The topic of opening ports on routers is very popular, and not only for Asus routers. In this article we will take a closer look at how to open ports specifically on Asus routers, and over time I will definitely prepare similar instructions for devices from other companies. First, I will tell you in my own words what ports on a router are, why open them (forward them), and how to do it on Asus routers. This manual will work for all Asus models such as: RT-N12 (which we recently configured, wrote about it here), RT-N65U, RT-AC66U, Asus RT-N10, RT-N56U, RT-N18U, etc. I will show on the example of RT-N12 +, but since they have almost the same control panel, everything will be clear.
Here we have a router, the Internet is connected to it. This means that only the router has an external IP address that can be accessed from the Internet. And computers and other devices that are connected to the router already receive internal IP addresses. It turns out that if we turn to an external IP address, then we will not be able to reach any computer if it is connected through a router. For this, you need to do port forwarding. By doing this, we create a rule in the router settings, which says that all packets that go for a specific port must be immediately redirected to the port of a specific computer (IP address) for which we opened the port.
What is it for? This is needed for different programs that receive incoming connections from the Internet: DC ++, different torrent clients, FTP servers, as well, port forwarding may be needed when starting a web server on a computer with access from the Internet, when configuring IP cameras, or for some games. Some programs can themselves open ports on the router using UPnP technology, which most modern programs do if the router allows it (if there is UPnP support). But, all exactly there are cases when you need to open ports manually.
The topic with these ports is a little confusing, but if somewhere in the instructions for some program, or in some article, you came across information that you need to open ports for a certain program or game to work, and you have an Asus router, then just follow the instructions and you will succeed.
We will configure it according to the following scheme:
- Assign a static IP address for the computer in the router settings.
- Let's open the desired port on the Asus router.
Set a static IP for the computer in the settings of the Asus router
There is such a useful service on the router called DHCP. It automatically gives each device an internal IP address when connected to a router. But, the fact is that in order to open a port (for normal redirection to work), you need the computer to have a static IP address that will not change after each turn off / on the computer, or after restarting the router. Therefore, we will "ask" DHCP for our computer (for which we will do port forwarding) to reserve a static IP, and issue only it each time.
Go to the settings of your Asus router. This can be done either according to the detailed instructions, or simply by typing the address 192.168.1.1 in the browser and specifying the username and password.
Go to the settings tab The local network, and from above select DHCP server... Near the point Enable manual assignment install Yes... Below, in the list where MAC address select the computer for which we will assign a static IP. If the computer is connected, then just select it in the drop-down list. Be guided by the computer name. The IP address will be set automatically, you can leave it, or set a different one (for example, like mine). Then just click the button Add to, and press Apply... Here's a screenshot for clarity:
The router will reboot and a static IP will be assigned to your computer.
Opening a port on an Asus router
You need to know which port to forward, this will need to be specified in the settings of our Asus now. If you are wondering about opening ports, then I think you know which port you need. You can open the port range "from and to". If anything, go to the program settings and look, the port should be indicated there.
For example, here is a screenshot of the connection settings from the µTorrent program:
You see, the port is indicated there (and you need to open it on the router). Also, I have highlighted UPnP forwarding, this is this very port forwarding setting, which by the way works great in this program. I showed this as an example, but you may have a completely different case with another program, or a network device.
Let's get to the point. So, in the router settings, go to the tab the Internet - Port forwarding... We put Yes near the pointEnable port forwarding.
Pay attention to two points: Favorite server listand Favorite games list... There you can select the most popular servers and games for which the settings will be set automatically. For example: FTP, BitTorrent, TELNET Server, FINGER Server, Age of Empires, Counter Strike, Warcraft III, WOW, etc.
Then fill in the following fields:
- Service name - you can specify the name of the program for which you open the port.
- Port range - here we set the port itself, if it is one, as in my example. If you want to specify the range, then set it separated by a colon, like this: 30297: 30597.
- Local IP address - choose from the list the IP that we assigned to our computer.
- Local port - here we indicate the port on the computer to which the redirected will go. Typically, this is the same port as in the Port Range field.
- Protocol - select from the list the protocol by which the router will make redirected.
Push the button Add to and Apply.
That's all. After saving the settings and rebooting the router, everything should work. Now, all connections that will be directed to the port we specified will be redirected by the router to the computer. You can open new ports, or delete old rules.
If after configuration nothing works, then check the specified parameters again, and then try disabling the antivirus and / or firewall. They love to block such connections.
If you still have questions on the topic of the article, then ask them in the comments, and do not forget to share useful information :)
