Great Product, when you find the right firmware
Written: Nov 03 '00
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Product Rating:
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Pros: speed, cost, easy of admin
Cons: possible firmware problems
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| jrjohnston's Full Review: Linksys Etherfast Cable and DSL Router |
I finally took the jump and moved into the realm of high speed internet access. I have a 4 computer home network consisting of a Win2K server, two Win2k pro systems, and a Win98 laptop. Up until now, all shared a 28.8 modem link via Windows 2000 ICS. While this worked to get all systems to the internet, you can imagine how slow access was when more than one computer needed bandwidth.
When I switched to a cable modem, I still used the same basic setup with ICS as the means of all computers getting to the outside world. Throughput was leaps and bounds ahead of the 28.8 link but I wanted another way to let all computers access the internet. With ICS, if the ICS system is down, all systems are cut off. Also I wanted something better than software firewalls to protect my systems from internet "explorers".
After much research, I decided on the Linksys 4 port router. Primary reasons for getting this unit were the inherent firewall that comes with using a NAT device, the 10/100 ethernet switch for the private network, easy of configuration, and the low cost of the Linksys.
First let's talk about the firewall aspect. I was using Blackice and Zonealarm Pro which were stealthing my ports from all of the major scanning sites. This combination worked very well but software can lock up or have bugs. If the software failed to load on boot, you could be totally open to attack. With the Linksys, you have a NAT device between you and the internet. NAT devices do not let in unsolicited traffic. If you ask for it, it gets in, otherwise it is rejected. Zonealarm is still good in this situation however to protect outgoing traffic which might be the result of trojans on your system.
The 10/100 switch was a nice increase in LAN performance for me. I had been using a 10MB hub.
The linksys is possibly the easiest router device to setup you will see. The admin interface is reached with a standard browser like IE or netscape. Once in the admin interface, options to set are easy to understand and most people with not even need the manual.
This is also one of the lowest cost units around. Street price is around $150 right now and can be found even cheaper if you search. For a 4 port 10/100 switch and internet router, this can not be beat.
Advanced features of the unit include port forwarding, IP filtering to block individual computers from internet access, and the DMZ which allows you to open one internal IP address without protection to the internet, useful for those running game servers.
As good as the Linksys is, it still has problems. Linksys releases firmware upgrades for this device almost faster than you can follow. Normally this is good but the upgrades tend to break features while adding or fixing others. You may have to try multiple firmware version till you find a stable one that works for you. My unit came with the 1.30 version and while all others I tried (1.331, 1.35, 1.36) worked for basic features, my VPN connect to my work network only would function under 1.30.
Even with possible firmware problems, I do not think you can beat the Linksys for a unit with these features in this price range.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
jrjohnston
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Member: James Johnston
Location: San Antonio, TX
Reviews written: 22
Trusted by: 3 members
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