Product Description
The linksys BEFSX41 is the perfect solution for connecting a small group of PCs to a high-speed broadband Internet connection, or a 10/100 Ethernet backbone. Acts as the only externally recognized Internet gateway on your local area network ( LAN ) Protects PCs from Ping of Death, SYN Flood, Land Attacks, IP Spoofing & other DoS attacks Blocks Java, ActiveX and Cookies Easily configurable though a Web browser from any networked PC Power Adapter Included Diagnostic LEDs 2H x 8W x 7D; 14 ounces One Year Limited Includes - 60-day trial of Norton Internet Security 2003 (if not in the box, check www.linksys.com)
Take it out of the box, plug it into your computer while off, add power plug to router, boot your computer, configure the router (defaults already set to my situation), and start using it.
Just follow the instructions that come with the router and the online documentation. Linksys BEFSX41 EtherFast Cable/DSL Firewall Router (4-Port 10/100 Switch / VPN Endpoint)No surprises and no problems. Now that is how I like to add to my desk top.
The router itself is a good box and the installation CD is easy to follow; however, the printed documentation that was packaged with it was obviously out of date. In addition, the Norton firewall software would not load using the Windows 2000 Professional operating system. It requires Windows XP or later, but this wasn't stated on any of the advertising that I read.
When I contacted Linksys about the software (which they supplied), they pleaded complete ignorance and told me I would have to contact Symantec. Although I like the Linksys router and will keep it, this lack of basic "customer support" will certainly cause me to look very hard at someone else's products when making purchases in the future.
This is a fine low-price router. Setup isn't complicated. I ordered this product as a Gateway for all my devices, because I kept losing internet through my Vonage (Linksys) router/phone adapter. My wife complained a lot and looked accusingly at me every time she lost the internet. I installed behind my Zoom Cable modem (which works great--I don't recommend the Motorola Surfboard modems provided by Comcast, which habitually lost connections and had us swearing at Comcast for two years before I finally ditched their lousy hardware). The Vonage router is now connected to this router--behind its Firewall. A separate cable leads from this router to a Linksys router/wireless adapter which feeds all my computers. This system has worked flawlessly now for a week. Computers can communicate and see all the printers, which wasn't working before the switch. No lost connections. I'm sure one could spend two or three times as much and get a fancier product, but I recommend this BEFSX41 router/firewall for a household on a budget. My only caveat is that the documentation is minimal, but that seems to be true for most all of these economy products these days. They've got to economize somewhere with all the cheapskates, like myself, who want the technology for $50 or less. Setup isn't particularly difficult, however. Linksys has done a good job of minimizing complexity for a product aimed at the low-end home network market. The product I got (from Tiger Direct) doesn't have all the lights shown on the BEFSX41 listing in Amazon, so Linksys seems to have multiple variants under the same product identifier. My wife has stopped complaining about lost internet connections--that's success in my book.
I got this router when out company switched to VPN for remote desktop connections to increase security. This is one of the worst routers I have ever used, and I returned it to Amazon after about a week. The longest uptime I have ever seen was about 12 hours. Their support was horrible, and told me that they would not support the product at all if I upgraded the firmware from their website. I have since switched to netgear VPN routers, and those have been up for about 2 years now. I used to recommend Linksys, but now I tell people to stay away, or carefully check the model and version number, and compare them to the reviews.
2 1/2 months into using our new Linksys BEFSX41 router I went to connect to the Internet and the router was dead (this was last night...I'm using an 8 year old HP Gateway Router right now). I have included what lead to my reason why I only give the router 3 stars to save others from wasting their time with product support.
With 25+ years of working with computer software and hardware, it didn't take me long to surmise that the power adapter was no longer functioning-it wasn't warm despite being plugged into a functioning surge suppressor overnight. I doubted it was the router that was the problem. My husband further tested the power adapter with a power meter and the adapter was indeed dead (we also checked another adapter that we knew was working to verify the power meter was functioning properly, it was).
I checked the Linksys web site to see about a warranty issue since it was past the 30 day Amazon warranty. I found that there was an option to replace a defective power adapter with no need to return the defective unit (that was a clue that there is obviously an "issue" with the power adapters if they have their own RMA Option). I figured "cool, this should be easy"...famous last words. I now needed to get an RMA# to have a new adapter sent...unfortunately, this meant calling the Linksys/Cisco "outsourced to god knows where" tech support (I have a better name..."waste of time NO-support".
I ended up having to call THREE times because the first person didn't give me an RMA# before hanging up (although he did agree with me that it was most likely the power adapter). My second call I was put on hold for just shy of 15 minutes with dead air before I finally hung up. My third and final call stuck me with an unbelievable airhead. After starting to ask me questions about an "ethernet card" (NIC), which had NOTHING to do with the router, she proceeded to ask me the same questions over and over, even though I had already answered her ("when did you buy the router?"...March 19th, "where did you buy the router?"...Amazon.com..."how many lights are on the front of the router?"...None, there's no power getting to it..."so the power light isn't even on?"....No. (this went for three rounds!)
Even though I explained that there was no power getting to the router because the power adapter was not emitting power, she proceeded to have me "reset" the ROUTER using the reset button. HELLO? There's no power getting to the router so resetting it won't do any good. I went ahead and held the stinking button in for 30 seconds. Now she says "how many lights are on the front of the router?"...NONE! There's no power getting to the router!... And do you know what her response was??? "Okay, your router is defective. You will need to return it"....I held my tongue. I didn't say what I really wanted to say to this poor excuse for tech support.
I got the RMA# I needed, checked the box for "replace defective power supply" option on the Linksys RMA web site page and proceeded with my request to have a new power adapter sent.
So, the moral of my story...If you can help it, avoid the Linksys/Cisco "tech support", because in my opinion, it's a complete waste of time and another fine example of useless foreign outsourcing...corporate America, BRING THE JOBS BACK TO THE U.S. for pete's sake!
This unit was purchased following a very unfavorable experience with a comparable Netgear product, RP614V, which totally failed to operate. This unit was programmed and operable in the system within less than 30 min. Continues to operate as expected.
I have BEFSX41 version 2, firmware 1.52.15.
Pros:
1) It is easy to use
2) Not too expensive
3) Switch and VPN works very well.
Cons:
1) BEFSX41 will crash and reboot when under heavy load. For example, if you use BitTorrent with more than 50 connections.
2) BEFSX41 will drop your connection or fragmented the packets. For example, MSN / Skype would connect, but every 5 to 10 mintues it would get disconnected.
I've been using this product daily for almost a month and it is the most frustrating experience of my life! It constantly loses the internet connection and then once I disable my internet connection and enable it again, it loses the IP address for my remote printer.
Why do I keep buying Linksys? I purchased a BEFSR41 wired router less than a year ago and it has already died. It gets no power, so it's totally dead. I hated it already anyway, as it would shut down repeatedly, although it would generally come back by cycling the power off and on. But no more - garbage time. Had constant problems with Linksys wireless routers before so I thought wired would be more stable - wrong.
I will never, ever buy another Linksys product. Be warned!
I had three of these routers. After about a year all of them stopped working. Not even a physical network connection. Even when they worked it was always intermittent at best. I purchased a slightly different model of linksys router from a different place later on. It also stopped working after a few months. I have subsequently purchased the cheapest Belkin product I could find at a local store to replace these units. The new routers I bought are in the same locations, performing the same functions as the linksys routers. The new routers work. I have never had to reset my belkin router in the 9 months I have had it in my home. Bottom line: linksys makes junk. Don't buy it.
About Linksys BEFSX41 EtherFast Cable/DSL Firewall Router (4-Port 10/100 Switch / VPN Endpoint) detail
- Amazon Sales Rank: #3418 in Consumer Electronics
- Brand: Linksys
- Model: BEFSX41
- Platforms: Windows 2000 Server, Windows, Windows XP, Windows Me, Windows NT 5, Windows NT 4, Windows NT 3.5, Windows 2000, Windows 98, Windows NT
- Original language: English
- Dimensions: 7.00" h x 2.00" w x 8.00" l, 4.00 pounds
- CPU: AMD Athlon 1 GHz
- Memory: 128000MB DRAM
- Hard Disk: 1GB
- Processors: 1
- Native resolution: 640x480
- Display size: 669.2913385827
Features
- WAN Ports - 4 10/100 Mbps RJ-45
- Warranty - 1 year
- VPN Support - Up to 2 IPSec
- Weight - 13.3 oz.
Read more Linksys BEFSX41 EtherFast Cable/DSL Firewall Router (4-Port 10/100 Switch / VPN Endpoint)
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