Reset the Netgear R7800

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Setup Router Staff
Last Updated: | Reading Time: 3 minutes

If you need to reset your Netgear R7800 router back to factory settings, then this article shows you how. This is not the same thing as rebooting a router. Turning a router off and back on again causes a reboot. However, when you reset a router you, return it back to its factory default settings.

Warning: Proceed with caution; resetting your router can be a major headache. The following settings will be changed in your router:

  • The router's login credentials are reset to factory defaults.
  • All WiFi settings are reset, including network name and password.
  • If your router has any ISP settings they will be removed, and you will have to contact your ISP.
  • Any port forwards, firewall settings, or parental controls that you have configured will be removed.

A router reset should be considered the last resort when you cannot log in to your router any other way. Before you reset your router you may want to try recovering your router password with our Router Password Finder.

Other Netgear R7800 Guides

Use a VPN Instead

Have you considered using a VPN instead of forwarding a port? For most users, a VPN is a much simpler and more secure choice than forwarding a port.

We use and recommend NordVPN because not only is it the fastest VPN, it includes a new feature called Meshnet that makes forwarding a port no longer necessary for most applications. With NordVPN Meshnet, you can connect to your devices from anywhere in the world, completely secure, over a highly encrypted VPN tunnel.

When shopping for a VPN, make sure that they meet the following criteria:

  • Your VPN provider should have a no-logs policy. This means that they do not keep any logs of any kind.
  • Make sure that your VPN provider has lots of exit nodes all around the world.
  • Check that your VPN will not affect your speed.
  • Verify that your VPN provider uses WireGuard as the underlying protocol.
  • Many people prefer a VPN provider that is not based in the United States.

This is the list of requirements that we used when we were shopping around for a VPN provider. There are lots of free, shady VPN providers out there that we looked at and dismissed.

Based in Panama, using diskless servers, and with over 6,100 servers in 61 countries, we can safely say that NordVPN satisfies all of these requirements.

NordVPN is the fastest VPN!

Once you've set up your NordVPN account on multiple computers and enabled Meshnet, you can seamlessly access all of your devices as if they were on the same network. You don't even have to log in to your router. It's very simple.

Every time you click on one of our affiliate links, such as NordVPN, we get a little kickback for introducing you to the service. Think of us as your VPN wingman.

This is the reset router guide for the Netgear R7800. We also have the following guides for the same router:

Recover Password in Netgear R7800

If the only reason that you are resetting your router is because you forgot your router password, then you may want to try running our Router Password Finder instead of resetting your router.

Router Password Finder can save you a ton of time by recovering your lost or forgotten router password instead of doing a full router reset.

Router Password Finder - Lost or Forgotten Router Password Recovery Tool

Do not do a full router reset until after you have tried every other option to log in to your router.

Reset the Netgear R7800

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You can usually find a small reset button on either the back or the bottom of a router. Look at your router and try to find something that looks like this:

Router Reset Button

Your reset button may look different, but usually they are very small. If you find a pinhole on the back of the router then that may be the reset button. You will need a paper clip to push it.

Watch the front panel lights while you hold the reset button down for at least 10 seconds. You should notice that the blinking pattern of the lights on the front of the router changes after a few seconds. You can hold the button down as long as you like, it will not hurt anything.

Remember, this will erase everything you have previously done to this Netgear R7800 router.

Be sure to only reset your router if you have tried everything else, such as running our Router Password Finder software, which can find your lost or forgotten router password for you.

Login to the Netgear R7800

Now that you have finished resetting your router, you need to log in using the default username and password from the factory. You can find all of the information that you need in our R7800 Login Guide.

Change Your Password

You need to change your router's default password after you log in for the first time. Since factory passwords are well known, it's a huge security risk to leave your router set to the default. You can follow our Choosing a Strong Password guide to help you pick a solid password for your router.

Tip: Put your new password on a post-in note and stick it to the bottom of your router.

Other Netgear R7800 Guides

Here are some of our other Netgear R7800 guides that you might be interested in.

This is the reset router guide for the Netgear R7800. We also have the following guides for the same router: