How to Block Websites on Huawei Router HG8245H?

There are many tutorials out there on how to block websites on Huawei router HG8245H.

Unfortunately, the available guides out there do not offer the exact steps for blocking a website on a Huawei HG8245H router. 

Many people who have tried blocking websites have been largely unsuccessful. However, we have the perfect solution.

To block a website on a Huawei HG8245H router, you must log in to your user interface with the default username and password.

Under security, you will have to edit parental control. This section allows you to specifically block a website you do not want. 

With this method, you can choose to block a website for specific devices. You may also choose to whitelist a website that is deemed as a bad website yet you wish to access it. 

Read further for the steps.

Why Block URL on Huawei Router?

The obvious reason for blocking a specific website is parental control. However, this is not the only reason you may want to consider blocking a website. 

In some situations, you can block a website that consumes too much data.

If there is a website that is affecting bandwidth for the whole house simply block it. 

How to Block Websites on Huawei Router HG8245H Step by Step

The steps for blocking websites on Huawei HG8245H router are quite detailed. To be successful, you must follow all the steps without missing them. 

If you miss a step you will have to get back and start fresh. Here are the steps to follow.

Step #1 Access Your Router User Interfacer

This is the simplest step. Simply log in to your Huawei router using your router credentials. 

If you have not changed the router username or password, use the one on the back of your router. 

Steps to access router UI

1. Open your browser and go to 192.168.3.1
2. Enter your Username and Password
3. Click on Login

Note: If you have never changed your login password and username, use the default found on your router or the router manual.

Step #2 Open Parental Controls Settings

Once you have logged into your router, you have to navigate to the parental controls section.

It is under this section that you have the ability to block and unblock websites.

To access parental control settings

1. Tap on Advanced on your login page
2. Select Security
3. Tap on Parental Control

This will lead you to a page with a wide range of details. Do not be intimidated by the many details on the page.

Just follow the steps below to set up your website filter.

Step #3 Allocate a Name to the URL you Want to Block

Allocating a name to the URL you want to block is very important. Most people just rush to block a URL without naming it.

This can be a problem since the changes will not apply.

To allocate a name to the URL you wish to block, you have to create a new template for it. It is this template you will use to determine how the blocked websites function.

How to assign a template name for the URL you wish to block

1. Under Parental Control select Template right next to Overview
2. Tap on Enter New
3. Under Template Name assign a name to the URL you wish to block
4. Click on Next

Note: You can assign any name you want for the template name section. 

However, it is recommended to use the website name. For instance, if you want to block the URL to Facebook, you could just name the template “Block Facebook“.

Step #4 Specify the Blocking Period

The next step is to specify how long within a day the URL is blocked.

If you are only blocking to avoid bandwidth congestion, the website can be blocked for a few hours. 

For instance, if your son loves playing a certain video game, you could allow access at specific hours of the day.

To set hours for blocking the website

1. Select New after taping on Next in the above step
2. Click on Whole Day to block a website the whole day
3. To block for specific hours select Start Time and  End Time
4. Under Repeat select Every day to block the website every day
5. If you wish to give access on some days select Blocking Days between Sunday and Monday
6. Tap on Next to go to the next step

Tip: If you want to select specific days, simply tap on every day then uncheck the boxes for days to which you wish to give access.

Step #5 Enable URL Filter

Once you have selected the day, simply tap next to access the next settings page.

On this page, you will have to specify the type of filtering you want. You can either blacklist or whitelist a URL.

Steps to blacklist a URL

1. Under URL Filter Type tap to show a drop-down menu and select Blacklist
2. Click on New just below the Filter Type
3. In the URL box enter the exact URL you wish to block starting with www.
4. Click on Apply
5. Tap on Finish to complete setting up

Note: When you enter the URL you want to block, remove HTTP or HTTPS and replace it with www. 

This is because, in some instances, some HTTPS sites may bypass the blocklist measure. To avoid this situation, only use www which does not specify the site security.

Step #6 Specify the Devices to Block the Websites

When blocking a website on a router, you can either limit just one device or all devices. It is upon you to choose which devices not to access such sites. 

For instance, if you want the router to prevent access to Facebook for your child, you can limit their device alone.

How to choose a device to block the websites

1. From the router Homepage select Advanced
2. Tap on Security
3. Select Parental Control
4. Tap on Overview under Parental Control
5. To apply on all devices tap on Apply on all Devices
6. To apply on specific devices tap on Choose Devices and select a device
7. Scroll down to the bottom of the page and select the template name assigned to the URL in step #3 above
8. Click on Apply to confirm changes

Note: If you did not choose a template name for your URL, all the settings you have made will not be applied. 

Make sure you follow all the steps in step #3 above for this purpose.

Step #7 Delete Browsing History and Clear Cookies

Once you have made all the necessary changes and saved them, you must go back to your browser and delete the cookies. 

If there are cookies and browsing history on your computer, the sites could still be accessed.

Alternatively, you may also power cycle the router so that all memory of sites already accessed is lost.

Steps to clear cookies on chrome browser

1. Open Your Browser
2. Click on More at the top right corner
3. Click on More tools 
4. Click on Clear Browsing Data
5. Under time range select All to delete all history
6. Check all the boxes next to Cookies and Cache to remove all data
7. Click on Clear Data

With that, you should be set to prevent access to any unwanted sites.

If the person using the blocked site still has access after all the above steps, power cycle your router to initiate the changes.

Step #8 Powercycle Your Router

This final step is not mandatory for all routers. In some cases, the changes may apply immediately after setting them. However, some devices may still have access to blocked websites.

In this case, you have to power off your router and power it back on. The best approach here is to power cycle it.

How to power cycle your router

1. Turn off wifi access for all connected devices
2. Locate the power cord at the rear end of your router
3. Unplug the power cable
4. Let your router rest for about 1 minute
5. Plug it back on and give it about 2 minutes to power on

After this, the websites you have blocked will not be accessible now.

Summary

In solving how to block websites on Huawei router HG8245H, it is important to follow all the steps.

Many people complain of failure to institute these changes because they do not apply all the steps. 

Fill in all the details appropriately and ensure you assign your URL template a name.

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