Setup guide · Ethernet and Wi-Fi gateways

Put your gateway on the right network

Most "no connection" calls come down to two things: an address from a different network than the router's, or name lookups the router never answers. The five steps below fix both, and the first one takes a minute.

How local addresses work

192.168.29.57

Network seriesThe same for every device on this network.

Device numberDifferent for every device, from 1 to 254.

The router is usually number 1, here 192.168.29.1. Every device sends its internet traffic through it, which is why the gateway's settings call it the Gateway.
A netmask of 255.255.255.0 means the first three numbers must match the router's.
A different series is a different network: 192.168.1.100 cannot reach 192.168.29.1.

DHCP · automatic

The router hands out the address

The gateway asks, and the router gives it a free address from its own series. It is always the right series, so start here.

Use it for the first connection, to find the series, and wherever nobody needs a fixed address.

Static · fixed

You type the address yourself

It never changes, so a SCADA system or a PC can always find the gateway at the same address.

It must use the router's series and a number no other device has, or the gateway drops off the network.

DNS · name lookups

Turns your server's name into an address

The gateway finds its server by name, so it asks a DNS server first. Some routers hand out their own address as DNS and never answer the gateway.

Set Primary DNS to a public server, 8.8.8.8, in either mode.

See it happen

Step 1 of 3

This router is 192.168.29.1, so every device on this network uses 192.168.29.something.

Step by step

Find your network's series
Look up the router's address on any laptop or phone already on this network.
```
C:> ipconfig

Ethernet adapter Ethernet:
   IPv4 Address. . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.29.23
   Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.0
   Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.29.1
```
WindowsOpen Command Prompt, type ipconfig, read Default Gateway.

AndroidWi-Fi settings, tap your network, look for Gateway or Router.

iPhoneSettings, Wi-Fi, tap (i) next to your network, read Router.

The first three numbers of that address are your network series: here, 192.168.29.
Set the gateway to DHCP first

In Device Config, open the Ethernet tab (Wi-Fi models: the WiFi tab, WiFi IP Settings), set IP Configuration to DHCP, type 8.8.8.8 as Primary DNS, and save it to the device. The router gives the gateway an address from the right series, and the router's list of connected devices shows which one.
Check the internet, and the name lookups
A laptop on the same network should open a website. If it cannot, the gateway cannot either: get the internet working first.

A laptop that works is not the whole answer, though. Laptops and phones can also look names up over IPv6, and the gateway uses IPv4 only. On some networks (Jio Fiber is a known case) the router hands out its own address as DNS and never answers those lookups. Test it from the laptop's Command Prompt, with your server's name:
```
C:> nslookup your.server.name 192.168.29.1
DNS request timed out.
    timeout was 2 seconds.
Server:  UnKnown
Address:  192.168.29.1

*** Request to UnKnown timed-out

C:> nslookup your.server.name 8.8.8.8
Server:  dns.google
Address:  8.8.8.8

Non-authoritative answer:
Name:    your.server.name
Address:  203.0.113.10
```
If the router times out and 8.8.8.8 answers, the gateway must use 8.8.8.8, which is why step 2 sets it. Still no server connection on DHCP? Switch to Static (steps 4 and 5): there, the DNS you type is the one the gateway uses.
Need a fixed address? Pick a number the router never hands out

Keep the router's first three numbers. For the last number, pick one outside the range the router hands out by itself (its DHCP range, in the router's LAN settings). Many routers start that range at 100, and some run it up to 249, so check. This guide uses 200, as in 192.168.29.200.

From the laptop, run ping 192.168.29.200: "Request timed out" means nobody is using it right now. Some devices ignore ping, so the router's device list is the surer check, and the surest is to have IT reserve the address in the router.
Enter the five settings and save

IP Configuration
Static

IP Address
192.168.29.200

Netmask
255.255.255.0

Gateway
192.168.29.1 (the router)

Primary DNS
8.8.8.8

Use your own series in place of 192.168.29. Never enter the router's address as Primary DNS.

Check an address before you use it

Type the router's address from step 1 and the address you want for the gateway. The check runs as you type.

Result

Enter these in the gateway

Quick reference

Router	Usual address
Jio Fiber	192.168.29.1
Airtel Xstream Fiber	192.168.1.1
Xiaomi / Mi	192.168.31.1
TP-Link	192.168.0.1 or 192.168.1.1

What you see	Why	Fix
No server connection, and the gateway uses 192.168.1.x on a Jio Fiber network	Wrong network series (Jio uses 192.168.29.x)	DHCP with Primary DNS 8.8.8.8, or Static 192.168.29.200, Gateway 192.168.29.1, DNS 8.8.8.8
Phones and laptops work; the gateway gets an address but never reaches its server	The router hands out its own address as DNS and does not answer the gateway (phones and laptops also ask over IPv6)	Primary DNS 8.8.8.8. Still failing on DHCP? Static, with DNS 8.8.8.8
Connects, then drops every few minutes, and another device acts up too	Two devices share one address	A free number outside the router's DHCP range
Nothing on the network reaches the internet, not even a laptop	The internet connection itself is down	Fix the internet first, then the gateway

Router addresses vary by model and by what IT has changed. Always confirm yours with step 1.