User Guide Linksys EA6500
Linksys EA6500 Contents Contents Product Overview Setting Up: Advanced EA6500 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1 How to manually set up your router . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Setting Up: Basics How to get the most out of your dual-band router . . . . . . . . 16 How to control access to your network . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 How to create a home network . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Linksys EA6500 Contents Troubleshooting During setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 Your router was not successfully set up Windows XP Service Pack update Your Internet cable is not plugged in message Cannot access your router message 31 31 32 32 After setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Linksys EA6500 Product Overview Product Overview Features 802.11AC technology EA6500 Built with leading 802.11AC wireless technology, your router offers maximum speed and range to create an ultra-powerful network designed for home theater performance. Connect your computers, Internet-ready TVs, game consoles, smartphones and other Wi-Fi devices at blazingly fast transfer rates for an unrivaled experience. The power of dual band Double your network bandwidth with simultaneous dual-band N (2.
Linksys EA6500 Home theater ready Product Overview Top view 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 technology delivers maximum speed and performance so you can enjoy fast downloads, smooth video and music streaming, and reliable gaming and VoIP.
Linksys EA6500 •• Product Overview Ethernet ports—Connect Ethernet cables (also called network cables) to these Gigabit (10/100/1000) ports, color coded blue, and to wired Ethernet network devices on your network. NOTE For best performance, use CAT5E or higher rated cables on the Ethernet ports. •• Internet port—Connect an Ethernet cable (also called a network or Internet cable) to this port, color coded yellow, and to your modem.
Linksys EA6500 Setting Up: Basics Setting Up: Basics How to create a home network 2. Make sure that your modem is working. Your ISP can help you set up your modem and verify that it’s working correctly. 3. Set up your router. See “How to install your router” on page 5. 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.
Linksys EA6500 How to install your router The easiest and fastest way to install your router is to run the Setup software on the CD that came with your router or download it from the router’s support site at Linksys.com/support. Setup shows you how to connect your router to your home network, step by step. NOTE: If you lose your setup CD, you can download the software from Linksys.com/support.
Linksys EA6500 How to configure your router Setting Up: Basics 3. Click the Administration tab, then deselect Allow remote access to Cisco Connect Cloud. 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.
Linksys EA6500 •• For the widest coverage area, install your router near the center of your home, and near the ceiling, if possible. •• Avoid placing the router on or near metal objects (such as file cabinets and metal furniture), reflective surfaces (such as glass or mirrors), or masonry walls. •• Any obstruction can weaken the wireless signal (even non-metallic objects), so the fewer obstructions between the router and the wireless device, the better.
Linksys EA6500 4. Click OK to apply your changes. TIP If you have a dual-band router, each band (2.4 GHz and the 5 GHz) can have a separate network name and password. How to change your router password Your router’s password was set when you ran the router’s setup software, but you can change it at any time. You need the router password to change router settings. Setting Up: Basics How to change your router’s time zone Your router’s time zone should be set to your local time zone.
Linksys EA6500 How to connect devices to your network Your Linksys router is the nerve center of your home network. Your router safely opens the Internet to your network, and all of your computers and network devices rely on your router to pass files, media, and network commands in an organized, error-free way. Whether connected wirelessly or with cables, each part of your network needs the router in order to work reliably with the other parts of your network.
Linksys EA6500 Setting Up: Basics 4. Follow the on-screen instructions for downloading and installing the VUSB (virtual USB) software for your computer. How to manually connect a network device 5. Log into Cisco Connect Cloud, then click Device List to confirm that your router recognizes the new printer. To manually connect a device to your network: To connect a wireless printer to your network: 1. Follow the printer’s instructions to connect it to your network.
Linksys EA6500 •• If the device has a Wi-Fi Protected Setup PIN, type that number into the Device PIN box in Cisco Connect Cloud, then click Register. Setting Up: Basics How to view device details You can use Cisco Connect Cloud to view any network device’s network infomation. To view network device details: 1. Log into Cisco Connect Cloud. (See “How to configure your router” on page 6. 2. Under My Apps, click Device List. The Device List screen opens.
Linksys EA6500 Information about the device appears on the screen. Setting Up: Basics How to remove a device from the network You can remove a networked device in several ways: •• Unplug its network cable (if attached) •• Turn off its wireless connection (if active) •• Remove it using Cisco Connect Cloud To remove a connected device by using Cisco Connect Cloud: 1. Log into Cisco Connect Cloud. (See “How to configure your router” on page 6. 2. Under My Apps, click Device List.
Linksys EA6500 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. •• Set the above restrictions for specific computers. TIP When someone tries to open a blocked website, a window opens asking for the parental controls password. Enter the password to view the blocked content. How to set parental controls To set parental controls: Setting Up: Basics 3.
Linksys EA6500 6. To block specific websites: a. Under Block specific sites, click Add. Setting Up: Basics How to configure your guest network You can use your router’s guest network to provide your guests with access to the Internet, while restricting their access to other resources on your local network. To prevent unauthorized users from using your Internet access, your guest network requires that a password be entered for Internet access. The guest network is enabled by default.
Linksys EA6500 To set up guest access to your network: 1. Log into Cisco Connect Cloud. (See “How to configure your router” on page 6. 2. Under My Apps, click Guest Access. Your guest network, which was set up during your router installation, is displayed. Setting Up: Basics 3. Click OK to apply your changes. TIP The first time your guest tries to access the Internet through a web browser, they will see the Guest access screen.
Linksys EA6500 Setting Up: Advanced Setting Up: Advanced How to manually set up your router 3. Go to myrouter.local and log into your router using the default router password, admin. 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. 4. Under Router Settings, click Connectivity. The Connectivity page opens. To manually set up your router: 1.
Linksys EA6500 NOTE If you select Wireless-N Only, you may need to temporarily change your network settings to Mixed to provide access to guests without Wireless-N networking. Split your traffic The best way to improve your multimedia wireless performance is to split your wireless traffic between your router’s two bands (ranges of radio frequencies). Your router supports the 2.4 GHz band and the 5 GHz band, and handles the two bands as two separate wireless networks to help manage the traffic.
Linksys EA6500 Setting Up: Advanced e. Password—You can provide a unique password for each band of your wireless network. How to control access to your network f. Channel width—We recommend that you keep the default (Auto) setting for each band. In Auto mode, the router and the network clients automatically switch to the 40 MHz mode if: •• Your wireless clients support the 40 MHz mode (sometimes called Bonded mode) in which two 20 MHz channels are bonded together for better performance.
Linksys EA6500 3. Click the MAC Filtering tab. Setting Up: Advanced 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 Inspection) firewall is enabled by default. In addition, anonymous Internet requests and IDENT requests are filtered by default.
Linksys EA6500 •• Firewall: SPI Firewall Protection—This helps protect your local network from Internet threats. This option is enabled by default. On some router models, this setting is separated into IPv6 and IPv4 options so that each can be handled separately. CAUTION To help protect your network, you should keep this option enabled.
Linksys EA6500 Setting Up: Advanced 4. Under MAC Address Clone, click Enabled. 5. Enter the 12-digit MAC address of your old router, then click Save.
Linksys EA6500 Port Forwarding and Port Triggering Port Forwarding and Port Triggering 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.
Linksys EA6500 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. Unlike a web camera that typically only requires a single port to be forwarded, some applications require forwarding of multiple ports.
Linksys EA6500 To set up port range forwarding: 1. Log into Cisco Connect Cloud. (See “How to configure your router” on page 11. 2. Set up a DHCP reservation for the IP address of the computer on which you installed the software. (See “How to set up the DHCP server on your router” on page 27). In this example, the IP address of the desktop computer with BitTorrent installed is 192.168.1.140. 3. Under Router Settings, click Security. 4. Click the Apps and Gaming tab. 5. Click Port Range Forwarding.
Linksys EA6500 3. Under Router Settings, click Security. 4. Click the Apps and Gaming tab. 5. Click Port Range Triggering. The Port Range Triggering screen opens. Port Forwarding and Port Triggering How to configure your Xbox for online gaming Why would I set up my Xbox for online gaming? Online gaming adds another dimension to using your Xbox. As with other online gaming applications and gaming consoles, you need to forward multiple ports to use your Xbox for online gaming.
Linksys EA6500 Port Forwarding and Port Triggering 4. Under Router Settings, click Security. 5. Click the Apps and Gaming tab. 6. Click Single Port Forwarding. The Single Port Forwarding screen opens. 7. Click Add a new Single Port Forwarding. The Xbox uses four ports, so create four entries on this page. 8. Enter the information as shown in the image below. In the To IP Address field, enter a 1- to 3-digit number that corresponds to the last three digits of the IP address of the Xbox 360.
Linksys EA6500 Maintaining and Monitoring Maintaining and Monitoring How to back up and restore your router configuration To 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 be lost if you reset your router to its factory defaults, and you would need to re-enter all of them manually.
Linksys EA6500 Maintaining and Monitoring How to upgrade the router’s firmware How to check the status of your router 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. Why would I want to check the status of my router? Your router status tells you whether you have a secure Internet connection and informs you about the status of your network-connected devices.
Linksys EA6500 Maintaining and Monitoring How to disable the Ethernet port status lights How to test your Internet connection 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 Cisco Connect Cloud.
Linksys EA6500 Maintaining and Monitoring NOTE If an Internet URL fails to respond to ping, it doesn’t necessarily mean that the site is down. For security reasons, some sites are configured to not respond to ping requests. 5. To trace the route that packets take between your router and a specific address: a. Under Trace route, enter an address in the IP or host name field. b. Click Start to Traceroute. A window opens with the test results.
Linksys EA6500 Troubleshooting Troubleshooting 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. During setup TIP To temporarily connect to the Internet and download the required Service Pack, you can use the included Ethernet cable to connect your computer directly to your modem.
Linksys EA6500 Troubleshooting 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. 2. Make sure that your modem is connected to power and is turned on. If it has a power switch, make sure that it is set to the ON or l position. 3. If your Internet service is cable, verify that the cable modem’s CABLE port is connected to the coaxial cable provided by your ISP.
Linksys EA6500 3. Click your own network name, then click Connect. In the example below, the computer was connected to another wireless network named JimsRouter. The name of the Linksys E-Series network, BronzeEagle in this example, is shown selected. Troubleshooting To fix the problem on Mac computers: 1. In the menu bar across the top of the screen, click the AirPort icon. A list of wireless networks appears. Cisco Connect has automatically assigned your network a name.
Linksys EA6500 Troubleshooting After setup To reboot your router using Cisco Connect Cloud: The Internet appears to be unavailable 2. Under Router Settings, click Troubleshooting. If the Internet has difficulty communicating with your router, the problem may appear as a “Cannot find [Internet address]” message in your web browser.
Linksys EA6500 To restore your router to factory defaults, you can use the Reset button on the router or use Cisco Connect Cloud. Troubleshooting 5. Click Yes to confirm. All settings are deleted, and your router is returned to its factory default settings. To reset your router using the reset button: CAUTION Whenever you restart the router, all logs that are not saved will be lost. 1.
Linksys EA6500 Specifications Specifications Linksys EA6500 Environmental Dimensions 10.8” x 1.58” x 7.25” (256 x 40 x 184 mm) Unit Weight 17.67 oz (501 g) Power 12V, 3A Certifications FCC, IC, CE, Wi-Fi a/b/g/n/draft ac, Windows 7, DLNA, Energy Star 6 (3 per band) Operating Temp. 32 to 104°F (0 to 40°C) Ports Power, USB (2), Internet, Ethernet (1-4) Storage Temp.
Visit linksys.com/support for award-winning 24/7 technical support Cisco, the Cisco logo, and Linksys are trademarks or registered trademarks of Cisco and/or its affiliates in the United States and other countries. A listing of Cisco’s trademarks can be found at www.cisco.com/go/trademarks. All other trademarks mentioned in this document are the property of their respective owners. © 2012 Cisco and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved.
