Step 1
Connect the router to your internet service provider's modem with an ethernet cable.
Connect the router to your computer with an ethernet cable. You can access a wireless router without a cable if your computer is wireless capable.
Plug in and turn on router.
Step 2
Enter your router's IP address, of the form 192.168.0.1, although not necessarily that number. The router's IP address will either be printed on the router or contained in the router's documentation.
Step 3
If you type in the router's IP address correctly, but cannot access the router's web page, check that all cable connections are correct and all equipment is turned on. If you still can not connect, open a Linux console and log in as root. Type "dhclient" at the command line. This should connect you. Check by typing "ifconfig". If you are connected, the output will contain information about your ethernet device, eth0, wlan0, ath0, etc. The beginning of the relevant section will look something like this:
eth0 Link encap:Ethernet HWaddr xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx
inet addr:192.168.0.2 Bcast:255.255.255.255 Mask:255.255.255.0
You are checking for an inet address of the form, 192.168.x.x or 192.168.x.xxx, 192.168.xxx.x, etc. In this example, it is 192.168.0.2. If an inet address of the correct address is there, you are connected and can access the router's web page.
Step 4
Log in to the router with the default user name and password provided in the documentation. If the router is second-hand, and the previous user changed the default user name and password, you can reset them to defaults, usually by pushing a button. Check your router's documentation for information on how to do this.
Step 5
You will now be presented with a wealth of configuration options, most of which are beyond the scope of this document. Most routers give you a "Quick Setup" option, which you can use to configure your router intuitively. Start by selecting the option for Dynamic IP, which is the most common set-up for home Internet. If your installer is with you, but was previously unable to access the router because of unfamiliarity with Linux, you can simply pass the installation off to her at this point in time. She can do the rest.
If your installer is not with you and you get stuck, call your internet service provider and ask them for the addresses of nameservers and other information that you may need to configure the router to reach the Internet.
Step 6
One security measure you should take with wireless routers is to define which hardware addresses are allowed to access the router. This does not prevent people from intercepting anything that you send out over the air, but it does make it harder for them to access your router and the devices connected to it. Type the "ifconfig" command as before. You will see that your computer has a hardware address that it uses to access the Internet. This corresponds to "MAC address" on the router. Most routers have a section where MAC addresses are bound to IPs. Bind your hardware address to a single IP on the router, then disable all other IPs. Bind more local hardware addresses to more IPs on the router as needed.
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