Netopia R3100 review

US-based Netopia concentrates on the small to medium-sized business communications market and offers a wide range of DSL and ISDN related products. The R3100 represents the next step up from its entry level R310 and brings together an ISDN router, an eight-port 10BaseT Ethernet hub and a pair of analog ports. A feature called SmartPhone allows devices such as phones, modems and fax machines to be connected to the R3100 so they can also utilise the ISDN line. BOD (bandwidth on demand), or call bumping, lets users make calls during a dual-channel data link as one channel will be handed over for the duration of the call and picked up again when they've finished.

The Ethernet ports are arranged neatly to one side at the rear, and port one can also act as an uplink for connection to another hub or switch. Two ISDN BRI ports are provided, but the second isn't currently operational and only provided for future upgrades. A serial port allows the router to be accessed over a terminal emulation session and an external modem can be added to an auxiliary port alongside. This option is enabled as default and can be configured from the CLI. The front panel provides plenty of operational information with link LEDs for each Ethernet port and status indicators for B- and D-channels, the serial port and auxiliary port.

A SmartStart Wizard gets you up and running by providing the unit with an IP address, adding your ISP's details and testing the router and Internet connection. I found the documentation particularly well structured and easy to follow and it includes useful sections on configuring TCP/IP on Windows 95, 98 and NT clients to allow them to access the router. The CLI proved to be more intuitive than most, and Netopia also provides its Java-based SmartView utility for remotely monitoring the router.

Different profiles can be stored for each type of connection and you can use a single B-channel, both channels, or allow the R3100 to monitor traffic and pick up the second channel when required. Dial-in connections are also supported and you can create schedules allowing connections to an ISP or remote network to be automatically initiated by the R3100 for specific times during each day.

Author: Dave Mitchell