MikroTik

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MikroTik
Type Limited company
Industry Networking hardware
Founded 1995
Headquarters Riga, Latvia
Key people John Tully, CEO
Arnis Riekstins, CTO
Products Routers, firewalls
Revenue 62.5 million Euros (2011)
Net income 20.6 million Euros (2011)
Employees 81
Website www.mikrotik.com
RB1100 1U rackmount high performance core router
RBSXT wireless CPE device, also used for Point to Point links

Mikrotīkls Ltd., known internationally as MikroTik, is a Latvian manufacturer of computer networking equipment. It sells wireless products and routers. The company was founded in 1995, with the intent to sell in the emerging wireless technology market. As of 2007, the company had more than 70 employees. The company's products are known for being low-priced alternatives to expensive routers and Ethernet radio relay lines.

RouterOS

The main product of MikroTik is an operating system based on the Linux kernel, known as the MikroTik RouterOS. Installed on the company's proprietary hardware (RouterBOARD series), or on standard x86-based computers, it turns a computer into a network router and implements various additional features, such as firewalling, virtual private network (VPN) service and client, bandwidth shaping and quality of service, wireless access point functions and other commonly used features when interconnecting networks. The system is also able to serve as a captive-portal-based hotspot system.

The operating system is licensed in increasing service levels, each releasing more of the available RouterOS features. A MS Windows application called Winbox provides a graphical user interface for the RouterOS configuration and monitoring, but RouterOS also allows access via FTP, telnet, and secure shell (SSH). An application programming interface is available for direct access from applications for management and monitoring.

Features

RouterOS supports many applications used by Internet service providers, for example OSPF, BGP, Multiprotocol Label Switching (VPLS/MPLS), OpenFlow. The product is supported by Mikrotik through a forum and a wiki, providing assorted and thematic examples of configurations. RouterOS supports Internet Protocol Version 4 (IPv4) as well as Internet Protocol Version 6 (IPv6).

The software provides support for virtually all network interfaces that the Linux kernel 2.6.16 supports, except wireless, where the Atheros and Prism chipsets are the only supported hardware, as of 3.x version.

Release history

  • RouterOS version 6: May 2013[1]
  • RouterOS version 5: Mar 2010
  • RouterOS version 4: Oct 2009
  • RouterOS version 3: Jan 2008

RouterBOARD

The company manufactures a series of integrated circuit boards, marketed under the name RouterBOARD, as well as accessory components which implement a complete hardware operating platform for RouterOS.

The RouterBOARD line, combined with RouterOS, is marketed at small- to medium-sized wireless Internet service providers, typically providing broadband wireless access in remote areas. Products include pre-assembled small office/home office (SOHO) routers, wireless 802.11n MIMO and TDMA devices for indoor and outdoor use, and also bare routers in form of printed circuit boards (PCBs) for integration into custom solutions. Also, the RouterBOARD line includes a series of Mini PCI and Mini PCI Express wireless adapters, supporting a range of IEEE 802.11 protocols, and designed to be used together with the router boards lineup.

Despite the fact in-house developed Linux kernel patches required for hardware support are not made publicly available by MikroTik,[2] many RouterBOARD boards and their versions are well supported by third-party Linux-based firmwares, notably OpenWrt.[3][4][5][6][7]

  • RouterBOARD RB493G
    Top view[1][2]

  • RouterBOARD RB493G
    Close-up view

  • RouterBOARD RB493G
    Bottom view

  • RouterBOARD R52n-M
    Top view[3]

  • RouterBOARD R52n-M
    Bottom view


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Cloud Core Router

In November 2012 MikroTik released the Cloud Core Router integrated unit which is based on the Tilera CPU supporting 16 - 36 CPU cores, 12 × 1000Base-T ethernets and up to 4 SFP (MiniGBIC) interfaces, as well as "fast-path" packet forwarding between interfaces (with claimed 24 million packets per second forwarding rate). This unit targets the medium-sized network providers as well as try to be a well priced alternative to the other more well known brands.[8]

Use in developing IT markets

See also: Information and communication technologies for development

In 2004 a project begun to build low-cost Internet infrastructure in rural Mali. MikroTik routers and operating systems were chosen because of their low cost, flexibility, the fact that the system already had "a substantial user base in Mali", and had a user interface deemed "superior to other products".[9] MikroTik routers were also preferred for a WLAN project in Burkina Faso,[10] and MikroTik's proprietary Nstreme protocol performed better than IEEE 802.11 under the project's conditions.[11]

In 2008, the Municipality of Piripiri, Piauí State, Brazil, decided to use MikroTik routers exclusively to build the infrastructure for providing free Internet access.[12] MikroTik routers are also popular in the Czech Republic and Hungary, where they enjoy a good reputation.[13]

Under OLPC program, Uruguay deployed a nation-wide wireless network in schools. Probably the largest Mikrotik deployment in a country with a total population of 3 million.[citation needed] Approximately 200,000 students received a small laptop which connected to Mikrotik access points.

References

  1. ↑ MikroTik RouterOS: What's new in 6.0 (2013-May-17 14:04)
  2. ↑ "OpenWrt Tracker: Mikrotik routerboard new patches (2.6.27.13)". OpenWrt. 2012. Retrieved 2013-09-27. 
  3. ↑ "OpenWrt: Mikrotik Routerboard RB493G". OpenWrt. 2013-06-24. Retrieved 2013-09-27. 
  4. ↑ "OpenWrt Forum: OpenWRT adapted to fully support RB493G (including SD)". OpenWrt. 2013. Retrieved 2013-09-27. 
  5. ↑ "OpenWRT on Mikrotik Routerboard 411/750". poettner.de. 2011-05-27. Retrieved 2013-09-27. 
  6. ↑ "Routerboard 450G and Linux". nexlab.it. 2009-04-12. Retrieved 2013-10-16. 
  7. ↑ "RB500 Linux SDK". mikrotik.com. 2008. Retrieved 2013-10-16. 
  8. ↑ "MikroTik Cloud Core Router". Retrieved 2012-11-22. 
  9. ↑ Flickenger, Rob; et al. (December 2007). Wireless Networking in the Developing World: A practical guide to planning and building low-cost telecommunications infrastructure (PDF) (2nd ed. ed.). wndw.net. p. 321. OCLC 227819886. Retrieved 19 November 2008. 
  10. ↑ Langobardi, Federico (2007). BoulSat Project: Radio network implementation by low cost technology (PDF). Master's Thesis, Politecnico di Torino. p. 78. 
  11. ↑ Bartalesi, R.; Catusian, S; Langobardi, F. (8 August 2007). "Radio Network Implementation by Low Cost Technology: a Case of Study" (PDF). Pisa: Ingegneria Senza Frontiere, University of Pisa. pp. 3–4. Retrieved 19 November 2008. 
  12. ↑ Filho, Paiva (16 October 2008). "Secretário fala da implantação da internet grátis". meionorte.com (in Portuguese) (Jornal Meio Norte). Retrieved 19 November 2008. "Diga-se de passagem, o que há de mais moderno em equipamentos para este seguimento, onde utilizaremos os rádios da Mikrotik." 
  13. ↑ Štrauch, Adam (7 November 2008). "Mikrotik: seznámení s Wi-Fi krabičkou". Root.cz (in Czech). Retrieved 19 November 2008. "Mikrotiky jsou velmi populární u poskytovatelů bezdrátového připojení a ohlasy od uživatelů jsou většinu kladné." 

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