of your 
broadband modem, but some ISPs additionally restrict access to the MAC address of a 
single computer connected to that modem. If this  is the case, configure your router to “clone” 
or “spoof” the MAC address from the authorized computer.  
						

							120
A
A.   Supplemental Information
This appendix provides factory default settings and technical specifications for the N900 
Wireless Dual Band  Gigabit Router WNDR4500.
Factory Settings
You can return the router to its factory settings. Use the end of a paper clip or some other 
similar object to press and hold the  Reset  button on the back of the router for at least 7 
seconds. The router resets, and returns to the factory configuration settings shown in the 
following table.
Table 4.  Factory default settings   
FeatureDefault behavior
Router login User login URL www.routerlogin.com or www.routerlogin.net
User name (case-sensitive) admin 
Login password (case-sensitive) password
Internet 
conne
 ction WAN MAC address
Use default hardware address
WAN MTU size 1500
Port speed Autosensing
Local network 
(LAN) LAN IP
192.168.1.1
Subnet mask 255.255.255.0
DHCP server Enabled
DHCP range 192.168.1.2 to 192.168.1.254
Time zone Pacific time
Time zone daylight savings time Disabled
Allow a registrar to configure this 
router Enabled