User`s guide

MN-500 Base Station Configuration Guide 18
To block ping commands
1. Open the Base Station Management Tool, and then click Security.
2. On the Security menu, click Firewall Settings.
3. Select the Discard pings check box.
4. To save your changes, click Apply.
Network Mode
You have the option to use the base station for routing services or as a bridge between two networks. The
Broadband Networking Wireless Base Station is set to routing mode by default.
When you change the base station to bridging mode, you disable network address translation (NAT), which is an
important feature of your network. When NAT is enabled, you can use the single IP address supplied by your ISP to
connect multiple computers to the Internet. Ordinarily, if you wanted to connect multiple computers, you would
need to arrange additional addresses (for example, by purchasing additional accounts). NAT enables multiple
clients to share a single connection to the Internet.
If you choose to use the base station as a bridge between two networks or segments of a network, make sure that
another device on your network (such as a base station, gateway, or router) is providing NAT service. If you do not
have a NAT service on your network, you should lease an IP address for each computer on your network. Be aware
that each of these IP addresses will be exposed to the Internet.
To change the base station network mode
1. Open the Base Station Management Tool, and then click Security.
2. On the Security menu, click Network Mode.
3. Select the Bridging Mode check box.
4. To save your changes, click Apply.
Port Forwarding
You can configure the ports on your base station to establish virtual servers or run applications with special
network requirements on your network. This is called port forwarding. Port forwarding involves the configuration of
data ports, which are logical programmatic elements. Do not confuse data ports with the physical ports on your
base station.
To understand how port forwarding works, you must first understand ports and their role in data transmission.
About Ports
Information passes from the Internet to computers on your network across ports. In any network communication,
there is an outbound (destination) port and an inbound (source) port. These ports are used in conjunction with the
source and destination IP addresses to establish a connection between two networked computers.
There are many different types of data transmitted across a network, and certain types of data must pass out of
certain ports. The data type is recognized by the protocol, or rules, that it follows. For example, the e-mail messages
that you send might follow one type of protocol, whereas the games that you play might follow another protocol.
Typically, the data protocol determines the ports to which the data is passed.
The Broadband Networking Wireless Base Station opens the ports for certain applications automatically when a
client on your local network transmits data to the WAN. This enables transmission of some of the more common
data sent to and from the Internet, such as e-mail messages and Web browser data.
To run applications with special network requirements or to establish a virtual server, however, you might need to
change the port configuration on the base station. You can configure, or forward, ports from the Base Station
Management Tool.