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Awireless router orWi-Fi router is a device that performs the functions of arouter and also includes the functions of awireless access point. It is used to provide access to theInternet or aprivate computer network. Depending on the manufacturer and model, it can function in a wiredlocal area network, in awireless-only LAN, or in a mixed wired and wireless network.
Wireless routers typically feature one or morenetwork interface controllers supportingFast Ethernet orGigabit Ethernet ports integrated into the mainsystem on a chip (SoC) around which the router is built. AnEthernet switch as described inIEEE 802.1Q may interconnect multiple ports. Some routers implementlink aggregation through which two or more ports may be used together improving throughput and redundancy.[1]
All wireless routers feature one or morewireless network interface controllers. These are also integrated into the main SoC or may be separate chips on theprinted circuit board. It also can be a distinct card connected over aMiniPCI orMiniPCIe interface. Some dual-band wireless routers operate the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands simultaneously. Wireless controllers support a part of theIEEE 802.11-standard family and many dual-band wireless routers have data transfer rates exceeding 300 Mbit/s (For 2.4 GHz band) and 450 Mbit/s (For 5 GHz band). Some wireless routers provide multiple streams allowing multiples of data transfer rates (e.g. a three-stream wireless router allows transfers of up to 1.3 Gbit/s on the 5 GHz bands).
Some wireless routers have one or twoUSB ports. These can be used to connect printer or desktop or mobile external hard disk drive to be used as ashared resource on the network.[2] A USB port may also be used for connectingmobile broadband modem,[3] aside from connecting the wireless router to an Ethernet with xDSL or cable modem. A mobile broadband USB adapter can be connected to the router to share the mobile broadband Internet connection through the wireless network. Some wireless routers come with eitherxDSL modem,DOCSIS modem,LTE modem, orfiber optic modem integrated.
The most common operating system on such embedded devices isLinux. Less frequently,VxWorks is used. The devices are configured over a web user interface served by a lightweb server software running on the device. It is possible for a computer running a desktop operating system with appropriate software to act as a wireless router. This is commonly referred to as aSoftAP.
In 2003,Linksys was forced to open-source thefirmware of itsWRT54G router series (the best-selling routers of all time) after people on theLinux kernel mailing list discovered that it usedGPL Linux code.[4] In 2008, Cisco was sued inFree Software Foundation, Inc. v. Cisco Systems, Inc. due to similar issues with Linksys routers. Since then,various open-source projects have built on this foundation, includingOpenWrt,DD-WRT, andTomato.
In 2016, various manufacturers changed their firmware to block custom installations after an FCC ruling.[5] However, some companies plan to continue to officially support open-source firmware, including Linksys[6] and Asus.[5]