Home Router IP Addresses Explained
Home broadband routers possess two IP addresses. One is for communicating locally, inside the home network, called a private IP address; the other is used when connecting to networks outside of the local one, usually the internet, and are called public IP addresses. Internet providers assign the public address, while the home network administrator controls the private address. If you’ve never changed the local address of your router, especially if it was recently purchased new, this IP address is likely set to use the default IP address. Because a router must have a local IP address when a network is initially set up, the manufacturer programmed a default IP address into the router to simplify network setup. The router’s IP address is sometimes called the default gateway address, acting as the portal through which client devices can access the internet. Computer operating systems sometimes use this term on their network configuration menus.
Changing a Router’s Default IP Address
Each time a home router powers on, it will use the same default private network address unless the administrator wishes to change it. Changing the router’s default IP address might be necessary to avoid conflict with the IP address of a modem or another router already installed on the network. Administrators can change this default IP address either during installation or at any later time. Doing so does not alter other administrative settings such as the Domain Name System (DNS) address values, network mask (subnet mask), passwords, or Wi-Fi settings. Changing the default IP address also does not affect a network’s connections to the internet, though there may be a brief interruption of internet access for devices on the local network while rebooting the router to use the newly assigned private network address.
Resetting a Router
A router reset (not a router reboot) replaces all of its network settings with the manufacturer’s defaults, including the local IP address. Even if the network administrator changed the default address for the router, a reset reverts this address to the original manufacturer-assigned default IP address.
What Is Routerlogin.com?
Some NETGEAR routers support a feature that allows administrators to access the router through a domain name rather than an IP address. After an administrator enters www.routerlogin.com or www.routerlogin.net, the NETGEAR router recognizes the domain name and redirects the administrator to the router’s IP address automatically. NETGEAR maintains the domains routerlogin.com and routerlogin.net as a service that gives router owners an alternative to remembering the IP address of their device; routerlogin.com is easier to remember than an IP address.
