MikroTik
Company based in Riga, Latvia
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
MikroTik (officially SIA "Mikrotīkls") is a Latvian network equipment manufacturing company. MikroTik develops and sells wired and wireless network routers, network switches, access points, as well as operating systems and auxiliary software. The company was founded in 1996, and as of 2023, it was reported that the company had 367 employees.[2]
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| |
.jpg) MikroTik headquarters in Riga | |
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | |
| Founded | March 14, 1996 in Riga, Latvia |
| Headquarters | Riga, Latvia |
Area served | Worldwide |
Key people |
|
| Products | routers, firewalls, software (RouterOS) |
| Revenue |  € 401.6 million[1] (2023) |
| € 100.1 million[1] (2023) | |
| Total assets | 457,431,259 euro (2023)  |
| Owner |
|
Number of employees | 367 (2023)[1] |
| Website | mikrotik.com |
With its headquarters in Riga, Latvia, MikroTik serves a diverse array of customers around the world. The company's products and services are utilized in various sectors, such as telecommunications, government agencies, educational institutions, and enterprises of all sizes.[3]
In 2022, with a value of €1.30 billion, Mikrotik was the 4th largest company in Latvia and the first private company to surpass €1 billion value in Latvia.[4][5]
History
MikroTik was established in 1996 by founders John Tully and Arnis Riekstiņš in Riga, Latvia, developing networking software for x86 PC hardware that would develop into a product called RouterOS. The earliest versions of RouterOS were based on Linux 2.2.
In 2002, MikroTik expanded its product line by producing their own networking-focused low-power single-board computers (SBC), branded RouterBoard, that ran RouterOS. These early SBCs could be expanded and/or integrated as components of other systems, but as time passed, this RouterBoard/RouterOS platform would develop into a full line of network equipment.[6][additional citation(s) needed]
Timeline
1997
1999
2001
2002
- Release of RouterBoard series PCI add-in boards to be used with MikroTik x86-based PCs running RouterOS.
2003
- First stable Netinstall release.
- Release of RouterBoard 200, a single-board router platform with miniPCI and memory card slots, and RouterBOARD 220 with the SBC integrated into an enclosure with a 2.4 GHz wireless antenna powered by power over Ethernet (PoE). Original RouterBoard was based on the Geode CPU, but later used MIPS.
- Release of the RB230 RouterBoard, MikroTik's first PCMCIA, PoE-out, and cellular-ready device.
2004
2005
- Release of MikroTik's first high power and MMCX cards.
- First stable wireless 802.1X release.
- First stable Nstreme release.
2006
- First MikroTik User Meeting (MUM).
- Release of the R52H, MikroTik's first high power dual band (selectable) device.[10]
- First stable User Manager release.
- First stable Nstreme2 release.
2007
2008
- First stable RouterOS v3 release, based on Linux 2.6, includes SMP, MPLS/VPLS, PIM-SM, OpenVPN, and HWMP+ support.[12]
- Release of the RB600 RouterBoard, MikroTik's first native quad miniPCI and gigabit device.[13]
- Release of the RB411 RouterBoard, MikroTik's first MIPS device in big endian mode and with actual active 802.3af and supporting Nv2.[14]
- Release of the RB433 RouterBoard, MikroTik's first native triple miniPCI device.[15]
- Release of the RB433AH RouterBoard, MikroTik's first microSD device.[16]
- Release of the RB1000 RouterBoard, MikroTik's first hardware encryption device.[17]
- Release of the RB450 RouterBoard, MikroTik's first dedicated wired SOHO and redundant power device.[18]
- Release of the RB411U RouterBoard, MikroTik's first USB, miniPCIe, EDGE, and 3G cellular-ready device, and with SIM card and both miniPCI and miniPCIe slots.[19]
- Release of the R52n wireless card, MikroTik's first MIMO card and Wi-Fi 4 device.[20]
- First stable The Dude release.
2009
- Release of the RB433UAH RouterBoard, MikroTik's first dual USB and triple dedicated storage device.[21]
- Release of the RB450G RouterBoard, MikroTik's first gigabit SOHO device.[22]
- Release of the RB750 router, MikroTik's first fully assembled SOHO device.
- Release of the RB750G router, MikroTik's first fanless gigabit device.[23]
- Release of the RB800 RouterBoard, MikroTik's first device with 1 miniPCIe plus 4 miniPCI expandable to 4 additional miniPCI slots.[24]
- First stable MetaROUTER release.
- First stable RouterOS v4 release, based on Linux 2.6, includes Wi-Fi 4 and Lua scripting support .[25]
- Release of the R52Hn wireless card, MikroTik's first high power MIMO and Wi-Fi 4 device.[26]
2010
2011
- First stable releases of IPv6 and RouterOS v5, based on Linux 2.6.35, introducing WebFig, Nv2, SSTP, GRE, and WPS.[29]
- Release of the RB751U-2HnD router, MikroTik's first integrated dual chain device and with an internal antenna (2) and USB power output reset.[30]
- Release of the OmniTIK UPA-5HnD router, MikroTik's first bottom entry and integrated outdoor PoE-out device.
- Release of the SXT 5HnD router, MikroTik's first integrated 2x2 MIMO directional outdoor device.[31]
- Release of the RB1100AHx2 router, MikroTik's first dual core and dual built-in power supply device.[32]
- Release of The Groove 5Hn router, MikroTik's first zero-loss device and world's smallest fully featured outdoor router.
- Release of the RB2011LS router, MikroTik's first SFP device.[33]
- Release of MikroTik's first SFP modules.
2012
- QuickSet introduction.
- Release of the RB750UP router, MikroTik's first SOHO PoE-out device.[34]
- Release of the RB2011UAS-2HnD-IN, MikroTik's first touchscreen and microUSB device.
- Release of Cloud Core Router (CCR) 1000-series, featuring SD card, SFP+, 10GbE and using Tilera's 64-bit TILE-Gx many-core CPUs.
- Release of MikroTik's first SFP+ modules.
- Release of MikroTik's first SFP+ Direct Attach Cables.
2013
- All newly manufactured MikroTik products RoHS 2 compliant.
- Release of the first SwOS devices with SFP.
- First stable RouterOS v6 release, based on Linux 3.3.5, includes 64-bit support, partitions, FastTrack, and FastPath.[35]
- Release of the RB951Ui-2HnD wireless router, MikroTik's most popular device under OpenWrt and main workhorse.[36]
- Release of the CRS125-24G-1S Core Router Switch, MikroTik's first switch with low-throughput routing capability.[37]
2014
- Release of the mAP, the world's first professional pocket router, and with microUSB to PoE power passthrough.[38]
- First stable CAPsMAN release.
- Release of the cAP 2n, MikroTik's first dedicated ceiling access point.
- Release of MikroTik's first Wi-Fi 5 devices.
- Release of the PowerBox, MikroTik's first dedicated outdoor power distribution router.[39]
- Release of the SXT LTE bridge, MikroTik's first 4G/LTE and integrated cellular device.[40]
- Release of the S-RJ01, MikroTik's first copper SFP module.[41]
- Release of MikroTik's first SFP+ Active Optical Cables.
2015
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- Release of the hAP lite, world's first $22 professional dual chain wireless router and MikroTik's first SMIPS device, and with a multi-function reset button and microUSB for power input (only and dumb).[42]
- Release of the hAP wireless router, MikroTik's first device providing up to 1A power output on an USB port.[43]
- Release of the hEX lite, world's most affordable MPLS/VPLS wired router.[44]
- Release of the wAP, MikroTik's first device with bottom+rear entry and offered in 2 color choices and universal access point.[45]
- Release of the cAP, MikroTik's first dual chain ceiling access point.[46]
- Release of the CCR1072-1G-8S+ router, MikroTik's first M.2 and 72-core device and with more than two 10GbE ports, with ECC RAM as standard, dual removable hot-swap power supply system and aggregate throughput reaching 80 Gbps, more than 120 million packets per second.[47]
- Release of the CCR1009-7G-1C-PC, world's first fanless router capable of 8Gbps throughput and device with a logical 2-medium general networking combo port.[48]
- Tik-App brought in-house.
- Release of MikroTik's first integrated sector routers.
- Release of the mAP lite, the world's smallest access point.[49]
- First stable CAPsMAN v2 release.
- Release of the RB3011UiAS-RM router, MikroTik's first ARM and USB 3.0 device.[50][51]
2016
- Release of the hAP ac wireless router, world's first triple chain SOHO router with built-in SFP and MikroTik's first 3x3 MIMO and 6 internal antennas device.[52]
- MikroTik's management app released for iOS too.
- Release of the LHG 5 wireless router, world’s first integrated grid antenna with built-in router feed and MikroTik's first grid design device.[53]
- Release of the hAP ac lite, world's most affordable dual-band 802.11ac professional router.[54]
- Release of the hEX PoE, world's most affordable 5-port router with SFP and 4x PoE-out and MikroTik's first MMIPS and PoE+ device.[55]
- Release of the LDF 5, world's smallest radio to turn any satellite dish into a 10km link.[56]
- Release of the wAP ac, world's most affordable dual-band gigabit weatherproof access point and MikroTik's first slide-out device and universal router.[57]
- Release of the hEX, world's most affordable MPLS/VPLS gigabit and AES-NI router that would eventually support VXLAN.[58]
- Release of the PowerBox Pro, world's first outdoor gigabit router with built-in 4-port PoE-out and MikroTik's first gigabit and SFP dedicated outdoor power distribution router.[59]
- Release of the FiberBox, world’s first dedicated outdoor 5-port SFP switch and MikroTik's first dedicated outdoor switch, and with SFP.[60]
- Release of the wAP LTE kit, world’s most affordable professional weatherproof access point with built-in 4G and MikroTik's first integrated cellular access point.[61]
2017
- Release of the RB1100AHx4 Dude Edition router, MikroTik's first SATA 3.0, and triple independent storage device.[62]
- Release of the CRS326-24G-2S+RM switch, first device capable of booting either SwOS or RouterOS.[63]
- Release of the CRS317-1G-16S+RM, MikroTik's first switch with more than two 10GbE ports and dual built-in power supply, and L3 hardware offloading device.[64]
- Release of the wAP 60G wireless bridge, MikroTik's first integrated 60GHz, Active Phased Array Beamforming and 36 antenna elements device.[65]
- Release of the wAP 60Gx3 AP access point, MikroTik's first 180-degree sector and 96 antenna elements device.[66]
- Release of the S+RJ10, MikroTik's first copper SFP+ module.[67]
- Release of the R11e-LTE, MikroTik's first cellular card.[68]
2018
- Release of the hAP ac² wireless router, MikroTik's first quad-core ARM and AES-NI SOHO device.[69]
- Release of the LHG 60G wireless router, MikroTik's first 60GHz grid design device.[70]
- Release of the LHG LTE wireless router kit, MikroTik's first 4G/LTE grid design device.[71]
- Long-term RouterOS release channel introduced. First long-term RouterOS v6 release.
- Release of the CRS112-8P-4S-IN switch, MikroTik's first true auto-sensing active PoE+ device.[72]
2019
- All newly manufactured MikroTik products with a microUSB port support PWR-LINE.[73][74]
- Release of PWR-LINE PLC power bricks, MikroTik's first power line modems.
- First stable RouterOS release supporting PWR-LINE
- Release of the PWR-Line AP, MikroTik's first power line access point.[75]
- Release of the GPEN11, MikroTik's first reverse power terminal.[76]
- Release of the R11e-LTE6 wireless card, MikroTik's first 2-band carrier aggregation (download) device.[77]
- Release of the LHG LTE6 wireless router kit, MikroTik's first 2-band carrier aggregation (download) grid design device.[78]
- First stable wired 802.1X release.
- Release of the GPeR, MikroTik's first PoE repeater/extender and own zero configuration device.[79]
- Release of the CRS312-4C+8XG-RM switch, MikroTik's first 2.5GBASE-T, 5GBASE-T, and 10GBASE-T device.[80]
- Release of the CRS326-24S+2Q+RM switch, MikroTik's first QSFP+ and 40GbE device.[81]
- Release of MikroTik's first QSFP+ modules.
- Release of MikroTik's first QSFP+ Direct Attach Cables.
- Release of the Q+BC0003-S+, MikroTik's first Breakout Cable.[82]
- Release of MikroTik's first IoT and LoRa devices.
- Release of the Audience mesh router, MikroTik's first 4x4 MIMO and dedicated 3-band mesh device.[83]
- Release of the PWR-LINE PRO, MikroTik's first 600 Mbps PLC power brick with PoE-out.[84]
- Release of the Chateau 5G wireless router, MikroTik's first 5G device.[85]
2020
- Release of the CCR2004-1G-12S+2XS router, MikroTik's first ARM64 SFP28, and 25GbE device.[86]
- Release of the netPower 16P, MikroTik's first dedicated outdoor PoE distribution switch, and with 10GbE and SFP+.[87]
- Release of the Chateau LTE12 wireless router, MikroTik's first 4x4 MIMO LTE Category 12, and 3-band carrier aggregation (full) device.[88]
- Release of the GPEN21, MikroTik's first managed reverse power terminal, and with an SFP port.[89]
- Release of the CSS610-8G-2S+IN switch, first SwOS Lite device.[90]
- Release of the netPower Lite 7R, MikroTik's first reverse PoE switch.[91]
- Release of MikroTik's first SFP28 modules.
- Release of MikroTik's first SFP28 Direct Attach Cables.
2021
- Release of the GPeR IP67 Case, MikroTik's first tool-less and IP68 submersible outdoor housing, and with a universal mounting plate.[92]
- Release of the KNOT, MikroTik's first IoT gateway and Bluetooth device.[93]
- Release of the RB5009UG+S+IN, MikroTik's first 2.5GBASE-T control plane optimized router.[94]
- First stable Beacon Manager release.
- First stable RouterOS v7 release, based on Linux 5.6.3, with VXLAN, EVPN, WireGuard, ZeroTier, OpenVPN over UDP, Let's Encrypt, and containers. 64-bit also for PCs.[95]
2022
- Release of CCR 2000-series network routers using ARM64-architecture CPUs and featuring L3 hardware offloading, QSFP28 and 100GbE capability and hot-swappable cooling fans in the CCR2216. Also, a return to PC add-in boards with the CCR2004-1G-2XS-PCIe.
- Release of MikroTik's first QSFP28 modules.
- Release of MikroTik's first QSFP28 Direct Attach Cables.
- Release of the XQ+BC0003-AS+, MikroTik's first QSFP28 Breakout Cable.[96]
- Release of the CRS518-16XS-2XQ-RM, MikroTik's first switch with 100GbE, 1.2 Tbps capacity, and dual hot-swap modular redundant power supply system and hot-swappable cooling fans.[97]
- Release of the hAP ax² wireless router, MikroTik's first Wi-Fi 6 device and the first one to use Bluetooth for mobile app management..[98]
- Release of the Chateau LTE18 ax wireless router, MikroTik's first LTE Category 18, and 4/5-band carrier aggregation (full) device.[99]
- Release of the FiberBox Plus, MikroTik's first dedicated outdoor switch with L3 hardware offloading and triple redundant powering.[100]
- Release of the ATL LTE18 wireless router kit, MikroTik's first outdoor 4x4 MIMO LTE Category 18, and 4/5-band carrier aggregation (full) device.[101]
2023
- MikroTik SMIPS device production ended.
- Release of the hAP ax lite wireless router, MikroTik's first USB-C (dumb power input only) device.[102]
- Release of the hAP ax lite LTE6 wireless router, MikroTik's first cellular device with USB-C (dumb power input only).[103]
- Release of the CRS310-8G+2S+IN switch, MikroTik's first device with more than one 2.5GBASE-T port.[104]
- First stable split CAPsMAN release.
2024
- Release of the R11e-LTE7 wireless card, MikroTik's first LTE Category 7, Band 28/32 , and full carrier aggregation card.[105]
- First stable native Netinstall release for Linux-based operating systems.
- Release of the CRS304-4XG-2S+IN, MikroTik's first fanless switch with integrated 10GBASE-T.[106]
- Release of the CRS320-8P-8B-4S+RM switch, world's most affordable L3-offloaded EVPN/VXLAN switch and MikroTik's first PoE++ device.[107]
- First stable L3HW release.
- Release of the GPeR x4, world's first 4-unit outdoor repeater case and MikroTik's first gigabit hub, dedicated PoE splitter, PoE++ accessory with an integrated case, and own zero configuration multi-port device.[108]
- Release of the mANTBox ax 15s, world's most affordable Wi-Fi 6 sector and MikroTik's first Wi-Fi 6 integrated sector router.[109]
- First stable EVPN over VXLAN and ESI Multihoming release.
- Release of LTM industrial sensors, MikroTik's first devices with USB-C for console, management, and dumb emergency power input.
2025
- First stable RouterOS release featuring device-mode and allowed-versions.
- First stable VXLAN hardware offloading release.
- Release of Rose Data Server (RDS) 2216, marking MikroTik’s first device focused on network-attached storage (NAS) and container workloads.
- Release of the GPeR x6, MikroTik's first own unmanaged switch, 10GbE SFP+ extender and dedicated 100W PoE++ splitter with triple redundant power.[110]
- First stable BackToHome release.
- First stable BGP-EVPN release.
- Release of the CRS812 DDQ switch, MikroTiK's first QSFP56, QSFP-DD, 50GbE, 200GbE, 400GbE, and MT-HotSwapFan V2 device.[111]
- Release of MikroTik's first QSFP56 modules.
- Release of the DQ+BC0003-DS+, MikroTik's first QSFP56 Breakout Cable.[112]
- Release of MikroTik's first QSFP-DD modules.
- Release of the DDQ+DA0001, MikroTik's first QSFP-DD Direct Attach Cable.[113]
- Release of the netPower Lite 8P, world's first outdoor 10GbE switch with Integrated UPS.[114]
2026
- First long-term RouterOS v7 release.
- First stable WinBox release (4.0.1) for all 3 major desktop platforms (Windows, macOS, and Linux).
- Release of the hAP be³ Media, MikroTik's first control plane optimized router with more than one 2.5GBASE-T port and Wi-Fi 7,Thread, Matter, triple USB (including one fully Featured USB-C with Active Gadget Mode), and tool-less slide-out device (not supported by v7 LTS yet).[115]
Products
MikroTik's products mainly comprises two distinct product lines. The first is MikroTik RouterOS, an operating system for routers, which is built on the Debian GNU/Linux kernel. The second is MikroTik RouterBOARD, a line of products that includes various types of Ethernet routers and switches and outdoor wireless systems.
RouterOS
MikroTik RouterOS is an operating system based on the Linux kernel, specifically designed for routers. It is installed on the company's produced networking hardware - RouterBOARD, as well as on standard x86 type computers, enabling these devices to fulfill router functions. Developed with Internet Service Providers (ISPs) in mind, RouterOS encompasses all the essential features for network management and Internet connectivity, including routing, firewall, bandwidth management, wireless access point functionalities, backhaul link, hotspot gateway, and VPN server capabilities.
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Communication with this OS is done mainly via WinBox, which provides a graphical user interface with the RouterOS installed on the network router. WinBox facilitates device configuration and monitoring. RouterOS also allows for access via FTP, Telnet, serial console, API, mobile application, SSH, and even direct to MAC address (through WinBox).
RouterOS supports numerous applications utilized by internet service providers, such as OSPF, BGP, and Multiprotocol Label Switching (VPLS/MPLS). It supports both Internet Protocol versions IPv4 and IPv6 and provides support for almost all network interfaces.
The release dates of major RouterOS versions are as follows:
- Version 7: December 2021
- Version 6: November 2012
- Version 5: March 2010
- Version 4: October 2009
- Version 3: January 2008
RouterBOARD
The company markets its network hardware under the name RouterBOARD (RB), ensuring full compatibility with the RouterOS operating system. The RouterBOARD line, in conjunction with RouterOS, is sold to small to medium wireless internet service providers, typically offering broadband wireless access in rural and remote areas. The product line includes assembled SOHO routers, indoor and outdoor wireless 802.11 MIMO and TDMA devices, as well as caseless PCB routers for the creation of customized solutions.
Wireless antennas
MikroTik develops a variety of wireless antennas designed for different use-cases. These include sector antennas, dish antennas, and omni antennas, each offering unique coverage patterns and distance capabilities for outdoor wireless connectivity.
Access points
MikroTik's access points offer both indoor and outdoor models, with options for different frequency bands and throughput capacities such as 60 GHz wireless systems, 802.11a/b/g/n/ac, 2G, 3G, 4G (LTE) and 5G support.[116]
Ethernet routers
From small office routers to high-performance routers for ISPs, MikroTik develops solutions for various network sizes and complexities.
Network switches
Mikrotik also develops switches, including cloud router switches and cloud smart switches. These devices provide numerous ports for network expansion and come with features like VLAN, QoS, and port mirroring.
Product vulnerabilities
VPNFilter
On 23 May 2018, Cisco Talos Intelligence Group reported that some MikroTik devices were found vulnerable to the VPNFilter malware.[117][118][119]
RouterOS through 6.42 allows unauthenticated remote attackers to read arbitrary files and remote authenticated attackers to write arbitrary files due to a directory traversal vulnerability in the WinBox interface.[120][121][122]
Meris
Beginning in June 2021, a botnet composed of unprotected Mikrotik devices created huge volumes of application-layer traffic using HTTP pipelining, resulting in DDOS. The net was named Mēris (or Meris) by Qrator. Yandex reported attacks beginning August 4, 2021 (over 5 million requests per second) with a massive attack on 5 September 2021 reaching almost 22 million RPS (requests per second). Cloudflare acknowledged an attack at over 17 million RPS in July 2021.[citation needed]
FOISted
In June 2022, Margin Research disclosed the FOISted vulnerability[123] allowing an administrator on a device to gain "super-admin" access that would permit exploitation of the device for command/control redirection or DDOS attacks. The exploit was patched in the RouterOS version released in October 2022.[124]
