

When no router is specified, that’s when the request goes through the computer’s default gateway. The sender’s computer sends a request for access to the receiver. Before it can access the page, it must send requests through the default gateway node, where the request is then sent through to the internet.Īdditionally, default gateways can be used to route requests to the correct location, regardless of network protocols being used between the sender and receiver.

A good example of the default gateway in action is when your computer is looking to get onto a website. This gateway is referred to as the default gateway because this node is the default gateway on a computer. In other words, it serves as a host for sending signals from one computer to one that is using another network. What is the default gateway?įirst off, the default gateway is a node within the hardware of your computer that is responsible for connecting different networks. Are you having trouble accessing the internet from your Windows 10 computer? If so, one of the common error codes you might see when you try to use Windows Network Diagnostics to automatically troubleshoot your connection is the “default gateway is not available” error.īelow, we look at what this error means, why it happens, and what you can do at home to troubleshoot your computer and get rid of the default gateway error on your Windows 10 computer.
