Set up a Netgear Nighthawk router on your High Desert connection

Netgear's setup page recommends the Nighthawk app on a phone, with a browser setup as a fallback. The High Desert line reaches your house as an Ethernet cable from the indoor power injector, and that cable belongs in the router's internet (WAN) port. The outdoor radio and its cable are not part of this job.

Steps

1. Download the Nighthawk app

   Install it on your phone before you plug anything in. Netgear's page lists this first.

2. Move the injector cable to the Internet port

   Unplug the cable that runs from the High Desert injector to your old router. Plug it into the Nighthawk's Internet port. Netgear's page says to connect the router's Internet port to the incoming line.

3. Attach the antennas, if any came in the box

   Netgear's page says to attach external antennas first if they came with the router.

4. Power the router on

   Plug in the adapter. If the router has a power button, press it.

5. Find the label with the Wi-Fi name and password

   Netgear says to look for the QR code label or the permanent label on the back or bottom. You will scan it in the app. This is the router's own starting password, not a High Desert one.

6. Open the app and follow the prompts

   Netgear's page ends with: follow the app's prompts to install the router and connect to the Internet. If the app asks for a connection type, choose automatic. We do not publish a login or special setting for the connection.

7. If the app reports no internet

   Power cycle the router and the injector as described on restarting your equipment, in that order. Netgear's page also points to a troubleshooting article for Internet not connected errors. If it still fails, call 775-575-9593.

Can I set it up from a browser instead?

Yes. Netgear has a separate page for installing from the web interface at routerlogin.net, found by search. It also says the app is recommended if you own a smartphone. A computer wired to the router with a cable works for the browser route.

Does the Nighthawk need to be near the injector?

It needs a short cable to the injector, because that cable is the High Desert connection. Where the router sits in the house is a separate question, and where to put your router covers it.

What about the router's own firmware?

Update it after the first connection works. See updating your router's firmware.

Do I need to go outside or touch the antenna for this?

If the fix is not inside the house, it is ours. Do not climb to the antenna or handle the radio cable.