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Introduction
| At a Glance | |
|---|---|
| Product | NETGEAR ProSafe 8-Port Gigabit VPN Firewall (FVS318G) |
| Summary | Updated FVS318 w/ Gigabit ports and hardware DMZ port supporting 5 IPsec tunnels |
| Pros | • 8 port Gigabit switch • Switchable DMZ port • Bandwidth throttling • Reasonably priced |
| Cons | • No Jumbo frames • No VLANs • Doesn't meet 7 Mbps IPsec tunnel throughput spec. |
NETGEAR has finally improved its mainstay FVS318 Firewall / VPN router, in the form of the FVS318G. The 318G has eight Gigabit LAN ports and new hardware DMZ capability. And it's even smaller than its predecessor, while offering more features.
Physically, the 318G has undergone a few changes. It measures only 7.5” x 4.9” x 1.4”, while the 318 was 10” x 7.4” x 1.4”. All ports are now on the front and NETGEAR has gone with a gray metal case on the 318G versus the "business blue" on the 318. (NETGEAR says that "business grey" is the new "business blue" for its SMB products.) The power switch is gone from the back of the 318G, but it still has an external power wall wart.
Figure 1: The FVS318G at work
Figure 2 below provides a listing of the front indicators.
Figure 2: Front panel indicators
Figure 3 shows the spartan back panel.
Figure 3: Rear panel
My test version came with firmware 3.0.5-25, which isn't released yet. So I downgraded it to the latest production firmware 3.0.5-24. I found the 318G's software very similar to the software on the NETGEAR FVS336G which I reviewed in January 2008.
The 318G's menu response seemed slower than the 336G's, which I assume is due to the processor differences between the two routers (more shortly).
The focus of this review will be to look at the 318G's strengths and what is new or different from previous models. Functionally, the 318G is more similar to the 336G than the FVS318, minus the 336G's dual WAN ports and SSL VPN capability. So I'll be making frequent comparisons between the 318G and 336G.
Internal Details
The photo below shows a Star (now Cavium) STR9102 as the "250 MHz" processor that NETGEAR specs, which is supported by 32 MB of RAM and 8 MB of flash.
Figure 4: FVS318G board
A Broadcom BCM53118 9-Port GbE Switch with 8 Integrated 10/100/1000 PHYs is hidden under the large heatsink and what appears to be a Broadcom Gigabit Ethernet PHY connected to the single router WAN port is under the smaller heatsink.
The 318G is midway between the 318 and 336G in terms of processor, RAM and flash as shown in Table 1.
| Component | FVS318 | FVS318G | FVS336G |
|---|---|---|---|
| Processor | Samsung S3C4510 | Star (Cavium) STR9102 | 300 MHz 32-bit RISC |
| RAM | 8 MB | 32 MB | 64 MB |
| Flash | 2 MB | 8 MB | 16 MB |
| Switch | Broadcom BCM5317 | Broadcom BCM53118 | Vitesse? |
Table 1: Key component comparison
User reviews
View all user reviewsAverage user rating from: 11 user(s)
NOTE! Please post product reviews from actual experience only.
Questions, review comments and opinions about products not based on actual use will not be published.
Don't bother for gaming or torrents
Daily reboots, and when torrenting... forget it. Can't download CentOS or Ubuntu without rebooting router 2 to 3 times.
Forget about it
I bought it because I wanted to upgrade my network to gbit all through and because I wanted a better firewall with more options. But after two weeks I have now given up. The WAN-LAN connection is lost at random times. In average about two times a day (it may depend on the load).
I contacted support, which offered me a beta-version of the coming firmware. With that it may not freeze quiet as often (maybe only once a day). On the other hand it also reduced the speed of the Internet-connection with more than 50%.
I dont think this joke should be used in a live system. :-(
Not for P2P and torrents. Unreliable. Level 1 support useless.
I have been battling this Netgear FVS318g for three of months. The product either self resets or locks up completely forcing a manual reset. I have received a couple of firmware upgrades from Netgear, but this has not helped. I have now given up and returned the product. After 90 days Netgear wants to charge you for more support on a product that has obvious firmware defects. They dropped me like a hot potato on day 91in mid stream even with an unsolved open warranty issue. Buyer beware!!! Purchased the Cisco RVS4000 gigabit VPN router and all my network problems and headaches are gone.
Freezes all the time
I agree with Bob. Gerry has the one good model of this device produced. I have had this product for four months. The first month it froze a few times. By the fourth month it freezes and needs to be reset at least once a day. It is not an early production model and the software is up to date.
Do not buy
This Product is Defective
Well I guess Gerry below hit the lottery and found the one FVS318G that actually works. I've had mine installed on a home network for three weeks and it has failed five or six times. Probably would be more, but I couldn't reset it every time it failed as I was 1500 miles away trying to connect remotely to my home network. No problems with the UI -- just freezing up -- all lights blinking away and no access to the internet. Sometimes the WAN connection lights just go dark, even though the cable modem is blinking away. Gerrry, perhaps you can let us know which firmware version your unit operates on that actually works - mine is 3.0.6-16.
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