Set Up a Linksys WRT54G Wireless Router in PPPoE Mode

I started my Network Engineering study by configuring the WRT54G wireless router as part of my job as an apprentice in an ISP.

That was about twenty years ago. Now, I train young Network Engineers at CoreNetworkZ Tech Solutions.

While taking a network engineering training section, one of my trainees, Aravind, told me he never heard about it before.

WRT54G and WRT54GS were two popular wireless routers from the Linksys family.

These two wireless routers support Wireless G and B. 802.11g is backward compatible with 802.11b. So, we can say these Linksys routers support both g and b networks.

In this tutorial, I will explain how to configure Linksys WRT54G and WRT54GS in PPPoE mode.

To configure the Linksys WRT54G router in PPPoE mode, you must have the username and password of your DSL broadband providers. Also, by configuring it in PPPoE mode, you can use the built-in Linksys firewall and NAT.

I understand you want to know the steps to set up this device by now. Follow the steps carefully.

1. Ensure you can go online by connecting your computer to the modem (Without connecting the WRT54G router in the network).

   Make sure the DSL modem is in bridge mode.

   If the configuration of the DSL modem is in PPPoE mode, we do not need to configure WRT54G in PPPoE mode.

2. Connect your computer to one of the LAN ports of WRT54G.

3. Connect the DSL modem to the WAN Port of WRT54G. Now, I want you to Power on all the devices.

   

4. Open the browser and type WRT54G login IP address. The default IP address of WRT54G is 192.168.1.1. Press the Enter key.

5. After Entering the default Username and Password, you will log on to the Router Setup page. A few of the readers of CoreNetworkZ Tech Solutions asked me for the default WRT54G username and password.

   Default Username: {no username}

   Default Password: admin

   

   You do not need to change the Local IP Address to configure the device in the PPPoE mode.

6. Let me tell you the next step here. On the WRT54G setup page, select PPPoE instead of Automatic Configuration DHCP.

   

7. Now it is the time to configure PPPoE settings on the WRT54G and WRT54Gs router. Enter the Username and Password from your Internet Service Provider and click on save.

   

8. Click on the status bar and click on the connect button.

   

As you see, it is simple to configure a WRT54G router in PPPoE mode. Christo Tom, one of the regular readers of CoreNetworkZ Tech Solutions, asked me if he could set up a router in PPPoE mode if the ISP provided a bridged modem.

If the ISP provides a standalone modem or modem in bridge mode, I recommend you configure the router in PPPoE.

I wrote a detailed tutorial explaining the difference between PPPoE and Bridge mode, and I suggest you read it.

Also, a bridged modem can provide Internet access to only one computer. To overcome this limitation, we must use a router, and the router must be in PPPoE mode.