Standard setup process
An MSI router shares the same setup process as any home router with a local web user interface. Specifically, here are the steps:
- Connect the router’s WAN port to your Internet terminal device.
- Connect a computer to its LAN port or the default Wi-Fi network printed on its underside.
- Open a browser and navigate to the router’s default IP, 192.168.10.1, or http://msirouter.login.
- Login with the default administrator account:
- Username: admin
- Password: varies — printed on the router’s underside.
And that’s it. You’ll be greeted with an initial wizard to finish the setup. Afterward, you can repeat step #3 whenever you want to manage the network.
It’s worth noting that the router will work immediately as you plug it in and turn it on using the default Wi-Fi information printed on its underside.
Since the admin and Wi-Fi passwords vary from one hardware unit to another, there’s no security risk if you use it like that. Still, setting it up properly is always recommended.
No universal backup restoration
MSI routers, including the RadiX AXE6600 and RadiX AX6600, don’t share the same setting backup file — you can’t back up one and load that on another.
While this is quite normal, for now, there’s no way to move between MSI routers without setting up the network from scratch.
Universal restoration is available in most Asus and Synology routers, making upgrading a network from an old router to a new one much faster.
Simple local-only mobile app
Besides the local web user interface, there’s also the MSI Router mobile app (for iOS and Android) — similar to the Asus router — that enables users to manage the network via a phone.
Currently, the app only works locally and offers less in-depth access to the router’s settings and features than the web user interface.
Excellent Wi-Fi customization
Each MSI router comes with four SSIDs for each Wi-Fi band, including the main (default) one, a Guest network (disabled by default), and two virtual SSIDs in the “Multiple SSD” section (off by default.)
Users can customize the main SSID of each band to the max, including picking the channel, channel width, Wi-Fi standard, etc. They can combine the band into a single SSID (Smart Connect) or use them separately.
QoS-based gaming features
MSI’s gaming features are pre-programmed Quality of Service settings, called AI QoS, similar to the case of Asus’s Adaptive QoS.
Within the web interface, the Game Center section duplicates a portion of the router’s AI QoS section.
MSI, for now, doesn’t offer true gaming features available in Asus gaming routers or those powered by DumaOS, such as ping management or private gaming network.
In short, it’s a bit of a stretch to call MSI hardware “gaming routers”. But you can play games with them, just like the case of most Wi-Fi routers.
Simple Parental Control
An MSI router has a simplistic Parental Control feature that limits Internet access or blocks connected clients using six pre-determined categories: Adult, Illegal (drugs, firearms), Gamble, Malicious (phishing, attack, virus), Violence, and Game.
It’s unclear what each category entails, and no way to define it further. Consequently, there’s no way to know for sure its effectiveness.
Moreover, you have to block/limit access to one client at a time instead of creating a group to manage multiple users in one place.
It’s important to note that the Parental Control features and the web filtering of MSI’s firewall are based on clients’ MAC addresses — they can be easily circumvented.
MSI and your privacy
While you can use an MSI router without surrendering personal information by default, activating some of its features, including AI QoS and Parental Control, means you’ll have to share your Internet traffic with GT Booster, which powers the router’s said features.
Here’s the company’s privacy policy.
Single VPN option
For now, MSI routers’ support for VPN limits to the OpenVPN protocol, which is the most advanced VPN option. The drawback is that you’re out of luck if you want popular VPN servers for which client support is readily available on devices.
Extra: Popular VPN server options
Below is the list of VPN protocols collectively available in-home Wi-Fi routers. Most routers support just one of them, while others might support all.
PPTP
Short for point-to-point tunneling protocol, PPTP is the oldest among the three.
First implemented in Windows 95 and has been part of the Windows operating systems and many other platforms since PPTP is well-supported and the easiest to use.
However, it’s also the least secure. It’s better than no VPN at all, and it does its purpose of making a remote device part of a local network.
That said, if you take security seriously, or have other options, skip it. On the other than, it sure is better than nothing and good enough for most home users.
L2TP/IPsec
Short for Layer 2 Tunnel Protocol is the second most popular VPN protocol — it’s also a built-in application in most modern operating systems — and an interesting one.
It has no encryption by default, so it’s not secure where the IPsec — or IP security — portion comes into play to provide encryption. Therefore, this protocol is rigid in port use and can be blocked by a third party.
The point is L2PT/IPsec is great when it works. And it does in most cases, which ultimately depends on whether the local network of the remote device allows it to pass through.
OpenVPN
As the name suggests, OpenVPN is a flexible VPN protocol that uses open-source technologies, including OpenSSL and SSL.
As a result, it has a high level of customizability and is the most secure. It also can’t be blocked.
In return, OpenVPN requires extra client software, making it less practical. But this protocol is the best if you want to be serious about VPN.
No Dual-WAN or Link Aggregation
MSI’s new routers come with a 2.5Gbps Multi-Gig WAN/LAN port. You can use it as a WAN (default) or turn the router’s first LAN port into that role, making the Multi-Gig port function as a LAN.
And the port flexibility ends there. For now, MSI doesn’t support Dual-WAN or Link Aggregation. And you can’t turn the USB port into a WAN source, either.
No mesh support
MSI routers, for now, are meant to be standalone Wi-Fi machines. They don’t support mesh features like AiMesh of Asus or OneMesh of TP-Link.
Consequently, they will work great for homes that need just one broadcaster or those intending to extend their Wi-Fi network via standard access points or extenders.
If you want to scale up your network in a more seamless way, there’s no option for that from MSI. At least, not yet.
Standard network settings
Like most routers with a Linux-based local web user interface, an MSI router comes with a standard set of network settings, including a DHCP server, port-forwarding, MAC filtering, IP reservation, IPv6, a simple Firewall, and so on.
Notably, most of these settings are less refined than other routers. IP reservation, for example, you’ll have to manually enter the MAC address of a device — there’s no option to pick one out of the list of connected clients.
No built-in Dynamic DNS support
The most surprising and disappointing of MSI’s firmware is that it doesn’t have built-in Dynamic DNS client support. Specifically, the router won’t work as the device that binds the WAN IP and a DDNS domain.
This is likely the biggest shortcoming of MSI when compared to other networking vendors. Asus, for example, even provide a free DDNS domain for each router.
An MSI router will still work for those needing DDNS, but a separate DDNS updater, such as a NAS server, is required within the network.
SMB1 is still required for network storage
MSI routers with a USB port can work as a mini NAS server. In this case, you can plug an external hard drive into this port, and the router will work as a DNLA media server or a file server. It even also works as a BitTorrent PC-less downloader.
And all that works. However, if you want to share files, the client must support the dated and insecure SMB1. The issue is most computers don’t use this protocol anymore, and it’s disabled by default.