There are two ways how you can enable port forwarding for a game. The easiest one is UPnP or Universal Plug and Play which is a protocol that allows automatic port mapping assignment. Typically all that is needed when using UPnP is enabling UPnP option in the router configuration interface. The second way is manual port forwarding mappings assignment in the router configuration interface.
If your game supports UPnP you should try enabling it first since it is the easiest way to set it up. In order to enable UPnP you need to perform the following steps:
- Enter your router IP address in your browser address bar and press enter.
- You should see your router configuration interface login. Enter the administrator username and password and click on “Login” button.
- Select “Local Network” from the menu.
- Select “UPnP” sub-menu option.
- Set “UPnP” to “On” and click “Apply”.
If a game or an application in question do not support UPnP you can set up port forwarding manually. Port forwarding instructions could vary depending on the game but there are common guidelines which will work for every game.
Before you proceed with setting up port forwarding make sure that you gather following information:
- A list of ports which needs to be opened in order for a game or an application to function.
- Your router (default gateway) IP address and administration login.
- Your gaming device IP address.
If you have all the information above you are ready to proceed.
- Type your router IP address into the web browser address bar and press Enter.
- You should see your router configuration login screen.
- Enter your router administration login and click on “Login” button.
- Look for “Port mapping” or “Port forwarding” in your router administration interface.
- Enter your gaming computer in “LAN Host IP” or a similar field, ports which need to be forwarded in WAN port range and select UPD or TCP protocol (depending on which protocol your game uses). Also, enter your game ports into LAN Host Port Range field.
- Save your changes and test if your game is functioning correctly now.