We are a software development company that writes software tools and networking guides. We've been in business since 2003.
We are based in Southern Oregon, in the amazing little town of Grants Pass. Nestled in the Cascades with the beautiful Rogue River running through it, Grants Pass has been home to us since our beginning.
Port Forward is a small business, so we get the opportunity to directly work with many of our customers. This also means that we are very dedicated to solving each customer's problems, sometimes on a personal level. When someone is trying to set up their network and they reach out to us for help, we frequently chat behind the scenes about ways to solve their problem. In this sense, our customers become very familiar to us. Sometimes when we spend time away from work, little problems bubble up to the surface, bringing an "Ah-ha" moment and a solution.
What We Offer
Our website is unique in that we offer free guides to help you set up your router and network. If you do not want to follow our guides or find them too difficult to follow then we also have software that will do it for you, as well as a qualified technical support team to assist you using the software.
Our software application is the only software on the internet that can both add and remove port forwards from your router. This unique pairing of abilities allows us to completely manage the port forwards in your router. By taking over complete control of the port forwarding section in your router we can optimize your port forwards and fit more settings in your router than the manufacturer allows.
Problems That We Can Solve
Port Forward is dedicated to helping people set up their home or office network correctly. People often get directed to us when they have network problems that a simple forum search cannot fix. Usually, the suggestion to forward a port is correct and we help them out and they are on their way.
Frequently there are additional other problems on customer networks.
The most common problem that we see is when people want to extend their wireless network coverage. They go to a big box store and end up buying a second router because it has WiFi antennas. Usually, it's cheaper to purchase an off-the-shelf router than a dedicated WiFi Access Point. Unfortunately, this is almost always the wrong solution.
A second router creates a second network, adds a second DHCP server, and creates so many problems for users (think "Why does my printer only sometimes work?") When we encounter this we usually advise the customer to put the router in a sort of "bridge mode" by disabling the DHCP server and ignoring the WAN port.
Through our constant communication with customers over the past 18 years, we've seen just about every network configuration you can imagine. After working our way through your network configuration we can usually get your port forwarded and get you back to whatever it was that brought you to us.
Our Story
Port Forward was founded by Dave Clark and Jason Bauer in 2003. Dave has a B.S. in Computer Science from Oregon State University, and Jason has a B.S. in Computer Engineering from Oregon State University.
While working at an ISP in Southern Oregon, Dave noticed that a lot of customers have a difficult time setting up a port forward in their router, so he came to Jason and they started writing guides. Their first guide was the Linksys WRT54G router, which was just released the year before.
As the website grew we came up with the idea of software setting up a port forward automatically. While Dave continued to add guides to the website, Jason wrote PFConfig. The software was able to log in to routers such as the WRT54G and configure the port forwarding section, exactly as the articles on the website instructed. It was an immediate success and continues to this day to be a part of the Network Utilities suite of tools.
Today there are over 5,000 routers supported in PFConfig. Each router is added by hand and personally verified with a customer who owns that router. Over the years we have seen just about every router interface ever created!
Why Customers Choose Us
When we designed portforward.com (the website) and Network Utilities (the software), we focused on finding an easy-to-use solution that even networking novices could understand.
Our website is equally easy to navigate if you come to us looking for a router name or looking for a game to forward. It doesn't matter if you want to forward Xbox Live on a Linksys, or if you want to forward PlayStation Network on a TP-Link. By following the links on our site you will find the exact instructions for your exact router and your application on one page, broken down into easy-to-follow steps.
If you choose to purchase our software then we take the approach of managing your router completely. You add or remove applications from your router and we take care of the rest. You don't usually even need to think about the port number, IP addresses, or protocols. It's enough to say, "I want to forward Call of Duty to my computer", and our software figures out the rest. You can even remove all forwards from your router when you are done, which helps increase the security of your network.
Our Core Values
We exist through the following core values:
We are not done until your problem is solved.
When you come to us with a problem, we attack it as if it were a problem on our own network. Networking problems are fun, so let's figure it out together.
Explore All Options
Maybe a port forward isn't the right solution for your problem. If we need to help you setup a VPN, rearrange your network, or shop for the right piece of hardware to solve your problem then we're all in.
We believe that these core values make us a valuable asset to our customers and help drive both referrals and return visits.
What Makes Port Forward Successful
We are really good at what we do. The vast majority of our customers walk away with a better home network than when they came to us. We don't just blindly forward ports and move on. We make sure that the solution works for the customer.
When a gamer comes to us and wants to host a game server, we try connecting to their game server. It's fun for both of us! When a ham radio operator comes to us and wants to talk with their ham radio on the internet, we call them on their ham radio to make sure it works.
We consider our customer's problems to be our problems, and we don't stop working on them until those problems are solved.
Our Team
Jason Bauer
President and CEO
Jason Bauer is the President and CEO of Port Forward, Inc. He's been involved with Port Forward since its inception in 2003. He contributes to the programming, writing, and day to day operations of the site.
Jason received a Bachelor's of Science in Computer Engineering from Oregon State University in 1999. He then worked for a variety of tech industry companies in Corvallis as first a Control Engineer and then as a Systems Engineer. In 2001 he created a tech support business in Grants Pass, OR, and continued to run that business throughout the founding of Port Forward.
Jason has taught numerous college-level classes in Computer Science and Electronics. He continues to volunteer on the Rogue Community College Advisory Committee.
Q & A With Jason
What nickname do you prefer to be called?
Most people call me Jason, but plenty of people call me Jay as well. I'm fine with either, but if you call me Agent-J I'll consider you a close friend.
If you could write your own job title that best describes what you do here, what would it be?
Port Forwarding Ninja - a seasoned expert behind the scenes, you'll never know how much skill it took to click that button just right.
What do you enjoy about the work you do?
It's fun learning about all the new applications and games that are constantly coming out. It seems like every week there's something new that I've never heard of, and I get to do a deep dive into how it works. It never gets old.
What are your hobbies?
I really enjoy home automation. I run a dedicated home automation server in my house that reads sensors and controls outputs in the house, shop, greenhouse, and garden. When I'm not programming for Port Forward I frequently find myself writing little automations to turn lights on and off, and for some reason that never stops being fun.
What volunteering or passion project do you do outside of work?
As each of my kids has gone through elementary school I've spent a great deal of time at their school. Some of my favorite activities have been teaching chess to 3rd graders and helping the 5th grader's launch bottle rockets. Third graders are the perfect age to learn chess, and by the end of the year, those kids could beat most adults by employing just a few, key strategies. The fifth-grade bottle rockets sometimes go about 500 feet and land in the neighboring cow field. We haven't hit a cow yet, though (not through a lack of trying).
Rachel Bauer
Lead Designer
Rachel Bauer earned a Master of Arts in Teaching at Oregon State University in 2000. Immediately following her degree program she taught at a small school in the Corvallis area.
Since then she has had various teaching jobs over the years. She was an elementary and middle school substitute teacher for many years. She also taught algebra at the local community college. Teaching English to students from all over the world while living in Hawaii was her all-time favorite teaching job.
Over the years while teaching students of various backgrounds she has learned how to present information that is interesting and easy to understand. This makes her a perfect fit for Port Forward.
Q & A With Rachel
What nickname do you prefer to be called?
Most people call me Rachel, but there are some who call me mom and many who call me Mrs. Bauer (or Mrs. B if you're in kindergarten).
If you could write your own job title that best describes what you do here, what would it be?
I'm primarily the Lead Designer and I do most of the SEO research, but I'd prefer to be known as the person responsible for shaping the learning aspect of the site. My background in teaching helps me to understand the learning process and design the site in a way that helps people find the solution to their networking problem.
What are your strengths?
I feel that my ability to take in information and break it down into smaller steps helps make it easier for others to understand. I'm also able to relate to the customer's experience better because I know how hard networking problems can be to solve.
What do you enjoy about the work you do?
I like making design decisions and shaping things to look a certain way. I really enjoy dealing with the aesthetics of the site. One of my secret pleasures is binge researching. I love going down the rabbit hole of a topic and discovering hidden gems of information. With SEO research the new information is always changing and there are always little key tips to help improve the site.
What are your hobbies?
I really like being creative with photography. This hobby has contributed to many of the subtle graphics on the website.
What volunteering or passion project do you do outside of work?
Helping out at my children's school is a huge part of my life. I've had various teaching jobs over the years, and I really like working with kids.
Allen
Support Lead
Allen is our support lead for all software. His primary role is helping customers get their ports forwarded.
He also creates new content by scouring the internet for the newest games, apps, and routers.
You can usually find him lounging around in the customer support area of our site.
Aimie Qual
Staff Writer
Aimie Qual has been writing tech articles since 2013 when she started working for Port Forward. She has contributed to over 3,000 articles on Setup Router and Port Forward.
It's possible that Aimie has researched how to reset more routers than anyone else throughout history.
She is currently working for the local school district and enjoys working with kids of all ages.
Emylee Qual
Staff Writer
Emylee Qual is a contributing author to multiple tech sites, including Port Forward, Setup Router, Setup Android, and Firewalling.
Her primary focus is gaming and port forwarding, but she also enjoys writing about mobile devices.
When she's not writing she can be found pulling shots at a local coffee shop.
Tedie
Software Engineer
Tedie has been with Port Forward for over a decade and has facilitated a number of roles for us over the years. Extending support of our flagship software, PFConfig, to include thousands of routers, there’s a good chance that Tedie’s efforts are a major contributor to your ports being forwarded.
He is currently pursuing networking passions in other parts of the world, but he’s been a part of Port Forward’s story and success since the beginning. All the best Tedie! We miss you.
Our Affiliates
We have partnered with Private Internet Access to offer VPN access to our customers. We oftentimes link out to their site with an affiliate code, and we may earn a commission when our customers use our affiliate link.