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How to Downgrade MikroTik RouterOS and Firmware

Mikrotik router operating system version

Today, all network professionals are somewhat familiar with Mikrotik. Since its establishment, this company has greatly improved its knowledge and technology. Now, it has become one of the giants in the network and information technology world. In this article, we will teach you how to downgrade the operating system version of the Mikrotik router.

How to Downgrade MikroTik RouterOS and Firmware

What is the Mikrotik operating system?

MikroTik RouterOS is the hardware operating system of the MikroTik Router Board, which can be installed on all computers and works as a router with the required features. RouterOS is an independent operating system based on the Linux kernel. In addition to being installed on personal computers, it has also reached consumers through software and hardware packages. This operating System was created to compete with the famous Cisco IOS operating system installed on personal computers and provide unique features such as routing, firewall, VPN, monitoring, Qos, hotspots, Load Balancing, and other useful services. It will help you a lot. To managers in network management, one of the development factors of this Operating System is its stability in providing services in small, medium, and large networks.

Features of MikroTik RouterOS (MikroTik operating system)

  • Stability
  • High speed at boot
  • Automatic operation without the need to enter any service
  • High installation speed
  • High configuration speed due to the graphical operating System
  • Ability to import and export settings
  • The possibility of implementing and using other services such as hotspot, VPN server, DHCP server, etc
  • The possibility of using it as a firewall in the network
  • The presence of diverse and powerful bandwidth control algorithms

Introducing Firmware

Firmware is a software program usually stored in a hardware device’s flash ROM that provides instructions on operating the device. The operating System is responsible for the behaviors of the System when the System is turned on. Hardware provides instructions for how the device interacts with other computer components and hardware. In 1967, hardware was used to edit data on the CPU, and microcode was embedded in it to execute computer instructions. The operating system has expanded over time. So that since computer systems are on, they are responsible for their behavior, and this firmware installed on its hardware makes the user understand his commands for the device and hardware.

How to download MikroTik RouterOS

First of all, you need to find the MikroTik RouterOS architecture name. Go to System from your Winbox and select the Resources menu item to do this. Then you will see the following window:

You can see the MikroTik RouterOS architecture name in the Resources window.

Once you have found your MikroTik OS architecture name, it’s time to download the RouterOS version you want from the MikroTik download archive.

To download It, you need to go to the official Mikrotik download page and find the RouterOS version list for all Router Board architectures. Select your desired version and click on the NPK file that matches your architecture name.

Note that the downloaded file format is RouterOS-architecture_name-routeros_version.npk. You have to wait for the download to finish.

In this step, you must upload the downloaded file to the Mikrotik root directory. For this, go to Winbox and click on the Files menu item. Then you can see the file list window.

Finally, drag and drop the downloaded file into this file directory window. You have successfully uploaded the file to the MikroTik root directory.

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How to Downgrade the Mikrotik operating system and firmware version?

In this section, we will check the downgrade command. For this, you need to go to Winbox and select System. Then click on the Packages menu item. Now you can see the Package List window.

In the window that opens, find the Downgrade button and click on it.

Then you need to reboot your System. Click on Yes. After restarting the System, you will see that the firmware version of your Mikrotik router has been downgraded.

Now it’s time to downgrade Mikrotik OS. Note that you’ll need to downgrade if you’ve already upgraded your OS.

For this, go to Winbox and select System. Then click on the Routerboard menu item. You will now see the Routerboard window.

Now you need to check your current firmware version and if your current firmware version is higher than the upgraded firmware version, click on upgrade. Then click Yes to confirm the upgrade.

Finally, it would help if you rebooted the MikroTik router. After rebooting, you will notice that the operating system version has been downgraded.

Conclusion

This article taught you how to downgrade MikroTik RouterOS and Firmware. You can contact us in the comments if you have a problem with downgrading the Mikrotik router operating system and firmware. I hope this tutorial was useful for you.