The latest lab file on our download server, "fritzbox-XXXX-Labor-xxxx.zip", contains
- the lab version for your FRITZ!Box
- this "infolab-en.txt" file with important information on this lab version
- information, feedback options, and the file at en.fritz.com/fritz-lab


Neue Features: - The new Online Monitor offers a clear graphical overview of the internet usage of top consumers and selected home network devices
- Mesh optimization - for greater stability and improved data throughput, FRITZ!Repeaters independently select the ideal connection in the Mesh
- More options for triggering routines in the smart home and many other interesting new features
- The new, easy-to-use FRITZ!NAS sharing function makes it possible to share a folder, for example to collect and share photos after a family celebration
- Simplified user guidance for the parental controls - access profiles and the home network devices assigned to it are now clearly displayed
- Protection against internet connection failure: FRITZ! Failsafe automatically switches to a substitute connection, for example via mobile network
- Reduce the FRITZ!Box's energy consumption with EEE (Energy Efficient Ethernet) Can now be individually configured for the WAN or LAN sockets

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# New Features and Improvements in FRITZ!OS 8.20
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This FRITZ! Lab contains new functions fresh from the FRITZ! development team and gives a preview of upcoming FRITZ!OS features in the next major update. It also contains the latest developments in the areas of security and energy efficiency.
The FRITZ! Lab launched adds additional control functions to the home network, increases fallback protection for the internet connection, and optimizes the smart home. For the first time, this FRITZ! Lab makes Mesh Repeater mode available for the FRITZ!Box 7590 AX. This allows the FRITZ!Box to be integrated into the home network with even more flexibility and used to improve Wi-Fi coverage. Over the next few months, the FRITZ! Lab will be expanded to include additional features and improvements in a range of areas and will be made available for additional FRITZ!Box models. 
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# New Features and Improvements in FRITZ!OS 8.20

## Internet:
- **NEW** Additional display option in the Online Monitor of individual devices shows usage by not explicitly selected devices with and without data recording
- **NEW** In the Online Monitor the display of the load on the internet connection allows selection of not only one day or two months but also an interval of 2 weeks
- **NEW** Online Monitor shows the network devices with the highest use of the internet connection (top consumers) [5]
- **NEW** Simplified user guidance on the "Filter" pages (parental controls) [2]
- **NEW** With the new fallback protection, the FRITZ!Box always stays online: If the internet connection fails, an alternative internet connection is established via an alternative access device of your choice, e.g. via the mobile network with FRITZ!Box 6860 5G, 6850 5G/LTE, 6820 LTE or via USB mobile network dongles [1]
- **Improved** Completely reworked network settings
- **Improved** Device selection for display and data recording simplified in the Online Monitor
- **Improved** For the internet provider 1&1 Telecom GmbH, the opportunity to switch to an internet connection via WAN is offered under "Internet > Account Information" 
- **Improved** If the configured time server could not determine the system time, the system time is obtained from a public time server
- **Improved** In the settings for parental controls can now be specified whether network applications are blocked or allowed
- **Improved** Number of tickets to extend online time for devices blocked by parental controls was increased from 10 to 12
- **Improved** Online Monitor: Reworked display in the diagrams for the load on the internet connection
- **Improved** Online time for a network device with restricted online time now can also be extended for 45 minutes directly in the parental controls
- **Improved** Performance improvement during many parallel DNS queries
- **Improved** Reworked diagrams and colors in the Online Monitor
- **Improved** Support of IPv6 configuration for fallback protection
- **Changed** FRITZ! devices in the home network, e.g. FRITZ!Repeaters, are no longer offered in parental controls and prioritization; they always have unrestricted internet access with normal priority
- **Changed** Private IPv4 addresses (RFC 1918) are no longer posted via MyFRITZ!Net (DNS) if a publicly accessibly IPv6 address is available
- **Changed** When VPN connections are active for which all network traffic is routed via the VPN connection ("full tunnel"), the guest network is excluded from this and routed over the normal internet connection

## Wi-Fi:
- **Changed** Incongruous information text for configuration of the Wi-Fi guest access on the Mesh Repeater removed
- **Changed** Text reference to selection of "WPA2 + WPA3" Wi-Fi encryption removed

## Mesh:
- **NEW** Automatic detection of device type (e.g. smartphone, computer, or printer) for devices displayed in the Mesh Overview
- **NEW** Intelligent networking: FRITZ! products in the Mesh assess and optimize the Wi-Fi connections among each other
- **NEW** Simplified login to Mesh Repeaters via the Mesh Overview of the Mesh Master

## Telephony:
- **Improved** Support for text-based caller greetings (text-to-speech) for the integrated answering machine
- **Improved** Support for the Vodafone IP Anlagen Anschluss
- **Changed** Network adjustment to Deutsche Telekom telephony

## Home Network:
- **NEW** EEE (Energy Efficient Ethernet) can now be set separately for each WAN/LAN port

## Smart Home:
- **NEW** Routines can also be triggered by a phone call, by reaching a target temperature, or by activating boost or antifreeze functions, as well as by important events on the FRITZ!Box [4]
- **NEW** Templates and routines can be triggered with delay 
- **NEW** With FRITZ!Smart Control 440, the following functions can be controlled: the boost and frost protection functions for radiator controllers, the color and color temperature for lamps, the activation and deactivation of routines, and the display of the QR code for Wi-Fi
- **Improved** Roller shutters can now be combined into groups
- **Improved** The schedule for a radiator control can be disabled without discarding the configured schedule

## Storage (NAS):
- **New** Upload sharing: Via fritz.nas a folder can be shared for users with a sharing link to upload and download contents, e.g. to collect photos after a family celebration [3]
- **Improved** Better interoperability with FTP applications (e.g. Filezilla) through support for MFMT command

## Security:
- **Improved** DNS rebind protection now also supports umlaut domains

## System:
- **Improved** "Forgot Password" function of the push service can now be configured with a freely chosen recipient
- **Improved** File name for saved settings now includes name of individual FRITZ!Box
- **Improved** Functional diagnostics now indicates when access for apps is disabled in the home network sharing settings
- **Improved** Indication of disabled TR-064 added to the Function diagnostics
- **Improved** Reworked pages of the update functions under "System > Update"
- **Improved** The "Diagnostics > Function" page now displays information on problems with time synchronization via NTP
- **Improved** Warning on the overview page when push service is interrupted

## Mobile network:
- **Improved** Support for USSD over IMS

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[1] Substitute connection: Greater fallback protection for the internet connection

With the new failover protection, FRITZ!Box users can stay online at all times. If the fiber optic, DSL or cable connection is unstable or drops, any FRITZ!Box connected via WAN/LAN establishes a fallback connection via the mobile network. This feature is ideal for anyone who depends upon a reliable internet connection, be it in the home office or a retail store.

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[2] Optimized parental controls

A number of practical optimizations have been included in the first version of FRITZ! Lab. The parental controls now clearly display access profiles and the corresponding devices on one page. Tickets for online time are easier to find on a separate tab and the number of tickets was increased from 10 to 12. This makes managing family internet usage even simpler and more intuitive. Detail improvements were also made to the Online Monitor area. The line graphs have been color-optimized for an even clearer display, and the tooltip that is now is easier to read provides users with more information about the Online Meter.

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[3] New upload sharing  - Sharing files easier than ever

With the new upload sharing via FRITZ!NAS, sharing files has never been easier: Users can make a folder available via sharing link, allowing others to directly upload and download content perfect for collecting shared photos or documents. Thanks to the new function, it is no longer necessary to create a FRITZ!Box user with special write permission   instead, all that is needed to allow friends and family to securely upload files is a single link.

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[4] More possibilities in the smart home

The update also brings additional control functions for the FRITZ!DECT 440 smart switch. Now all the functions that could be configured directly on the radiator control FRITZ!Smart Thermo 302 can also be controlled with the smart switch. In addition, it now offers more comprehensive options for lighting control. Besides switching on and off and dimming, it can now be used to change the color and color temperature. In addition, routines can now be activated and deactivated directly using the FRITZ!Smart Control 440. Routines can also be triggered by a call, reaching a target temperature, activating the boost or antifreeze function, as well as by important events on the FRITZ!Box. To make managing Wi-Fi even simpler, the FRITZ!Smart Control 440 can be used to switch off the main Wi-Fi network in addition to guest Wi-Fi.

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[5] New Online Monitor with expanded functions

The new Online Monitor shows which network devices are using the internet most intensively.
The views for the 'Total' utilization, the 'Top Consumers' and the individual devices allow the display to be restricted to certain time periods. The display periods that can be selected are 10 minutes, one hour, one day, and two months, and now also the past two weeks.
The selection of network devices for which the utilization data are to be recorded and displayed has been simplified considerably in the new version, and is now performed completely in the Online Monitor.

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History of New Functions and Improvements in FRITZ!OS 8.24
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# Improvements of FRITZ!OS 8.24-130011

## Internet:
- **Fixed** When packet acceleration was enabled, performance changes arose after long runtimes

## Home Network:
- **Fixed** In certain scenarios, unnecessary entries for switches (FA:CE:...) were displayed in the idle connections section

# Improvements of FRITZ!OS 8.24-130011 within FRITZ!Labor

## Internet:
- **Fixed** Online Meter remained at 0 during connections via mobile network

## Wi-Fi:
- **Fixed** Various registration problems with wireless devices

## System:
- **Improved** Stability

## Mobile Network:
- **Fixed** In some cases, anonymous incoming calls to the mobile phone number were not signaled

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# Improvements of FRITZ!OS 8.24-129218 within FRITZ!Labor

## Internet:
- **Improved** Better interoperability with newer browser versions
- **Improved** Detailed rendering of fallback protection in Online Monitor
- **Improved** Operation of schedules in the parental controls reworked for small displays (smartphones, tablets)
- **Improved** Support for fallback protection also for primary internet connections with a fixed IP configuration
- **Improved** Support of IPv6 configuration for fallback protection
- **Fixed** IPv6 addresses were not displayed in full in the overview of WireGuard® connections
- **Fixed** Internet access (remote access) to the FRITZ!Box could be configured only while the FRITZ!Box was connected to the internet
- **Fixed** The "Fixed bandwidth reservation for the home network" option did not always work 
- **Fixed** The summary of individual access profiles for parental controls displayed "No restriction" despite restrictive settings

## Home Network: 
- **Fixed** In special scenarios it was possible for the IP address 192.168.178.1 to be displayed for an extender in the home network instead of its own address
- **Fixed** Names of home network devices were occasionally assigned incorrectly
- **Fixed** Under some circumstances active devices with static IP addresses were displayed as inactive and vice versa

## System: 
- **Fixed** Under "Network Connections" in the FRITZ!OS interface, "connected with FRITZ!Repeater" was sometimes shown twice

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Additional Feedback on FRITZ!OS
======================================

In addition to direct feedback in our lab area en.fritz.com/fritz-lab, there are three additional feedback functions in the user interface which provide information. We have automated the processing of feedback supplied by these functions.

1) Wi-Fi feedback via "Wi-Fi / Wi-Fi Network": Feedback icon after the clients
2) VoIP feedback via "Telephony / Telephone Numbers / Voice Transmission", "Other" column: Feedback icon after each call

Information on the Lab update:
============================

This FRITZ! Lab firmware is a beta version. We've tested it in standard environments before release, but it may still result in bugs. FRITZ! is not liable for any damages that may arise from the use of the Lab version.

Information on working with Lab versions

We appreciate any feedback from our users, which can be submitted at: en.fritz.com/fritz-lab. This page also lists all of the current FRITZ! Lab versions with corresponding feedback areas.

Before you start testing the Lab version

1) You haven't installed the latest firmware for your FRITZ!Box yet? You first need to update the firmware to the latest release.
2) Save your current settings under "System / Backup". The saved settings will be needed if you want to switch back from the Lab firmware back to the release firmware.


Testing the Lab version

Once the latest FRITZ!OS version has been installed on your FRITZ!Box and you've saved your current settings, you can begin testing.

1) Unzip the "fritzbox-yyyy-LabBETA-xxxxx.zip" file.
2) Use the FRITZ!Box user interface to install the update:
- Select "View: Advanced" in the footer.
- Click "Update" in the "System" menu.
- Switch to the "FRITZ!OS File" tab.
- Follow the instructions displayed on the screen.
- Enter the path to the Lab firmware and the name of the Lab file (FRITZ.Box_xxxx-0x.xx-xxxxx-LabBETA.image) in the input field.
3) The Lab version is installed on the FRITZ!Box. The FRITZ!Box will then restart.


Restoring your device to how it was before testing
You can switch back to the official FRITZ!OS at any time under "System > Update > FRITZ!OS Version" or reset the FRITZ!Box back 
to the official FRITZ!OS using the enclosed Windows program "recover.exe" (included in the Lab package).

_________________________________________________________

FRITZ! GmbH 2004-2026. All rights reserved.

This FRITZ! firmware package contains files that are distributed under various licenses, in particular under an FRITZ! proprietary license 
or an open-source license (GNU General Public License, GNU Lesser General Public License or FreeBSD License). For details on the various 
licenses, see the "license.txt" file (https://download.avm.de/fritzbox/license.txt).
The source code of the files distributed as open source can be requested in writing to fritzbox_info@avm.de.

FRITZ! grants the non-exclusive right to use this FRITZ! firmware package, which is supplied exclusively in object code format. 
The licensee may create only one copy of the software, which may be used exclusively for backup purposes.
FRITZ! reserves all intellectual property rights except as expressly granted herein. In particular, without previous approval in writing 
and except as permitted by law, this FRITZ! firmware packet may not be reproduced, distributed or in any other manner made publicly accessible, nor may it be edited, disassembled, reverse engineered, translated, decompiled or otherwise "opened" in whole or in part, and subsequently reproduced, distributed or made publicly accessible
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TJA 04032026