Did you know your D-Link DIR-816 router has a firewall? The firewall helps protect your home network from unwanted Internet access. The firewall blocks all unauthorized ports or connections to your home network. Some online games and programs will run much smoother if you have additional ports opened. This process of opening additional ports is called a port forward.
In this guide I will walk you step-by-step through the port forwarding process. I will show you how to:
- setup a static IP address on the device you want to forward these ports to.
- login to the D-Link DIR-816 router interface.
- find the port forwarding page in your D-Link DIR-816 router interface.
- create a port forward entry.
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Step 1
It is important to setup a static ip address in the device that you are forwarding a port to. This ensures that your ports will remain open even after your device reboots.
- Recommended - Our free Static IP Setter will set up a static IP address for you.
- Another way to get a permanent IP address is to set up a DHCP reservation.
- Or, manually create a static ip address with our Static IP Guides.
This step is important because you want a permanent IP address in your device. If you do not set up a permanent IP address in your device, then when you device reboots it may get a new IP address.
Use a VPN Instead
Have you considered using a VPN instead of forwarding a port? For most users, a VPN is a much simpler and more secure choice than forwarding a port.
We use and recommend NordVPN because not only is it the fastest VPN, it includes a new feature called Meshnet that makes forwarding a port no longer necessary for most applications. With NordVPN Meshnet, you can connect to your devices from anywhere in the world, completely secure, over a highly encrypted VPN tunnel.
Every time you click on one of our affiliate links, such as NordVPN, we get a little kickback for introducing you to the service. Think of us as your VPN wingman.
TIP: I recommend writing this static IP address down. You need it a little later in the port forwarding process.
Step 2
We can now login to the D-Link DIR-816 router. To do this you need to open a web browser. It normally doesn't matter which browser you decide to use so I recommend using one you are the most familiar with. Common options are Chrome, Internet Explorer and Firefox.
After opening your preferred web browser, find the address bar at the top of the page. It will look like this:
Above is an example of what a web browser address bar looks like. Find the address bar in your router and type in your router's IP address.
The default D-Link DIR-816 IP Address is: 192.168.0.1
Simply press the Enter key after you have entered the router's IP address into the address bar. If the correct IP address was used you will see a login screen like this:
If you do not see a page like the one above, you need to find out what the router's IP address is. To do this use our How To Find Your Router's IP Address page.
Enter the router username and password in the spaces provided.
- The Default D-Link DIR-816 Router Username is: admin
- The Default D-Link DIR-816 Router Password is: password
Click the Login button to access your router's web interface.
Having Trouble?
A lot of people get stuck at this point. Most router setup procedures ask you to change the username and password before continuing. These passwords get lost, and logging into the router interface becomes a challenge. Here are a few things you can try before tossing the router out the nearest window:
- It is possible we don't have the most current default username and password. Every once in a while router manufactures change the defaults on us to keep us on our toes. Here is a list of all the different default usernames and passwords D-Link has ever used: Default D-Link Router Passwords.
- None of the defaults worked? Most likely you changed the password and have forgotten it. If you can't guess what you changed it to, let us help. Use our Find Password App. It does the guessing for you.
- Are you still stuck? It is probably time to consider a factory reset for your D-Link DIR-816 router. To do this follow the procedure explained on our How to Reset a Router page.
Step 3
You should now be logged in and looking at the Home page of the D-Link DIR-816 router interface.
Select the option at the top of the page labeled Advanced.
You should now see a page like the one above.
Click the Virtual Server link in the left sidebar.
You are now on the correct page to move on to step 4.
Step 4
Here are the ports to forward for Xbox Live:
- TCP Ports: 3074
- UDP Ports: 3074
If you are looking for the ports for a different application you can find it by either:
- Browsing our List of Games
- Check out our our List of Games by Genre
- See our List of all Applications
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Select the User-defined Service Name radio button.
Put a name for this forward in the User-defined Service Name box so that you can remember why you set this forward up. The name does not matter so pick something that has meaning to you.
Use the Protocol dropdown box to select the protocol type of the ports you are forwarding.
Enter the port to forward into the WAN Port and the LAN Open Port boxes.
You need to enter the IP address that you are forwarding ports to in the LAN IP Address box. It's possible for this to be either the IP address of your computer or any other IP address on your network that you want ports forwarded to.
Don't forget to click the Apply button when you are finished.
Check your Ports
Sometimes it can be difficult to tell if the ports forwarded properly, so we recommend using our Open Port Checker to see if the ports forwarded correctly. Our port checker uses a local application to see if the server is listening. This guarantees an accurate result.
Additional Info...
Here at portforward.com we have more than just port forwarding guides. We also have networking, software, and gaming guides. Check them out on our guide page.
Do you need help setting up your router for the first time? How about your WiFi security, is it as strong as it should be? We can help at setuprouter.com.
