Understanding MikroTik RouterOS and Its Features

MikroTik RouterOS is the operating system from MikroTik Router BOARD hardware. You can install it on a PC and will turn it into a router with all necessary features like routing, firewall, bandwidth management, wireless access point, backhaul link, VPN server, hotspot getaway and much more. 

RouterOS is a stand-alone operating system based on the Linux v2.6 kernel and the main goal of MikroTik is to provide all these features with a fast and simple installation as well as an easy-to-use user interface.

Configuration 

MikroTik RouterOS supports different configuration methods like local accessibility with the keyboard and monitor, serial console with a terminal application, Telnet and secure SSH accessibility over networks, a custom GUI configuration tool known as Winbox, a simple web based configuration interface and an API programming interface to build your own control application. If there is no local access and a problem with IP level communications, RouterOS supports a MAC level based connection with custom-made Mac-Telnet and Winbox tools.

The RouterOS comes with a powerful, easy-to-learn command-line configuration interface with integrated scripting abilities. 

• Winbox GUI over IP and MAC 
• CLI with Telnet, SSH, Local Console and Serial Console 
• API for your own tool programming 
• Web interface 

Firewall 

The firewall implements packet filtering and offers security functionality used for data flow management to, from and through the router. Along with Network Address Translation, it helps in preventing unauthorized accessibility to the directly connected networks and the router itself as well as a filter for outgoing traffic. 

MikroTik RouterOS features with a stateful firewall, which performs stateful packet inspection and keeps track of the state of network connections traveling around it. The OS also supports Source and Destination NAT (Network Address Translation). 

The firewall offers features to use internal connection, routing and packet marks. It can filter by IP address, address range, port, port range, DSCP, IP protocol and other parameters while supporting Static and Dynamic Address Lists. It can match packets by pattern in their content, specified in Regular Expressions known as Layer7 Matching. The RouterOS Firewall also supports IPv6.

Routing –

The RouterOS supports static routing and a wide array of dynamic routing protocols. 

• It supports RIP v1 and v2, OSPF v2, BGP v4 for IPv4. 
• It supports RIPng, OSPFv3 and BGP for IPv6. 

RouterOS supports Virtual Routing and Forwarding (VRF), interface based routing, policy based routing and ECMP routing. You can use the Firewall filter to make specific connections with Routing marks and make the marked traffic to use a different ISP.

The Virtual Routing and Forwarding technology allows multiple instances of routing table to co-exist within the same router simultaneously. The routine instances are independent; the same or overlapping IP addresses can be useful without conflicting with each other. The VRF increases network security and is often used in without limiting to MPLS networks. 

Bottom Line –

Do you want to learn MikroTik RouterOS? You should take MTCNA training in Cyprus through SCP Academy. MTCNA stands for MikroTik Certified Network Associate. This course is applicable for network engineers and technicians who want to deploy and support corporate networks and client CPEs (WISPs and ISPs). For more information, please contact us today at 70008828.