Vigor 2820 Series ADSL Router Firewall

The Vigor 2820 series is DrayTek's flagship premium ADSL router/firewall family. Packed with features, the Vigor 2820 offers truly comprehensive ADSL connetivity and security. PC Pro says "For business, it's an obvious choice"

Compatible with all variants of ADSL (including ADSLMax, ADSL2+ and Annex M) the Vigor 2820 can also be used for cable-modem and leased line applications thanks to its additional WAN port (Ethernet). A Gigabit Ethernet port on the LAN side provides high speed connectivity for your server (or uplink to a larger Ethernet Switch). Security features include content filtering, web application controls and a new object based firewall management system.

Robust & Comprehensive Firewall

Security is taken seriously on the Vigor 2820 Series. The firewall features measures for protection against attacks including DoS (Denial of Service) attacks, IP-based attacks and access by unauthorised remote systems. Wireless, Ethernet and VPN are also protected by various protection systems (see later). The object-based firewall allows even more setup flexibility, enabling you to create combinations of users, rules and restrictions to suit multi-departmental organisations.

Content control features of the firewall allow you to set restrictions on web site access, blocking download of certain file or data types, blocking specific web sites, blocking IM/P2P applications or other potentially harmful or wasteful content. Using DrayTek's new GlobalView service, you can block whole categories of web sites (e.g. gambling, adult sites etc.), subject to an annual subscription to the Globalview server, which is continuously updated with new or changed site categorisations or sites which have become compromised (such as infected with Malware). Learn more about DrayTek Web Content Filtering here. A 30-Day free trial of Globalview can be activated on your router.

Dual-WAN Load Balancing & Backup

As well as the primary ADSL interface, the Vigor 2820 features a secondary WAN port for Internet access. This is an Ethernet interface and can connect to a second ADSL modem, cable modem or any other Ethernet-based Internet feed. The secondary interface can be used either for WAN-Backup or load balancing.

WAN-Backup provides contingency (redunancy) in case of your primary ADSL line or ISP suffering temporary outage). Internet Traffic will be temporarily routed via the secondary Internet access. When normal services is restored to your primary ADSL line, all traffic is switch back to that.

If you don't have ADSL, the Ethernet WAN port can instead be used as your primary/only Internet connection (using NAT) so the same router can be used for either ADSL or Ethernet Internet connections.

The USB port provides an alternative connection method for Internet backup by connecting to a compatible USB modem (or cellphone) for access to the high speed 3G cellular networks from UK providers such as Vodafone, Orange, 3 and T-Mobile. If you don't have ADSL at all, the USB/3G access method can be used as your primary/only Internet connection, ideal for temporary locations, mobile applications or where broadband access is not available. In addition you can instead connect a compatible analogue modem to use analogue dial-up connections for failover in the event of your broadband failing. See seaprates page for more details on both 3G and analogue dial-up.

On the ISDN-equipped model (Vigor2820VSn) you can instead use ISDN for dial-in or dial-out connectivity and backup.

Note : For WAN failover you can use only one method at a time, e.g. Ethernet, 3G or analogue connections.

Dial-Up Backup (Analogue)

If you rely on your Internet connection, you can allow for ADSL failure by adding dial-up backup to your Vigor2820. Dial-up backup uses a 'good old-fashioned' analogue modem to dial a backup ISP in the event your ADSL line or ISP fails, either temporarily or for an extended period. The add-on analogue modem (seen below) provides 'V92' connections (up to 52000bps downstream speed) which is somewhat slower than your broadband connection but certainly usable for light web browsing, email and all other online activities which you really can't do without.

The Vigor 2820 will detect when your ADSL connection fails and automatically start the dial-up connection using the modem which is connected to the router's USB port. Once ADSL service is restored, the router will hang-up the dial-up call. Note : The modem is an optional accessory, not included with the router.

There are lots of 'free' dial-up ISPs in the UK which you can use in an emergency; you pay only for the call costs (normally 0845 Lo-Call Rate). Alternatively, you can subscribe to an ISP who offers a 'FRIACO' service, where your dial-up calls are free of charge, for a monthly subscription.

Network Attached Storage (NAS)

The Vigor 2820 Series's USB port can also be used to add storage memory to the unit in the form of a USB memory key (as shown right) or for higher capacity a USB hard drive (normally requires its own power). The Vigor 2820 then provides FTP access file uploading/downloading which can be from the local LAN or from anywhere on the Internet - ideal for a simple to deploy file depository. Access can be 'public' or using usernames and passwords, each of which can have their own directories and/or file access rights. As well as FTP, file sharing is available as a Windows 'network drive'. Using Internet Explorer, you can view the contents of the USB drive connected to the Vigor 2820 and read or write files.

The NAS facility uses any FAT32 formatted device (includes USB memory sticks, USB hard drives etc.) and supports a transfer rate of 12Mb/s.

Wireless LAN ('n' models only)

The Vigor 2820 Series features 802.11n wireless LAN specification and has been certified by the WiFi alliance for cross compatibility and WiFi compliance (including WPA/WPA2 and WMM).

802.11n provides a total wireless bandwidth of up to 300Mb/s using new methods such as packet aggregation and channel bonding. Throughput depends on your own environment (factors such as obstructions, number of hosts and distance all make a significant difference), but actual transfer speeds of 100Mb/s are achievable (based on our real world tests). In addition, 802.11n provides greater coverage and resilience to interference compared to previous wireless standards thanks to the MIMO technology and the Vigor's triple-antennae diversity arrangement. This offset arrangement of aerials provides offset paths between hosts so that interference can be overcome.

Wireless Security is comprehensive too; the Vigor 2820 Series provides several independent levels of security including encryption (up to WPA2), authentication (802.11x) and methods such as MAC address locking and DHCP fixing to restrict access to authorised users only. The Web interface lets you see how many and which clients are currently connected as well as their current bandwidth usage. An 'instant' block lets you disconnect a wireless user temporarily in case of query. The Wireless VLAN facility allows you to isolate wireless clients from each other or from the 'wired' LAN.

The Multiple SSID features enables you to have up to four distinct or common virtual wireless access points. For example, you could have one for company usage, with access to your company LAN and another for public access which allows internet surfing only. Setting up wireless security is made easier thanks to the WPS feature (WiFi protected setup) whereby your client PC can get it's security keys by pressing a button on the front of the router.

If your laptop PC's built-in wireless doesn't support 802.11n wireless, you can use the optional Vigor N65 USB adaptor.

For specialist or more demanding coverage applications, optional aerials can be used with the Vigor 2820 to potentially increase the range of wireless coverage (depending on enviroment) or provide directional coverage in order that your wireless transmission is focussed and concentrated into one direction only, for example into a room or across open space. With the increasing popularity of wireless LANs, you will want to choose the least congested wireless channel (Nos. 1-13) for yours. The Vigor can scan and provide a list of all devices in the vicinity so that you can choose the best channel (see screenshot below).

Above : The Vigor2820n provides a local survey of other access points
so that you can choose the least congested channel.

• 802.11n Compliant
• WiFi Alliance Approved
• Latest 'MIMO' Technology with three aerials (2T3R)
• Packet Aggregation and Channel Bonding
• Optional Higher Gain or directional aerials available - Click Here.
• Also Compatible with 802.11b and 802.11g Standards
• Active Client list in Web Interface
• Wireless LAN Isolation (from each other and/or wired LAN)
• 64/128-bit WEP Encryption
• WPA/WPA2 Encryption
• WPS - WiFi Protected Setup for client security setup
• Switchable Hidden SSID
• Restricted access list for clients (by MAC address)
• Time Scheduling (WLAN can be disabled at certain times of day)
• Access Point Discovery
• WDS (Wireless Distribution system) for Bridging and Repeating
• 802.1x Radius Authentication
• Wireless Rate-Control
• Automatic Power Management
• 802.11e WMM (Wi-Fi Multimedia)

Wireless LAN WDS Facility

Vigor 2820 'n' models support WDS (Wireless Distribution System) which enables you to use the wireless capability to bridge to another network, within wireless range. You need an additional compatible wireless router for this of course. Here is a simple example:

With WDS bridging, both networks should be within the same logical IP subnet (IP address range). Once set up, all of the PCs on both sides of the link can access each other, across the wireless bridge. Local wireless devices such as a laptop can continue to use their local access point.

An additional mode, as shown above, called 'repeating', allows you to set up a third station. In the diagram below, the router at 'B' is set up in repeating mode, relaying traffic between LANs at A and C. Therefore, all three physical networks can communicate with each other over the wireless links.

Important Note : Wireless performance (speed and range) always depends on your specific environment and will vary considerably. Factors affecting performance include wireless traffic, other networks nearby, site construction, walls, ceilings and other electronic equipment nearby. Speeds quoted are the maximum wireless capacity, including RX/TX capacity, protocol overheads and all clients/hosts connected.