# Applying the config to your router

> Back up first, transfer the .rsc file, then run it, and know how to get back if it goes wrong.

Source: https://joinnasnet.com/en/guides/nasnet-connect/applying-the-config/
Last updated: 2026-08-14

---

## Overview

Nasnet Connect stops at the download. Getting the script onto the router is
something you do yourself, and the app summarises the process as: *"Connect to
your MikroTik router via WinBox, WebFig, or SSH. Import the configuration file
or paste commands into the terminal. Verify connectivity after applying
changes."*

Three phases, in this order, none of them skippable: **Backup Current**, then
**Upload File**, then **Apply Config**. The wizard's **Show Config** screen
includes an animated **RouterOS Configuration Guide** that walks through the
terminal side of this, and it is worth watching once before you do it for real.

## Before you start

- Take a backup. This is not optional advice, because the generated script is a
  complete configuration and applying it changes addressing, bridges, firewall
  rules and services all at once.
- Have physical access to the router. If the new configuration makes the router
  unreachable over the network, physical access is how you recover.
- If you have several routers to configure, apply the master router's script
  first, then each slave.
- Have your new service ports written down if you changed them on the
  **Services** step.

## Steps

1. Connect to the router with WinBox, WebFig or SSH.
2. Back up the existing configuration before anything else:

   ```routeros
   /system backup save dont-encrypt=yes name="backup-filename"
   ```

3. Transfer the downloaded `.rsc` file to the router by dragging it into the Files
   list in WinBox, or upload it through WebFig.
4. Run the script from the terminal, or paste its contents in. The wizard's
   **Visual Guide** on **Show Config** shows exactly how this looks in the
   RouterOS terminal.
5. Verify connectivity once it finishes. Check that you can still reach the
   router, that each network gets addresses, and that traffic leaves through the
   link you expect.
6. If something is wrong, restore the backup:

   ```routeros
   /system backup load name="backup-filename"
   ```

## Reference

| Phase | What it means |
| ----- | ------------- |
| **Backup Current** | Save your existing configuration |
| **Upload File** | Transfer the `.rsc` file to the router |
| **Apply Config** | Run the script on your router |

## Troubleshooting

**The configuration does not work.** Restore your backup with
`/system backup load name="backup-filename"`, or perform a factory reset if
needed, and check your answers in the wizard before regenerating.

**You lost access to the router after applying.** This is what physical access
is for. Reset the device and restore the backup you took in step 2.

**Applying to more than one router.** The app's own answer: yes, you can, *"but
ensure the router models are compatible and adjust interface names if they
differ between devices."* Interface names are model-specific, and a script
generated for one model will reference ports another does not have.

## Related

- [Show Config](/en/guides/nasnet-connect/show-config/)
- [Troubleshooting](/en/guides/nasnet-connect/troubleshooting/)