Airport Extreme Base Station as an wireless Extender to new Airport time capsule

After many months of time machine back up problems. (verify back up failing) I am considering biting the bullet and getting a new 2TB Airport extreme time capsule. Can I use the old (late 2013 801.11ac) airport extreme to extend wifi network?
A few other questions.
1.Does extending reduce wifi performance?
2. If using extreme as extender can I still plug in hard drive or hard drive to it?
3.
currently using imac 21.5 (late 2013) 1TB backing up to 6TB WD mybook live duo (connected to Extreme using ethernet), via airport extreme base station (ac wireless band to mac)
Any guidance appreciated.

Is it possible to quantify how much faster USB back up is compared to 802.11ac between mac and AirPort time capsule?
600GB should take 10 hours by ethernet. And it will be somewhat faster by USB3.. exactly how fast is difficult to predict as the first TM backup itself is slow due to many small files. In terms of raw speed maybe twice but it will depend on the disk used. USB you can use an SSD and get super huge speed. (not that I think you will be buying a 1TB SSD anytime soon).
In terms of raw speed it is cheese and chalk. The max speed of real world file transfer on AC wireless is around 430Mbps and that is using ideal world.
http://www.smallnetbuilder.com/lanwan/router-charts/bar/113-5-ghz-dn-c?see=MAX
This has nothing to do with link speed.. this is how fast a file actually transfers. And that is assuming the iMac and the TC are in the same room. And everything is perfect with nothing else using connection.
The real world speed of USB3 is around 100MB/s to a spinning hard disk..
http://www.macworld.com/article/2039427/how-fast-is-usb-3-0-really-.html
which may indicate the limit is the actual disk speed. In bits per second you x 8.. so the USB3 is 800Mbps. The advantage of USB direct connection is that speed is available at all time. Not when your close or the load on wireless is low.
Further to your comments when extending. Is it only the area covered by extending that has reduced performance or all the wifi signal?
The speed will depend on hops..
So if the computer is using resources on a local router.. and only one wireless hop then it is fast.
If it is using resources via a second router so wireless goes.. computer--- router2----router1-- resource.
Your speed drops 50% at best.. at worst it is really bad.
For example.. computer 1 on router 1 accesses computer 2 hard disk on router2 with everything wireless.
Count the hops. C1-R1, R1-R2, R2-C2
That gives 3 hops. So each packet is transmitted.. along that chain.. each transmission can only begin after it is received in full. Now add some other computers using resources.. say C3 is using internet via R1.. that has to be time sliced. So you get 50% of 50% of 50% of 50%. It is obvious that wireless networks have a huge handicap.. they cannot transmit and receive at the same time.. nor can they talk to more than one client at a time.. so add time slicing to wireless hopping.
Now ethernet is entirely different. It can transmit and receive at the same time.. ie is duplex. And in a switch it can talk to several computers at the same time. That is why we say.. as much as you can ethernet.. and use wireless as the last single hop to a client that needs it.. ie iphone or ipad.. or laptop if you cannot plug in ethernet.
Can the ac wifi format be extended using AirPort Extreme and time capsule.
Over very short range yes. AC wireless is only on 5ghz and is poor penetration of solids.. so this will work but maybe only to the next room.

Similar Messages

Older airport extreme base station as a network extender with new time capsule

I just bought a new time capsule (802.11ac). Can my older airport extreme base station (model A1143) be used as a network extender with it?

Yes, although it maybe disappointing..
There are two kinds of extending.. wireless repeater type which is poorest as it has to transfer all packets in two steps instead of one.. hence will halve the speed.
Or using ethernet to the old extreme and set it in bridge.. You can then setup roaming network... this is much better.. but getting ethernet to the right place could be messy or expensive or both.
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4260
wireless extend doco.. mind all of this is out of date.. the basics are correct.. the methods via the airport utility may be obsolete.
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4145
Documentation has rather lagged lately.

Problem consistently printing via new (summer 2011) AIRPORT EXTREME BASE STATION and Brother wireless printer (model HL5370DW). What am I doing wrong?

Thanks in advance for any help you folks can offer. I'm a newb here and will try to offer as much detail as I can about the dilemma at hand.
Scenario: Home network has been recently set up for wireless internet access via NEW Airport Extreme Base Station (purchased September 2011). Units accessing the network include: 2011 Macbook Pro, 2011 Macbook Air, 2007 Macbook, 2009 Macbook Pro, 2 iPhone 3GSs, and a 1st-gen iPad (and a partridge in a pear tree AEBS is configured to run WPA2 encrypted network, as well as a WPA2 guest network. I am attempting to yoke a BROTHER HL5370DW wireless B or G/ ethernet / usb-capable printer to the main network such that any and all units can print wirelessly or its equivalent (i.e., via printer hooked to AEBS through USB hub)
Problem: Despite configuring the Brother printer to recognize the main WPA2 network I created, I am unable to get wireless printing to work. My workaround was to physically connect Brother printer to AEBS via USB, specifically using a Belkin USB hub (after all, I wanted access to usb drives, as well as the printer). This workaround works ONLY SOME OF THE TIME. Generally, after a fresh boot of any computer or after a restart of the AEBS, any given computer will be able to print (i.e., any computer wirelessly connected to the main WPA2 network recognizes the printer). HOWEVER, at random times, printer access is gone (as is access to USB drives connected to AEBS's usb hub). Wireless networks are still up and running when that happens. IS THERE A WAY TO GET THE USB HUB's devices (i.e., printer and usb drives) to ALWAYS REMAIN AVAILABLE AS LONG AS THEY STAY CONNECTED TO THE AEBS? In other words, what accounts for the intermittent loss of the usb peripherals?
Sometimes, I just shut the airport off on whatever computer is having this problem, and the problem goes away. Sometimes, the problem is present across all computers in the house, sometimes only a few are affected. I can ALWAYS see the AEBS in the Airport Utility if the AEBS is connected to the particular computer via ETHERNET CABLE.
My theories:
- true wireless printing (i.e., without usb hub workaround) doesn't work because the N network somehow isn't backwards compatible with the Brother printer, which, i believe, is B/G. Although...isn't Wireless N networking supposed to work with BG devices? I did find a thread (https://discussions.apple.com/thread/2570774?start=0&tstart=0 ) that explains some of the particulars of WPA2 encryption and Wireless B/G issues, but it was beyond my level of comprehension (I'm a psychologist, but not an Apple Genius
- The usb workaround is only intermittently viable because of some flaw in the Airport or Airport Utility that causes dropouts to happen when a Macbook Pro or Air's lid gets closed or one gets opened after having been at a different network (e.g., at my office).
QUESTIONS:
- Should I try to use my old router (7 year old Linksys WRT54G) as an access point and connect the Brother printer to that G-router? How do I do that?
- I wouldn't mind just relying on the usb hub method if I could just insure more consistency (i.e., no random dropouts of peripherals). How could I do this?
Rule out:
- wireless printing works on my printer - it was being recognized back before the AEBS. I had the Linksys router running a WEP network and had the wireless printer talking with no cables to the router and the computers. (I just don't want to revert to using WEP encryption given its lack of security and my trying to protect HiPAA related health information on behalf of patients)
Any help will be greatly appreciated.
Thanks in advance!

13 ASCII characters = 104 (aka 128)-bit WEP
encryption
If turning off WEP works, then you just need to
provide the cameras with the "Equivalent Network Password".
One of the problems with WEP is that the actual
standard relies on a 10 character HEX key for 40bit
WEP and a 26 character HEX key for 128bit WEP.
In order to make things easier, vendors use certain
algorithms to convert simple alphanumeric passwords
(or passphrases) into HEX keys, thus enabling the use
of simple easy to remember WEP password rather than
lengthy HEX keys. The problem is that different
vendors use different algorithms to generate the HEX
key and therefore a ASCII password on an AEBS will be
hashed differently on a non-Apple client and vice
versa.
You may find the following article helpful:
- Apple article, especially the part about
"Third-party client to Airport".
Brilliant idea about trying the system with No encryption on... that DID solve the problem... almost.. once I turned off the encryption option, and restarted the Airport, I got a dialog box showing that the "Base station needs attention" but it didn't indicate WHAT kind of "assistance" it needed. Nonetheless, I closed out of the Airport program only to find that the indicator light, which had been Green, was now, flashing Yellow and I could not connect anything, including my computer. I opened the Airport program again and found the ONLY way I could get the Green light on was to select some sort of encryption option... then the light would go Green again but my cameras would not hook up again, and when I went back in and ONLY changed the option to NO encryption, I got the yellow flashing light and the "this base unit needs attention" warning...
I think your suggestions are almost on the mark... is there any way of reconciling the WEP coding between the cameras and the Airport??? Or turning off the encryption option and STILL have Airport work?
Thanks again for your help and suggestions... I really appreciate it.
geoff

Using Airport Extreme Base Station As A Wireless Card?

Hi,
I don't know if this is even possible but here's what I'd like to do:
I've started to share an internet connection with a cousin of mine that lives in my apartment building. The connection is in her apartment and as far as I can tell the wireless signal is coming from the modem she has, there is no stand alone router/ base station. So far I've just been connecting using my iBook with the aiport card in it. No problems. I just had to get the ip number and password from her and I was hooked right up.
Here's my real question:
I also have a G4 Mini with no wireless card in it at all and an Airport Extreme base station from before we started sharing a connection. In the time that we've been sharing I haven't connected to the internet at all using the Mini. Now I'm wondering if there is a way I can hook the Airport Extreme to the Mini and somehow use it as a replacement for a wireless card in the Mini. Thus using the Mini connected to the Airport to connect just the Mini to the internet.
I'm not worried about the iBook and do not wish to reconfigure the way I'm using/ connecting with it. Everything is peachy with that.
If this is possible, how can I do it?
Thank you in advance for any help with this.

Ernest Lohrer wrote:
Hi,
I don't know if this is even possible but here's what I'd like to do:
I've started to share an internet connection with a cousin of mine that lives in my apartment building. The connection is in her apartment and as far as I can tell the wireless signal is coming from the modem she has, there is no stand alone router/ base station.
She has an "integrated" modem/router/access point.
So far I've just been connecting using my iBook with the aiport card in it. No problems. I just had to get the ip number and password from her and I was hooked right up.
Here's my real question:
I also have a G4 Mini with no wireless card in it at all and an Airport Extreme base station from before we started sharing a connection. In the time that we've been sharing I haven't connected to the internet at all using the Mini. Now I'm wondering if there is a way I can hook the Airport Extreme to the Mini and somehow use it as a replacement for a wireless card in the Mini. Thus using the Mini connected to the Airport to connect just the Mini to the internet.
I'm not worried about the iBook and do not wish to reconfigure the way I'm using/ connecting with it. Everything is peachy with that.
If this is possible, how can I do it?
Set up the AEBSn as a "bridge" and connect the G4 Mini to one of the "wired" internet connections.

Airport Extreme Base Station and xBox wireless

We have 2 macs with Airport Extreme Base Station connecting to Cable modem for internet connection.
Recently bought an xBox with a USB wireless adaptor. When xBox is connected to the wireless network, internet connection of other computers dropped out and no longer can use internet until xBox is disconnected from the wireless network. It is the same problem even other computers are connected to Base Station with Ethernet cable.
Any settings in Airport Utility might fix this problem ?

We didn't have any problem before using the xBox wireless.
There are 2 Macs (iMac 20" & Macbook Pro 15") and they're connected to the Base Station via wireless.
The cable modem is Motorola Surfboard SB5100i and there is no login required from ISP for internet connection. Yes, the modem is connected to the WAN port of the Base Station.
With the Clients computer network settings, we are using DHCP. We have also tried with static IP and didn't make any differences.
I thought it could be the compatibility issue between the xBox wireless adaptor and the Base Station and on the other hand, the wireless protocols (802.11N/g/b) are industry standard and it doesn't matter who made them, they should work together.
The only idea that I have now is to try with other brand of wireless router and it might be a quick solution for this problem.
thanks,
David

How can I extend a wireless network with my AirPort Extreme Base Station?

Today I purchased a brand new, dual-band base station to replace my Belkin N router, as I have had a handful of firewall, coverage, and other networking problems in my house lately. First off, I really like this router and it was very easy to setup. My MacBook Pro could use both bands and established a 300 Mbit/s link very quickly. After tweaking various settings to my liking, I was also able to maximize the connections on many of my non-Apple machines and devices. I noticed that the range of its network was better than my Belkin's, but unfortunately, it failed to completely saturate the area sufficiently. Since the Belkin still works well enough, I was hoping I could bridge them together one way or the other.
The Belkin router does not support any bridge mode that I know of, but the AirPort Extreme should be able to join a wireless network and then extend that over WiFi and Ethernet, correct? I would like to place them at opposite ends of my home so I can get strong WiFi signals everywhere inside. However, when I try to get the base station to connect to my preexisting WiFi connection, it tells me that I can't extend the network and fails to join.
So is this possible? And if it is, how would I go about setting it up? I know it would probably be easier if I had a simple range booster such as an AirPort Express, but I didn't buy one while I was at Fry's since I hoped I could make use of the older Belkin. This is its product page, if needed. Thanks for any suggestions.
-MacUser

The Belkin router does not support any bridge mode that I know of, but the AirPort Extreme should be able to join a wireless network and then extend that over WiFi and Ethernet, correct?
Sorry, but no. The AirPort Extreme Base Station cannot "join" a network like the AirPort Express or Time Capsule, but you wouldn't want to do this anyway because in this configuration these devices will only perform as wireless clients ... not routers.
Instead, the AirPort Extreme can either be extended or can extend another 802.11g or 802.11n AirPort ... or a very very few non-AirPort devices.
One option for your Belkin would be to connect it to the AirPort Extreme by Ethernet but this may not meet your requirements or be a desirable situation. Otherwise, you would need to get another AirPort to extend your current one.

Multipmultiple Airport Extreme Base Stations: WDS Or "Extend Wireless Network" To Have Wired -- Wireless Bridge?

Hello there!
I've been looking for this info, but have as yet been unable to find it. Here's my scenario:
I have two Airport Extreme Base Stations (both are dual band) and 3 airport expresses. The main internet connection in my house is in one room, where I have an AEBS as the main wireless router. In another room, I have a bunch of ethernet-only devices. I'd like to use the 2nd AEBS in this room, plug the ethernet devices into it and have the 2nd AEBS act as a wired <--> wireless bridge (connected to the same wireless network as the 1st AEBS). I've attempted this via "extend a wireless network," but the ethernet devices don't get past the AEBS they're plugged into. Should I instead be implementing WDS?
I mention the airport expresses as I'd like to have airtunes & wireless signal in other areas, but would like to keep the set-up as simple as possible (i.e., not config the AXes for WDS unless it's required).
Thanks in advance for any help!

Unlike the 802.11n AirPort Express Base Station (AXn), the 802.11n AirPort Extreme Base Station (AEBSn) cannot be configured as a wireless Ethernet bridge.
However, there are at least two ways to configure it to provide wired clients access:
Connect the second AEBSn back to the first by Ethernet; reconfigure the second AEBSn as a bridge and disable its wireless radios, or
Reconfigure both AEBSns into an extended wireless network. For 802.11n AirPorts, this would be called a dynamic WDS. The AEBSn, connected to the Internet would be the "main" base station and it would only require that you enable the "Allow this network to be extended" option in the AirPort Utility. The extending AEBSn would need to be configured with the option, Wireless Mode = Extend a wireless network, enabled.
In both configurations, the second AEBSn's Ethernet ports would be enabled for wired clients.

HT4259 Extending AirPort Extreme BASE STATION range

I am using an older (2006) 54Mbps AirPort Extreme Base Station and want to extend the range. I am experiencing issues with dropped or slow signals in rooms that I would consider tough to reach (basement for example). Can I use an AirPort Express to extend the range of the WI-FI and how exactly is this done? Or would I be better off updating the AirPort Extreme Base Station? It's worked flawlessly for 6 years, just have more wireless requirements.
Thank you all in advance.

I am using an older (2006) 54Mbps AirPort Extreme Base Station ... Can I use an AirPort Express to extend the range of the WI-FI and how exactly is this done?
The short answer is yes; the longer answer is that the only way to "wirelessly extend" the range of your 802.11b/g-only Extreme is to create a Wireless Distribution System (WDS).
Not only is a WDS a tedious pain to set up, even for experienced users, its performance is likely to be disappointing. It may not even solve your dropped signals or slow throughput.
There are better ways to extend your wireless range. By far the best and least expensive alternative is to connect an additional base station to your existing Extreme with an Ethernet cable. If you don't want to do that, and you understandably decide against a WDS, then your remaining alternative is to buy a newer, 802.11n capable Extreme or Express. They can use Apple's "extend a wireless network" feature that will eliminate nearly all the disadvantages of a WDS.
Read this to determine how to create a WDS: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4262

How to get this Airport Extreme base station to produce a wireless network?

I had this Airport Extreme base station working fine at the house that I moved from a couple of days ago.
After my house move, however, it seems that the AE base station isn't producing a wireless network. My wireless laptop isn't detecting a wireless network. Also, the left hand side light on the AE base station is not lit.
The AE base station was softly cushioned during house the move.
Regarding configuration:
My non-wireless iMac (running 10.3.9) connects to the AE base station via an ethernet cable.
Before my house-move, I regularly connected wirelessly via the AE base station from a couple of wireless-equipped laptop computers.
I was using AE software version 5.6. (In desperation, I have just updated to version 5.7 - but that hasn't improved or changed situation.)
At the new house, I found that I had to reset the AE base station back to factory settings before I could successfully connect to the internet through the AE base station from the (non-wireless) iMac.
Since resetting the AE base station at the new house, I can also print via a USB printer that's plugged into the AE base station.
I just cannot pick up any sign of a wireless network from the AE base station.
G4 Powerbook Mac OS X (10.3.9) Problem started while I had Airport Extreme software v5.6. No improvement/change after v5.7 update.

Sorry for my delay in closing this issue.
I got the wireless network running again - though I'm not sure which of a "litany" of separate actions (which I gleaned from dialogs in several similar postings for similar issues to mine) was the solution. I suspect it was one of the following two actions, which have stuck in memory:
1) I relocated a nearby cordless phone cradle/charger/base-station from alongside the Airport Extreme base station to about seven feet (two meters) away. However, the cordless phone is about eight years old, and I believe its radio frequency is far out of the range that I have read (in similar postings) can interfere with the Airport Extreme base station.
2) I re-set the Airport Extreme base station, (a) by depressing the tiny reset button at the rear of the base station for more than 5 seconds (until the led started blinking), (b) from Utilities/AirPort Admin Utility/Configure/Restart. However, I had reset the Airport Extreme base station those ways previously without that restoring the wireless network. Also, I didn't record the sequence of the multiple resets and the configurations at the times of the resets.

I need help with connecting an external HD to Airport Extreme base station

So i have the base station set up, and it recognizes my hard drive in the airport utilities and have the file sharing turned on, but when i connect to the base station wirelessly from my macbook pro, the hard drive and base station does not show up in the shared section in my finder. Any ideas as to whats up?

I'm having a similar problem, and I hope you'll excuse my ignorance but is there a difference between rebooting and just restarting. I've done the latter (numerous times) but not the former.
I have set up my Airport Extreme Base Station to my wireless router (DSL Internet connection) and to an external hard drive (MyBook Essential 640GB with USB connection). Internet works fine.
When I plug the hard drive directly into my MacBook it recognizes it fine, I can copy files to it, add folders, explore them etc.
When I plug the hard drive into the Base station, it appears as a network drive on the side bar of my finder window, but when I click on it to open it, it is empty, it shows 0 items and the available memory, but none of the files I put on it are visible to explore.

Please help me connect eMac, cable modem, and Airport Extreme Base Station

I connected Ethernet cord from cable modem to Airport Extreme Base Station and then another Ethernet cord from Airport Extreme Base Station to eMac, but I could not get internet access on my eMac that way. I'm only getting internet access by directly connecting eMac to cable modem. Can someone please help me with a step by step explanation of how to set these 3 machines up so that I can have internet access on both my eMac and, wirelessly, on my new MacBook. Thank you very much in advance.
eMac & MacBook Mac OS X (10.3)
eMac & MacBook Mac OS X (10.3)
eMac & MacBook Mac OS X (10.3)

jenngee, Welcome to the discussion area!
Ensure that you power off the cable modem for a minute or so when you switch it to another Ethernet device.
Ensure that you are connecting the WAN port of the AirPort Extreme base station (AEBS) to the cable modem. The eMac should connect to the LAN port.
The steps for setting this up can be found in the "Designing AirPort Networks" (direct PDF link) document. Look through that document and try to get it setup. Then return here if you have more questions. Don't forget to post what you tried and the issues you encountered.

Airport Extreme Base Station Internet Connection issue

I have a connection question for Airport Extreme Base Station.
I have Comcast cable broadband. I connect that to a Linksys router for
use with my Vonage phone, and then from the Linksys router I connect
via Ethernet to my iMac. I like the direct Ethernet connection for
performance reasons.
In order to set up a home network to connect my Tivo's (and eventually
my PC and printer), I have set up an Airport Extreme Base station and
connected it to the Linksys router from it's ethernet connection to the
WAN (cable modem) input on the Extreme.
I have connected to the Airport network with my iMac, but since I am
connected to the Internet via Ethernet, I cannot tell if my Airport is
connected to the Internet so that I can use it for my Tivo. My PC is
still in storage from a move, so I can't check with that.
My question: How can I tell if my Airport is connected to the Internet
without disabling my Ethernet connection on my iMac?
A few more info points/questions in case it helps answer:
1) I previously used this Airport to connect this iMac wirelessly.
2) Should I be connecting it to the LAN port since it's coming out of
the router?
3) If the connection issue is because I am going through the Linksys
first, can I connect the modem to the airport and then use the LAN port
to connect to the Linksys router?
4) If I have to disable the ethernet connection to test the Airport,
how do I do it? Just unplug it?
I appreciate any help as the online and manual help from Apple is not
quite up to par with such a complex configuration.
Regards
Bill

2) Should I be connecting it to the LAN port since it's coming out of
the router?
No, connecting to the WAN port is fine.
3) If the connection issue is because I am going through the Linksys
first, can I connect the modem to the airport and then use the LAN port
to connect to the Linksys router?
The issue is that you have two routers which effectively creates two networks. Unless this was your original intent, you will want to setup the AEBS as a bridge.
To set up the AirPort Extreme Base Station (AEBS) as a bridge, using the AirPort Admin Utility, connect your computer directly (using an Ethernet cable) to the LAN port of the AEBS, and then, make these settings:
Network tab
- Distribute IP addresses (unchecked)
- Apply the new settings.
- Wait at least 5 minutes.
4) If I have to disable the ethernet connection to test the Airport,
how do I do it? Just unplug it?
Well, that's certainly one way, but an easier way is to temporarily disable the "Built-in Ethernet" in your network configuration.
System Preferences > Network > Show > Network Port Configurations
- Built-in Ethernet (unchecked)

Hi Everyone, I am Sreedhar , I need to extend the Wireless Network which is connected through cable in Airport Express, Without Airport Extreme Base Station is there any way to extend my WIFI

Need Help

Let's see if I can get this straight.
You have an Airport Extreme base station that is set to "Create a wireless network" and you have the box checked for "allow this network to be extended"....
Then you have an Airport Express that is set to "Extend a wireless network" which you selected the name of your network in the box...
Correct?
See this Apple document:
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4259?viewlocale=en_US&locale=en_US
The wireless unit on the right of the diagram can be either of the newer Apple base stations.
Extreme, Express, Time Capsule

HT4259 How do I set up an Airport Extreme Base Station (v. 7.6.1) to allow wireless network extension?

I have an Airport Extreme Base station (purchased in 2009) and an Airport Express base station (purchased in 2011 - the model that plugs directly into the electrical outlet) (both version 7.6.1 according to the Airport Utility info). I want to use the Airport Express to extend my wireless network. Using Airport utility setup I have a software option on the Airport Express to set it up to extend the network but I do not have an option on the Airport Extreme wireless setup screen that I can check to allow my wireless network to be extended.
All of the documentation I can find on Apple Support states that I should have an option I can check to allow the wireless network to be extended while in the wireles setup section for the Airport Extreme in Airport Utility; but, that check option isn't there. Is this a case of my Airport Extreme base station being too old to offer that option? Incidentally, when I try to select the extend wireless network option on the Airport Express from the Airport Utility wireless setup menu I get an error message (no details - just an error message). The same Airport Express sets up fine if I select join a network (not what I want to do). Am I just dealing with outdated equipment or does anyone have a suggestion? Thanks.

Close AirPort Utility if it is open.
Temporarily, move the Express to the same general area as your AirPort Extreme and power it up and wait a minute.
Hold in the reset button on the Express for 9-10 seconds and then release. Give the Express a full minute to restart to a slow, blinking amber light.
Click the AirPort icon at the top of the Mac's screen and wait a few seconds for a listing of New AirPort Base Station to appear
Click on AirPort Express just below that and AirPort Utility will automatically open
Wait a minute while AirPort Utility analyzes the network and announces that the Express will be configured to "Extend" the AirPort Extreme network.
Enter a device name for the AirPort Express and click Next
Wait another minute to allow the configuration to occur.
When you see the Setup Complete message, click Done.
Now move the Express to a location that is approximately half the distance from the AirPort Extreme and the general area that needs more wireless coverage
Power up the Express and you are all set. Trash those old instructions.

Airport utility no longer recognizes my Airport Extreme Base Station, which had been set up to extend a wifi network

Hi. In November I set up my airport extreme base station (5th generation I believe) to wirelessly extend the wifi network we use at home to see if it would increase download speeds. Before doing that, I did a factory reset of my airport extreme, and the owner of the airport extreme to which the ethernet cable is attached made changes to his network to allow it to be extended. I folllowed all the directions from the apple support pages, and finally got it to work. I could even access a portable hard drive which I attached to the airport extreme base station being used as the extension. Then a week or so ago I noticed that my laptop would no longer connect to my base station. I did not have time to look into it until this week. Airport utility, either on my Mac or iphone no longer recognizes my base station. My mac is running OS X 10.10.1 and my iPhone is running iOS 8.1.2 I have tried both hard, soft and factory resets of my base station to no avail. The only thing that has changed after doing that, is that when I do a soft reset of my base station, a neighbors airport express appears when it never did before. I can't actually connect to it, but it does try. Then after approximately 5 minutes, it disappears from my list.
Today I went and pulled out my OLD AIRPORT EXTREME base station... you know, the one that looks like a space ship and is running wifi 802.1 b/c? airport utility DOES locate and display that, but airport utility returns a message stating that it cannot be set up by this software. I am attaching an image of that.
Thank you,
John
Does this have anything to do with the fact that 'Back to My Mac' is probably enabled?

I think the initial problem is that your iPhone was connected to an open network that wasn't yours.
Go to Settings > WiFi and "Forget" the network created by that AirPort Extreme, it's older than dirt. Forget your neighbor's network also.
Perform the equivalent actions with your Mac: System Preferences > Network > Wi-Fi > Advanced... Delete every network that appears, including your own.
Then, connect to your own network on all your devices, after which you ought to be able to use any of them and configure your Extreme without any difficulty. You may need to start over with a "hard reset" on both the main AirPort Extreme and the one extending its network.
Does this have anything to do with the fact that 'Back to My Mac' is probably enabled?
Not exactly, but using iCloud Keychain will populate all your devices with the names of preferred networks that any of them connect to, no matter where they are. I don't know why Apple considers that a beneficial feature.

Airport Extreme Base Station as an wireless Extender to new Airport time capsule

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