Are you having problems with BT Hub Manager? Struggling with your BT router login details? We hear from frustrated BT broadband customers all the time who say that accessing the settings for their BT Smart Hub can be a real nightmare. We’ll help you ease the pain and get you to a solution - fast!
BT hubs are the centrepiece of BT home broadband. Whether yours is the latest BT Smart Hub 2, the BT Mini Hub or a BT Home Hub, it’s the wireless router whose job is to deliver reliable and fast broadband to all areas of your house, so you and your family can take full advantage of your superfast internet connection.
According to BT, these latest broadband routers are more powerful than ever, allowing customers to connect more devices than before without any discernible loss of download speed. What’s more, BT claims the wifi-signal from a Smart Hub is capable of reaching further than any router from their broadband competitors.
That all sounds great, you say, but to make the most of your fancy superfast broadband internet connection you need to be able to access the BT Hub Manager. This is where you’ll find all the essential settings for managing the nuts and bolts of your broadband connection, including changing your wifi password, setting parental controls and restricting the devices that can connect to your broadband.
How do I access BT Hub Manager?
Here is our step-by-step guide to accessing BT Hub Manager. First of all, you need to be at home using a device that’s connected to your BT broadband hub. Then follow these simple instructions:
- Open a web browser. Any web browser will do; Chrome, Microsoft Edge, Firefox, whatever your personal preference might be.
- Click on the address bar of the browser (the space where you type the website address that you want to go to).
- If there is already some text in the address bar, delete it.
- Type the following numbers into the address bar: 192.168.1.254
- Press Enter.
- You will see the BT Hub Manager screen. It should look something like this:
You will be asked to enter a password. If it’s the first time you’ve used BT Hub Manager you will need to enter the admin password on the back of the broadband router. The password should now be changed to something of your choice. Follow the instructions that automatically appear on the screen to change your password.
What’s next? Here are the most useful features you’ve got access to now that you’re in the BT Hub Manager:
Control internet access from different devices
We think parents of teenage children will make good use of this one! With BT Hub Manager you can restrict internet access from certain devices during particular time periods. For example, if you don’t want your children to be online when they should be sleeping, you can tell BT Hub Manager to restrict internet access from your kids’ mobiles from midnight to 8am.
There are different ways to switch on access controls depending on which type of BT router you have:
BT Smart Hub and Ultrafast Smart Hub
- Type 192.168.1.254 in a web browser to open BT Hub Manager.
- Then click on Advanced Settings.
- Choose BT Access Control from the options.
- Enter your BT hub admin password.
- Next, select the first device that you want to control and choose the days and times for which you want to set limits.
- Important! Remember to save your changes.
Upgrade your router with a BT Fibre deal
BT Home Hub 3, Hub 4 and Hub 5
- Type 192.168.1.254 in a web browser to open BT Hub Manager.
- Then click on Configure.
- Enter your BT hub admin password.
- Set Access control feature enable to ‘yes’.
- Next, select the first device that you want to control and choose the days and times for which you want to set limits.
- Important! Remember to click Apply to save your changes.
Switch off BT Smart Setup
BT might think it’s smart but we know that plenty of broadband customers with a BT hub find the Smart Setup wizard pretty annoying. Every time a new device connects to your BT hub, Smart Setup automatically kicks in to prompt you to use all sorts of BT-specific services that you probably don’t need.
To switch off BT Smart Setup:
- First of all, type 192.168.1.254 in a web browser to open BT Hub Manager:
- If yours is a BT Smart Hub or Smart Hub 2 you’ll see a Smart Setup button. Click on it, enter your BT hub admin password and click the OFF switch next to Smart Setup.
- If you’ve got BT Home Hub 4 or Hub 5, click on Advanced settings, enter your password and then click on Home Network. You’ll see a Smart Setup button; click on it and then select the OFF button next to Smart Setup.
- Remember to save your changes!
Check who’s using your BT wifi
With BT Hub Manager you’ll be able to see at a glance if someone is using your wireless broadband signal without your permission. You don’t want your neighbours taking advantage of the internet connection that you’re paying for!
In the Home Network part of BT Hub Manager you will clearly see all the devices that are currently connected to your BT hub. If there are any devices listed there that you don’t recognise, you can turn off wireless access for that device while you investigate further.
Change the BT Hub admin password
For security reasons you might want to change the admin password for your smart hub manager every now and again. To set a different password, first of all type 192.168.1.254 into a web browser to access BT Hub Manager. Once you’re logged in you’ll see a button for ‘Advanced Settings’. On older models of the BT Home Hub you will see ‘Settings’ rather than ‘Advanced Settings’.
On BT Smart Hub and Smart Hub 2, click on System, then select Admin password. Enter your current password followed by your new one. You’ll be asked to enter the new password twice, to make sure it’s correct. You’ll also need to add a password hint. This means that if you forget your password you’ll get the option to see your password hint, which should give you enough information to jog your memory. You can then enter your password in the usual field to access BT Hub Manager.
The process for changing the password on BT Home Hub 3, Hub 4 and Hub 5 is exactly the same as above but without needing to click on System first.
BT Hub Manager troubleshooting
We hope you won’t have any problems with BT Hub Manager if your follow our guide but if you do we can suggest one or two solutions.
If you don’t see the BT Hub Manager screen when you type 192.168.1.254 into your browser address bar:
- Check that you’re using a device that is connected to your BT broadband network.
- Try connecting your device to the router with an ethernet cable instead of using wireless.
- Use an alternative browser; for example, if your first attempt was with Google Chrome, try using Firefox instead.
- Switch off the router and switch it back on again. We know it’s a cliché but resetting works more often than you’d think!
Featured image: Tom Page (edited)