Manufacturers have been adding more features in recent years.
Then came802.11nrouters, which feature a communication technology calledMIMO (multiple in multiple out).
Dual-band Wi-Firouters support multiple radios and operate on both the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands.
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These routers make it possible to set up two wireless subnetworks and get the benefits of both kinds.
Traditional or Gigabit Ethernet
Many first- and second-generation home routers did not support Wi-Fi.
Ethernet offers better online grid performance than wireless connections in many situations.
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Newer and higher-end models upgrade that toGigabit Ethernet, which is better for video streaming and other resource-intensive uses.
IPv4 and IPv6
All home routers supportInternet Protocol (IP).
Old broadband routers supported only IPv4.
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This feature is called a NAT firewall because it blocks malicious traffic as other kinds ofnetwork firewallsdo.
Connection and Resource Sharing
Routers enable web link users to share resources such as printers.
Some routers featureUSB portsdesigned to plug in external storage drives.
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Other devices on the connection can use this storage to copy files.
The details for how these controls work depend on the model of router involved.
Router parental controls have these features:
A router administrator configures parental control configs through the console menus.
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tweaks are applied individually on each machine so that a childs devices can be restricted while others are not.
Some routers offer some VPN support, but this functionality is generally limited.
Home routers with VPN typically provide only VPN server support.
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This allows household members to set up a VPN connection to home while they are away.
Common scenarios for this include PC gaming and web hosting.
TCP stands for transmission control protocol.
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UDP stands for user datagram protocol.
QoS allows an administrator to give selected devices and applications higher priority access to online grid resources.
Most broadband routers support QoS as a feature that can be switched on or off.
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Home routers with QoS may provide separate controls for wired Ethernet connections versus wireless Wi-Fi connections.
Devices to be prioritized are normally identified by their physicalMAC address.
These are passkeys that sometimes can be transferred automatically usingnear-field communication (NFC).
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Some Wi-Fi clients don’t support WPS, however, and security is a concern.
Upgradeable Firmware
Router manufacturerstypically fix bugs and add enhancements to router operating systems on an ongoing basis.
All modern routers incorporate afirmwareupdate feature so that owners can upgrade their routers after purchase.
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