Airport Express + Comcast = No Network?

Hi!
I have been using my neighbors' wireless network until my guilty conscience suggested I should pay for my own. Yet it is not working... I have a Motorola modem supplied by Comcast connected to the cable jack in my home. I have the AirPort Express connected to the modem via Ethernet. All indicator lights are green, indicating things should be fine. And yet when I select my network (having gone through the AirPort Setup Assistant with no error messages) in the upper right hand desktop bar under the wireless icon, I have no connection.
I have restarted both the modem and the Express. Any suggestions? Meanwhile I continue to mooch off my neighbors... Thanks!
MacBook Mac OS X (10.4.9) 2 GHz Intel Core Duo, 2 GB 667 MHz DDR2 SDRAM

Yeah this same thing happened to me a few times, here at my new apartment and also at my friend's new apartment when they got Comcast installed (I was there at the time with my mac and router). I get it working by unplugged the modem, taking the ethernet cable out of the airport express, unplugging the airport express, then plugging both the modem and airport back in, waiting for the modem lights to all go solid, then plug it into the airport. This works about 50% of the time. But my connection here is completely messed up, I'm actually putting up a new post to try to see if anyone knows about that anyway, but hopefully that'll work. I THINK that's what the other guy said before me, I didn't really read it, but I don't think you have to wait 30 minutes. Just wait like 10 seconds. After unplugging everything before replugging it. The Comcast guys just said you have to make sure the modem has its IP address before it's plugged into the airport, otherwise the airport will try to assign itself an IP address when there is none and mess up.
Good luck ;p

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How do I remove an unwanted Airport Express from my network?

I have been using a Time Capsule for several years. I am having trouble backing up to my Time Capsule. I have discovered an unknown Airport Express in my network. I've changed networks, added passwords to the network, etc. How do I remove this unwanted Airport Express from my network? I think he is wreaking havoc with my system!! Help...

Maybe this is an issue I should consult my ISP about??
No question about that. If you can "see" Travis's device, then he can likely "see" your Time Capsule.
I'm just concerned that whomever the APExpress belongs to could be changing settings on my computer or Time Capsule that would cause the issues with me not being able to backup.
Make sure that you have a Time Capsule base station password. Unless a user has that password, they might be able to "see" your Time Capsule, but they cannot access any of the data on the Time Capsule or change the settings.
Open AirPort Utility, click on the Time Capsule and click Manual Setup
Then, click the Time Capsule tab below the icons to see the device name and password for your device. Make sure that you have entered the password and confirmed. Click Update if you have made any changes.
The message I get is "The backup was not performed because an error occurred while copying files to the backup disk. The problem may be temporary. Try again later to back up. If the problem persists, use Disk Utility to repair your backup disk."
I am not sure what this error means, because I cannot duplicate it here to test.
If it were me, I would try this "fix".
http://pondini.org/TM/A5b.html

I'm trying to add my airport express to my network. The airport utility shows a message that its gathering info about my network then suddenly an unexpected error message appears. Why is that?

i'm trying to add my airport express to my network. The airport utility shows a message that its gathering info about my network then suddenly an unexpected error message appears. Why is that?

Until Bob Timmons gets back to you, first decide what you would like the Express to do. I understand you want it for AirPlay remote speakers, which you can certainly do.
I am assuming that you are not using an Apple AirPort router; if that's not the case stop here and let me know.
If your existing router is not an Apple AirPort Base Station, the Express:
can "join" an existing wireless network as a client, for the sole purpose of streaming music. If that's what you want to do, do not connect it to your router with an Ethernet cable.
can "extend" an existing wired network to serve as an additional wireless access point, which can also stream music. If that's what you want to do, connect its WAN port to an available LAN port on your router using an Ethernet cable.
Then, "hard reset" the Express according to the instructions below, and configure it. The prompts should be self-explanatory. If you run into trouble, describe which of the above two configurations you decided upon, and the point at which you're getting the "unexpected problem".
To "hard reset" an AirPort Base Station: make sure it's powered up, then gently press and hold its tiny reset button. Don't apply any more force than required to feel a tactile click. Keep it depressed for five to ten seconds, long enough for its LED to flash amber rapidly. Release the reset button. Then, the LED will glow amber steadily for about a minute. Then, it will flash amber, slowly, about once every second or two, waiting for you to configure it with AirPort Utility.

Can't connect Airport Express wirelessly to network so that AirTunes and internet are available simultaneously

I can't connect Airport Express wirelessly to network so that AirTunes and internet are available simultaneously. My old AE allowed this but can't make the new one work that way.

In your instructions, you say to use the same encryption type as the router has set up. well, I am using the WEP 64 bit encryption and the Airport Utility does not have this...it has 40 bit. Is this a problem, or do I have to be using a the same type of encrytion ?
WEP is available in either 40 or 104-bit, but is usually "advertised" as either 64- or 128-bit respectively. For example, 64-bit WEP uses a 40 bit key (also known as WEP-40), which is concatenated with a 24-bit initialization vector (IV) to form the 64-bit RC4 traffic key. So, WEP 64 on the Linksys & 40-bit is equivalent.
What concerns me more is the loss of bandwidth performance you are experiencing when connecting the AX. When the AX is configured as a wireless client it is acting just like any other wireless devices (computer, laptop, printer, etc.) and not like another router. This should cause little or no bandwidth loss. True the more secure the wireless encryption used WPA2 vs. WEP, the more overhead is required for security, but the differences you are seeing seem excessive.
It is very possible that you may have some form of Wi-Fi interference in the immediate area that is preventing your Linksys from providing a good clean signal.
I suggest you perform a simple site survey, using utilities like the following to determine potential areas of interference, and then, try to either eliminate or significantly reduce them where possible:
For Macs:
o MacStumbler
o iStumbler, or
For PCs:
o NetStumbler

15" MacBook Pro randomly loses connection to my AirPort Express wi-fi network.

My 15" MacBook Pro randomly loses connection to my AirPort Express wi-fi network. I have to switch off wi-fi on my Mac then switch on again to reconnect. Any reason why this random occurrence keeps happening which never happened before? Any solutions and fixes would also be welcomed.
Jazz

In the airport utility, you can alter the radio modes... and change the channels from automatic to a manual one.
Hold down the Option key, and click on your wifi icon, it will tell you what channels are currently being used on your OSX.

Airport Express: Extend a network and do Airtunes at the same time?

Hi, I'm trying to organize the people in my apartment building to share an internet connection wirelessly.
The connection is originating from a friend's apartment; he has a Linksys router, probably "g" flavor.
We're going to put one Airport Express in a neighbor's apartment to extend that.
I have an Airport Express connected to my stereo which I use only for Airtunes.
So I'm wondering: can I connect my Airport Express to this network and extend it and ALSO use it for Airtunes?
Also: Can I prevent my neighbors from seeing my Airport Express for Airtunes purposes? IE, I don't want my stereo to show up in the "multiple speakers" drop down of iTunes for other people connecting to the network...
Hope there's a way to work this out...

can I connect my Airport Express to this network and extend it and ALSO use it for Airtunes?
In order to extend the wireless range of the Linksys router, you would have to configure your AX and the Linksys in a Wireless Distribution System (WDS). Unfortunately, very few non-AirPort router are WDS-compatible. The few Linksys models that are reported to be compatible are the WRT54G & WRT54GS.
If you can create a WDS, streaming iTunes should not be a problem.
Also: Can I prevent my neighbors from seeing my Airport Express for Airtunes purposes? IE, I don't want my stereo to show up in the "multiple speakers" drop down of iTunes for other people connecting to the network...
No, but you can establish an iTunes Speaker password so they would not be able to stream to it.

Joining a network - Airport Express - Comcast

I gave my in-laws an airport express and ripped their 300+ cd collection in an attempt to simplify their stereo and help the enjoy more of their music.
That was 6 months ago.
I have been trying to get the AE to join their existing network (Comcast modem and wireless access point all in one) without disturbing their existing settings (many siblings coming and going using their network and many people to update on the new settings for their devices)
I have tried every wireless network setting in the "manual setup" mode of Airport utility. I have tried setting up on an iphone, ipad, and now Macbook Air.
I am at witts end and do not want to go get an Airport Base Station (which I have at my house and works flawlessly).
I am trying to set up client mode - just want to activate airplay to feed their stereo on their existing network to be able to play itunes from their PC in another area of the house and from iPods and iPads.
I am getting "unexpected errors" and "cannot find the device after restarting" - what am I doing wrong???
thanks for any help you can provide.

What should I be looking for specifically when I log into the Comcast modem/router?
Sorry, but I haven't used any Comcast products, so I cannot say. There must be some way to get at the internal settings to take a look at them though. This usually involves entering a default password for the modem/router into your browser. Wireless security settings are unfortunately not standarized.
Make sure that the wireless network name consists only of normal letters and numbers....and no special characters like apostrophes, dollar signs, asterisks, etc. Limit the length of the name to no more than 12 characters or less. Avoid any blank spaces in the name.
Same rules for the wireless password.
The way to verify if you are having a security issue is to test by temporarily turning off the wireless security on the modem/router. Then try to configure the Express to join the network that way. If it joins....and I'm betting it will....you will know that you have a wireless security settings/compatibility issue to deal with.
Use AirPort Utility 5.6 for any Express configuration if you can.
Can I get out of this without buying an Airport Extreme or another Airport Express to act as thair wireless signal?
That remains to be seen.

Airport express - extend a network or join a network?

I have a Time Capsule as my base station and a number of Airport Expresses installed ( one with a USB printer). All the Express are connected wirelessly. When setting up you are allowed to configure the Express to join a network or to Extend a Network. What is the best choice. My goal is to make sure my printer works, but also ensure the signal is decent throughout the house.
Apple tech when I called gave two conflicting answers. One said it should be Extend the Network. When I called back the next tech said that that was in fact incorrect. He said it should be Connect. He told me that Extend only works where you are hooking up the extra Expresses to an Ethernet cable which is not the case. Who is right?

Hi Bob,
After searching all over the internet, I found your answers to be the most informative
Would appreciate if you can comment on my situation:
Room Outlay:
I have a single-story 3,000 square-foot house with the Study on one end of the house and two other key areas of the house, the Family Room and the Master Bedroom, at the other ends of a "triangle" (Note: the Master Bedroom is a little closer to the Study than the Family Room is to the Study).
Original Environment:
1. in the Study: Cable Modem (Comcast)
2. in the Study: Time Capsule (MB276LL/A 500GB) ethernet connection to Cable Modem
3. in the Study: iMac ethernet connection to Time Capsule
4. in the Family Room: iPhone, iPad, and Laptop wireless usage
5. in the Master Bedroom: iPhone, iPad, and Laptop wireless usage
Original Issues:
Particularly in the Family Room (the most important of my remote areas), the devices (iPhone, etc.) seemed to drop in and out of the wireless network connection. I measured the wireless signal strength to be between 30-40% (Note: it was 45-50% in the Master Bedroom).
New Environment (additions)
6. in the Family Room: AirPort Express (MB321LL/A) Unit 1
7. in the Master Bedroom: AirPort Express (MB321LL/A) Unit 2
Impulsively reacting to various internet posts regarding extending wireless range with the AirPort Express, I went out and bought 2 units with the hope of improving the wireless signal strength in the Family Room and the Master Bedroom. I followed the instructions to have them "extend" the existing wireless network, and I now measure the wireless signal strength to be between 55-70% (vs. 30-40%) in the Family Room and 60-65% (vs. 45-50%) in the Master Bedroom.
Concerns/questions:
Further research turned up a bunch of posts that claim "extending" a wireless network the way I have significantly reduces the overall wireless network performance (cuts the throughput in half for each extender?).
Q1. Is this true? How does this relate to the improved signal strengths I measured.
Q2. If so, if I scrap the unit in the Master Bedroom, will I get better throughput in the Family Room?
Q3. In general, is there a better way to configure my network (e.g., not using "extend", etc.) to get better coverage in the Family Room (and ideally the Master Bedroom) without compromising throughput?
Q4. Although it appears the Time Capsule does not easily support a booster antenna, I did see some convoluted "do-it-yourself" kits that seem to have positive results for people. Is this something I should consider?
Thanks in advance,
Steve

Constant Error While Setting Up Airport Express with Existing Network

I just bought an Airport Express for use with printer and existing wireless network (two original Airport Extremes). I can't get past the error msg below*. The AE shows in Airport Utility. I click on that and then "Continue". A window appears asking if I'm sure I want to "Switch" wireless networks. I assume I do since set up doesn't continue if I select "Don't Switch". But every time I try that it shows a spinning wheel and "Joining wireless network...", and un-joins existing wireless network (losing the two AEBS's), giving me the continued error msg. And on a few occasions Airport Utility can't see it, like now.
*Error Msg: "An error occurred joining the selected wireless network."
It's been a while since I've set up Apple's wireless devices but I thought it was easier now. The manual is ambiguous with "1) Open Airport Utility, 2) Follow the onscreen instructions...". If I could only get to that. Very frustrating for a device that's suppose to be so simple to set up.
Message was edited by: Sakahara

Addendum: Now that I've plugged it in near the printer again Airport Utility can see it but can't read it's configuration so that I can set up the printer. How is this helpful with setting up a printer in another room/level if you have to set it up near your computer first because the two Airport Extreme's you have already set up (one of them, to create the wireless network, 8 feet away from the Express, and the other, to extend the wireless network, on an upper level, to reach the iMac) to give your computer a wireless network? So Airport Utility can see all three airport devices, the network/internet works and is extended to my iMac, but it can't read the Express device to set up the printer. Isn't that the point of the extended wireless network? And yet I can read/set up the Extreme near the Express. Now I have to lug the printer up two levels to set up the printer.

Setting Up a Three Station (Multiple AirPort Express Units) WDS Network

For a mission project in Northern Ireland, I am trying to connect three Airport Express units into a single wireless system. The mission group is located in an old building with thick walls, so the wireless signal needs to be "repeated." I need help on the basics of setting up all three AX units in a series. One will be located in an office on the ground floor an act as the main base station with an ethernet connection. (The mission has a cable modem/router with an independent line in the ofice that is connected directly to the AX unit in the office.) The second will need to act as a relay base station(it will be on the second floor of the building, but in range of the main base station) and the third as a remote base station down a hall on the second floor. In an initial setup, I was unable to have the main base station unit show up on the list of base statios when I did a scan in the AirPort Admin Utility.
Should I set up (configure) all three AX units in close proximity to each other and then relocate them to the final locations? I also need some advice on how to identify or assign the AirPort MAC Adress to the units. Finally, do I need to do a "hard reset" on the units and simply start over? I saw the Apple article on using WDS to create a network from multiple base stations, but it only dealt with two units. Thanks. Sawyerlex
iBook G4 Mac OS X (10.4.6)
iBook G4 Mac OS X (10.4.6)

Check out my last post in this thread:
http://discussions.apple.com/message.jspa?messageID=1756749

How can I get my time capsule and airport express (as a network extension) working properly together?

Hi,
I bought a time capsule a while back and connected it to my modem, and it seems to be backing up my hard drives but I can't tell if I'm getting my wireless signal from my time capsule or from the modem itself, which used to before I bought the time capsule.
It's bugging me because I'm trying to get my airport express to work as an extension to my network, and airport utility half the time can't pick up the express. I heard that it will only work of the time capsule is working as the base station,and I'm not 100% sure this is the case.
Also, how far can the airport express be from my time capsule for it to be picked up? I tried resetting it which helped to start with, but when I was setting it up to extend my network it just told me that there was an error and to try again, which I did with the same result.
Any advice would be much appreciated!
Cheers

Always do setups with ethernet.. setting up wireless via wireless is like cutting off the branch you are sitting on.
You do not need the TC in the network to do the setup.
Plug it by itself into the computer. Same with AE. But do each separately.
Give the TC a different wireless name.. like TC.. then you will know the TC wireless is separate and different to the main modem router. Simply allow it to be extended.
Plug it back into the main modem.
Now do the AE.. set it to extend the wireless of the TC.
When you do this check the signal level. The airport utility v5 has a full diagnostic of wireless client levels.. do not use v6 utility.. it is useless. The AE is placed somewhere in between the TC and the clients you want to connect.. it has to get decent signal itself to extend wireless. And there is no way we can tell you how far apart.. pick the half way point.. around about and suck and see. If it doesn't work move closer to the TC.
Count the walls the signal is going through.. about 15% signal loss for each one.. if angle is acute 20%.. floors are worse.. they might be 20-25%..

Time Capsule and Airport Express as separate network on route acting slow

Wonder if anyone has any thoughts on this...
I have a Time Capsule (current gen) with an Airport Express N (last gen) which I would like to connect to my current router and create a network that is separate from the router's own wireless network. Currently, I've set the TC to work in Bridge Mode (connected to the router - ethernet) and have connected the Airport Express to 'extend the network' - this is also in Bridge Mode as well. However, when I'm away from the TC and in the Airport Express's range, the connection is very slow. Is there something I'm not doing right with the 2 Apple products or is it something with the router? When I'm closer to the TC it works fine, it's just when I'm far away there seems to be an issue!
Thanks in advance!

Wirelessly extending your network will improve your range, but decrease your bandwidth. You should create a roaming network via Ethernet if you can.

Use airport express to extend network from linksys wrt54g

Hello all, I'm having no luck here, and hope you can help me. I am running a MacBook Pro, 2.16 GHz, Intel Core 2 Duo, 3 Gigs ram, OS X 10.6.8.I am at work, trying to use a newly purchased AirPort Express to extend the signal from the back office, which has a Linksys WRT54G router. I updated the router's firmware to 1.02.8, build 001, dated 8.5.09. I have tried numerous times to configure the AE using AirPort Utility, and always wind up with an error message, "An error occurred while updating the configuration. Make sure your Apple Wi-Fi base station is plugged in and in range of your computer or connected via Ethernet and try again. (-6753)" During the configuration process, I am asked what I want to do with AE, I have tried both "create a new wireless network," and "I want AE to join my current network," with no success. Any comments will be appreciated.

The Linksys WRT54G and WRT54GS (through version 4 only for both models) were said to be compatible with Apple's WDS settings.
Perhaps this article may offer some clues, but it is doubtful that you will be able to make this work with the particular version of Linksys router that you have.
http://hints.macworld.com/article.php?story=2006060516541633

AirPort Express disappears for network until it is rebooted, Arp problem

Hi,
I have just configured my AirPort Express as a remote speaker for iTunes.
After the AirPort is powered on I can access it via AirPort admin tool and from iTunes.
After a while, the AirPort can no longer be connected to, either by the admin utility or iTunes.
I am running firmware 6.3, and have reinstalled this version. The unit is around 4 months old
Anyway, what I have noticed is that the AirPort does not seem to respond to TCPIP ARP requests which means that if a computer flushes or expires its ARP cache it will not be able to connect to the AirPort.
A network sniffer shows the ARP packets being broadcast on the network but there is no response from the AirPort.
I can see that the AirPort sends out ARP requests after a reboot, but will not respond to ARP requests that other machines on the network send out.
Any ideas?
Ta
Gavin

I have had the AU running at all times but the AX's would still disappear.
The latest think I have tried is "not allow wireless clients" check box on the AX units. Since I have done this, I have not had an AX actually disappear. I now just deal with music skips and chops, if I turn on more than 2 units.
I also realize that using the AX units in for an Ethernet bridge is actually slower than using the Wireless G adapter. I use wireless to transfer shows on Tivo.
At this point, I am back to square one. The AE router gives me no benefits over a linksys or other wireless router. I can't use WDS, I can't use Ethernet Bridge.
The next thing I will try is to go back to Wireless G adapters on all the Tivos, then "allow wireless clients" and the AX units. At least I will get the WDS feature and be able to extend the range on my network.
I am guessing, if I just set up the AX units they way they were before (non-wds) and use the Tivo Wireless G adapters (essentially the way my networks was originally set up minus the AE router), that everything will work fine.
I would think Apple would do a better job before marketing products to do this.

Airport Express Direct TV Network

Have Airport Express connected wirelessly via 1G Wi-Fi to home computer network and internet access cable modem/wireless router. Airport Express is wireless port for computer iTunes/internet audio input to home audio amp/receiver using a Airport Express miniport to RCA cable to amp/receiver.
Question: Can I also use the ethernet port on the Airport Express to connect DirectTV HD video receiver/recorder to the home computer network and internet?

I have a similar question about Airport Express and Direct TV. I have an Airport Extreme attached to my internet providers modem and it broadcasts internet throughout the home. I have the Airport Express setup as Join a wireless network and also serves as a conduit to play iTunes throughout the house. In a previous reply to WSN, do you mean I need to get another Extreme or another Express to attach to Direct TV? In addition Direct TV asks for IP Address, Subnet Mask, Default Gateway, and DNS. These terms don't appear in Airport Utility. So what are the proper settings? Thanks

Airport Express + Comcast = No Network?

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