ZyXEL Keenetic is a home Internet center that can do everything. ZyXEL Keenetic - a home Internet center that can do everything Why do we need home routers

to connect to the Smile network

First, you need to connect all cables to the appropriate connectors:

Nutrition.
ISP's incoming Ethernet cable (to the appropriate WAN port.)
Ethernet cable from the network card to any LAN port on the router. (usually indicated by numbers.)

For Windows XP:

Go to the menu , .

In the network connections window (Figure 1), right-click on " ' and select ' Properties».

Figure 1. Network connections window in Windows XP.

In the window " Properties Connections by local network » (Figure 2) select « Internet protocol tcp/ipProperties».

Figure 2. Local Area Connection Properties.

In the window " Properties of Internet Protocol TCP/IP» (Picture 3) select:

« »
« »

and click the " OK»

Figure 3. TCP/IP protocol

For Windows 7:

Go to the menu , , .

In the window " » (figure 4) press .

Figure 4. Network and Sharing Center window in Windows 7.

In the window " " (Figure 5) find " LAN connection", right-click on it and select " Properties».

Figure 5. Network Connections window in Windows 7

In the window " Local Area Connection Properties» (Fig. 6)) select « Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4)” (NOT unchecking) and press the button “ Properties».

Figure 6. Local Area Connection Properties in Window 7.

In the window " Properties: Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4)» (picture 7) select:

« Obtain an IP address automatically»
« Obtain DNS Server Address Automatically»

and click the " OK»

Figure 7. TCP/IP protocol

Go to the command line (Figure 8) (Start => Run => enter the command "cmd" and press the "OK" button).

Figure 8 Program launch

V command line(Figure 9) type "ipconfig -all" command. Make sure the IP address is assigned and is in the same range as the Internet Router's IP address.

Figure 9 Command line

Type the command ping 192.168.1.1 and make sure that packets are being exchanged with the Internet router.

Next, you need to go to the web management interface of the router. To do this, open a browser, enter the router's address in the ip address bar (by default http://192.168.1.1) and navigate to this address (Figure 10).

Figure 10. Browser address bar

The first time you try to log in, you will be prompted to change the router's administrator password (Figure 11). Specify " New administrator password" and " Enter password again". Click apply.

Figure 11. Setting the administrator password

To access the web interface of the router, you will need to log in. Enter a username (default admin) and password (default 1234 ), then press " OK» (Figure 12).

Setting up Internet access

To set up Internet access:

Wireless network setup

To set up a wireless network:

Your Zyxel internet router is configured to work on the Smile network

Configuring the router for IP-TV

For IP-TV operation:

Magazine

You may also need data from the log (log) of the router. In order to get this information, click on the icon " System' and select the tab ' Magazine» (Figure 18).

Figure 18. Log

Wireless broadband home routers are no longer a surprise today. If there is a need to connect several home computers to the Internet at the same time, then the only possible way The solution to this problem is to use home routers. Today, most manufacturers, when updating their wireless router lineup, integrate new wireless access points that support the 802.11n Draft standard into them, so that when the final version of this standard is released, their equipment will be fully compatible with it. Like it or not - time will tell. In any case, the presence of a high-speed access point in a wireless router is far from the most important thing. Much more important is the functionality of the router, the ability to provide simultaneous connection to the Internet and to the resources of the provider's home network, regardless of the type of connection they use. For home routers, ease of setup is also paramount.
Unfortunately, not all manufacturers pay due attention to the above factors. The problem of localization of routers is especially urgent - the Russian-language interface is extremely rare. But not everything is so sad. In this article, we will talk about the novelty of the season - the ZyXEL P-330W EE home Internet center, which can rightly be called the best solution on the market at the moment in the class of home wireless broadband routers.

ZyXEL internet center concept

The first question I would like to consider is why do we call a wireless broadband router a router? After all, the term "wireless broadband router" is universally recognized! Actually, this is not how we called the ZyXEL P-330W EE device - ZyXEL itself positions it this way, thereby emphasizing, firstly, the orientation of its devices to the home user, and secondly, multifunctionality.

Indeed, the ZyXEL P-330W EE router, like wireless broadband routers from other manufacturers, combines several network devices: a router, a wireless access point integrated into the device, a switch, a firewall and a NAT device. Therefore, the name "wireless router", although it is generally recognized, is not entirely correct. However, the ZyXEL P-330W EE Internet device differs from wireless routers not only in the name, although at first glance it seems that this is the most ordinary, classic wireless router.

However, let's not get ahead of ourselves and talk about everything in order. We hope that after reading this article, readers who have experience using wireless routers will have no doubt that the yXEL P-330W EE router simply does not fit into the traditional framework of the concept of "wireless router".

Why you need home routers

Users who choose to access the Internet from their own computer on a dedicated Ethernet line are usually told by access providers that no additional equipment is required for connection, except for a network card if one is not on the computer. Indeed, modern operating systems support all popular authorization and encryption protocols. That is, a single computer is technically completely ready for direct connection to the Internet and local resources of the provider (home network) via a dedicated Ethernet line. However, if another computer, wireless PDA, or other wireless device appears in the home, or if a connection is additional services with constant access (IP-telephony, IP-telephony, video surveillance), then it is much easier to organize switching through a home router.

Home routers provide a convenient and secure way to connect multiple home computers to the Internet using a single dedicated line. V general case a home router contains a WAN interface for connecting to the provider's infrastructure, a router with a network address translation mechanism, a built-in wireless access point, a firewall (firewall) for network and Internet connection security, and a switch for connecting home computers and other network equipment.

Routers are different: bad, good and Internet center ZyXEL P-330W EE

Although all home routers are designed to connect home computers to the Internet, not every one of them is capable of performing all the functions that a user may need. Of course, any router can handle the task of organizing a secure connection of several home computers to the Internet. In this case, you can buy the first device that comes across - as long as it is not very expensive. However, the vast majority of Internet providers, of which there are more than 300 in Moscow, in addition to connecting users to the Internet, provide access to local resources of their home network. Moreover, some users, having gained access to such a network, completely forget about the Internet. In home networks you can find so many interesting things that the Internet is not needed. And if we take into account that access to home networks is implemented according to non-tariffed plans and at the maximum speed (100 Mbps), then it is clear that it is at least irrational to neglect this possibility. It is quite clear that any user wants to have access not only to the Internet, but also to the local resources of the provider's home network. However, not every router allows you to implement simultaneous access to the Internet and to the resources of the provider's local network. This is where you begin to understand that not all routers are the same.

Home network providers may use different types of Internet connections. For example, it can be a connection with a static or dynamic IP address, bound to the MAC address of the network controller. Often there is also a connection via the PPPoE protocol. But the most popular among providers is connecting via a VPN channel using PPTP authorization.

The use of the PPTP protocol, unlike the PPPoE protocol, allows Internet providers to build segmented home networks and at the same time use a centralized node for user authorization and Internet access.

However, with a large number of subscribers, one PPTP server for authorization and Internet access may not be able to cope with the load. Therefore, providers can use a whole farm of PPTP servers. To ensure even load distribution on all PPTP servers, so-called DNS load balancing is used. This method relies on the DNS server periodically polling each PPTP server to determine the current load. The DNS server then responds to the query for the host address by returning the IP address of the least loaded PPTP server.

For correct operation For a subscriber router in such a network, it is necessary to be able not only to specify the PPTP server by a domain name, but also to change the IP address of the PPTP server each time a connection is established, regardless of the reason for breaking the previous PPTP connection.

In addition, often the PPTP server may not be located in the user's segment, but in a remote segment of the provider's local network - in this case, access to the PPTP server is possible only through the gateway.

Most conventional routers are designed to route IP packets from a user's home network to the Internet and vice versa. That is, it is assumed that the router can simultaneously have two interfaces and route packets between two networks. However, in home networks, it is often necessary to route packets between three networks: the user's home network, the ISP's local network, and the Internet. As a result, the user of a conventional router is deprived of the opportunity to simultaneously work on the Internet and use the resources of servers located in the provider's network, that is, there is a problem of choice - the Internet or local network resources.

In the most general case (Fig. 1), when a VPN tunnel is established, a regular router stops routing packets between the user's home network (LAN) and the ISP's local network (intranet). This is because after the VPN tunnel is established, the router has a PPP interface, which is designed to route home network packets to the Internet. The default router changes the route that directs all requests from the home network to the ISP's LAN to a route that directs all requests from the home network to the Internet.

Rice. 1. Connecting with a conventional router

In addition, the network address translation mechanism allows you to translate IP addresses only between two segments, but not between three.

So, if you use a PPTP Internet connection, then a regular router is not able to provide simultaneous access to both the Internet and the local resources of the Internet provider. But, as we have already noted, the ZyXEL P-330W EE Internet Center is not an ordinary router. For him, there is no problem of simultaneous access to the Internet and to the local resources of the provider, regardless of the type of connection.

ZyXEL P-330W EE router features

The ZyXEL P-330W EE Internet Center implements proprietary Link Duo technology, which solves the problem of simultaneously connecting to the Internet and local Internet provider resources. This technology provides the user with the following functions:

simultaneous operation of two connections on the WAN interface;
setting a list of static routes;
getting a list of static routes via DHCP;
setting the PPTP server address with a domain name or IP address;
load balancing on a PPTP server farm;
work with the PPTP server located behind the gateway;
a full set of authorization and encryption protocols for PPTP/PPPoE connections;
work with internal domain names of the home network.

As a result of using the Link Duo technology, the user gets simultaneous access to the Internet and to his own segment of the provider's local network (Fig. 2). However, to access remote segments of the provider's network, you must additionally configure the static routing table.

Rice. 2. Simultaneous access to the Internet and local resources
ISP when using the ZyXEL P-330W EE router

Setting up a static routing table is a mandatory procedure and is inevitable when using routers in segmented ISP networks. Note that not all routers allow you to create static routing tables, but even in cases where this is possible, the user has to manually enter all routes, and their number can be more than a dozen. The ZyXEL P-330W EE Internet Center solves this problem much easier thanks to ZyXEL NetFriend technology.

ZyXEL NetFriend is a program with a Russian-language interface designed to quickly set up the ZyXEL P-330W EE router. It does not replace, but complements the traditional way of setting up a device using a web interface.

To configure the ZyXEL P-330W EE router using the ZyXEL NetFriend program, you need to connect it via an Ethernet cable to a computer on which this program. The work of ZyXEL NetFriend begins with a search for supported devices - it turns on and off all network adapters installed in the system one by one, checking for the availability of the ZyXEL device using the telnet protocol. After the device is discovered, ZyXEL NetFriend checks the firmware version and updates it if necessary. Further, the control algorithm collects and analyzes the settings entered by the user and, using a specialized set of telnet commands, configures the equipment.

In many cases, the ZyXEL NetFriend software allows the user to automatic mode connect to the Internet. At the moment, its database contains several dozen sets of settings for Internet providers that connect through home networks. In fact, the user only needs to select his provider from the list and enter some data - the program will do the rest automatically. Note that the list of providers supported by the ZyXEL NetFriend program is constantly growing.

To set up a static routing table, NetFriend must know the IP address of the default gateway. If the IP addresses in the provider's network are set manually, then the user simply enters the IP address of the main gateway and NetFriend then uses it to configure static routing. If the IP address in the provider's network is assigned automatically, then the NetFriend program switches the ZyXEL P-330W EE router into client mode, it automatically receives the IP address of the main gateway and generates a routing table based on this main gateway. Next, the NetFriend program generates a list of static routes and, at the very end of the settings, adds them to the Keenetic.

Simultaneous connection to the Internet and to the local resources of the Internet provider, support for all authorization and encryption protocols used by Internet providers, as well as the ability to use the ZyXEL NetFriend program for quick setup - these are the main features of the ZyXEL P-330W EE router that distinguish it from a number of similar devices.

In all other respects, the ZyXEL P-330W EE Internet Center differs little in functionality from traditional wireless routers, although there are still some differences. Traditional wireless routers provide wireless connectivity for home computers. In some cases, the wireless access point may also operate in WDS mode to create distributed wireless networks or in repeater mode. The ZyXEL P-330W EE Internet Center, in addition to the traditional scenario of using a wireless access point, provides for the possibility of its operation in additional modes.

These additional modes include:

wireless access point mode;
Wi-Fi wireless Ethernet adapter mode;
use of an Internet center with a connection to a provider via Wi-Fi.

In the wireless access point mode (Fig. 3), the ZyXEL P-330W EE Internet Center can be used to increase the network coverage area on a separate floor of the building. In this case, one of the five ZyXEL P-330W EE ports is used to connect to another router or router that provides Internet access, and the remaining LAN ports and WAN port operate as a network switch, allowing you to connect computers or other network devices. The NAT protocol and the DHCP server on the router are disabled, and the router is a transparent Wi-Fi - Ethernet bridge, and the wireless interface operates in access point mode.

Rice. 3. Wireless hotspot mode

Due to the fact that the router has five Ethernet ports, you can build a wireless network with an extensive coverage area by connecting access points in series. In addition, the wireless interface of the ZyXEL P-330W EE router supports seamless Wi-Fi roaming using the IAPP (Internet Access Point Protocol), which allows the wireless client to move between access points without losing connection.

The Wi-Fi wireless Ethernet adapter mode (Figure 4) allows up to five devices to connect to your home network via Wi-Fi at the same time, even if they are not equipped with wireless adapters.

Rice. 4. Wi-Fi Wireless Ethernet Adapter Mode

In this mode, the NAT protocol and the DHCP server on the router are disabled and it is a transparent Wi-Fi - Ethernet bridge, and the wireless interface operates in client mode.

Using two ZyXEL P-330W EE routers: one in the mode of a wireless access point, and the second in the mode of a wireless Wi-Fi Ethernet adapter, you can combine local networks wirelessly.

When using the Keenetic in Wi-Fi ISP mode, a wireless connection is established with the provider's access point, and all home computers and devices connected to the network by the switch built into the Keenetic receive secure access to the Internet (Fig. 5) . All five Ethernet connectors (four LAN ports and one WAN port) on the Keenetic can be used to connect computers. Computers connected to the Keenetic can simultaneously surf the Internet under the protection of a firewall (firewall).

Rice. 5. Mode of using the router with a connection to the provider via Wi-Fi

In the new line of ZyXEL Internet centers, the oldest model is “just” Keenetic. Its "seniority" refers exclusively to the Keenetic line in question, and not to ZyXEL products in general, and is relevant only until the line has expanded upwards. The Keenetic model uses a faster processor, and the built-in Wi-Fi hotspot is built according to the 2T2R scheme with support for speeds up to 300 Mbps.

However, these characteristics are not the only ones of interest. Keenetic has a USB port that can be used to connect various devices - drives, a printer, and a USB modem. And all of them can be connected at the same time, through the hub. As a result, the user can get some of the functions of a network drive - access to disks via SMB and FTP protocols, and even offline downloading of torrents. Let's see how effectively this Internet center works in various scenarios.

Contents of delivery

As we have said in previous articles, the packaging and packaging of ZyXEL products deserve an extremely positive assessment. All information, manuals, descriptions, programs and even the web-interface are presented in Russian.

The package bundle is standard for ZyXEL Internet centers - the device itself, a switching power supply for 12 V 1.5 A, two antennas with a gain of 5 dBi, a network patch cord, a CD with programs and manuals, a warranty card, a full user manual . Only an unexpectedly powerful power supply attracts attention - it was required to ensure reliable operation of USB devices connected to the Keenetic.

Appearance

The design of the device is similar to the previously discussed Keenetic 4G - white glossy top, light gray matte bottom. Only now the dimensions have become a little larger - 16.2 × 11.2 × 3 centimeters. On the front rounded end are indicators for the status of ports and connections. On the sides are passive ventilation grilles and a USB port on the left side. It is only one, but if you need to connect several devices at once, you can use a USB hub.

On the rear panel you can find two connectors for Wi-Fi antennas, a hardware switch for the wireless module, a WPS button, a configuration reset button, four LAN ports and a WAN port, as well as a power supply connector.

If necessary, the device can be mounted on the wall.

Hardware configuration

This time, the filling is a little more powerful than other models of the line - a Ralink RT3052 processor with a frequency of 384 MHz, 32 MB RAM, and an 8 MB flash chip. An Ethernet switch, an 802.11n (2T2R, up to 300 Mbps) radio, and a USB controller are integrated into the processor. On the board you can find the console connector. Perhaps this is a feature of the test instance, since we did not see it on other devices in the line.

The device has a hardware switch for the wireless module. It works very quickly and efficiently - the state change occurs in just a couple of seconds. This is a fairly convenient way to increase the security of your home network.

Dimensions printed circuit board also grew a little - up to 14 × 9.5 centimeters. The processor is covered with a small metal plate to improve cooling.

Tested device with firmware version V1.00(BFW.2b)D0. In tests for the speed of working with a network drive, the version with the NTFS driver from Tuxera was additionally used.

Customization and features

Like other modern ZyXEL devices, you can set up Keenetic to connect your home network to the Internet through the NetFriend program. This is the easiest and most convenient way, if your provider is known to her and does not impose any specific requirements, such as authorization through a script.

But since the device in question has much more features than just providing Internet access, then most likely you will have to turn to the web interface. In the new Keenetic line, it is presented exclusively in Russian and has retained the structure familiar to other models. In this section, we will cover the basic networking capabilities, and we will devote the next one to working with USB devices.

After entering the password to access the interface, the user enters the monitoring page. It displays the main parameters and the current status of the device. Most of the information is provided with hyperlinks to other sections of the web interface to change the corresponding options.

The item for setting up an Internet connection automatically changes its appearance depending on the selected operating mode of the device - Ethernet, 3G/4G, Wi-Fi. In the first case, the device can work with direct connection, PPPoE/PPTP/L2TP and supports MPPE encryption and 802.1x authorization.

Manufacturer draws Special attention that all connection options and support for all compatible USB modems really work on a common official firmware and you do not need to look for alternative options.

The user can change the IP and MAC addresses. There is a built-in DDNS client for three different services and the ability to program your own static routes.

In the "Home network" group, the internal address of the router is set, DHCP server options (including address reservation), IPTV is configured (selection of physical ports or VLANs), and port translation is programmed. The proprietary TVport technology allows, in particular, to significantly reduce the load on the main processor of the device when broadcasting IPTV, working with traffic at the hardware level of the switch, and in many cases it works completely “transparently” for the user without special settings. Note that there is support for multicast transmission over Wi-Fi.

The volume of the list to provide access to local services is one hundred entries, each of which includes the IP address, start and end port numbers (internal and external in this firmware are the same, but the manufacturer is already working on firmware with PAT support), protocol (TCP , UDP, or both). You can enable the transfer of all (except exactly defined earlier) incoming requests for a specific client in the local segment.

The built-in wireless access point works on 802.11b/g/n protocols and supports connection at speeds up to 300 Mbps. It has no special settings: network name, standard and channel selection, access control mode ( open network, WEP, WPA/WPA2). A list of "black" or "white" MAC addresses is provided. On a separate page, you can see a list of connected clients indicating the duration of the session. The device supports WPS, which makes it easy to securely connect new devices.

A separate group of pages with settings is dedicated to various traffic filters. In particular, there are "black" or "white" lists of MAC and IP addresses. There is also a service filter (blocking external resources by port numbers) and a URL filter (programming keywords in the link to block).

Of the system options, first of all, it is worth noting the choice of operating mode. Keenetic can provide Internet access via a dedicated Ethernet line, via 3G/4G networks (when using appropriate modems) or via WiFi networks. In the last two cases, all five wired ports are available for client connection. There are also access point and wireless bridge modes.

There are standard options for working with configuration, firmware and administrator password. You can change the port numbers for accessing the web interface and telnet, as well as provide access to them from the Internet.

The built-in clock of the device can be synchronized via the Internet. Embedded log can be sent to syslog server. Variant with email not provided. The log itself does not have any settings for displaying events and, apparently, is a grouped report of the embedded Linux OS and a number of software modules. Unfortunately, its information content is not optimal for a home system - there are a lot of system messages (for example, about the OS boot process), but at the same time there is no information about who and when connects via Wi-Fi and to whom what addresses are issued, not to mention already about the operation of the access blocking functions.

Working with USB devices

The Keenetic model has one USB 2.0 port on the left side. It can be used to connect drives, a printer, and cellular modems. Moreover, several devices can work simultaneously through a USB hub. But in this case, it is recommended to pay special attention to the power supply of the disks and the hub itself.

We talked about the option of working with a 3G / 4G modem in the review of the Keenetic 4G model, so we will not dwell on it in detail. This feature allows you to provide Internet access to your home or office network through most domestic operators cellular communication or broadband providers mobile internet, such as Yota.

The second (or even the first) most popular feature is the connection of external drives to implement some of the functions of network drives. Keenetic supports multiple devices at once, understands partitions, and compatible file systems are FAT32/NTFS/EXT2/EXT3. The device does not know how to format disks. To safely disconnect external drives, you can use the web interface or reassign the WPS button. Each partition or disk is given a network name of the form DISK_A1, where "A" indicates the disk number and "1" the partition number.

The device provides data access via SMB/CIFS (Common Windows Network Neighborhood) and FTP protocols. In the first case, you can change the server name and working group, in the second - change the port number (only command) and open access from the Internet. In addition, the FTP server supports passive mode, file appending, multithreading, and Russian file and directory names when using a UTF8-compatible client. The maximum number of simultaneous connections is ten. It is dictated, apparently, by the hardware characteristics of the device.

To restrict access to network resources, there is an option to program up to two dozen name/password pairs with permissions - “read only” or “read / write”. If such complexities are not needed, then the resources can be opened to full access or given read-only rights to all users. There is no possibility to set the user different rights to different shared folders.

We measured the speed of work as a network drive together with an external hard drive Seagate FreeArent GoFlex 500 GB. The first graph shows the results of some subtests of the Intel NASPT utility with various file systems. The tntfs mode was tested with a special firmware version that uses the Tuxera driver instead of the stock ntfs-3g.

As you can see from the numbers, Keenetic cannot compete with classic NAS. However, this was not required. You need to understand that working with USB drives is an additional option, and not the main purpose of routers. As for the file systems, access to EXT2 turned out to be the fastest, which could have been assumed in advance.

Let's see what will change in the case of the FTP protocol.

In general, the figures have grown slightly, but the capabilities of the Fast Ethernet network are still far away. FTP is most attractive for providing external access to data, and the speeds shown in this mode will allow you to exchange files with friends quite comfortably.

The third use of the USB port is to connect a printer. recently appeared on the site, so you can determine in advance the possibility of working in this mode. We tried using a Canon MFP with a model number slightly different from the one listed, but the system could not recognize the printer, although there were corresponding driver entries in the log. Traditionally, Linux routers do not support GDI printers.

A connected USB drive can be used to organize a standalone system for downloading files from BitTorrent networks. To do this, you need to select the desired section through the web interface and activate it for the Transmission client. Like NAS mode, this feature is not designed to achieve record speeds. In particular, the maximum download and upload speeds are strictly limited in the client to one megabyte per second. This number was chosen based on the performance of the device so that p2p operation does not interfere with the main tasks of the router.

This client is often used on network drives and other relatively weak devices. It has the ability to change port numbers, support for UPnP and DHT, distribution of downloaded files and other options. To control from a PC, you can use it as a built-in web interface (available, if necessary, from the Internet) or third-party utilities. All options require an administrator username and password. For convenience, you can configure the device to automatically launch Transmission when it is detected on a connected hard drive.

To begin with, we checked the operation of the system with a connection to Beeline Internet via PPTP at a speed of 10 Mbps. Hard disk - Seagate GoFlex, file system - NTFS. Management was carried out through the program. Adding hundreds of popular tasks from an open tracker went smoothly. The Internet center distributes the load very evenly, so that while the client is working, you can use the Internet, network disk access and work calmly with the Keenetic web interface. True, in this case, the processor load (according to the built-in monitor) is 80–100%, and the access speed naturally decreases. For example, reading from the same partition over the network "sags" up to 200 KB / s. In this state, the device was tested for more than twelve hours, we did not have any comments on the stability of the work.

It should be noted that working with such a large number of tasks practically does not make sense - due to the general restriction on the channel width, each of them gets very little. In our case, the numbers were from 80 to 800 Kbps. So it is much more efficient to work with a small number of tasks, say three to five. On our hundred torrents, the total download speed was 700-800 Kbps. And after reducing the number of tasks to five, it increased to the prescribed 8 Mbps.

A similar remark applies to the size of uploaded files. Formally, you can download several tens of gigabytes in a day, but what to do with this volume later at the above speed of reading from a disk over a network is not very clear. We conducted an experiment with a small number of large files (ten or more gigabytes) - the Keenetic handled this in a couple of days of non-stop work.

Running the router in the same scenario, but with a direct connection on a 100 Mbps channel showed that in this case everything works the same way. Which, however, is not surprising, given the built-in speed limiters.

Performance

We already wrote about working with Beeline Internet above - the connection was easy, the speed corresponds to the tariff, there are no problems with stability. When running a torrent client on a PC, a 10 Mbps channel was fully developed. The number of connections was 200–300. Simultaneous work on the Internet and access to the web-interface of the device worked fine.

On a 100Mbps link with a static connection, we were able to download torrents to a PC (back 100 in uTorrent) at 80Mbps and above. The number of connections was 300–400. And even in this case, the Internet could be used - however, taking into account the decrease in speed due to the fact that the resources of the 100 Mbps channel were almost completely exhausted (www.speedtest.net showed 0.5 / 1.8 Mbps for speed upload and download, respectively).

Synthetic tests to determine the limiting capabilities of the device were carried out in the IxChariot program. The modes of direct Ethernet connection, PPTP and L2TP were checked.

The figures show that the device for its class turned out to be very productive - the speed of downloading data from the Internet is 82–95 Mbps, depending on the mode. If you compare it with the younger models of the line, the difference is very noticeable, especially when using L2TP.

In general, Keenetic copes with most of the current tariff plans, falling slightly short of the 100 Mbps download speed in PPTP/L2TP modes.

LinkDuo technology allows you to access both the Internet and the provider's local network at the same time. Moreover, the device implements this mode very efficiently, as can be seen from the second graph.

The wireless module of Keenetic is more productive than that of younger models - this is required by at least the 2T2R operating mode and a theoretical speed of up to 300 Mbps. Let's see how much faster it is in reality. The test was conducted in conjunction with a laptop in which an Intel 5350 adapter was installed. The devices were placed at a distance of about five meters. Several other networks were on the air, including 802.11n. The wireless network mode is WPA2-PSK.

If we compare these figures with the operation of single-channel modules in other models of the line, we will see a clear increase of 40-70% in the case of one-way transmission. The final figure of 70 Mbps is almost three times higher than the actual speed of 802.11g access points. An additional advantage of the new standard is the increase in the zone of reliable wireless communication.

conclusions

The older Keenetic model, like other Internet centers of the series, performed well in our laboratory. Its features include: support for all modern standards for connecting to the Internet on the official firmware, efficient work with IPTV, LinkDuo technology, 802.11n wireless module with 2T2R scheme, as well as work with 3G/4G modems.

The presence of a USB port for connecting various devices allows you to implement some of the features of a network drive - access to shared folders via SMB / CIFS and FTP protocols (in the second case - via the Internet), printer sharing and offline file download via BitTorrent protocol. Although you need to clearly understand that in terms of speed and capabilities, all routers, including Keenetic, lose even to the younger models of modern NAS. But when compared with other routers, then Keenetic is already on top.

In terms of performance, the considered model allows you to download data from the Internet at almost the full speed of the Fast Ethernet network - about 100 Mbps in all modes. Note the high stability when working at a high load with a large number of connections in peer-to-peer networks.

The wireless module of the device showed a real performance of 70 Mbps - this is a good indicator, especially for an inexpensive device with a 2T2R access point.

Internet Center ZyXEL Keenetic is already available in stores. The recommended cost of the "simple" Keenetic model is 3200 rubles. The average retail price in Moscow, current at the time you read this article, is $56().

Supported providers:
InterCom, Yota, MTS, BeeLine, Megafon.*
* With router firmware, for Chekhovsky district .
Order or install firmware you can tel: 8 - 916-990-75-90

1. Connecting a computer to a ZyXel Keenetic 4G router and setting up an Internet connection.

Before you start setting up the Zyxel Keenetic 4G, read the attached "Instructions for Use" that comes with the router. Next, connect the router to an electrical outlet, then connect the USB antenna cable to the USB interface of the ZyXel Keenetic 4G router, and connect one of the router's LAN ports with a yellow patch cord (wire) to your computer's network card.

After that, you need to change the TCP / IP settings of the computer or laptop network card to automatically receive IP address values (DHCP client) from the Keenetic router via LAN and WI-FI interface.

1.1. Setting up a Zyxel Keenetic 4G connection in Windows XP:

Start - Control Panel - Network Connections - Local Area Connection - Properties - Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) Check the boxes: Obtain an IP address automatically and Obtain DNS server address automatically. Next OK

1.2. Setting up a Zyxel Keenetic 4G connection in Windows 7:

Start - type "View Network" - select at the top in the search results View network connections - Local Area Connection - Properties - Internet Protocol version 4 (TCP / IPv4) - Properties Check the boxes next to: Obtain an IP address automatically and Obtain DNS server address automatically. Next OK

1.3. Monitoring the connection of a computer to a Zyxel Keenetic 4G router

By default, the Zyxel Keenetic 4G Internet Center issues IP address values from the 192.168.1.0/24 range, so after some time your computer should itself receive the required address like: 192.168.1.33. You can track the receipt of an IP address from the router by opening the status "Local Area Connections". An inscription that says Assigned by DHCP (Windows XP) or DHCP enabled - Yes (for Windows 7) indicates that the Zyxel Keenetic 4G router has successfully issued an internal IP address to the computer via the LAN interface. If this does not happen, then problems with the operation of the DHCP client on your computer are not ruled out. Most often this can be caused by the operation of firewalls (firewalls), but there are other reasons ... In this case, you need to manually enter the necessary IP addresses in the computer settings. To do this, just specify the following IP parameters on the computer: IP - 192.168.1.101 Subnet mask - 255.255.255.0 Default gateway - 192.168.1.1 DNS - 192.168.1.1

2. Setting up the Zyxel Keenetic 4G router

We carry out the configuration process through the web interface of the device. To do this, open your favorite browser and enter the address 192.168.1.1 in the address bar, press Enter. In the window that opens, enter Username admin and password the default is 1234.

Further

Everything is ready!

The indicator on the router (in the form of a globe) should turn green.

Overview of the Internet center from the company ZyXEL - Keenetic 4G . I decided to update the equipment at home, in particular related to the network. The old Dlinkovsky router was just miserable, after reading the forums and studying the characteristics, the choice fell immediately on this device.

I am glad that this company has a wonderful technical support that can solve many user issues, the firmware is good and stable. Updates are regular and stable. The functionality pleases, the interface is built easily, simply, accessible and in Russian.

Since the device was developed (software part) in our country, everything was taken into account for domestic users.

With the help of the keenetic Internet center, you can provide the whole family with a network and the Internet, the device has mounts to hang on the wall, for example, which I did, although there are wonderfully thought-out rubber legs on which you can put it on a windowsill or table, for example, the operating mode indicators are bright. Rosary, signed with icons. They are easy to see from a distance.

The wi-fi signal is very strong, it covers the whole house, it is possible to use a regular connection and a guest network at once, plus you can use it as a client.

Two lan ports for connecting with a cord, and wan for connecting to a provider with a wire if necessary, the ports can be reassigned if necessary. The complete set of the Internet center has the whole set of cords, twisted pair meter, not as usual now it is customary to make stumps of 30 cm. The usb extension cable is also long. Qualitative. And it has a suction cup (very convenient) for mounting on glass, for example.

It will be clearly better to catch the modem on the window (the optimal location is selected empirically on the spot).

The device is powered by a 12 V 1 A switching power supply. The kit is packed very well in a high-quality box. Everything is beautiful and understandable.

Description from the manufacturer's website:

Internet Center Keenetic 4G designed for permanent wireless connection to the Internet via cellular networks 3G and 4G using external USB modems. With Keenetic 4G, you can network several home or office computers and organize simultaneous secure Internet access for them from anywhere within the coverage area of the operator's service mobile communications using just one USB modem. The built-in next-generation Wi-Fi access point with a powerful omnidirectional antenna connects laptops and other IEEE 802.11n network devices to the router at speeds up to 150 Mbps*. If necessary, Keenetic 4G allows you to connect to the Internet via a dedicated Ethernet line at speeds up to 80 Mbps ** in order to actively participate in file-sharing networks, receive high-definition IP television, use the infotainment resources of district networks and local provider servers.

Characteristics of the device considered in the review from the manufacturer's website:

The main features of the Internet center

USB host controller for 3G/4G modems (see list of supported modems)
Support for access and authorization in provider networks via PPPoE, PPTP (including with MPPE), L2TP and IEEE 802.1X
Link Duo technology for simultaneous Internet operation via PPTP/L2TP/PPPoE and with server resources of the area network
Ability to connect to ISPs that provide services based on VLAN (IEEE 802.1Q)
Hardware support for IPTV TVport for watching TV on IPTV receivers and computers, including via Wi-Fi
SPI firewall with DDoS protection
Wireless interface IEEE 802.11n 150 Mbps*

Operating modes

Connecting to a provider via a dedicated Ethernet line
Connecting to a provider via a wireless Wi-Fi network
Connecting to a provider via a 3G USB modem
Connecting to a provider via a 4G USB modem - Yota
Wi-Fi hotspot

Design features

3 RJ-45 connectors (10BASE T/100BASE T) with auto cable type detection
1 USB 2.0 Type A
1 x RP SMA socket for connecting an external Wi-Fi antenna
1 detachable 5dBi omnidirectional antenna
7 status indicators
Button for resetting user settings - "RESET"
Wi-Fi quick network setup button - "WPS"

Supported features and protocols

IPoE/PPPoE/PPTP/L2TP
PAP/CHAP/MS-CHAP/MS-CHAP v2/802.1x
MPPE (Auto/40/56/128)
VLAN - IEEE 802.1Q
TVport Technology - Transit of Multicast streams automatically and without CPU time when assigning a LAN connector
Link Duo - simultaneous access to the Internet (L2TP/PPTP/PPPoE) and to local resources of the provider's network
DHCP (client/server)
Working with a static IP address
IP Routing
IP address translation NAT (Restricted Cone)
Route Table (DHCP/manual)
Firewall (SPI) with protection against DoS and DDoS attacks
Port Forwarding (Manual/UPnP)
IGMPv1/IGMPv2 agent (IGMP proxy, IGMP snooping)
VPN connection transit (PPTP or L2TP)
DynDNS, NO-IP and TZO Services Client
DNS Agent (DNS Proxy)
Internet access blocking based on MAC address, IP address, URL, TCP/UDP ports

Wireless network

IEEE 802.11b/g
IEEE 802.11n (Auto 20/40 MHz, 1x1 configuration, up to 150 Mbps*)
Frequency range - 2.4 GHz
WEP/WPA-PSK/WPA2-PSK Network Security, MAC Blocking
WPS Quick Setup (PBC/PIN)
Wi-Fi Multimedia Mode (WMM)

Diagnostics and management

ZyXEL NetFriend Quick Setup in Russian
Web configurator in Russian
FTP/TFTP/TELNET
Ability to manage from an external network (web configurator / TELNET)
Configuration backup and restore
Software update of functions
System log

Physical parameters

Dimensions - 139 x 110 x 32 mm excluding antennas
Weight - 180 g without power adapter

Operating conditions

Working temperature range: from 0 to +40 °С
Relative humidity: 20 to 95% non-condensing
Power supply voltage: AC 100–240 V, 50/60 Hz

Requirements

Availability of Internet access
Computer under control operating system Microsoft Windows 2000/XP/Vista/7 equipped with Ethernet network adapter and optical disc drive

Kit Keenetic 4G

Internet center Keenetic 4G
Detachable omnidirectional 5 dBi antenna
Power adapter
Ethernet cable
USB extension cable
Instructions for use
ZyXEL NetFriend Documentation CD
Warranty card

Notes

* 150 Mbps- the maximum speed of work at the physical layer according to the IEEE 802.11n standard when connected to adapters using one spatial stream and a 40 MHz channel for receiving and transmitting. The actual data transfer rate in a wireless network depends on the features and settings of the client equipment, the number of clients in the network, obstacles in the signal path, as well as the presence of other wireless networks and radio interference in the same range.

** 80 Mbps- maximum practical throughput built-in router, measured in the ZyXEL lab. The actual speed of access to the Internet, local resources and IP-TV depends on the type of service and connection provided by the Internet provider, the current load of the provider's network, the data transfer route, as well as the actions and characteristics of third parties and communication objects.

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