Introduction

Among the long list of networking devices, Spectrum is one of the most known and popular networking devices. Networking devices navigate the traffic access, and to do so, forwarding ports are the key.

Port Forwarding directs easy communication using the internet pathways. It comes in very handy, especially in the gaming experience, where communication among various gaming parties is an essence of the overall gaming experience.

Forwarding Ports, What is it?

Forwarding Ports can be visualized as virtual walkthrough gates that play their role in sending out and receiving online user traffic. Every Operating system in the virtual world has many ports, these ports can be specified by different applications for their users.

These applications use these ports to buffer the communication between web servers in the virtual realm. At least 65,535 virtual ports are available and functioning for this smooth network communication.

These ports moderate Transfer Control Protocol (TCP) and User Datagram Protocol (UDP) communication. Some of the applications also work with dedicated ports; for instance, HTTPS works on port 443, whereas HTTP traffic regulates on port 80.

These network devices use firewalls to manage their incoming and outgoing traffic, which might interfere with the server’s communication capacities while the web server is online.

While having such firewalls on the networking platform, port forwarding helps users to have a smooth running of an application without any obstruction by using specified ports on the platform.

Although firewalls prevent undirected internet traffic and are built to protect the device from invasion. Some valid applications also fail to allow incoming traffic due to this feature.

Port Forwarding on Spectrum

Spectrum, like the rest of networking devices, has an in-built Network Address Translation (NAT) firewall that regulates internet traffic by allowing or blocking the servers. Applications on a device require to communicate with their servers to complete the network’s demand.

Spectrum’s router ports help in easy access by surpassing this strict firewall challenge. As Online games are the most impacted genres that fall prey to these firewall security issues.

Voice Over IP (VoIP) is one of the most used features by online gamers, who use it for their communication across servers and networks. The online gaming experience gets sour if the router keeps hindering by blocking the ports which are accessed while playing an online game.

PlayStation and Xbox highlighted Type 2 and Open firewalls as the two most desirable states to ensure a smooth running of games on these Consoles.

For Port Forwarding on Spectrum, gamers need to have a device static IP address and also the ports that are being used by the application for smooth running and traffic flow.

Every router vigorously allocates an IP address to every connected device, and having a static IP address guarantees that every external network gets connected with the right device even after it restarts.

How to Enable Port Forwarding in Spectrum Router?

On Spectrum, Port Forwarding can be done through two pathways:

• Accessing the browser’s admin panel
• Using the MySpectrum app

Port Forwarding Via Router’s Admin Panel

The conventional way to Port Forward in Spectrum is by accessing the Admin Panel of the router. To do so, first of all, players must have a compatible device, and then they can access the Router’s admin panel via any PC that is connected to that router.

The device setting can vary depending on the type of router and firmware being used for such setup.

Although it still is easy to navigate through the admin panel settings to port forward, however popular opinion considers the Spectrum app as an easier way, especially for gamers who lack advanced networking knowledge.

If you do not know how to sign in to the router admin panel, access the router’s manual or the router’s label. To make it easier to access the Router’s Admin Panel, follow the below-mentioned steps:

• First you need to sign in to your router’s admin panel
• Find the option “Advanced Settings”
• Click on DHCP or find the IP Address Options of the router
• Click choose for the option Reserve an IP Address
• Select the Save button on your settings and head to restart your device
• After restarting the device, head back to sign in to your admin panel
• Find the Advanced Setting option again
• Click on Firewall settings here
• After that, the Port Forwarding option will appear in the drop-down, click on it

• Choose the option to form a new rule here
• Although it is optional, you can choose a name for the created rule
• After doing so, enter the assigned IP address that you allocated for your device
• Choose whether you will use UDP, TCP, or both of these ports for your system. Every program or game mentions the allocated ports for their function in their available documentation
• Enter the port numbers that you wish to open. They can be one or many depending on your required actions
• Save the settings again and head to restart the device
• Device restart will forward ports now

Many of the newer versions of spectrum routers do not allow this admin panel access. However, a personal router can be used to set up Port Forwarding using a similar row of steps. It is also applicable for the ones who own older Spectrum router versions.

The same steps are taken while setting up the forwarding ports through the MySpectrum app. So it is totally up to the users to choose any method that seems easy.

It is suggested to use the app if you are a user of a newer version of Spectrum Router or if you are using a personal model or are not bridging.

Port Forwarding Via MySpectrum Application

A large number of Spectrum users prefer to use the MySpectrum app for managing their routers. It is similar in use, just like accessing your router’s admin panel and giving commands for general actions.

To use MySpectrum App for port forwarding, the user has to allocate an IP address to the device being used and follow the below-mentioned steps to move forward:

• Begin the process by downloading the MySpectrum App on your device. It is free to download the application from Google Play Store for Android devices and App Store if you are an iOS user
• Open the app and begin by signing in to your MySpectrum App

• Tap on the Services icon at the lower bottom of the App screen

• Next, tap on the Router’s Option, which can be found listed under the Equipment tab

• Head over to the Advanced Settings option

• Tap on the option labelled Port Forwarding & IP Reservations

• Under the label Create IP Reservations, choose the device of your choice connected to the router

• Toggle on the button labelled Reserve IP Address

• Then head on to select Add Port Assignment

• Choose any name for the assignment, but it is suggested to use a relevant name for time-saving later on
• Enter the fields with relevant port numbers. The same numbers can be used for both internal and external ports in case you don’t have exclusive listings for both
• Choose between UDP, TCP, or both of them
• Tap on the Save button to secure the setting’s alterations
• If it is required, add another assignment to your settings list
• Close the app and then restart the device in question
• As the setup has been done through the application, the device on which ports have been forwarding needs to be restarted manually
• By restarting, the device reacquires its router’s connection and gets online with the new configurations
• Now the ports have been forwarded to the given device
• Users can change these settings, revise any of the changes being made, set a new setup, or can also remove the forwarding ports if they are no longer in use

Options Other than Port Forwarding

There are also some other options available to direct the network traffic on the router apart from port forwarding. For the games which use modern programs, Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) can be turned on by using MySpectrum App.

To set it up on your app, follow the guideline given below:

• Download and Log in to your MySpectrum App
• Choose the Services tab
• Tap on the option label Router
• Head over to the Advanced settings

• Tap on the option UPnP
• Ensure it is on by toggling the button
• To save the settings being made, click on the back arrow

The UPnP option of turning it on is a default setup on Spectrum. In case you are having connectivity problems, recheck if it turned off somehow and then check if the connectivity issue persists.

FAQs

Following are the frequently asked questions about Port Forwarding on Spectrum:

Q1: Why do I need to Port Forwarding using Spectrum?

Ans: Port Forwarding is needed to help the device regulate accessibility from outside, like any game server or any security device. It helps in enabling the device’s access.

Q2: Is it safe to use Port Forwarding on Spectrum?

Ans: Port forwarding requires an alteration in firewall settings on the device, which can expose the device to the potential risk of external threats. To ensure protection, only open the required ports and keep the updated firmware of your router.

Q3: Why can’t I set up my Spectrum Port Forwarding?

Ans; For that Spectrum, Customer Service can be accessed for guidance. They can guide the setup procedure to sort out the connectivity problem.

Q4: What is Spectrum Port Forwarding?

Ans: This feature helps in opening up the pathway to make your router accessible for the external network traffic flow on your router.

Conclusion

Spectrum Port Forwarding opens up the router’s accessibility to external applications and networks. It is quite a useful feature for allowing convenient communication outside the local network. It can be made functional by altering the setting options via the admin panel or through MySpectrum App. The settings can be revised when the ports are no longer in use.