One of the most common purposes of having a network is that to easily share file between computers. This will improve productivity among users. If your router comes with file sharing functionality, you don’t need to purchase a separate NAS or network-attached storage. Any router has high speed USB port for quick file transfer. This allows you to backup files easily and put your files in multiple external hard drives or SSDs. Although using USB ports for transferring files is easy, but it’s not as convenient as wireless file sharing. Different router models different procedures for enabling and performing wireless file sharing. Ideally, it should be easy to computers wirelessly using SSID name and IP addresses. Because file sharing is wireless, it means that anyone can intercept the signal. So, each connection must be protected by complex passwords that are changed regularly.
Wireless file sharing is a basic feature of any router and it’s the matter of how it’s implemented. The configuration utility should be straightforward and it needs to support Windows or Mac systems. So, it’s more important for you to choose a router model that it’s easy to set up. Not only that the connection itself is protected by password, but you should also password-protect your files as well. By using layers of security, it will be far more difficult for people to access your data. Direct wireless file sharing is more secure and faster than web sharing and FTP.
If you have a visitor in the office or home, you may want to provide temporary access to your network, so they can get or share files through your wireless network. Some router models allow you to create temporary guest accounts that will be deleted automatically after one day. It means that the person can’t access your network again. Again, you may use the USB key to integrate guest’s device with the wireless network. However, access should be disabled automatically and after a few days, people won’t be able to access your network again.
Router firmware determines the security of the network and it should be kept fully updated. Unfortunately, many vendors don’t regularly update their firmware. If the vendor is reliable, you can simply visit the official website of the vendor and download the latest firmware for a specific router model. You will only need to download the firmware file and upload it to the router. There should be an interface for quick update of the firmware. It could be as easy as choosing the file and clicking on the Update button. Check for the update interface in the control panel screen of the router. To complicate things, a vendor may have multiple router models and each require different firmware. If possible, make sure that the router is capable of performing self update automatically. So, you don’t need to repeat the tedious process of downloading and updating the firmware regularly. You need to make sure that your routers are well maintained, so they can remain secure and usable for a long time.