Your D-Link DIR-890L has a firewall that helps to protect your home network by blocking all connections that it has been told are unsafe. There are times it becomes necessary to unblock some of these connections or ports for a game or application. This process of unblocking a port or ports is called a port forward.
In this guide we will be walking you through each of the following steps:
- How to setup a Static IP address on the device you plan on forwarding these ports to.
- How to login to the D-Link DIR-890L router.
- How to find the port forwarding section in the router menu.
- Finally, how to create the port forward you want.
We think that forwarding a port should be easy. That's why we created Network Utilities. Our software does everything that you need to forward a port.
When you use Network Utilities you get your port forwarded right now!
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.
Step 2
In order to login to the D-Link DIR-890L router you need to open up a web browser because the router uses a web interface. It should not matter which web browser you decide to use, simply pick your favorite. Some common options are: Internet Explorer, Chrome, Firefox, and Edge.
Once you open the web browser, you need to find the address bar. This is typically at the top of the page 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-890L router IP address is: 192.168.0.1
After entering the router's IP address, simply click your Enter key. This should open a login page:
On this page, you are asked to give an Admin Password.
There is NO default Admin Password for the D-Link DIR-890L router.
Unless you have changed the router's password in the past, simply leave the password space blank. Then press the blue Log In button to access your router's menu.
Having Trouble?
There are several different reasons you could be stuck at this point. Here are a few things you can try if you cannot login to the D-Link DIR-890L router:
- First, if you have a slightly different firmware version you could have a different password as well. Try these Default D-Link Router Passwords.
- If none of the default D-Link passwords helped, it is because you changed the password in the past and don't remember what you changed it to. You can try to guess what you changed it to (a lot of us aren't very original when it comes to password generation). If you need extra help, use our Find Password App. This application automates the process of guessing thousands of different combinations for you. Learn more about this on our Router Password Cracker.
- Finally, if nothing else helps, it might be time to consider a factory reset. A reset erases all your settings you have ever changed, not just the password. We strongly recommend exhausting your other troubleshooting options first. Learn more on this How to Reset a Router page.
Step 3
Congratulations on logging into the D-Link DIR-890L router menu. It is time to find the port forwarding section of the menu. To help you find the correct section, let's start on the Home screen of the router menu.
On this screen click the option at the top labeled Features. This opens a drop down menu where you can choose the option of Port Forwarding.
You are now on the page you see above. Near the bottom of the page, click the blue option of Add Rule.
You are now on the correct page to make a port forward.
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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You might notice that most of our site doesn't have ads on it. This is because we use partnerships with companies like NordVPN to keep the site running. Thank you for supporting us by using our referral links.
Put a name for this forward in the 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.
You need to enter the IP address that you are forwarding ports to in the Local IP 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.
These entries are protocol specific. If the ports you are forwarding need to be forwarded using the TCP protocol, you should enter those ports into the TCP section. If the ports you are forwarding need to be forwarded with the UDP protocol, you should enter those ports into the udp section.
Enter the ports to forward into the Port box.
The ports can be entered as a list 23,24,25, a range 500-600, or a combination of both 23,45,500-600.
From the Schedule dropdown box select Always Enable.
When you are all done click the Apply button.
Don't forget to click the blue Apply button after each entry. Once you are completely finished, click the Save button on the port forwarding page.
Test Your Ports
In order to test your port forward rule, you can use our Open Port Checker. This is part of our FREE trial version of the Network Utilities. Our port checker uses a local application to listen for the server trying to connect. This way we can confirm if your port is forwarded.
More Info...
Do you want more guides like this? Check out more of our guides here.
More router specific guides can be found on our site setuprouter.com
