NETGEAR N600 WIRELESS DUAL BAND GIGABIT ROUTER Premium Edition

Transcription

1 Reviewer s Guide for NETGEAR N600 WIRELESS DUAL BAND GIGABIT ROUTER Premium Edition (WNDR3800) Product Description (Learn More at The NETGEAR N600 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router - Premium Edition (WNDR3800) provides high performance WiFi speed and range for demanding applications along with a suite of premium apps and features that makes the most out of your home network. While most routers today compete on speed, range, hardware technology and specifications, the N600 Premium Edition is focused on apps and features to suit lifestyle needs and solve consumer pain points, built on a proven and powerful hardware platform. Clear Channel Selector Business class WiFi reliability to dynamically avoid busy Wi-Fi channels for clear and fast WiFi connections ReadySHARE Cloud - Access and share files on an attached USB hard drive at home from anywhere with an Internet connection. iphone, ipad and Android apps available ReadySHARE Printer - Wirelessly print from your Mac/PC to a connected USB printer NETGEAR Genie - Easy dashboard to manage, monitor, and repair home networks Video Mode Dedicated Video Mode for reliable video streaming

2 New GUI with pre-configured WiFi security New Router graphical user interface (GUI) with CD-less install from any PC, smartphone or tablet. Pre-secured with an unique WiFi name and password Expanded TiVo Storage - Connect any USB hard drive to create extra storage capacity for a TiVo digital video recorder. Apple Time Machine - Backup/store data from your Mac to an attached USB hard drive. Currently supports up to 1 terabyte of backup on Mac OS 10.5 and Lion (OS 10.7) support will be available shortly ReadySHARE USB Storage, DLNA Certified, Guest Networks, Live Parental Controls, Broadband usage meter and more. Open Platform Runs open source firmware like OpenWRT, DD-WRT and Tomato visit My Open Router community website for details ( Hardware Specs: CPU: 680 MHz processor, 16 MB flash and 128 MB RAM Operation: Simultaneous dual-band n at 300 Mbps on both 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands Ports: 1 WAN and 4 LAN Gigabit Ethernet ports 1 USB Port: For storage or print, supports USB hub for multiple USB devices; s torage File System supported - FAT16, FAT32, NTFS, Ext2 and Ext3 Radio Frequency characteristics: Transmit power of dbm at 2.4GHz and +24 dbm (North America) or +27 dbm (Europe) at 5 GHz; Receive sensitivity of -99 dbm (at 1 Mbps) at 2.4 GHz and -96 dbm (at 6 Mbps) at 5 GHz The NETGEAR WNDR3800 is available worldwide from leading retailers and e-commerce, priced at $ in the United States. Clear Channel Selector Technology The 2.4 GHz band is very crowded as every WiFi device and many other home devices such as cordless phones, microwave ovens and baby monitors use this unlicensed frequency. The result for home WiFi networks can be abrupt stops and buffering during video playback because of low bandwidth, dropped connections and long delays during gaming. The N600 Premium Router adds business-grade Clear Channel Selector interference prevention technology. This allows the router to dynamically monitor interference and communicate with connected devices to instruct them to move to the clearest possible channel in the 2.4G frequency band for maximum WiFi performance. Many enterprisegrade wireless networks in large offices, hospitals and campuses offer this technique, but the WNDR3800 is the only consumer router now on the market to offer this powerful feature! Clear Channel Selector works in the background. Whenever WiFi bandwidth falls precipitously because of interference, the WNDR3800 immediately starts looking for the clearest available channel, moves to the new channel and instructs connected devices to follow. The switching takes a few milliseconds, using the h standard for channel switching. ReadySHARE Cloud ( ReadySHARE Cloud is a personal cloud solution for users who want easy access to all of their personal files and folders, however large the size is, anywhere and anytime. Many online cloud solutions offer limited storage for a fixed monthly charge and the user needs to select and upload files, while worrying about security and whether personal data will ever get lost. ReadySHARE Cloud cuts through this complexity, only requiring the user to plug a USB hard

3 drive into the N600 Premium Edition router and then copy files and folders to the drive. The files are then accessible from anywhere in the world with an Internet connection. Storage is virtually limitless, restriced only by USB hard drive capacity; files and folders stay secured at home; and there s no long waits during painful browser uploads while deciding which files you need! The ReadySHARE Cloud interface on a PC looks just like the file explorer in Windows a true drag and drop approach for copying and uploading files. No painful web-based browsing, selection and upload. Currently, ReadySHARE Cloud uses Samba or SIFS protocol running over a secured peer-to-peer VPN link between the remote PC and the home. In the fourth quarter of 2011, users will also be able to directly stream using DLNA from smartphones and tablets. Smartphone and tablet Apps can be downloaded from the Android and ITunes marketplace at $2.99 each. To access a file wherever you are, just drag and drop, as if you were at home! Local PC file explorer wherever you are! File Explorer showing your content on the USB hard drive at home! Note: Speed of file copying and access will depend on the service provider s uplink and downlink speeds. NETGEAR Genie ( NETGEAR Genie is an easy dashboard to control, monitor and repair your home network. It comes free with all NETGEAR routers, starting with the N600 Premium Router. The Genie application (available now on PC and in beta for the Mac) helps you seewhat devices are attached in form of a network map, what devices are active, how much network activity is taking place and your current ISP speed. It is a very handy tool to access all the typical tasks regarding your Internet connection and the Home network, in a single place. It also provides configuration access to many of the new features/apps on the router. NETGEAR Genie fixes

4 many common wireless and Internet connectivity problems by resetting connections, running autoconfig/renew, checking for WiFi on/off, helping to retrieving passwords, etc. The router also comes pre-configured for security, with a unique SSID and password. You can set up the router wirelessly from an ipad, PC, smartphone or tablet. No more inserting CDs. Setup is a simple point-and-click process for consumers using standard DHCP. And the N600 Premium Edition router offers much more: DLNA Media Streaming Plays content on an attached USB storage drive on DLNA/UPnP AV devices such as video game consoles, DLNA-enabled televisions and connected Blu-ray players. Live Parental Controls Fullfeatured centralized parental controls keeps your Internet experience safe Enterprise-class wireless security with WPA and WPA2 encryption Multiple SSID support for setting up a second network for guests with restricted LAN access or a dedicated 5GHz network for video and gaming. Broadband Usage Meter ensures accurate measurement of download and total traffic through daily, weekly and monthly reports as well as customized alerts. Convenient one-touch on/off switch and Wi-Fi buttons to conserve energy Support for more than 20 languages during installation and in the language selector for the router user interface. For WiFi performance testing, NETGEAR recommends pairing the N600 Premium Edition router with a matching dual band Wireless-N client (embedded or external). Please upgrade to the latest firmware for all NETGEAR products at NETGEAR internal methodology for WiFi, WAN LAN and USB access speed testing, and other performance tests, are covered in the Appendix.

5 1. Wi-Fi Speed and Range APPENDIX The NETGEAR N600 Premium Edition router s high transmit power and sensitive antennas fine-tuned for each frequency band provide superior range in comparison to competing routers. Please note WiFi speed and range will always depend on the WiFi adapters in use and the processing power of the network device. In the case of WNDR3800, as the router is capable of multiple sessions, the PC can become the bottleneck when testing with only one PC. Also note that it is best to run the Iperf or IxChariot test programs using multiple sessions instead of single sessions. Highest speed is reached with Intel 6300 WiFi cards integrated in notebooks (found in selected Dell and HP notebooks) USB adapter speed (with NETGEAR WNDA3100 v2) at close range is usually less than integrated WiFi N in laptops as the interface is via USB instead of natively talking to the PC CPU bus. This is not a limitation of the USB adapter, but reflects the speed at which the PC can interface and process traffic while driving the USB adapter. It is best to use mid channels in 2.4 GHz range (Channel 4 8) as they support the highest power,per FCC/CE regulations, and hence provide extended range. For the 5 GHz band, the higher the power, the better the range. NETGEAR recommends using channel 153 for testing 5 GHz. For short-range testing, the router is optimized for maximum throughtput when the client is 10 to 15 feet away from the router. At closer distances, speed measurements may lead to some lowering of performance due to over-saturation, because the client is receiving too much WiFi power. Note: Due to the new WiFi Alliance certification rules regarding the 2.4 GHz frequency, the connection is allowed to channel bond and go to 300 Mbps maximum link rate only where there are no other interfering access points nearby. In presence of other WiFi access points, the router and the clients will go down to 20 Mbps mode with maximum link speed of Mbps. 2. WAN to LAN Speed The methodology for running WAN to LAN Speed test is explained below. For the WNDR3800, TCP and UDP performance in both downlink and uplink directions are in the Mbps range. 3. Simultaneous Session test When both Wi-Fi networks (2.4 GHz and 5 GHz) are connected to clients and passing network traffic at the same time, the router CPU is usually the bottleneck as it has to process multiple streams of n traffic. This test is recommended at close range, within 5 to 7 feet, to ensure highest throughput in each frequency bands and measure total WiFi performance and stress test the CPU. 4. Plug and Play USB hard drive access Accessing a USB hard drive connected to the WNDR3800 is plug-and-play simply connect the USB hard drive to the WNDR3800 and immediately for access as if the drive were a Networked Attached storage (NAS) device. There is no need for configuration or PC software installation. Simply type \\readyshare at Start -> Run when a PC is connected to WNDR3800, either wired or wirelessly. The methodology NETGEAR uses to test USB access performance is highlighted below.

6 Links to Download Software The following section highlights useful content, information and links for reviewing the product. Iperf, an industry-standard tool for WiFi performance testing, is available free of charge through the following website: IxChariot, another industry-standard network analysis tool can be purchased from Ixia: Suggested Test Setup The following diagram shows how the router and the wireless clients are set up. To test the different scenarios, with and without interference, with several clients associated to the router in each mode, it is advisable to start with one notebook as the destination and set up the Iperf or IxChariot tests. Additional clients are then added to measure simultaneous operation in the presence of interference and multiple clients. Wired PC connected to Ethernet LAN port of router 2 nd PC running IxChariot or Iperf as the destination Required Equipment Two fast computers (PC or laptops) such as a Pentium-4 with a 2 to 4 GHz CPU, 2GB RAM, and Windows Vista/XP/Win7. Use a brand such as Dell, IBM, HP, Toshiba, Fujitsu, or Sony, and avoid sub-brands. Note that Wi-Fi speed will not just depend on the Wi-Fi router, but also on the speed of the laptop CPU. For testing with IxChariot scripts, use IxChariot software version 4.3 or higher or later from NetIQ on each of two computers. The IxChariot console should be on one computer and the IxChariot endpoint on the other computer. Standard Ethernet cable from the router to the computer that is running the IxChariot endpoint.

7 Throughput Consistency Test the throughput variance to see how consistently the client can receive optimum speeds. NETGEAR advises verifying the throughput in the following scenarios: 1. Distance s from short (15 feet with line of sight) to long (e.g., from one corner to another corner of the house through multiple walls) 2. Orientation (0 to 270 o ) 3. Frequency channel Channel 1, 6, 11 in 2.4 GHz. Do a quick site survey on 2.4 GHz and pick up the cleanest channel, which has other APs at the lowest signal strength. 4. Laptop or PC used for the client adapter (IBM, Dell, HP, Toshiba, etc.) 5. Level of obstruction (line of site, number of walls, wall composition, residential home floor plan, etc.) Level of Obstruction in Different Environments Obstructions to line of sight may be present in a home. To limit the amount of signal loss, check throughput in several locations within the home, using open space wherever possible to prevent a direct obstruction. Note any metal sheets or panels, chicken wire inside the walls, etc., that might create obstructions for wireless signals. Running IxChariot and Iperf Scripts IxChariot and Iperf scripts are described in the following sections. Set TCP or UDP. For experimental purposes, UDP provides a better representation of video streaming traffic. With UDP, throughput will increase because it does not incorporate an acknowledgement protocol as TCP does. Set Random file. For experimental purposes, send a text file, an HTML file, or a binary or compressed file. With binary or compressed files, throughput may increase due to effective compression. Set the file size to 3 MB for short and medium ranges when throughput is higher than about 3 Mbps. For long range, set the file size to 100 KB to accelerate the response time of IxChariot. If you use 100 KB files at short to medium range, throughput could be reduced 10 percent due to poor file packetization. Start with 30 to 60 second test time. A good compromise between fast measurement and providing enough averaging and accuracy is 30 seconds. Test the AP to client (downlink), client to AP (uplink) and both uplink and downlink (bidirectional). Set up and run IxChariot scripts as described below. Follow these steps: 1. Open IxChariot, and select the High_Performance_Throughput.scr script. 2. Set the run time to 1 minute.

8 IxChariot Download Test Set up two pairs of the same script. Endpoint 1: Use the IP address of the PC connected to the router via Ethernet. Endpoint 2: Use the IP address of the computer connected via wireless. Then run the test. IxChariot Upload Test Set up 2 pairs of the same script. Endpoint 1: Use the IP address of the computer connected via wireless to the router Endpoint 2: Use the IP address of the PC connected to the router via Ethernet. Then run the test. IxChariot Bidirectional Test Set up the download test and the upload test (all four bulleted items in the previous sections). Then run both tests at the same time. Set Up and Run Iperf Copy IPerf.exe onto each computer - one connected to the PC via wired Ethernet to the router and to the wireless client computer. Iperf Download Test 1. On the computer with the wireless adapter, run Iperf as the server. Type: IPerf.exe s w 10000k (Run as server mode and KB file size). 2. On the PC connected to the router via Ethernet, run Iperf as a client. Type: IPerf.exe c srv_ipaddress w 10000k P 2 t 60 (Run as client mode, and set up the server IP with KB file size transfer with two pairs on 60 seconds) where srv_ipaddress is the Iperf server IP address. Iperf Upload Test 1. On the PC connected to the router via Ethernet, run IPerf as a server. Type: IPerf.exe s w 10000k (Run as server mode and 10000k byte file size. 2. On the computer with the wireless adapter, run IPerf as a client. Type: IPerf.exe c srv_ipaddress w 10000k P 2 t 60 (Run as client mode, and set up the server IP with 10000k file size transfer with two pairs on 60 seconds) where srv_ipaddress is the IPerf server IP address. Iperf Bidirectional Test 1. Set up the Iperf Download Test and the Iperf Upload Test. 2. When both scripts are set up, run them together at the same time. The total throughput is added on two screens. WAN-LAN speed test a) Download speed test: Set up IxChariot with endpoint 1 as LAN IP address, endpoint 2 as WAN IP address. Select Filercvl.scr script (a file receive script) and edit the file size from 100,000 Bytes to 1,000,000 Bytes. Set up and run the test for 1 minute and collect the data. b) Upload sped test: Set up with IxChariot with endpoint 1 as LAN IP address, endpoint 2 as WAN IP address. Select Filesendl.scr script (a file send script) and edit the file size from 100,000 Bytes to 1,000,000 Bytes. Setup and run the test for 1 minute and collect the data.

9 c) Bi-Direction speed test: Set up IxChartio with endpoint 1 as LAN IP address, endpoint 2 as WAN IP address. Select Filesendl.scr script (a file send script) and edit the file size from 100,000 Bytes to 1,000,000 Bytes. Set up another endpoint 1 as LAN IP address, endpoint 2 as WAN IP address. Select Filercvl.scr script (a file receive script) and edit the file size from 100,000 Bytes to 1,000,000 Bytes. Run these two pairs of tests for 1 minute and collect the data. ReadySHARE USB Speed test a) Create a 1GB test file. b) Partition your USB external hard drive as two partitions (one FAT32 and one NTFS) c) Attach a USB external hard drive to the router. d) Upload Test: copy the 1GB file from your PC to the USB storage drive. Record the start and finish time. e) Download Test: copy the 1GB file from the USB storage drive to the PC. Record the start and finish time. f) Repeat the tests on the NTFS and FAT32 partitions of the USB external hard drive. g) For HTTP speed test, download the file in FAT32 and NTFS from your external drive to your PC. Record the start and finish time. h) For Bi-direction test: Copy a file from partition1 to partition 2 of your external drive. Record the start and finish time. Multiple Simultaneous Session test a) Setup with IxChariot with two pairs (similar to bi-direction test) using default script of ilesendl.scr (100k bytes) and filercvl.scr (100k bytes). b) Highlight both pairs and then right click and select copy to duplicate more pairs. Add up to 64 pairs. c) First run 64 pairs test in 1 minute, check if all pair finish without error on the IxChariot console. d) If 64 pairs pass, repeat with 128, 160, 200, 300, 500, 700, and 1000 pair tests.