Linksys EA6900 - Manual

2 Product Overview Linksys EA-Series Home theater ready Bring the ultimate entertainment experience to your home by connecting computers, Internet-ready TVs, game consoles, media players, and more to your wireless network and the Internet. Simultaneous dual-band N and QoS traffic prioritization tech...

3 Product Overview Linksys EA-Series Back view Ethernet ports Wi-Fi Protected Setup button Internet port Power port Reset button USB ports • Adjustable Antenna ports— This router ships with 3 adjustable external antennas, and should be connected to the router before powering it on. To connect the an...

4 Product Overview Linksys EA-Series Wall-mounting placement The router has two wall-mount slots on its bottom panel. The distance between the slots is 82 mm. Two screws are needed to mount the router. Suggested Mounting Hardware 3-5 mm 7-8 mm 1.5-2 mm NOTE Linksys is not responsible for damages inc...

5 Setting Up: Basics Linksys EA-Series 5 How to create a home network What is a network? A network is any group of devices that can communicate with each other. A home network can also include Internet access, which requires a router like this one. A typical home network may include multiple compute...

6 Setting Up: Basics Linksys EA-Series How to install your router To install your router:1. Power on your new router. If replacing an existing router, disconnect it.2. Connect the Internet cable from your modem to the yellow Internet port on your router. Wait until the power light on the front of th...

7 Setting Up: Basics Linksys EA-Series How to configure your router You can change router settings to make your network more secure or to work better with a device or game. Being able to adjust the settings while you’re away from home can help make router administration easier. You can configure you...

8 Setting Up: Basics Linksys EA-Series How to disable remote access If you want to configure your router only while you are on your home network, you should disable remote access. To disable remote access:1. Log into Linksys Smart Wi-Fi.2. Under Router Settings, click Connectivity.3. Click the Admin...

9 Setting Up: Basics Linksys EA-Series • Many environmental variables can affect the router’s performance, so if your wireless signal is weak, place the router in several locations and test the signal strength to determine the ideal position. • If possible, upgrade wireless network interfaces (such ...

10 Setting Up: Basics Linksys EA-Series 3. Click the Basic tab.4. Under Router Password, type the new password, then click OK. How to change your router’s time zone Your router’s time zone should be set to your local time zone. To set your router’s time zone:1. Log into Linksys Smart Wi-Fi. (See “Ho...

11 Setting Up: Basics Linksys EA-Series NOTE Internet connection speeds are determined by a variety of factors, including ISP account type, local and worldwide Internet traffic, and number of devices in your home that are sharing the Internet connection. 4. Click Restart Test to run it again, and cl...

12 Setting Up: Basics Linksys EA-Series 3. Under Select the type of device to add to your network , click USB Printer. The Add a USB printer screen opens. 4. Follow the on-screen instructions for downloading and installing the VUSB (virtual USB) software for your computer. To connect a wireless prin...

13 Setting Up: Basics Linksys EA-Series • If the device has a Wi-Fi Protected Setup button, press that button, then click the Wi-Fi Protected Setup button in Linksys Smart Wi-Fi or press the button on the back of your router. • If the device has a Wi-Fi Protected Setup PIN, type that number into the...

14 Setting Up: Basics Linksys EA-Series Information about the device appears on the screen. 4. Click OK. How to set up parental controls With your router, you can use parental controls to: • Set the times that Internet access is allowed. • Block websites that you specify or based on their content. •...

15 Setting Up: Basics Linksys EA-Series • Click Edit to change the Internet access schedule. You can click and drag to select or deselect a block of time. 6. To block specific websites: a. Under Block specific sites, click Add. b. Type the web address (URL) of the website to block, then click OK. Yo...

16 Setting Up: Basics Linksys EA-Series To set up guest access to your network:1. Log into Linksys Smart Wi-Fi. (See ““How to connect to Linksys Smart Wi- Fi” on page 7. 2. Under Apps, click Guest Access. Your guest network, which was set up during your router installation, is displayed. • To turn g...

17 Setting Up: Basics Linksys EA-Series How to customize Linksys Smart Wi-Fi You can customize your Linksys Smart Wi-Fi home page by adding or removing widgets . Widgets are miniature versions of menus that let you change basic settings or check the status of your network. Using widgets To add a wid...

18 Linksys EA-Series 18 Overview You can attach most USB drives (including a thumb drive or a high-capacity external drive) to the USB port on your router. You can then use the drive as networked storage, as a media server (for media-enabled devices such as a networked TV), and as an FTP (File Trans...

19 Linksys EA-Series How to use secured folder access Why would I need to use secured folder access? By default, when you connect a USB drive to your router, the entire contents of the drive are available for read and write access to anyone on your local network (no login credentials are required). ...

20 Linksys EA-Series 8. If you need to set up the shared folder: a. Click Create new share. The Create New Share dialog box opens. b. Click the button next to the folder that you want to share. • To view subfolders, click the icon next to the folder name. • To return to a parent folder, click the ic...

21 Linksys EA-Series TIPS File managers display content in many ways, but you can usually use these common actions to navigate through folders: • Click or double-click a folder name to open it. • Click, double-click, or right-click a file to open, copy, or view it. • Drag a file from another window ...

22 Linksys EA-Series 5. Click Add New Folder. The Add a new folder dialog box opens. 6. Click the button next to the folder that you want to share, then click OK. • To view subfolders, click the icon next to the folder name. • To return to a parent folder, click the icon at the top of the list. TIPS...

24 Setting Up: Advanced Linksys EA-Series 24 How to manually set up your router Although running your router’s setup software is the easiest way to set up and maintain your router, advanced users may want to manually configure their router. Be careful when changing settings using this method. To man...

25 Setting Up: Advanced Linksys EA-Series 4. Select your ISP’s Internet connection type from the drop-down list. Complete the Optional Settings only if required by your ISP. TIP For field descriptions, click Help at the top of the screen. 5. Click OK. IPv6 Internet connection settings IPv6 is a new ...

26 Setting Up: Advanced Linksys EA-Series How to get the most out of your dual- band router I bought a dual band router, but I’m not sure that I’m getting the most out of it. What should I check? Of the many reasons for owning a dual-band router, the most common is to ensure available bandwidth for ...

27 Setting Up: Advanced Linksys EA-Series d. Network mode—Your choice depends upon the clients that will connect to your network. If all of your devices are Wireless-N capable, you can select Wireless-N Only for either or both bands.On the 2.4 GHz band, you can select: • Mixed • Wireless-N Only • Wi...

29 Setting Up: Advanced Linksys EA-Series How to improve security using the built-in firewall Why would I need to change my security settings? By default, the firewall settings in your router have been optimized for most home environments, so no changes are needed. The SPI (Stateful Packet Inspectio...

30 Setting Up: Advanced Linksys EA-Series Changing IPv6 firewall settings On some router models, the IPv6 firewall lets you customize IPv6 port services for applications. When users send these types of requests to your network via the Internet, the router will allow those requests to the appropriate...

31 Setting Up: Advanced Linksys EA-Series 3. Click the Local Network tab. 4. To disable the DHCP server, deselect the Enabled checkbox.5. Leave the Enabled checkbox selected to edit the following settings: • Start IP address • Maximum number of users • IP address range (not editable) • Client lease ...

32 Setting Up: Advanced Linksys EA-Series 5. Click Edit to change the reservation details, or click Delete to delete the reservation. TIP For field descriptions, click Help at the top of the screen. How to access your network on the Internet Why would I need to find my network on the Internet? If yo...

33 Setting Up: Advanced Linksys EA-Series How to clone a MAC address On any home network, each network device has a unique MAC (Media Access Control) address. Some ISPs register the MAC address of the device (usually a router or a computer) connected directly to the modem. If your computer’s MAC add...

34 Setting Up: Advanced Linksys EA-Series 3. Enable each setting that you want to change. • IPSec Passthrough – IPSec (Internet Protocol Security) is a suite of protocols used to implement secure exchange of packets at the IP layer. The VPN clients on the local network can establish an IPSec VPN tun...

35 Setting Up: Advanced Linksys EA-Series 5. To prioritize an application or game, select the name in the drop-down list, then click and drag the icon next to the name to the High Priority list. • If the application name isn’t listed, click Edit and add the name. TIP If you want to add a new applica...

36 Setting Up: Advanced Linksys EA-Series To configure the router for VoIP:1. Log into Linksys Smart Wi-Fi. (See “How to connect to Linksys Smart Wi- Fi” on page 7. 2. Under Router Settings, click Connectivity, then click the Administration tab. 3. If your VoIP service uses SIP, select the SIP check...

37 Setting Up: Advanced Linksys EA-Series How to use a router as an access point How can I use this new router as an access point? If you have a large area to cover with your wireless signal, or if part of your home has weak signals due to interference, you can use this router to extend the range of...

38 Setting Up: Advanced Linksys EA-Series 6. To reconfigure the wireless network on your old router: a. Open the wireless network setup page. b. Change the network name (SSID) to match the name of your new network. Having the same network name and security settings enables you to seamlessly roam bet...

39 Setting Up: Advanced Linksys EA-Series 4. At the end of setup, follow the on-screen instructions to set up your Linksys Smart Wi-Fi account. NOTE: As part of the router setup process, you will be sent a verification e-mail. From your home network, click the link in the e-mail to associate your ro...

41 Setting Up: Advanced Linksys EA-Series To extend your network This topic covers cases three and four above. NOTE This is a complex process, so this procedure assumes that you have some networking knowledge. To extend your network or add wireless capabilities: 1. If you want to extend your network...

43 Port Forwarding and Port Triggering Linksys EA-Series 43 How to set up port forwarding Why would I use port forwarding? Port forwarding is a feature that forwards inbound traffic from the Internet on a specific port or ports to a specific device or port on your local network. You can set up port ...

44 Port Forwarding and Port Triggering Linksys EA-Series How to set up port forwarding for multiple ports Why would I set up port forwarding for multiple ports? Port forwarding is a feature that forwards inbound traffic from the Internet on a specific port to a single device on your local network. U...

45 Port Forwarding and Port Triggering Linksys EA-Series To set up port range forwarding:1. Log into Linksys Smart Wi-Fi. (See “How to connect to Linksys Smart Wi- Fi” on page 7. 2. Set up a DHCP reservation for the IP address of the computer on which you installed the software. (See “How to set up ...

47 Maintaining and Monitoring Linksys EA-Series 47 How to back up and restore your router configuration Why do I need to back up my router configuration? As with any valuable data, you should back up your router configuration. Your router might contain many customized settings. Those settings would ...

48 Maintaining and Monitoring Linksys EA-Series How to upgrade the router’s firmware Why would I need to upgrade my router’s firmware? Linksys may periodically publish a firmware upgrade either to fix a problem or to add features to your router. IMPORTANT Do not interrupt the upgrade process. You sh...

49 Maintaining and Monitoring Linksys EA-Series A confirmation screen opens. 5. Click Yes to confirm. All settings and logs are deleted, and your router is returned to its factory default settings. How to check the status of your router Why would I want to check the status of my router? Your router ...

50 Maintaining and Monitoring Linksys EA-Series How to disable the Ethernet port status lights Why would I want to disable the Ethernet port status lights? Depending on the placement of the router in a home, you might find the lights distracting. You can easily disable the lights using Linksys Smart...

51 Maintaining and Monitoring Linksys EA-Series b. Select a number of times to ping from the Number to ping drop- down list. c. Click Start to Ping. A window opens showing the ping test results. You will see a response for each successful ping. NOTE If an Internet URL fails to respond to ping, it do...

52 Troubleshooting Linksys EA-Series 52 This chapter can help you solve common setup issues and connect to the Internet. You can find more help from our award-winning customer support at linksys.com/support . Your router was not successfully set up If Linksys Smart Wi-Fi did not complete the setup, ...

53 Troubleshooting Linksys EA-Series Your Internet cable is not plugged in message If you get a “Your Internet cable is not plugged in” message when trying to set up your router, follow these troubleshooting steps. To fix the problem:1. Make sure that an Ethernet or Internet cable (or a cable like t...

55 Troubleshooting Linksys EA-Series After setup The Internet appears to be unavailable If the Internet has difficulty communicating with your router, the problem may appear as a “Cannot find [Internet address]” message in your web browser. If you know that the Internet address is correct, and if yo...

56 Troubleshooting Linksys EA-Series You cannot access Linksys Smart Wi-Fi To access your router directly, see “How to manually set up your router” on page 24: All other troubleshooting has been unsuccessful If you’ve tried previous troubleshooting steps and your network still doesn’t work, you may ...

57 Linksys EA-Series Specifications 57 57 Linksys EA6900 Model Name Linksys EA6900 Description Linksys Smart Wi-Fi Router AC1900 Model Number EA6900 Switch Port Speed 10/100/1000 Mbps (Gigabit Ethernet) Radio Frequency 2.4 and 5 GHz # of Antennas 3 external antennas Ports Power, USB (2), Internet, E...