Set Up AT&T Home Base Port Forwarding In A Matter Of Minutes

Port forwarding on an ATT router enhances your online experience by improving your internet speed and stability.

How to Port Forward on an ATT Router

Other than connecting you to the internet, an ATT router enables you to customize your settings, change your Wi-Fi password, and check signal strength and data usage. Connecting to the internet through this router also keeps your home network safe from hacker access. This is because this router features a basic firewall that blocks unauthorized incoming and outgoing connections. However, some games and programs will run better if you open some ports on your AT&T router, directing them to connected devices on the router (e.g. your gaming console, a laptop, a PC). To do this, you will need to create a port forwarding rule. This configuration forwards a specific port or connection to a specific device within your network.

Here is a step by step process of how to port forward on ATT:

• Set up a static IP address on the device you are forwarding the ports to
• Log in to your ATT router
• Navigate to the ATT port forwarding section of your ATT router interface
• Create a port forward entry and test whether your ports are open.

Setting Up a Static IP Address

Setting up an IP address is the first and most crucial step for successful port forwarding. An IP address is a special number identifying devices within your network. This IP address can be dynamic or static. A dynamic IP address changes over time, while a static IP address does not change. For a successful port forwarding, you will need a static IP address. This way, your ports will remain open in case of a power outage, if your device reboots, or if the other device disconnects (otherwise, the port forwarding rules will no longer be associated with the correct device). Also, with a static IP address, you will not need to change the port forwarding settings every time as in the dynamic IP address. Therefore, setting up a static IP address saves you time and frustrations during port forwarding.

The setup for this address is dependent on the device you are using. You can find the IP address on the Command Prompt or Control Panel if you are using windows.

Finding the IP address using the command prompt comprises the following steps:

• Click on the Windows icon on your computer, and in the Search field, type cmd, then press Enter. Alternatively, you can double-click the command Prompt that appears in the search results.
• On the popup window, type ipconfig/all and press Enter
• The IP address of your router is next to the Default Gateway. From this window, also note down the IPv4 address, DNS servers, and Subnet Mask, as you will need to use them a little later
• Type Exit, then press the Enter button to close the Command Prompt.

To find the static IP address using the control panel, proceed as follows:

• Type Control Panel on the Windows search bar and press Enter. Alternatively, you can double-click the Control Panel App to open it.
• On the open Control Panel window, click Network and Internet and then Network and Sharing.
• Click Change Adapter Settings on your left. On this window, you may have more than one internet connection listed. Therefore, you should determine your connection by clicking on it.
• Click Local Area Connection and then Properties to open the Properties window of your connection. On the pop-up list, select Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4). Choose the Properties option. Note down all the settings on this window, as you might need them to reset if something goes amiss. Close the window once done.
• Click Use the Following IP address and add a number to the last digit of your Default Gateway. This new IP address should end with a number between 1 and 254 and should not be the same as your ATT IP address. This is because the devices in your home network need to have a unique IP address.
• Enter the numbers you noted in the Command Prompt window. That is the Subnet Mask, Default Gateway, and DNS servers numbers in their respective boxes and click OK.

Log in to Your ATT Router

Once you set your IP address, it is time to log in to your ATT router interface for port forwarding settings. The ATT router uses a web interface to set up changes. This implies that to access the settings, you need to log in through a web browser. You can use your chosen browser to log in; it can be either Chrome, Microsoft Edge, or Mozilla Firefox. Open your browser of choice and proceed with the steps below:

• Find the address bar, usually at the top of the page, and in this space, enter your ATT router’s IP address 192.168.0.1, then press Enter. This action will open a login window prompting you to enter your credentials. By default, the ATT router login is attadmin. However, if you changed these credentials, use your updated details to log in.
• If you have forgotten your credentials, try all the ATT default usernames and password combinations, and if this fails, consider a reset. However, a reset should be the last resort since it erases all the settings you ever made on your router.

Find the Port Forwarding Section

Once logged in, you will be on your router’s homepage. While on this page, navigate to the port forwarding section. Most routers, including the ATT router, list this section under the LAN or Advanced Network. Thus, on your ATT router, click the Advanced tab, then Advanced Set Up on the left of the screen. This action will open the port forwarding section.

Create a Port Forwarding Entry

You can create a port forward entry from the port forwarding section with your ATT router IP address. Before this, you should note that the port forwarding configuration opens your home network to the internet, making you prone to hacker attacks. At the same time, this setup stabilizes your connection and allows you to run certain applications, programs, and play games effectively. Thus, in most cases, the port forwarding benefits outweigh the risk, hence a worthy configuration. To port forward your ATT router, follow the steps below:

• On the port forwarding section, check the Enabled setting by putting a dot on it.
• Enter the specific IP address of the PC or gaming console that you want to forward the IP address.
• If you are forwarding one port, you will enter this port number in the left Port Range and right Port Range boxes. On the other hand, if you are forwarding a range of ports, enter the lowest port number in the left Port Range box and the highest number in the right Port Range box.
• Select the protocol of the ports in the Protocol dropdown; that is, TCP or UDP, or Both. If your ATT router has the Both option, you will make one entry. However, if your router lacks this option, you will create two entries.
• Name the entry in the Comment box. This name does not affect the configuration but serves to remind you why you set up this entry.
• Once you finish the above setup, click the Apply tab
• Also, after every entry, you should click the Blue Apply tab to effect the changes and proceed with the next setup. You can then test your ports to see whether they are open.