How To Set Up Port Forwarding On A Router Open Ports Easily

For example, if you wanted to find the port forwarding section on a Linksys router, you would search for linksys port forwarding and look for your router’s model number from there. Be prepared to think outside the box when looking for router page items; for example, if you don’t see “Advanced” listed somewhere on your router’s page, keep looking—don’t just give up there.

If you are not sure how to find the default gateway address and access your router’s user interface, see Accessing Your Router on Windows or Accessing Your Router on Mac.

Linksys — Click the Applications & Games (or Apps & Games) tab, and then click Single Port Forwarding to open a single port or Port Range Forwarding to open a range of multiple ports. . Netgear — Click Advanced Setup and then click Port Forwarding/Port Triggering or Ports - Custom Services. Belkin — Click Virtual Servers below the “Firewall” header in the menu to the left. Asus— Click WAN in the menu to the left and then click Virtual Server/Port Forwarding.

For example, Minecraft is a common program for which people forward ports, so you might find a Minecraft setting here.

Name or Description — Enter a name for the service (e. g. , “Minecraft”). This isn’t usually required, but it will help you keep track of your various port forwarding rules. Type or Service Type — This can be TCP, UDP, or both. If you aren’t sure of which one to use, select Both or TCP/UDP. Inbound or Start — The first port number goes here. You should research your selected port number to make sure it isn’t already taken by a specific application. Private or End — The second port number goes here. If you only want to open one port, enter the same port number here; if you wish to open a range of ports, type the number of the port at the end of the range into this text field (e. g. , entering “3570” in the first field and “3580” in the second field would open ports 3570 through 3580).

Depending on your router, this text field may already be filled with your computer’s IP address. If so, skip this step.

You may also have to check an “Enabled” or “On” box next to the forwarded port row.

These steps will work in both Windows 10 and Windows 11.

The icons that have a red “x” next to them are not active connections. Ignore these connections.

For example, if the default gateway number is “192. 168. 1. 1”, you would type 192. 168. 1. 1 into the address bar.

D-Link — Username: admin Password: leave blank. Netgear — Username: admin Password: password Linksys — Username: admin Password: admin Asus — Username: admin Password: admin DrayTek — Username: admin Password: admin ZyXel — Username: admin Password: 1234 TP-Link — Username: admin Password: admin TRENDnet — Username: admin Password: admin Belkin — Username: admin Password: leave blank.

For example, if the default gateway number is “192. 168. 1. 1”, you would type 192. 168. 1. 1 into the address bar.