Netgear FVS336G ProSafe Dual WAN GigaBit SSL VPN Firewall

3.0.6-29 Firmware UpdateI thought this update fixed problems with NAT rules. It did fix the bug where inbound NAT rules were damaged on restart, but now newly created outbound NAT rules don't work! Packets go from LAN to WAN but the responses are lost without even triggering dropped packet logging. Netgear online support doesn't seem to have the technical knowledge to investigate.Stay away from this router. You will never get it working.Earlier reviews follow.-----------------This router has suffered numerous firmware bugs that prevent it from working securely and reliably. Tech support's answer is always to hard-reset and reprogram manually. Reprogramming using a backup file only restores whatever corruption you're trying to get rid of. This is a BUSINESS class router! Manually reprogramming takes at least an hour. After fixing the bug that gave admin privileges to Telnet without a password, I've picked up a bug where an important NAT rule vanishes on each reboot. I've been told by Netgear Support to install the beta firmware update (and then manually reprogram AGIAN) but they never sent it to me and they stopped responding to the trouble ticket. Netgear has a forum that they recommend for fast support but it's staffed by illiterates. I can't tell what they're trying to say.There's still no VPN client software for 64 bit systems.-----------------Firmware 3.0.5-25 may grant administrative access to everybody on the LAN through Telnet. If this happens, you can't set a password and you can't turn the feature off. The ONLY solution is to reset to factory defaults and re-configure from scratch. If Amazon let me, I'd drop to no stars until this is fixed.-----------------This little box is awesome. This is for anyone who has multiple internet connections, multiple static IP addresses, multiple home servers, or any other problem that a "home router" can't handle. Gigabit ports and the custom NAT rules allow a home server, a desktop computer, and a NAS can talk to each other at raw Gigabit speed.The best feature isn't obvious until you're half way through the initial configuration - it's actually easy to set up. The web GUI is clear, full of help, responsive, and it tells you about potential conflicts. The owner's guide is all about how to create your network. It doesn't waste your time with Windows screenshots. Ping, traceroute, DNS, and packet sniffing tools are built-in for troubleshooting mistakes without yanking wires.A test of NAT showed about 52Mbps, which isn't too bad for a small box. The only bug I've seen so far is that routing might not work immediately after setting up a custom NAT rule.

I bought this router as an upgrade to my existing multi-WAN PePLink Balance 30, but it ended up being a downgrade, so I am not going to use it. I was surprised, because I have bought several Netgear products recently (routers, access points, switches), and was happy with them, but this product was disappointing. Its management UI is not consistent with the other (less expensive) Netgear routers, which surprised me, because I would expect a UI that is as least as good, if not better, than the one on their cheaper products.The things that made me remove this from my home network were its inability to correctly load balance and the difficulty in assigning incoming ports to specific IP addresses on the LAN (which I had no problem doing on their less expensive routers). I don't know, maybe I was missing something, but the load balancing performance was a deal killer anyway. I have a cable modem that consistently gets 12-20 Mbps downstream speed, and a DSL modem that is typically about 3 Mbps. When I ran [...], it would result in a download speed of under 2 Mbps. After I replaced it with the PePLink router, the downstream speed went back to 19 Mbps. Netgear should be able to do this right.Even a simple thing, like an option for the router to check for updates, is a completely manual operation, where I have to visit Netgear's website, and look for the latest revision to the firmware, and then download it to a computer and do the upgrade. On the less expensive routers, logging on to the management UI will automatically check a netgear server to see if an upgrade is available, and then let you tell it to perform it. That is a lot easier. I don't understand why this router, which costs almost 3x the more basic product, has less features.If Netgear is serious about this segment of the router market, they need to overhaul their firmware.

It was difficult to configure even with 8 hours of phone support and a unnecessary RMA. It lacks key features of a competitors product, like load balancing, web control via Firefox (a number of javascript break), DHCP list and Load balancing configuration while cable active. When Comcast reset line and modem/router connects, load balancing is no longer selectable and will no longer list DHCP addresses discovered or handed out.