Instant Broadband EtherFast Cable/DSL Firewall Router with 4-Port Switch/VPN EndPoint
Manufacturer: Linksys Inc. Part number: BEFSX41
- More product information:
- Editors' review
- User reviews
- Specifications
- Manufacturer info
- Bottom Line:
- The BEFSX41 is an affordable solution for those who need secure access to their home or office network via the Internet.
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CNET editors' review
Instant Broadband EtherFast Cable/DSL Firewall Router with 4-Port Switch/VPN EndPoint price range: $63.80 - $86.39
- Reviewed by: Xiao Ming Wu
- Reviewed on: 06/18/2004
- Released on: 06/01/2003
The good: Can support two VPN tunnels; cheap.
The bad: Lacks AppleTalk support; lacks VPN client software.
The bottom line: The BEFSX41 is an affordable solution for those who need secure access to their home or office network via the Internet.
Networking devices have to work with other products to function at all. The Linksys BEFSX41 router with VPN endpoint comes with a printed Fast Start guide that takes both ends of the connection into consideration. The guide walks you through the complete setup process. It explains how to configure a computer running Windows 95 though XP to connect the router and how to set up the router to communicate with your computers. Although you can use the BEFSX41 to connect Macs, you won't find instructions for tweaking IP settings through OSX. Also, the BEFSX41 router does not support AppleTalk, which limits your ability to connect to other Macs. You can, however, still surf the Web from a Mac via the BEFSX41. Configuration for the router's more technical features, such as the firewall and the VPN, are covered in the Linksys BEFSX41's comprehensive and well-organized 75-page user guide. The guide includes detailed explanations of the BEFSX41's features and a wealth of screenshots illustrating the router's browser-based configuration tool.
The Linksys BEFSX41 router's most noteworthy feature is its VPN support. You access the BEFSX41's VPN settings via its browser-based configuration tool, and we liked the simplicity of the setup process. Unfortunately, the BEFSX41 doesn't come with VPN client software, and those who have never used a VPN may find it difficult to set up a computer to tunnel into the router. One easy way to connect is to use the Linksys USB VPN and firewall adapter, which adds $60 to the total cost of your VPN solution.
The BEFSX41 comes with two firewalls: network address translation (NAT), which hides your LAN behind the router's IP address, and stateful packet inspection (SPI), which inspects data packets coming into your network from the Internet. You can also configure the firewall to allow or deny ActiveX, Java, cookies, or connections with proxy servers, which can help you lock down your network.
In CNET Labs' tests, the Linksys BEFSX41 router clocked in with a throughput of 95Mbps--about four times faster than a standard 802.11g wireless connection. VPN connections require more overhead and will be slower than standard Ethernet connections, but you can still expect to see broadband speeds, even if you're tunneling into the BEFSX41.
The Linksys BEFSX41 router with VPN endpoint comes with a one-year warranty. Linksys offers three-year coverage for its WRT54GS, which makes the shorter offering for the BEFSX41 disappointing. On the upside, you get toll-free 24/7 support for the lifetime of the product, and in our informal tests, the support staff was friendly and knowledgeable. Linksys also has one of the best online support offerings in the business, with product-specific setup guidelines, FAQs, troubleshooting solutions, firmware, live chat with support staff, and a copious knowledge base that contains how-to information for the BEFSX41's setup and configuration and problem fixes for a number of common networking issues.
User reviews
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Tried it 3 times and it didnt work
by augur on April 7, 2005
Pros: cheap, comes with cables, as if thats worth something
Cons: doesnt work 100%, few options, options dont work
Summary: before it is even said that i am trolling, you should know, i am a trained CCNA, who also teachs CCNA and i have my MCSE 3 times over. i ...
Summary: before it is even said that i am trolling, you should know, i am a trained CCNA, who also teachs CCNA and i have my MCSE 3 times over. i work with cisco equipment all day long and spend about 50 hours a week running cable and making networks work.
I treid this router out at a small clients office and couldnt get it to work properly with there Cable internet, i then brought it home and tried it on my ADSL and it didnt work. i brought it back same problems in boh places, brought it back again and th third model wouldnt even load, it got stuck in its own loading routine and after a hard reset it wouldnt turn over at all.
Iwent out and bought a D-Link DI-604, hooked it to a second switch and now run 5 PC`s in the clients office wihout a hitch...This isnt my first issue with linksys, cisco bought them and they arent benefiting from cisco`s golden touch which i professional love.21 out of 27 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Amazing small and cheap vpn endpoint
by julianmd on May 22, 2005
Pros: VPN endpoint
Cons: buggy firmware, little firewall config settings
Summary: I would recommend this router for families only....especially friends willing to play online games (either XBox PS2 so on, PC...) direct play, not through some third party servers.
The ...Summary: I would recommend this router for families only....especially friends willing to play online games (either XBox PS2 so on, PC...) direct play, not through some third party servers.
The VPN endpoint is a very handy (and at a low cost) integration to the router, which can save many the time and money in learning to setup a VPN server, using 2 NIC's and routing software.
One bug that I've discovered (I will send them an email pretty soon) is that whenever one tries to nslookup a domain, the router reboots.
Problem has been reproduced on at least 5 routers, and is persistent!
I rate this one 8. Good product!
Julian Dragut5 out of 5 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Buy something else
by 21kev on June 15, 2005
Pros: It works , sometimes
Cons: Very unstable
Summary: This device is used for firewall, and internet connection sharing for a small office with DSL. When we tried to set up a gateway to gateway VPN, the unit keeps ...
Summary: This device is used for firewall, and internet connection sharing for a small office with DSL. When we tried to set up a gateway to gateway VPN, the unit keeps losing internet connection and will not reconnect. The device will get an IP address from the ISP, will issue address's to the workstations on the network. From inside the network you can ping an address, and a domain name. If you tracert the unit will reset with red lights, taking 2 - 5 minutes to reboot. The only fix right now is it run the Linksys NETSET software. Reloading the firmware, nor resetting the device to factory fixes the problem. The firmware is over 14 months old, so Linksys may be finished with updates on this device. The VPN is not able to connect. The company I work for plans on replacing this device within the next couple of weeks. This problem has happened twice now, Linksys tech support says to run the NETSET program to fix the problem, instead of fixing what is causing the problem.
4 out of 5 users found this user opinion helpful.
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For home use, it's the best!!!
Pros: Easy to setup. It actually works!!!
Cons: Not for extensive VPN, maybe one VPN client.
3 out of 4 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Use the new Cisco firmware for a more stable and robust product
Pros: Very easy to get setup and upgrade the firmware
Cons: Easy to hack the password etc.. if people do not change the defaults
2 out of 2 users found this user opinion helpful.
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You other people must not know what you are doing
Pros: This is a very reliable product. I have used it in every network that I install, and have never had a problem with it! There is a couple of things I recommend you do to this router. One, don't just plug it in and use it with the default settings. Two, mak
Cons: People that just go and buy something, and don't configure it properly. And bad mouth a good product because they can't handle the truth that they screwed up configuring it.
2 out of 2 users found this user opinion helpful.
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This is a piece of ****. Put simple.
by tiberian123 on May 4, 2007
Pros: None.......req 10 characters
Cons: doesnt work...the end?
Summary: well lets see, it doesnt work, it never worked, and it probably never will work so dont buy it i 100% guarantee u that it will only cause trouble or ...
Summary: well lets see, it doesnt work, it never worked, and it probably never will work so dont buy it i 100% guarantee u that it will only cause trouble or problems.
1 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Three strikes, you're out
Pros: Inexpensive. Lots of features, including VPN endpoints which would be enormously valuable for traveling users if the router itself worked. Which it doesn't.
Cons: I bought THREE of these from Best Buy and returned them all. Slow, buggy, impossible to set up (compared to the breeze of using a normal Linksys wired or wireless router), firmware was apparently written by saboteurs from a competitor. Of my three units
1 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.
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ran slower speed then a dialup. slowed my cable down to a crawl.
Pros: has lots of ports and functions. good price. allowed all the usual things like file sharing and shared printing to work perfectly
Cons: ran slower then a dial up. made cable communitations useless. Nothing the tech support folks could do to speed up the internet connects. factory defect? perhaps? bought a Netgear router to replace this bad Linksys router. worked flawlessly right out o
1 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.
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One of the best for Home User, terrible for Business
Pros: easy to setup and use. cheap. one of the best for home user. Good Firewall protection.
Cons: Terrible reliability!!! Cisco must be blind to buy this company! I am a network admin. Tried to set it up for 3 home users/small branch office. However it just keep automatically rebooting itself when I was surfing or doing configuration at any time. Espe
1 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.
Specifications
- Manufacturer: Linksys Inc.
- Part number: BEFSX41
- Description: The Linksys Instant Broadband EtherFast Cable/DSL Firewall Router with 4-Port Switch/VPN Endpoint is the perfect solution for connecting a small group of PCs to a high-speed broadband Internet connection or a 10/100 Ethernet backbone. The Router can be configured to limit internal users' Internet access based on URLs and/or time periods - URL filtering and time filtering. For enhanced protection against intruders from the Internet, the Router features an advanced Stateful Packet Inspection firewall. Use the Cable/DSL Firewall Router with 4-Port Switch/VPN Endpoint to create IPSec VPN tunnels, so you can securely connect to the corporate server from your home office - or any location when you're on the road. The Router provides a dedicated port for DMZ hosting and acts as the only externally recognized Internet gateway on your local area network (LAN). With the performance and security features of the Cable/DSL Firewall Router with 4-Port Switch/VPN Endpoint, your network will take advantage of the Internet while keeping its data secure.
General
- Device Type Router
- Form Factor External
- Width 7.3 in
- Depth 6.1 in
- Height 1.9 in
- Form Factor External
- Weight 0.9 lbs
- Built-in Devices LED panel
Networking
- Data Transfer Rate 100 Mbps
- Connectivity Technology Wired
- Data Link Protocol Ethernet, Fast Ethernet
- Switching Protocol Ethernet
- Network / Transport Protocol PPTP, IPSec, PPPoE
- Communication Mode Full-duplex, Half-duplex
- Remote Management Protocol HTTP, SNMP 2, Telnet
- Status Indicators Power, Test mode, Link activity, Collision status, Port duplex mode
- Features DMZ port, VPN support, DHCP support, Firewall protection, Full duplex capability
- Compliant Standards IEEE 802.3, IEEE 802.3u
Communications
- Type None
Expansion / Connectivity
- Expansion Bays Total (Free) None
- Expansion Slot(s) Total (Free) None
- Expansion Slots Total (Free) None
- Expansion Bay(s) Total (Free) None
- Interfaces 4 x Network node - Ethernet 10Base-T/100Base-TX - RJ-45 - 4, 1 x Network - Ethernet 10Base-T/100Base-TX - RJ-45 - 1
- Compatible Slots None
- Port(s) Total (Free) / Connector Type 4 4 Installed Network node Ethernet 10Base-T/100Base-TX:RJ-45 Female 4, 1 1 Installed Network Ethernet 10Base-T/100Base-TX:RJ-45 Female 1
- Connections None
Modem
- Modem Type None
Miscellaneous
- Compliant Standards CE, FCC Class B certified
- Encryption Algorithm DES, Triple DES
Power
- Power Supply / Device Power adapter
- Power Device Power adapter
- Voltage Provided 12 V
Expansion / Port(s) Required
- Slot(s) Required None
- Port(s) / Connector(s) Required None
Software / System Requirements
- Software Included Drivers & Utilities
Warranty
- Service / Support Details Limited warranty 1 year
Environmental Parameters
- Min Operating Temperature 32 °F
- Max Operating Temperature 104 °F
- Humidity Range Operating 10 - 85%
Manufacturer Warranty
- Service & Support 1 year warranty
- Service & Support Details Limited warranty - 1 year
Manufacturer info
- Linksys Inc.
- Manufacturer profile
- Browse Linksys Inc. products on Shopper.com
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- Website: http://www.linksys.com/
- Address:
17401 Armstrong Ave.
Irvine CA 92614 - Phone: 949-261-1288
- Email: support@linksys.com
- Fax: 949-823-3002
