Some ISPs offer you a preconfigured router, often quite cheaply, to get you started, which you get to keep, but you can upgrade to a router of your own choice later if you like.Īnd other ISPs require you to buy your own router and set it up yourself, although they often only officially support devices from a short list that they’ve tested themselves, with known configurations that work. Historically, and understandably, that’s been a bit of a support nightmare for ISPs, because there are usually lots of innocent-looking configuration settings in the average router that can cause trouble if you fiddle with them.Īs a result, some ISPs provide you with the actual CPE hardware, often for a fee that’s part of the service, and you have to run the gear they send you. You may not have heard of TR-069, more properly known as CWMP, short for CPE WAN management protocol.īut you may have a router at home or in your business that uses it.ĬPE is internet provider jargon for customer premises equipment, and refers to the part of your network-to-ISP connection that’s at your home or work, where the ISP can’t get physical access to it unless you say so.
