|
|
Date: |
September
22nd, 2003 |
| Type: |
Review |
| Supplier: |
D-Link
|
| Author: |
mayhem |
| R.R.P: |
$169.95
(AUS) |
Advanced Setup:
Once you have the
router working and connecting to your provider, you may want to setup
some more advanced features in order to tailor the routers setup to your
Internet usage.
If you have a machine
that acts as a server and you want to give it unlimited access to Internet,
then you might want to set it up in DMZ mode, this is done by going to
Advanced, then DMZ. The DMZ controls are simple (as seen in the image
below - click for a larger image), all you need to do is click the Enable
option and then enter the section of the IP for the machine you wish to
set for DMZ mod (here we selected our server to be the next address after
the router, e.g. 192.168.0.2).
DMZ control allows
you to setup a single machine on your local network to be able to access
the Internet as if it is not connected through the router, that is all
ports are forwarded to that machine so that it can seamlessly operate
servers etc. This is a good feature for those people that run their own
server, but remember since it is fully open to the outside Internet, it
is a good idea to run some sort of firewall on the DMZ machine as to protect
it from those unwanted intruders.
Other features that
you will need to setup is Port Forwarding or "Virtual Servers"
as it is called in the DI-704P's menus. These allow you to open only specific
ports and forward them to certain machines on your network. This is required
to make programs like mIRC, ICQ, games and other programs operate correctly.
In order to setup the port forwards you need to select Advanced and then
Virtual Server.
One of the interesting
features of the DI-704P is the option to allow ports to be open/forwarded
at certain times and certain days etc, although this might not be used
by a lot of people, it is most definitely a useful feature. In the example
below we forwarded HTTP port 80, FTP port 21, Telnet port 23 and SSH port
22 to a second server with IP 192.168.0.3. You might notice that SSH access
is only opened between Midnight and 1am 7 days a week (this was just to
give an example of the flexibility).
There is one option
that we thought the DI-704P should have (but doesn't) and that is to open
ports to multiple computers. For example if you have ICQ on all your machines,
then you don't want to have to setup different rules for each machine
as this can take a lot of rules. But unfortunately you can only apply
a rule to a single machine/server.
The DI-704P has many
more features that are quite useful, but to describe them all would take
a while, so here are just a few snapshots to give you a look:
- LAN
Configuration - Allows you to set the IP range of the DHCP server,
the default lease time and even add the router onto your Domain (if
required)
- Firmware
Update - This provides a link to the D-Link site for the latest
firmware, and even allows you to update the firmware from the web GUI.
- Dynamic
DNS - Since most DSL and Cable providers use a Dynamic IP for their
clients, the router provides a client to update your Dynamic DNS accounts.
- Help
System - Rather than having to refer to the manual, the router itself
has most of the help inbuilt into the menus for quick access.
- SNMP
- It even allows for SNMP stats to be retrieved, all you need to do
is setup the details and your away.
- System
Tools - You can backup and restore your routers configuration (to/from
your own hard drive) or even reset the router back to factory default
settings.
- Time
Management - If you want to keep your routers time up-to-date and
then its as simple as putting your local NTP servers details into the
appropriate option.
- Miscellaneous
Tools - This section allows you to reboot the router if required,
block ping requests or setup for non-standard FTP access.
Print Server Setup:
The print server setup
is rather straight forward (that is if you have Windows, if your trying
to get this running on Linux then your on your own as D-Link don't provide
and drivers or software).
All you need to do
is insert the provide CD into your computer, when the autorun box appears
you need to select "Install Print Server Software" and then
select your Operating System.
During the installation,
all you need to do is select the directory you want to install the drivers
too, and then reboot your computer.
Once your machine
has rebooted all you need to do is add your printer (as below) or simply
modify the properties of your currently installed printer and modify the
port settings.
Simply go to Control
Panel, then Printers. Double click on the "Add Printer" icon
which will bring up the above screen (click to enlarge). Make sure you
select Local Printer (as its a local port, even though the printer is
on the network via the DI-704P). Also be sure to un-check the "Automatically
detect and install my Plug and Play printer".
Next it will give
you the option of which port to choose, in the drop down box scroll until
you see "D-Link LPT port (Local Port)" and select it, then click
Next. Now that that is out of the way all you need to do is select your
Printer from the list, or click "Have Disk..." to provide the
appropriate drivers.
With all those steps
complete your printer should be working fine now, but it is a good idea
to do a Test Print page just to make sure.
Also note, that this
Print Server functionality that is provided by the DI-704P will not work
with every printer, unfortunately there is not direct information on what
printers it does and doesn't support.
Testing:
For the purposes of
this review the DI-704P was connected to an Alcatel ADSL modem on Netspace
ADSL. The unit performed without any problems on a 1500/256 plan that
uses PPoE. Once the device was properly configured it was only a matter
of allowing the appropriate ports for certain applications.
The print server
itself was setup using a Lexmark Laser Printer and had no problems once
the D-Link drivers were installed.
Conclusion:
The DI-704P is definitely
a feature packed product and with the addition of the print server it
has managed to give great functionality for such a small price.
Pros:
- Affordable price
(makes it affordable for home and small business use)
- Screw mounts so
u can mount on the wall or under a desk out of the way
- Mounts can be
moved (rubber feet) and also allow stacking similar devices
- Plugs all at the
back with status lights on the front (neat and tidy design)
- Time slots for
port forwards (this is an interested feature)
Cons:
- Windows software
only for print server
If you are looking
for a cheaper alternative than running a dedicated machine (such as a
Linuxbox) as your server, then the DI-704P is definitely worth looking
into.
Thanks goes out to
Cristina Matos and D-Link for providing
us with the DI-704P for this review, we look forward to seeing more D-Link
networking products in the future.
Score:
9
/ 10
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