Opening Ports in a TP-Link TL-WR1043N Router

Your TP-Link TL-WR1043N router has a very basic firewall that protects your home network from unauthorized Internet access. Your router's firewall blocks incoming connections that you may decide you want unblocked. The process of unblocking or opening a port is normally called a port forward because you are forwarding a port from the Internet directly to a device on your home network.

In this guide we show you how to open ports or port forward the TP-Link TL-WR1043N router. We will walk you through every step in the process.

We show you how to:

Setup a static IP address on the exact device you want these ports forwarded to.
Login to your TP-Link TL-WR1043N router.
Navigate to the port forwarding section.
- Click the Forwarding link.
- Click on Virtual Servers.
- Click the Add New button.
Enter the data to create a port forward entry.

We think that forwarding a port should be easy. That's why we created Network Utilities. Our software does everything that you need to forward a port.

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When you use Network Utilities you get your port forwarded right now!

Step 1

It is important to setup a static ip address in the device that you are forwarding a port to. This ensures that your ports will remain open even after your device reboots.

Recommended - Our free Static IP Setter will set up a static IP address for you.
Another way to get a permanent IP address is to set up a DHCP reservation.
Or, manually create a static ip address with our Static IP Guides.

This step is important because you want a permanent IP address in your device. If you do not set up a permanent IP address in your device, then when you device reboots it may get a new IP address.

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.

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.

Step 2

Now to login to the TP-Link TL-WR1043N router. Your router has a web interface. This means in order to login to it you need to use a web browser. There are a lot of different web browsers out there, and even though we haven't tested them all, it should not matter which browser you decide to use. Some common options are:

Internet Explorer
Firefox
Chrome
Edge

Once you have picked a web browser, open it up and find the address bar. It is normally at the top of the page like this:

Image of a browser address bar — Browser address bar

Above is an example of what a web browser address bar looks like. Find the address bar in your router and type in your router's IP address.

The default TP-Link TL-WR1043N IP Address is: 192.168.1.1

After you enter the router's IP Address, click the Enter key on your keyboard. This should trigger an authentication box like this:

Do you see a box asking for a username and password? This is exactly where you should be.

The Default TP-Link TL-WR1043N Router Username is: admin
The Default TP-Link TL-WR1043N Router Password is: admin

Enter your username and password, and then click the OK button to log in to your TP-Link TL-WR1043N router.

Username and Password Trouble

This is where most of us get stuck. Here are a few troubleshooting ideas to try:

First, try other Default TP-Link Router Passwords. Sometimes a new firmware update comes with a new username and password.

If the default password list did not help, maybe you could try and crack the password yourself or you could use our Find Password App. This will automate the long process of guessing hundreds of different combinations. To prevent illegal activity this app will only work on your local home network, not over the Internet. Learn more on our Router Password Cracker page.

Finally if nothing else works, it might be time to consider a reset. A reset like this one erases all previously changed data. We strongly encourage you to try other options before you decide to reset the router in a desperate attempt to access your router. Learn how to reset your router on this How to Reset a Router page.

Step 3

Now we are going to find the port forwarding section of your TP-Link TL-WR1043N router. We will show you how to do that starting on the following page:

First, click the Forwarding option in the left sidebar.

In the new sub menu that appears, click the option of Virtual Servers.

You should now see a page similar to the one above. Click the option of Add New in the middle section of your screen.

Step 4

Here are the ports to forward for Xbox Live:

TCP Ports: 3074

UDP Ports: 3074

If you are looking for the ports for a different application you can find it by either:

Browsing our List of Games

Check out our our List of Games by Genre

See our List of all Applications

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Enter the port to forward into the Service Port box.

Enter the IP address that you want to forward these ports to in the IP Address box. You can enter either the IP address of your computer or the IP address of another computer or device on your network.

In the Protocol box select the protocol that you want to forward these ports over.

From the Status dropdown box choose Enabled.

Click the Save button when you are done.

Make sure that after each entry you click the Save button.

Did Your Ports Forward?

How can you tell if the port forward you just did actually forwarded? Use our free Open Port Checker located in our Network Utilities tool. This Open Port Checker is not only free but it is the only one online that is guaranteed to work.