Recently, many Nighthawk XR1000 WiFi routers are complaining that they are unable to access certain websites when connected to the router. Is your WiFi router also blocking some websites? If yes, then there is a chance that the firewall [Netgear Armor] is preventing access. If accessing the website is very important, then you can temporarily disable the Netgear Armor via the Netgear Nighthawk login process and do whatever you want.
However, it is not always the Armor why your Nighthawk XR1000 failing to connect to random websites. A few reasons are also there when you are unable to access some websites when on the Netgear router network. What are they? Read the next section to know about them.
But, before you opt to learn about the reasons we suggest you reboot the router. Perhaps, a glitch has overpowered your Nighthawk XR1000 router, and due to this, you are unable to gain access to some websites. The instructions to reboot the WiFi router are jotted down below:
- Unplug the XR1000 router after switching it off.
- Wait for some time.
- Replug your wireless router and switch it on.
In case you are still unable to access a website, then you can check out the next section to know why this happened.
Why is XR1000 Failing to Connect to Random Websites?
Here is the list of the most common reasons why your Netgear Nighthawk XR1000 WiFi router is blocking access to some websites:
- You are trying to access a scam website. Perhaps, the website also supports credit card phishing techniques.
- There are a lot of malware files present on the website.
- The website you are attempting to access forces its visitors to provide illegitimate access to their device files and ask them to download their files.
- You are trying to connect to a website that is yet to be whitelisted.
- Your WiFi router’s DNS or MAC address needs to be changed.
- Improper Nighthawk XR1000 router setup.
Now that you’ve gained enough knowledge about the reasons behind the problem you’re facing, consider walking through the next section to learn the techniques to solve it.
Fix: XR1000 Failing to Connect to Random Websites
- Whitelist the Legitimate Website
Sometimes, the router blocks access even to legitimate websites. The best method to fix this problem is to add the website to the list of trusted and whitelisted websites. Here are the steps that you must follow to whitelist a website on the XR1000 router through the Nighthawk router login process:
- Visit netgear.opendns.com.
- Using the Netgear account details, reach the router’s dashboard.
- Click Account Settings > Whitelist.
- Type the URL of the website you wish to unblock.
- After that, click Never Block and select Add this Domain.
- Use Proxy
You can also use a proxy to access the website when connected to the Netgear router. The reason being, a proxy hides your real IP address from the ISP. If we elaborate, when you are visiting a website through a proxy, it is the proxy that connects to the website, not you.
The proxy server access the website through its cached version and hence can help you fix the Nighthawk XR1000 failing to connect to random websites issue.
- Use Public DNS
DNS translates the request made by different IP addresses [devices]. It decides the server you can reach while accessing the website. Therefore, configuring it can also help you gain access to websites. Given below are steps that will reveal how to set a public DNS IP address:
- Go to the Netgear admin page via routerlogin.net and enter the required info.
- Find your way to the DNS Address section under the Basic or Advanced tab.
- Click Use These DNS Servers.
- Input the primary and secondary DNS wherever needed.
- Click Apply and restart your router to apply the changes.
- Disable Firewall
Since we asked you to disable Netgear Armor temporarily at the beginning of the post, in this very section we will provide you with the steps to do the same. It is because sometimes, Netgear Armor is overprotective, and disabling it is the only option you have in hand. Read the points given below to know how to go about the process:
- Log in to the Nighthawk XR1000 router.
- On the main menu, insert a new role for Inbound Services.
- Choose Security and Rules.
- Select Allow Always on the Action option.
- Check the enable column and activate the new rule.
The firewall on your Netgear router is disabled. Hence, no longer your Nighthawk XR1000 be failing to connect to random websites. However, we want you to check on the modem and router connection amidst the process. The modem’s settings should be proper. In case you have a Nighthawk modem, you are free to access the Nighthawk modem login page to tweak its settings so that it can stay in consistent contact with the router. Thanks for reading the post.
