Port forwarding opens ports on your router.
Belkin routers provide administrators with the ability to connect several computers together in a small or large network. Belkin is a manufacturer of small and large routers used in the home or office. Port forwarding is a technique used to forward Internet traffic to internal computers. For instance, port forwarding can be used to forward Internet users to a Web server to view a website. This is accomplished in the Belkin router's console.
Instructions
1. Open your Web browser and enter the Belkin IP address in the navigation text box. The router is shipped with "192.168.2.1" as the default IP address. Enter the administrator password to gain access to the console. By default, the administrator password is blank.
2. Click the "Virtual servers" link on the left side of the console window. This opens the window where port forwarding is configured.
3. Enter the internal IP address for the machine that hosts the service. For instance, if you have a Web server hosting a website, enter the server's IP address in the text box labeled "LAN IP Address." Select a protocol type from the drop-down box. For most services, select "BOTH" from the drop-down list.
4. Enter the port number for the service server. For instance, a Web host port is "80." The port number depends on the service for which the port is used. Enter the port number used by the Internet traffic on the router in the text box labeled "Public Port." This can be any port on the router that you wish to use.
5. Click the "Enable" check box and then click "Set." This saves the port forwarding settings for the Belkin router.
Tags: port number, administrator password, Belkin router, Enter port, Enter port number, forward Internet