Recovering and Resetting a Router Password

Abbreviated DISCLAIMER:  THIS IS PROVIDED AS IS.  Do not attempt to follow this advice at any time for any reason.  Read the full disclaimer at bottom.

…Can be really tough.  In some instances it might even be impossible.  However, I was sitting around today and thinking all MacGuyver mode, and remember when a notorious Geeksqwad “specialist” had hijacked a friends computer a few years back, setting a password on a router, never getting the internet actually set up  (despite 3 or 4 multi-hundred field calls) and then, to top it off, leaving the company without a trace of being so kind as to actually make a note as to what password he changed the unit to.

Soo…How do I go about fixing it, I get around to thinking.

Well, the particular router in question was a Mimo Netgear Rangemax, I believe more specifically it might have been a WPN824 and despite trying simple things like unplugging it and clicking reset buttons, the password remained firmly flashed.

So, I whipped out my handy screwdriver set (As I recall they use torx / star bits) and pulled the sucker apart.

Wow, how easy, I believe there were 2-3 blocks of jumpers (little metal yellowish pins)

So, I took and powered the unit back up and jumpered across a few jumpers with a pocket knife with power on (highly regarded as a NO-NO even when legacy components were very common), essentially reprogramming the router at a very non optimal moment (while connected and powered on) to think it was a different model of router (shared components within a series are very common) — the added condition of having live power overrode the actual hardware checks, allowing me to essentially reflash the router and reprogram the password.  I was even more surprised to cycle the power and have the unit recover itself successfully while restoring every setting back to the default.

Voila, the admin password once removing power and recycling back on (to regain the proper router model type) was now the default, listed on the sticker on the backside of the case.

Caveats & Expanded DISCLAIMER:  This may or may not work with all and/or ANY router on earth.  This is not to be construed as definitive solution or advice, and may (ie: IT WILL) violate your product warranty and may even have questionable legality in some instances.  You also may find yourself exposing yourself to dangerous levels of electricity, who knows, maybe even something as bad as a radioactive spider who happens to live in your router.  AS SUCH this information as such is provided “AS-IS” for an educational curiosity sake and is NOT to be attempted by anyone at anytime anywhere for any reason.  Instead, go out and buy a new router.