NETGEAR RangeMax 240 User Manual

Introduction 2-1

v1.1, January 2006

Chapter 2

Introduction

Congratulations on your purchase of the NETGEAR® RangeMax 240 W ireless Router WPNT834.
The WPNT834 router provides connection for multiple computers to the Internet through an
external broadband access device (such as a cable modem or DSL modem) that is normally
intended for use by a single computer. This chapter describes the features of the NETGEAR
RangeMax 240 Wireless Router WPNT834.

Key Features

The RangeMax 240 Wireless Router WPNT834 with 4-port switch connects your local area
network (LAN) to the Internet through an external access device such as a cable modem or DSL
modem.

The WPNT834 router provides you with multiple Web content filtering options, plus browsing
activity reporting and instant alerts via e-mail. Parents and network administrators can establish
restricted access policies based on time-of-day, Web site addresses and address keywords, and
share high-speed cable/DSL Internet access for up to 253 computers. In addition to the Network
Address Translation (NAT) feature, the built-in firewall protects you from hackers.

With minimum setup, you can install and use the router within minutes.
The WPNT834 router provides the following features:

• RangeMax™ 240 Multiple-Input, Multiple-Output (MIMO) technology

Note: This manual provides information on the complete features as of the date of

publication. Earlier versions of this product may not have all the features presented
in this manual. Go to http://kbserver.netgear.com/products/WPNT834.asp to find
product firmware updates for your WPNT834.

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• 802.11g wireless networking, with the ability to operate in Up to 240 Mbps, Up to 126 Mbps,

802.11g-only, or 802.11b+g modes

• Easy, Web-based setup for installation and management

• Content Filtering and Site Blocking Security

• Built in 4-port 10/100 Mbps Switch

• Ethernet connection to a wide area network (WAN) device, such as a cable modem or DSL
modem

• Extensive Protocol Support

• Login capability

• Front panel LEDs for easy monitoring of status and activity

• Flash memory for firmware upgrades

RangeMax™ 240 Multiple-Input, Multiple-Output (MIMO)
Technology

NETGEAR’s RangeMax 240 Multiple-Input, Multiple-Output (MIMO) technology provides ten
times more coverage than standard 802.11g alo ne by eliminating “dead spots” in your area of
coverage. Your whole house or office suite now becomes a “hot spot” without requiring any range
extenders, repeaters, or external antennas. RangeMax maintains your high speed throughout your
home, not just when you are close to your router.

RangeMax 240 is a TRUE MIMO (Multiple Input, Multiple Output) technology that uses three
external antennas, capable of transmitting at speeds up to 240 Mbps. It can also transmit two
different data streams on the same channel at the same time, at speeds up to 126 Mbps, if you use
the WPNT511 or WPNT121 Wireless Adapters.

In "Up to 240 Mbps" mode the router uses channel expansion to achieve a data rate of 240 Mbps.
The channel expansion uses the channel selected as the primary channel and expands to a
secondary channel (primary channel + 4 or - 4) to achieve a frame-by-frame bandwidth of
40 MHz. The WPNT834 router detects channel usage and, if necessary, will disable frame-by­frame expansion to avoid interference with the data transmission from other access points or
clients.

Note: The maximum wireless signal rate is derived from the IEEE Standard 802.11

Specifications. Actual data throughput will vary. Network conditions and
environmental factors, including volume of network traffic, building materials
and construction, and network overhead, lower actual data throughput rate.

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RangeMax 240 is also 100% compatible with your existing 802.11b/g products (i.e., 802.11b,

802.11g, and Centrino wireless clients) and boosts their range and speed by up to 50%.

802.11g Wireless Networking

The WPNT834 router includes an 802.1 1g wireless access point , providing continuous, high-speed
240 Mbps access between your wireless and Ethernet devices. The access point provides:

• 802.11g wireless networking at up to 240 Mbps.

• 802.11g wireless networking, with the ability to operate in Up to 240 Mbps, Up to 126 Mbps,

802.11g-only, or 802.11g and b modes, providing backwards compatibility with 802.11b or

802.11g devices or dedicating the wireless network to the higher bandwidth devices.

• 64-bit and 128-bit WEP encryption security.

• WEP keys can be generated manually or by passphrase.

• WPA-PSK and WPA2-PSK support. Support for Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA) data
encryption which provides strong data encryption and authentication based on a pre-shared
key. WPA-PSK and WPA2-PSK will block eavesdropping. Because these are new standards,
wireless device driver and software availability may be limited.

• Wireless access can be restricted by MAC address.

• Wireless network name broadcast can be turned off so that only devices that have the network
name (SSID) can connect.

A Powerful, True Firewall with Content Filtering

Unlike simple Internet sharing NAT routers, the WPNT834 is a true firewall, using stateful packet
inspection to defend against hacker attacks. Its firewall features include:

• Denial of Service (DoS) protection.
Automatically detects and thwarts DoS attacks such as Ping of Death, SYN Flood, LAND

Attack, and IP Spoofing.

• Blocks unwanted traffic from the Internet to your LAN.

• Blocks access from your LAN to Internet locations or services that you specify as off-limits.

• Logs security incidents.
The WPNT834 will log security events such as blocked incoming traffic, port scans, attacks,

and administrator logins. You can configure the router to E-mail the log to you at specified
intervals. You can also configure the router to send immediate alert messages to your E-mail
address or E-mail pager whenever a significant event occurs.

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• Keyword screening.
The WPNT834 prevents objectionable content from reaching your computers. The router

allows you to control access to Internet content by screening for keywords within Web
addresses. You can configure the router to log and report attempts to access objectionable
Internet sites.

Security

The WPNT834 router is equipped with several features designed to maintain security , as described
in this section.

• Computers Hidden by NAT.
NAT opens a temporary path to the Internet for requests originating from the local network.

Requests originating from outside the LAN are discarded, preventing users outside the LAN
from finding and directly accessing the computers on the LAN.

• Port Forwarding with NAT.
Although NAT prevents Internet locations from directly accessing the computers on the LAN,

the router allows you to direct incoming traffic to specific computers based on the service port
number of the incoming request, or to one designated “DMZ” host computer. You can specify
forwarding of single ports or ranges of ports.

Autosensing Ethernet Connections with Auto Uplink

With its internal 4-port 10/100 switch, the WPNT834 can connect to either a 10 Mbps standard
Ethernet network or a 100 Mbps Fast Ethernet network. Both the LAN and WAN interfaces are
autosensing and capable of full-duplex or half-duplex operation.

The router incorporates Auto Uplink

TM

technology. Each Ethernet port will automatically sense
whether the Ethernet cable plugged into the port should have a ‘normal’ connection such as to a
computer or an ‘uplink’ connection such as to a switch or hub. That port will then configure itself
to the correct configuration. This feature also eliminates the need to worry about crossover cables ,
as Auto Uplink will accommodate either type of cable to make the right connection.

Extensive Protocol Support

The WPNT834 router supports the Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol
(TCP/IP) and Routing Information Protocol (RIP). For further information about TCP/IP, see

“Wireless Communications” in Appendix B.

• IP Address Sharing by NAT.