Synology RT6600ax: Analysis of this tri-band router with WiFi 6

Main features

This new Wi-Fi 6 router from the manufacturer Synology is a high-end model that incorporates all the necessary technologies in a high-performance neutral router today. The two features that we must highlight above all else is that it has simultaneous triple band with Wi-Fi 6 and a 2.5G Multigigabit port, therefore, we will have guaranteed speed both via Wi-Fi and also via cable.

This new router is an evolution of the popular Synology RT2600ac that has been with us for many years and has become a highly recommended router, thanks to its SRM 1.3 operating system we have a large number of services at our disposal, so it is ideal for get the most out of your hardware. Next, we explain all the technical specifications of this new wireless router.

Technical specifications

The technical specifications of this new WiFi Mesh system are of a top-of-the-range equipment as it incorporates triple band AXE11000, since it has everything necessary to have the best speed.

• Wireless: Compatible with 802.11a/b/g/n/ac/ax standards. In the 2.4GHz band we will achieve a speed of up to 574Mbps thanks to Wi-Fi 6, in the first 5GHz band we will achieve a speed of up to 1201Mbps thanks to Wi-Fi 6 and 80MHz of channel width, finally, in the second 5GHz band we will achieve a speed of up to 4804Mbps thanks to Wi-Fi 6 and the 160MHz of channel width that it supports. We will have a total of up to 6600Mbps of wireless bandwidth, the antennas are external and are not removable.
• CPU & Ethernet : Qualcomm Cypress IPQ6018 with quad cores at 1.8GHz and hardware NAT.
• 2.5G Ethernet .
• RAM : 1GB of RAM memory.
• Flash: 256MB capacity.
• 2.4GHz Wireless Controller: Qualcomm IPQ6018 (main CPU) with Wi-Fi AX 2T2R at 574Mbps.
• 5GHz Wireless Controller: Qualcomm IPQ6018 (main CPU) with Wi-Fi AX 2T2R at 1201Mbps.
• Wireless 5GHz-2 Controller: The chipset is unknown, but it has Wi-Fi AX 4T4R at 4804Mbps.
• Power supply: It needs a current voltage of 12V and an intensity of 3.5A, so it needs a power of 42W.
  

As you can see, we have the technical specifications of a high-end router, especially the main processor, which is a Quad-Core at 1.8GHz speed.

Wireless

This new wireless router from Synology has simultaneous tri-band with Wi-Fi 6 and is AX6600 class . A very important aspect is the incorporation of a second frequency band in 5GHz, this is ideal to connect here the fastest Wi-Fi clients that support 160MHz of channel width, but in addition, we can also form a complete Wi-Fi Mesh network with a fairly free interconnection band between the nodes.

In the 2.4GHz band we can get a speed of up to 574Mbps, because it has two external antennas in MU-MIMO 2T2R configuration, 40MHz channel width and Wi-Fi 6. In the first 5GHz band we can get a speed of up to 1201Mbps, it has two external antennas in MU-MIMO 2T2R configuration, 80MHz channel width and the new Wi-Fi 6 standard. Finally, we have the second 5GHz band with which we can achieve a speed of up to 4804Mbps, it has four antennas external in MU-MIMO 4T4R configuration, 160MHz channel width and Wi-Fi 6.

This new router has all the usual technologies in the Wi-Fi 6 standard, such as Beamforming to focus the wireless signal on the clients, we also have MU-MIMO to transfer data to several clients simultaneously and save time, in addition, we have OFDMA to improve the capacity of the WiFI network as best as possible and optimize it as much as possible to have the best user experience. This equipment also has Target Wake Time technology that allows us to save energy on WiFi clients, ideal for devices such as smartphones and tablets.

The manufacturer Synology has incorporated the latest security protocol WPA3-Personal to adequately protect the wireless network, we must bear in mind that not all wireless clients will support this security standard, so we must activate it only if we make sure beforehand that it does they bear it. Otherwise, we could leave a large number of devices without connectivity. Another interesting feature regarding security is that we can choose OWE (Opportunistic Wireless Encryption) that allows us to have the WiFi network without authentication but with data encryption.

 

Wired and USB

This new router has very interesting wired features. The first thing we find is a dedicated Gigabit Ethernet port for the Internet WAN , the SRM 1.3 firmware has support for VLANs on the WAN and also VLANs per port to provide IPTV services. Thanks to this support, this router is compatible with any FTTH operator to replace the operator’s router, although logically you need to have an ONT or put the operator’s router in bridge mode.

This equipment also has a 2.5G Multigigabit port that can function as WAN 2 to perform load balancing or failover of the connection, or it can also function as LAN. In principle, today in Spain it is very rare to have connections of more than 1Gbps, so this 2.5G Multigigabit port will be much better configured as a LAN to connect a high-performance NAS server and transfer data through the local network to the maximum speed of the wired interface. Of course, this equipment also has a total of three Gigabit Ethernet ports for the LAN , thanks to these ports, we will be able to connect several wired clients without problems.

The Synology RT6600ax has a high performance USB 3.0 port . Considering that we have a 1.8GHz Quad-Core main processor, the read and write speed on this machine is guaranteed. Thanks to the SRM 1.3 operating system, we will be able to use this USB port as a Samba, FTP, FTPES server, we can configure a WebDAV, multimedia server and even share files and folders through links that it automatically creates, just as we have on servers Manufacturer’s NAS.

 

Firmware SRM

The firmware incorporated in this router is SRM 1.3, a really complete operating system in every way. This firmware has a large number of advanced configuration options, we can separately configure all the bands of the WiFi network, configure the SSID and security that we want, we also have the possibility of creating a guest WiFi network with access to a captive portal, in addition, we have the possibility of creating VLANs in the LAN to segment the traffic correctly together with manageable switches.

Synology’s router operating system has the same graphical user interface as its DSM NAS servers, so if you use the manufacturer’s NAS servers, we are sure that you will perfectly match the firmware of their routers. The services regarding the USB port is really complete, we have the possibility of configuring Samba server, FTP, FTPES, WebDAV, multimedia server, the possibility of sharing files and folders as if it were a NAS from the manufacturer Synology, and much more.

Another feature that we really liked about this router is the incorporation by default of Safe Access, that is, a really advanced and very powerful parental control to keep our children safe when they surf the Internet. An important aspect is that we have an additional application store to extend the functionalities, however, it will only be available when this router is officially launched, we do not have any additional packages available to install at the beginning of March 2022. We remember from other Synology routers that we have a RADIUS server, VPN servers of different types and other very interesting additional software that we can install completely free of charge.

Once we know the main characteristics of this new router, we are going to see what this new equipment is like.

External analysis

This new Synology RT6600ax Wi-Fi 6 router comes in a box similar to its home routers. On the front we find a sticker with the equipment in question and also its main characteristics, such as the fact that it has a Quad-Core CPU at 1.8GHz speed, that we have simultaneous triple band with Wi-Fi 6, the 2.5G Multigigabit port for LAN and also that we can create multiple local networks (LAN using VLANs) to improve the security of the different devices.

On the back of the box is where we will find the exact model of the equipment as well as its technical specifications. In the upper left area we see that the model is the RT6600ax, it indicates that this equipment has the new standard, we will have complete network management, cybersecurity measures and we are prepared for the future that is Multigigabit. In the upper right area we will see the WiFi and WPS logo, since this router incorporates a physical button for WPS. In the lower left area we can find the main features of the hardware that we have already explained in the introduction to the analysis, the most notable being the simultaneous triple band with Wi-Fi 6 and the 2.5G Multigigabit port for WAN/LAN. In this area we will also see the content of the package that we are going to show you right now.

On the right side of the box we can see that this router supports Dual WAN, we can configure the SRM 1.3 firmware to have a load balance between two WANs or use the secondary connection as connection failover. It also supports 160MHz of channel width in the second 5GHz band, this allows us to have twice the theoretical speed with the same number of antennas. Of course, Synology also incorporates mesh WiFi with the 802.11k/v/r standards and is compatible with other brand routers, in this way, we can set up a complete mesh WiFi network in our home. In addition, we must take into account that this equipment has simultaneous triple band, therefore, we can use a frequency band specifically dedicated to the interconnection of routers, to have the best possible performance.

Inside the box we will be able to see this perfectly protected Synology RT6600ax router. The content of the box is as follows:

• WiFi Router 6 Synology RT6600ax
• Cat5e ethernet network cable.
• 12V and 3.5A current transformer to provide up to 42W of power.

The Ethernet network cable incorporated in this WiFi 6 router is Cat5e with four pairs of wires, this allows us to achieve a speed of up to 2.5Gbps without problems, but it would have been desirable if the manufacturer had incorporated a Cat 6 cable that will behave better in multi-gigabit environments.

The current transformer that we have in this router is 12V and 3.5A, enough to power all the internal components of the router and also the devices that we connect to the high-performance USB 3.0 port that we have.

This new Synology RT6600ax router looks similar to the popular RT2600ac, but logically it has more non-removable external antennas. The first thing that strikes us is that we have vents on the front of the router. In the central area we have each and every one of the equipment status LEDs, from left to right we have the four LAN Ethernet ports, the Internet WAN port, the Wi-Fi status and the general status of the router. In the area just below we will find more ventilation grilles and the model of the router in particular.

On the right side of the router we have a non-removable external antenna and a small ventilation grill. In this area we also find the WPS button (Wi-Fi Protected Setup) of the router as well as the button to turn on and off the WiFi of the equipment. These two buttons allow us to perform quick actions with the WiFi network without having to enter the administration or use the mobile app. On the left side we find another non-removable external antenna and the same small vents.

In the rear area of the router we find each and every one of the available wired connections. From left to right we will find the high-performance USB 3.0 port, the Gigabit Ethernet port for the Internet WAN, the four Ethernet ports for the LAN (LAN1 port can act as WAN2 and is 2.5G Multigigabit), the button switch on and off of the router, the RESET button of the equipment and also the power connector.

In the lower area of the equipment we can see a large ventilation grill where you can see the motherboard of the equipment. We also have four non-slip rubber feet, the corresponding holes to put the router on the wall, and the router sticker. On this sticker we can see the exact model of the equipment, the available standard which is 802.11ax, the electrical input characteristics for power, the MAC number, serial number, default PIN code, the default SSID and also the default password. of the WiFi router with its corresponding QR code to greatly facilitate its installation.

This new black router looks great, it does not have any type of RGB lights and it does not need it either, although we do have gaming-oriented functions such as device prioritization through QoS that they call “Traffic Control”. In this traffic control is where we can configure everything related to the prioritization and limitation of bandwidth.

As you have seen, this new Synology RT6600ax router has all the ingredients to become a highly recommended home router, especially for its technical specifications and its SRM 1.3 firmware, which is really complete. Now we are going to go to the test lab where we will show you the real performance that this equipment is capable of providing in WiFi, wired tests and also USB tests.

 

Test laboratory

We have squeezed this new Synology RT6600ax router to the fullest in our test lab, then you will be able to see everything that this new router from the manufacturer is capable of, and that is that we are going to see the real wired, wireless Wi-Fi performance and we will also do USB 3.0 tests. All the tests are carried out in the 2.0 test scenario so as not to have any kind of bottleneck.

 

LAN tests

In these tests on the LAN network we will check with Jperf how this router behaves when we have hundreds of threads of TCP traffic, we will test the maximum speed with 100, 250, 500, 750 and 1000 concurrent TCP threads using this program. Since we don’t have dual 2.5G Multigigabit ports, we won’t use the popular iperf3 program.

This test is used to check the real speed we have when we are transferring a large amount of data through the local network, using multiple connections, because today it is very common to have a NAS server like Synology’s to share files on the network and access from outside.

In the first test we have used the LAN ports at 1Gbps, the results are as follows:

The speed that we have achieved in this test has been perfect, we have achieved excellent speed in all the performance tests carried out. However, in the test of 1,000 concurrent TCP threads, the speed is around 85MB/s, an outstanding speed, but we expected to achieve a speed greater than 100MB/s.

In the second test we have used a LAN port at 1Gbps and the 2.5G Multigigabit port, the speed will be limited to 1Gbps because it is the lower of the two. We do this test to check how the dedicated chipset behaves for it.

In this second test we have also obtained an excellent speed in all the tests, including the test of the 1,000 TCP threads that we have achieved more than 100MB/s, so the speed is really good. You can see the summary in this table:

The LAN-LAN performance of this router has been excellent overall, we can make the most of the LAN network of this equipment even when we have high LAN network traffic such as that generated by a NAS server. Although in a domestic environment we will not reach 1000 concurrent TCP threads, we have verified that the hardware of this router is top of the range and its SRM 1.3 firmware is very well optimized.

 

LAN-WAN tests

In this test we will check the hardware NAT that this router has and the firmware when it manages hundreds of simultaneous TCP connections. Considering that we have very powerful hardware, we expect a great performance in these tests. If you use a lot of P2P traffic at home, this test is essential to know if the router is going to behave properly or not.

In the first test we will use the dedicated Gigabit Ethernet WAN port, and a Gigabit LAN port to perform the tests with Jperf, the results are as follows:

The performance obtained in these LAN-WAN tests has been excellent in all the speed tests carried out, achieving a speed of more than 100MB/s up to the test of 750 concurrent TCP threads, and in the last test we have achieved 73.1MB/s. s that is also very good result.

In the second test we will use the dedicated 1G WAN port and the 2.5G Multigigabit port for the LAN.

In this second case we have achieved excellent performance up to 750 concurrent TCP threads, in the 1,000 threads test we have not achieved good speed. However, in a real home environment it is practically impossible to reach this level of Internet traffic.

You can see the summary in this table:

The performance of this router in the LAN-WAN tests has been excellent globally, achieving great bandwidth even though we have a lot of LAN-WAN network traffic. If you are going to use P2P programs intensively, this model is perfect for you because it will meet your needs perfectly.

 

LAN-WLAN (Wireless) tests

It is time to see if the Wi-Fi coverage and speed of this new Synology RT6600ax router is up to the best equipment with the Wi-Fi 6 standard. The test scenario is the same as always, and we anticipate that the speed we have achieved has been outstanding. Below you have all the details.

In this case we have used an iPerf3 server in the LAN network in the 2.5G Multigigabit port to avoid any bottleneck in the local home network. In these tests we will use the Lenovo X1 Carbon laptop using the Intel AX210 card that is compatible with WiFi 6 and 160MHz channel width, and we will also use the operating system used is Windows 11 Pro.

 

Test in the 2.4GHz band

In this 2.4GHz frequency band we can achieve up to 574Mbps theoretically, as long as we use a Wi-Fi card compatible with Wi-Fi 6 and 2-streams. The Intel AX210 card is exactly of this type, so we will not have a bottleneck in the WiFi card used. Next, you have the results obtained with the iperf3 client-server with 20 concurrent TCP threads:

In these tests we have seen that this router is capable of providing us with up to 29MB/s of speed in the closest location, an outstanding speed, but we expected to reach approximately 40MB/s as it happens with other models. A positive point is that it behaves very well from places far away from the Wi-Fi router.

 

Test in the 5GHz band

In this 5GHz frequency band we can achieve up to 1201Mbps theoretically with this wireless router. The Intel AX210 card is capable of maximizing the speed of this router since it has 2-streams. Here are the results obtained with the iperf3 client-server with 20 concurrent TCP threads:

The performance of this router is outstanding in all performance tests. A very favorable point is that we will be able to achieve a speed of up to 80MB/s in the same room, which is ideal for making the most of the main FTTH connections that we have right now. In remote places this router has also behaved excellently, so we can connect to this frequency band without problems even if we are in very remote places.

 

Test in the 5GHz-2 band

In this 5GHz frequency band we can achieve up to 4804Mbps in theory with this wireless router, as long as we have a WiFi card compatible with WiFi 6 and 4-streams with 160MHz channel width. The Intel AX210 has 2-stream so we can get a maximum of 2402Mbps. Here are the results obtained with the iperf3 client-server with 20 concurrent TCP threads:

The maximum speed achieved by this router is 113MB/s in the same test room, however, we expected to achieve approximately 130MB/s, as it happens with other models that have similar characteristics. What we really liked is that at medium distances it has behaved really well, so we are going to have a very homogeneous coverage in our home.

 

Wireless Conclusions

In the 2.4GHz band, this router has performed outstandingly in all locations, although in nearby places we expected a higher speed because we have only achieved 29MB/s. What we would like to indicate is that the coverage is quite homogeneous and we will be able to connect from anywhere in our house.

In the 5GHz band it has behaved outstandingly, we have achieved a very good speed reaching up to 81.6MB/s, and it is because we are facing a device with only two antennas and without 160MHz of channel width that would allow us to double this velocity. The speed and coverage of this band has been outstanding in all the tests carried out.

In the 5GHz-2 band it has behaved remarkably, we have achieved a really high speed reaching up to 113MB/s, but we expected to exceed 130MB/s without many problems, as is the case with other WiFi 6 routers with similar characteristics. . However, at medium-long distances it has behaved really well.

 

USB tests

In these USB tests we are going to test the performance of the high-performance USB 3.0 port. In this case we have not been able to use the ASUS ROG Strix Arion with a Kingston KC2000 M.2 NVMe SSD, because the SRM 1.3 operating system has not recognized it. We have had to use a USB 3.0 base and a 2.5” SSD that has been recognized correctly. The PC used for the performance tests has been the main one with a 2.5G Multigigabit LAN port so as not to have any kind of bottleneck.

Before starting, we would also like to remind you that the SRM 1.3 firmware has the FTPES protocol to transfer data securely, this protocol guarantees confidentiality, authenticity and integrity of the transmitted data, by using TLS 1.3 and also AES-256-GCM.

Samba on USB 3.2 Gen 1 port

• NTFS-> Read: 225MB/s; Write: 125MB/s.

FTP on USB 3.2 Gen 1 port

• NTFS-> Read: 204MB/s; Write: 80MB/s.

FTPES on USB 3.2 Gen 1 port

• NTFS-> Read: 91.5MB/s; Write: 52.5MB/s.

In the following table you can see the summary of the speeds achieved by this router:

This new Synology RT6600ax router has shown us that it has a USB 3.0 port with really excellent performance, it is one of the fastest routers in the USB 3.0 port without a doubt, reaching up to 225MB/s in reading, the same as what we provides a NAS server from the manufacturer aimed at the home market.

Before ending the USB tests, below we leave you the configuration of the FTPES server that uses TLS 1.3 and also AES-256-GCM, so security is guaranteed when authenticating and also when transferring files in Internet.

In the speed tests we have seen that the speed of the FTPES performance is really good, so our recommendation is that you always use it if you are going to transfer data over the Internet, unless you use a VPN to the local network to give a layer of security to plain text traffic.

 

Setup Wizard

The configuration wizard of this new Synology RT6600ax router is exactly the same as the previous ones that we have already seen. When we connect to the router through the default IP, which is 192.168.1.1, it will direct us directly to the web configuration wizard menu. In the first menu we will have a large button that tells us “Start”, once we have clicked here, the configuration wizard will start with all the available options.

The first thing that will ask us is to enter a new username that is not “admin”, we can put the name that we want, as well as the access password that we estimate. It is very important to define a strong password to avoid security problems with the router, in addition, the firmware itself incorporates a tool to check the strength of the password based on length and complexity, so it is highly recommended to pay attention to this meter to know if our key is secure or not.

Once we have entered the password that we want, click on “Next” to continue with the wizard. In the following menu we can choose between two operating modes:

• Wireless router
• wireless ap

It will also tell us if we want to be able to access the SRM operating system from the Internet. For security reasons, it is recommended to leave it on “Disabled” to avoid problems.

If we have chosen “Wireless router” which will be the most normal, we will have to choose the Internet connection mode depending on our operator. This firmware supports any type of connection with automatic IP, static, PPPoE and DS-Lite, in addition, it supports special ISP configurations such as configuring DHCP in an advanced way, configuring IPTV/VoIP by defining VLANs and even using PPTP for connection to Internet that some operators use. This firmware is very complete in terms of configurations of the Internet part.

Once we have configured the Internet part, the router will apply all the necessary changes, it will restart and we can start managing it. In the last menu we have the possibility to “Start managing” or “Add WiFi Points”. With the first option it will take us directly to the firmware configuration menu, with the option “Add WiFi Points” we will be able to add other Synology routers to form a complete WiFi mesh network.

When we enter the firmware for the first time, Synology will take us through the main firmware menus. It will welcome us to SRM 1.3 and will tell us what we can do with the different icons that will take us directly to the different configuration menus. For example, in « Network Center » is where we will configure everything related to the LAN network, Internet WAN, ports and other options, in the « Wi-Fi Connect » section is where we can configure everything related to the wireless network Wifi. In the ” Safe Access ” section is where we will be able to find the advanced parental control that this router has, in “Control Panel” is where we will configure aspects of the devices themselves, we also have the package center to download and install additional software and much more.

Now that you know what the SRM 1.3 firmware configuration wizard is like, we are going to see all the configuration options of the firmware itself.

 

Firmware SRM

Synology’s SRM firmware is very complete, we have many configuration menus with very advanced options, so in this article we are going to detail each and every one of them so that you know all the available options.

 

Main menu

The main menu of the SRM 1.3 operating system reminds us very much of the configuration menu of Synology NAS servers, and in terms of appearance and design they are very similar, if not exactly the same. If we click on the upper left we can display all the shortcuts to the different configuration menus available. In the upper right area we see the entire list of the latest notifications from the operating system, in addition, we also have access to the configuration options of the administrator user.

As for the options of the administrator user, we can put a description, change the access password, put an email to later configure email notifications, we also have the language and the possibility of enabling 2-step verification to log in. In these menus we can also configure the colors and customize the desktop as we want. We also have other options like enable preview in taskbar or not show confirmation dialog when exiting SRM. Lastly, we can add the SMTP server to send the emails.

Now that you know the main menu, let’s take a look at the package center.

 

File Station

File Station is the router’s file manager, if you are going to connect an external hard drive or any removable storage device, this tool will be your best ally. Thanks to File Station, we will be able to manage all the files easily and quickly from the web menu, without the need to enter via Samba, FTP or FTPES, we will do everything from here, in addition, we also have the possibility of creating shared links so that any user can access quickly and easily.

As you can see, this tool is very important if you are going to connect a hard drive or a pen drive, because it will allow you to manage files and folders easily and quickly.

 

package center

If we go into the package center we can see all the installed packages, although by default we only have Safe Access, which is parental control. We also have a menu with software updates, and the ability to explore all available packages and even beta packages. Regarding the configurations that we can make, we will have the possibility to send us update notifications by email, define the package installation policy, if we want to configure automatic updates and also if we want to import a certificate for the installation of the packages .

Currently in this RT6600ax router when we have tested it, we do not see any package available to install, but surely when it is released we will have the typical VPN services with OpenVPN and IPsec, we will also have the FreeRADIUS server and many other packages to expand the functionalities of this WiFi router.

 

record center

In this menu is where we can see all the records or logs of the router. We can see a general record of everything that has happened, but we will also be able to filter only the records that interest us, we will be able to search through all the logs easily and quickly, in addition, we will be able to send all the logs to a syslog server remote or local, and we can even configure this router as a syslog server and receive logs from other devices to centralize the records.

In these menus we can also configure the storage of logs and the log rotation policy, notifications when the number of records per second is exceeded, when there is some type of problem classified as high severity, and even if there is a word key in the registry of the WiFi router.

As you can see, at the log level we have a really complete SRM firmware, especially because it allows us to receive logs from other devices quickly and easily.

 

Control Panel

In the “Control Panel” section is where we will be able to configure the different users and passwords of the system, give it administrator permissions or only user permissions, what kind of permissions do they have for shared folders if we connect a hard drive, configure the password policy, if we want to force verification in 2 steps for all users, join a certain domain and even LDAP.

In this menu we will also be able to configure everything related to storage through the USB port, configure shared folders, the removable storage device itself, configure the folder for media indexing, hibernation of the connected hard drive, etc.

In the ” File Services ” section is where we configure the Samba, FTP and FTPES servers, in addition to the WebDAV that we also have the possibility of enabling. Something very positive about SRM 1.3 is that it has extensive configuration options for these servers, logically they already have experience with it thanks to the manufacturer’s own NAS.

In the services section we can enable SSH, SNMP and NTP, we can also see the privileges of the different FTP, File Station and WebDAV applications, in addition, we can also configure an SSL certificate for encrypted connections, we have the possibility to import a certificate and also to renew the one we already have from Synology.

In the “Notification” section we will be able to receive notifications through emails, SMS and Push with the mobile application. Finally, in the “Advanced” menu we can define what type of notifications we want by email, SMS or Push, all of this in a fairly advanced way so we can configure everything in detail.

In the “Device” section is where we can see the system information, CPU status, RAM, router uptime, time and time zone, the status of the LEDs and their configuration, the print server and also if we want schedule an automatic restart on certain days.

Finally, in the system menu is where we can see the firmware version, update the operating system through the Internet, configure the updates, make a backup of the router as well as a restoration of a previously made copy, as well as restore factory settings this router. We also have the possibility to update different databases, such as DNS over HTTPS, IP geolocation, threat intelligence and much more.

In this menu we can also configure the name of the router, the TCP ports for access to administration via the web, if we want to enable HSTS, if we want to allow external access to SRM, configure all the time and language issues, connection status and finally the Synology account.

As you can see, we have a large number of options available in this control panel menu, ideal for configuring the router in detail.

 

Network Center

In the “Network Center” section is where we can see the general status of the Internet connection, and we will also see the Wi-Fi networks that we have available. In the Status section we can see the status of the Internet connection in terms of downloading and uploading, the list of connected wired or WiFi devices, the status of the main processor, the RAM memory and also the status of the Ethernet ports that the device incorporates. router.

In the “Internet” section is where we can configure the Internet connection in detail with the type of connection, DNS servers, if we have special ISP requirements such as DHCP or VLAns and many more options available, in addition, we have the possibility to configure VPN To access the Internet, of course, the IPv6 protocol is not missing, which we could also configure if our operator provides us with IPv6.

Synology has done a great job with all the options available in this menu, and we are going to be able to configure any Internet connection to replace our operator’s router.

In the “Smart WAN” section we will be able to configure the “failover” and also the “load balance + failover” using the 2.5G Multigigabit port as WAN 2. Thanks to these menus, we will have the possibility to have a double WAN to never run out of Internet. We can configure the second WAN as we want, we have the same options as the main WAN so there would be no problem, in addition, we have the possibility of using a 4G modem and connecting it to establish the secondary connection.

In the ” QuickConnect and DDNS ” tab we will be able to configure a specific Synology domain to remotely access the wireless router, we have the two possibilities, either use QuickConnect with the Synology domain, or use the DDNS domain that we we want since it supports many providers.

Finally, we have the “Mobile network” part where we will see the status of the 4G LTE connection.

In the “Port Forwarding” menu is where we are going to open the ports in the NAT to any computer on the local network. We have both Port Forwarding as well as port triggering, DMZ and NAT Pass-through. The options that we have available in these menus are the usual ones of any home router.

In the “Local Network” section we will be able to see and configure the main network and also the guest network at the level of IP addressing and VLAN used. We will be able to create a new network with the private subnet that we want, enable network isolation and even configure a specific VLAN to later use the LAN ports as a trunk.

The main options available are to configure the local IP and the mask, define which LAN ports we want to use as untagged (without VLAN tag), if we want to use a WiFi network for the network we have created, the DHCP server configuration In detail, we also have DHCPv6 and even in the advanced menu we can activate NAT and UPnP for the specific network.

Something that has caught our attention is VLAN Tagging, and it seems that we are dealing with a professional router, because it allows us to configure the different ports as untagged or tagged, the truth is that for users who want to have an advanced network at home with segmentation by VLANs, this model is ideal for this without the need to go to professional teams of well-known brands.

In the “IPTV and VoIP” section is where we will configure the different profiles for the Internet WAN and also if we want to enable the VLANs in the Internet WAN, VLAN per port to provide IPTV or VOIP services, enable the IGMP, see the list of DHCP clients that are connected, if we want to reserve an IP address in the DHCP server, as well as configure a static route to reach other networks through the LAN.

In the “Traffic control” menu we can prioritize all the devices that we want. We will see the list of wired and WiFi clients and we can quickly and easily set them as priorities, we can see a complete Internet connection status monitor and also see a complete report of everything that is happening on the network.

In the “Security” section is where we can configure the router firewall, we have the possibility to enable or not different features. Likewise, we can also create new rules or eliminate existing ones, using TCP, UDP or both and even ICMP. The firewall customization options are quite high, since it allows us to choose protocol, source addresses whether they are interfaces, IPs or subnets, as well as destination addresses. We can also see a complete list of all the services enabled at the network level in the router. Finally we can enable an automatic block if we try to log in several times on our computer.

Finally, in the “Operation mode” section we have the possibility to configure the “Wireless router” and also the “Wireless AP”.

As you have seen, we have extensive configuration options in the “Network Center” section.

 

WiFi Connect

In the Wi-Fi Connect menu is where we can configure all the Wi-Fi connection part of this router. In the main menu we can see all the WiFi networks or SSID that we have in the main network, we can also see the WiFi transfer in real time that there is at a certain moment, in addition, we have the possibility of adding new WiFi points to form a complete network High-performance mesh Wi-Fi. Finally, we can see the WiFi logs and if there has been any type of error.

If we go into the “WiFi Configuration” section we will be able to see the configuration of the SSID of the main network and also of the guest network. From here we can configure Smart Connect or not, activate the different WiFi frequency bands, and even get directly into the configuration of the SSID that we want.

If we go into the WiFi network configuration, we can configure the three frequency bands individually. We have the following options to configure the wireless network:

• Wi-Fi network name
• Security level: supports WPA3-Personal and also OWE, ideal to properly protect the wireless network.
• Access password
• Maximum allowed connections
• WiFi Scheduler
• MAC filtering
• Advanced options: here we can configure the compatibility with PMF (Protected Management Frames), the DTIM, if we want AP isolation, configure 802.11r for roaming and OFDMA among other options.

This router has a really complete firmware to configure WiFi networks in detail, in addition, we can configure the three frequency bands separately in detail, this is ideal to know at all times to which band we are connected.

Regarding the configuration options of the guest network, we have the same options as in the main network, but it also incorporates a captive portal for the guests that we can configure. Lastly, we also have a specific setting for isolating connecting wireless clients to give them additional security.

In the “Radio” section is where we can configure everything related to channels, channel width, wireless mode and maximum speed, all for the different frequency bands separately. It also allows us to configure the interconnection band that we want for the Wi-Fi Mesh system. We can also configure the MAC filtering in detail to allow those on the list or deny those on the list, finally, we can configure the WPS and disable it if we want.

In the “Wi-Fi Point” section is where we are going to be able to add different Mesh nodes from the manufacturer Synology, we must remember that this equipment supports Wi-Fi Mesh with WiFi roaming and band-steering if we use other Synology models that we currently have in the market, and even with two RT6600ax. In the “Wi-Fi Clients” section is where we will be able to see the list of all Wi-Fi wireless clients.

As you have seen, the firmware is really complete in terms of Wi-Fi wireless network settings, great news for more advanced users.

 

network tools

In this section we can use the typical network tools such as ping and traceroute to diagnose any type of problem on the local network and the Internet. We also have a WoL (Wake on LAN) menu to wake up different computers on the home local network, in this way, we can turn on our PC if it is previously well configured.

These tools today are quite useful for diagnosing problems.

 

security advisor

This tool allows us to verify the security of our router based on a list of points that it should comply with. We have two possible profiles, the home user profile that is more permissive and almost always tells us that everything is correct, or the professional user profile that will notify us of certain settings that we should review to be more protected.

It is appreciated that Synology incorporates this type of tools in order to be as protected as possible.

 

help center

Support Center is Synology’s tool for reporting possible bugs and directly contacting the manufacturer’s technical support. In this way, we will be able to report bugs easily and quickly, just as it happens with other manufacturers and even Synology itself in its NAS servers.

 

Safe Access

If you are looking for a home WiFi router with one of the best parental controls, Synology’s Safe Access is one of the most complete. It will allow us to create different profiles to later assign them to the wired or wireless clients that we want. In this article we have already talked in detail about Safe Access in a complete tutorial, in it you can check the available configurations and also how to configure it correctly.

As you have seen, the SRM 1.3 firmware of this Synology router is as complete as ever, we have arrived here with the end of the firmware analysis and also with the end of our complete analysis of this Synology RT6600ax router, now we are going to see the final conclusions, the strong points and also the weak points.

 

Last conclusions

This new Synology RT6600ax router is a very good option to have a high-performance home router at home. What we liked most about this router is the SRM 1.3 firmware, and it is that we will have at our disposal a large number of advanced configuration options, in fact, it is at the level of professional routers for SMEs, but it incorporates all the features of a home router such as Mesh, easy-to-use graphical user interface and much more.

LAN-LAN and LAN-WAN performance has been excellent in all performance tests, this router has performed really well in the performance tests that we have done. If you are going to transfer data at high speed through the local network with multiple files, you should know that this router is going to behave perfectly, in addition, facing the Internet with the intense use of P2P we are also going to have a very good performance , ideal for taking advantage of faster internet speeds.

Regarding wireless performance it has been outstanding . The maximum speed that we have achieved in the different WiFi frequency bands was: 29MB/s in 2.4GHz, 81MB/s in the first 5GHz band and we have reached 113MB/s in the second 5GHz band. This router has behaved very stable at all times and in all bands, providing very homogeneous coverage in all locations, and we have been able to connect from the furthest location, which is the attic, without any problem. Something we would like to highlight is the support for Mesh using other Synology routers, and that it has WPA3-Personal and OWE to adequately protect wireless clients.

In terms of USB performance, this device incorporates a USB 3.0 port , the speed achieved in both reading is up to 225MB/s and writing is up to 125MB/s. The speed achieved by this router is one of the best we have achieved so far, it shows that Synology has done a very good job to optimize the firmware, and it is that getting 225MB/s of reading is not easy, in fact, this is the speed that a medium-high range NAS server would provide us.

This Synology RT6600ax router still has the SRM 1.3 firmware that all the manufacturer’s models have. In the analysis you have seen the number of advanced configuration options that we have in the network center and Wi-Fi Connect section, in addition, we have advanced parental control with Safe Access, the possibility of configuring QoS with the prioritization system of traffic and many other features that we have explained to you. What we would most like to highlight is the possibility of creating VLANs in the LAN to segment local network traffic using a manageable switch, this is ideal for having a very professional network separated by VLANs at home or in the office.

Finally, the current price of this router is 399 euros , an expected price taking into account its technical specifications, and that is that we are dealing with a simultaneous triple band router with Wi-Fi 6, 2.5G Multigigabit port and high-end hardware. In addition, the firmware is really complete to configure the entire network in detail.

Now we are going to offer you a list of strong and weak points of the router.

 

Strengths

• Excellent LAN-LAN performance in all speed tests, both on 1G and 2.5G ports.
• Excellent LAN-WAN performance in all speed tests, both on 1G and 2.5G ports, although using the latter port and 1,000 TCP threads the speed has been lower than expected.
• Outstanding Wi-Fi performance in the 2.4GHz band, we have obtained a speed of up to 29MB/s real and a very homogeneous coverage.
• Outstanding Wi-Fi performance on both 5GHz bands, reaching up to 113MB/s on the second band with 160MHz channel width.
• Excellent performance obtained in the USB 3.0 test, both in reading and writing, we have managed to reach 225MB/s, which is a great figure.
• Complete configuration assistant to set up the equipment, especially in the Internet part, we have ample options available.
• The SRM 1.3 firmware is really complete, having dozens of services available for USB and the local network, the possibility of creating VLANs in the Internet WAN and in the LAN, and many more options for advanced users.
• Very advanced parental control thanks to Safe Access.
• 2.5G Multigigabit port for Internet WAN or LAN, allows Dual WAN.
• Application for DS router mobile devices to install, manage and administer the router.
• Router on/off button.
• Wi-Fi on/off button.
• WPS button.
• Price: remarkable. This equipment costs €399, is it a high price? Of course it does, but we must bear in mind that it is a high-end router with triple band and 2.5G Multigigabit port.

 

Weak points

• The maximum speed in the second 5GHz band is 113MB/s, but we expected to get around 140-150MB/s.
• It does not have the Link Aggregation function on the LAN ports, it would be ideal to connect a NAS with dual Ethernet ports.
• It does not have dual 2.5G Multigigabit ports (one for WAN and one for WAN/LAN).
• Additional applications such as VPN server, FreeRADIUS server and more are not currently available. We believe that they will incorporate it soon, this weak point does not affect the final assessment because it is to be assumed that it will have it as it happens with the other models of the manufacturer.

If we take into account the features, the outstanding performance achieved by this router, and its price, the evaluation of this article is 9/10 . This model is one of the most recommended for home users with minors (due to parental control) and also for the office or advanced users since it has VLANs in the LAN.

We hope you liked the analysis, if you have any questions you can leave us a comment and we will be happy to answer.