Dynex DX-E401 User Guide (English) - Page 3

Important safety instructions 3 Important safety instructions These precautions explain how to safely operate your new router, preventing injury to you or to others, or damage to the router. Warning - read this carefully before proceeding. • Do not open the router or attempt to disassemble or modify it. • Do not insert fingers or foreign objects into the router. • Do not expose the router to rain, use it near water or in damp or wet conditions, or place containers on it that contain liquids which might spill into openings. • Follow the Installation Guide and this User Guide carefully. Follow the correct procedures when setting up the router. Introduction to broadband router technology A router is a device that forwards data packets from a source to a destination using IP addresses, not MAC addresses. A router forwards data from the Internet to a particular computer on your network. The information that makes up the Internet gets moved around using routers. When you click on a link on a Web page, you send a request to a server to show you the next page. The information that is sent and received from your computer is moved from your computer to the server using routers. A router also determines the best route that your information should follow to ensure that the information is delivered correctly. A router controls the amount of data that is sent through your network by eliminating information that should not be there. This provides security for the computers connected to your router, because computers from the outside cannot access or send information directly to any computer on your network. The router determines which computer the information should be forwarded to, then sends it. If the information is not intended for any computer on your network, the data is discarded. This keeps unwanted or harmful information from accessing or damaging your network.