Day 1: My First Time Using MikroTik RouterOS

Starting my MikroTik Zero to Hero Challenge - Module 1

I decided to learn MikroTik networking from scratch. This is my story of Day 1 - the very first time I touched a MikroTik router.

What is MikroTik Anyway?

Before starting, I had no idea what MikroTik was. Here's what I learned:

• MikroTik makes networking equipment (routers, switches, wireless devices)

• RouterOS is their operating system that runs on the hardware

• It's like Linux, but specially made for networking

• You can buy their hardware, OR run it on regular computers

Think of it like this: RouterOS is the brain, and MikroTik hardware is the body.

My First Connection Problem

I plugged in the router and tried to connect. Big mistake #1 - I assumed the login was blank username and blank password.

ERROR: "Wrong credentials"

After some googling, I found out newer RouterOS versions need:

• Username: admin

• Password: (leave blank)

Then it immediately asks you to create a new password. Smart security feature!

Three Ways to Control Your Router

MikroTik gives you three ways to control your router:

1. Winbox - A Windows program (easiest for beginners)

2. WebFig - Use your web browser

3. CLI/SSH - Command line (for advanced users)

I started with Winbox because it looked the friendliest, but quickly discovered the command line was easier to understand.

The Interface Confusion

When I first looked at the interfaces, I was confused. The router showed 7 interfaces, but I could only see 4 physical ports:

• ether1-4: The actual physical ports you can touch

• wlan1: The WiFi interface

• bridgeLocal: A virtual interface grouping ports together

• pwr-line1: Just another name for an Ethernet port

Key Learning: Not all interfaces are physical ports you can see and touch.

My First Commands

Here are the basic commands I learned on Day 1:

# Check the router name
/system identity print

# Change the router name
/system identity set name="Alex-Lab1"

# See all network interfaces
/interface print

# Make a backup of settings
/system backup save name=factory-backup

# Set the correct time
/system clock print

What I Discovered About Network Setup

The biggest surprise: Everything was connected to one big bridge called bridgeLocal. This meant:

• All 4 Ethernet ports acted like a switch

• The WAN (internet) and LAN (local network) were mixed

• My laptop couldn't get a proper IP address

This explained why things weren't working as expected!

CLI vs GUI - My Preference

I thought I'd use the GUI (graphical interface) for everything. But I quickly found the command line more logical:

• Commands follow a tree structure: /system/identity, /interface

• You can stay in sections and navigate around

• Shortcuts work: /int pr instead of /interface print

• It just made more sense to me

What I Accomplished on Day 1

By the end of Day 1, I had:

✅ Successfully connected to my MikroTik router
✅ Changed the system name from "MikroTik" to "Alex-Lab1"
✅ Created a backup of the original settings
✅ Set the system clock and timezone
✅ Mapped out all the physical and virtual interfaces
✅ Learned the basic navigation in both GUI and CLI

The Real Learning

The most important thing I learned wasn't technical - it was that MikroTik is different from consumer routers. It doesn't try to guess what you want. It gives you complete control, but you need to understand what you're doing.

This is both powerful and intimidating for a beginner.

What's Next?

Day 1 was just about getting familiar with the system. Tomorrow (Module 2), I need to:

• Fix the network setup so that WAN and LAN are properly separated

• Configure IP addresses correctly

• Get my laptop to connect to the internet through the router

The journey has just begun, but I'm already seeing why network professionals love MikroTik - it's incredibly powerful once you understand the basics.

This is part of my MikroTik Zero to Hero challenge. Follow along as I document my learning journey from complete beginner to confident network administrator.

Next up: Module 2 - IP Addressing & Basic Connectivity