I need help choosing a wireless router (Networking Noob)

Okay, I am very new to wireless networking.
I basically want to replace my current wired DSL modem with a wireless modem/router that I can still wire my main PC up to via Ethernet, and route a wireless connection to a laptop, and possibly some other devices (possibly a Nintendo DS, Xbox 360, TV, and other similar devices).
I have been trying to find out if the E-Series from Cisco actually act as a modem as well as a router but can't seem to find the information.
I do wish to have recent technology, but don't want to pay a fortune, so if there is a list of Linksys modem router combos you can give me then I can go research them further.
If there is anything else you think I might need to consider, I'm all ears
Thanks so much. Hopefully I won't be a newbie for much longer on this subject.

The E series routers are ethernet routers. They don't have modems integrated.
The Linksys devices with integrated modem are the WAG models, e.g. the WAG320N.
However, I would rather recommend a ethernet router and a standalone DSL modem. DSL technologies evolves pretty quickly and it's possible that the modem you buy today won't handle the internet speeds in two years.
In addition, except for the latest WAG models (which can be configured as ethernet router on the first LAN port, i.e. "loosing" one of the four ethernet port) the DSL routers are generally only for use with DSL. If you decide anytime soon to switch to cable or satellite or FTTH you will need a new modem again.
On the other hand, an ethernet router may be good for longer depending on your requirement. It works with any kind of access technology DSL, cable, etc. as long as you have a modem.
Thus, my general advice is to get a standalone cheap modem and a separate ethernet router. Ask you ISP for the modem. Often, ISPs offer a simple modem for free or you get one "rented" for free. This way you have the guarantee that the modem works fine with their network.
You also have a much greater variety of wireless routers to choose from.

Similar Messages

Need help setting up wireless internet network

I have a 1 GHz iMac G4 (purchased in 2003) that has a dsl connection to the internet via an ethernet cable and the dsl modem that was provided by my internet service (earthlink). My friend recently gave me her imac - same model. I've given it to my son for his room and would like to set up a wireless network so I can get his computer on the internet too.
I've read enough here to figure out that our computers are compatible with the AirPort Extreme card. But what other equipment do I need? How many Airport Extreme cards? an AirPort station?, a router? I'm clueless but very good at following instructions. So if there is an FAQ somewhere that would be helpful too.
Thanks!

Sarah, Welcome to the discussion area!
You need a wireless router. You can use one of Apple's or a 3rd party wireless router.
You can connect one of the iMacs to the router via Ethernet if you want. Or you can add AirPort Extreme cards to both iMacs.

I need Help Setting Up Wireless Router WRT54G on NTL

Hi, I've managed to setup a few home wireless networks in my time but I'm having problems with this. My gf's ISP is NTL and it is connected via a cable modem (rather than the set top). I registered my laptop using the installation software and the internet connection is working fine. I attempted to setup the router and I could connect to it, however I could not connect to the internet through the router. Previously with other routers I found an option where you could input the user/pass so that the router was automatically connected to the service, but I could not find this option. Does anyone who has setup this wireless router with an NTL setup / or anyone at all have any idea how I go about setting it all up?
Thanks in advance

I also found this thread which helps by showing when to clone the MAC address.
Using run cmd from XP's start menu and typing ipconfig /all will show the MAC address of your machine's NIC card, if you need it.
http://linksys.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/linksys.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=1040&p_created=10869...

Need Help setting up wireless router

Hi, ive spent the week on the phone trying to reach all the various technical support people to help me, and getting no where, i wait forever and then get dropped.
I just got time warner cable in NYC (queens) and the modem and internet surfing works fine if I use a USB cable from the modem to my computer, the problem is the ethernet doesnt work, and I dont have drivers for ethernet, but im more interested in setting up wireless from the modem, to the wireless router to my computer with the wireless card.
I accidently installed some kind of microsoft tcp/ip thingy when surfing around my computer trying to fix this and now I cant use the wireless router and card.
I dont want to spend hours on the phone in a tech support message maze, so please help me thru PM.
Mark
please PM me
(Edited for guideline compliance. Thanks!)
Message Edited by JOHNDOE_06 on 07-15-2007 12:16 PM

Hi Mark, first off let me know are you able to go online directly with the modem, if computer is connected directly to the ethernet port of modem? if not, i think ethernet port of the modem is not working or may be it's defective or drivers for ethernet adapter is not installed , as you've mentioned you can able to go online with the USB cable, once computer is connnected directly to the USB port of modem...unless and untill ethernet port on the modem is not working you won't be able to configure the wireless router... router doesn't have USB port on it... anyways connect modem to the ethernet port of the router >> computer (wireless), reset the router back to factory default settings by pressing reset button on the back panel of the router... release the reset button after 30 seconds, power cycle the network by unplugging power cable of the modem and router... wait for couple of minutes and power up the modem first and wait for few seconds once modem is rebooted, after that power up the router, check the light status power, WLAN and internet light on the router should be on... try connecting to "linksys" wireless n/w from wireless pc...check whether it works or not and let me know...

Need Help: Trouble with Wireless Router Connection on MBP

Hi all. I just bought a MacBook Pro (my first Mac ever) and love, love, love it. However, one glitch is driving me crazy. I do *NOT* have an airport but I connect to my cable modem through my netgear wireless router. When my MacBook Pro goes into sleep mode, I lose the connection to the wireless router. I have to go unplug the router to reboot it for the MBP to see it again. I think it has something to do with how it is assigning the IP address. Has anyone else seen this issue? Know how to solve it? Thanks so much.

See "Symptom: The network connection drops unexpectedly" on this page:
Troubleshooting Wi-Fi issues in OS X Lion and Mac OS X v10.6

Need help choosing a new router (business use)

Here is what I have: Windows XP Pro Workstation (Wired) Server running Windows 2000 Server (Wired) Server running Linux (Wired) Windows XP Pro Laptop (Wireless) Playstation 3 (Wireless) I plan on creating a VPN connection to my network using Microsoft's VPN (Routing and Remote Access component to be specific); however, I currently have a 3 year-old Linksys Wireless-G Router w/Speedbooster (WRT54GS) that does not allow incoming VPN Connections. I have confirmed all the settings are correct on my end and the router will not cooperate. I would like to get a new router that will allow incoming VPN Connections and provide wireless to my wireless equipment. I DO NOT want to use 3rd party VPN software. Your recommendations are much appreciated.

It is unclear to me what kind of VPN connection you want to make exactly. Do you want to have a VPN connection from a computer in the internet using Microsoft's VPN client (i.e. PPTP or L2TP) to a server inside your LAN which is running the VPN server? What protocol do you want to use?
This should work through the WRT you have already. What hardware version do you have? Check the label underneath the router. Check for firmware upgrades for your router on the linksys technical support pages.
What port forwardings did you configure for the VPN tunnel?
Some people reported that the pass-through settings in the router were reversed: not setting the pass-through option actually allow traffic.
I don't think that a new router will necessarily solve your problems.
If you still want to upgrade, I would not necessarily look for a full replacement of the WRT. The WRTs (older and newer) bundle many functions inside a single box which make it versatile to use but on the other hand also has it downsides when one function influences some other for instance.
You can easily turn your old WRT into an access point for your LAN. If you want to buy a new router I would rather look into a wired router maybe even considering one with a VPN server built-in. Then you can establish the tunnel to the VPN router instead of a server inside your LAN. But you have to check the VPN routers carefully if they really support the client you want to use for the connection. Some are limited.

NEED HELP TO SET UP SMALL NETWORK - WIRELESS SIGNAL FROM NOVATEL U760 USB

Hello -
I need help setting up a small network in my new home in Florida, which has no wired broadband capability - not cable, not dsl. My options are satellite (which I'd like to avoid) or wireless broadband via Millenicom (or now Virgin Mobile) using their Novatel U760 USB stick.
Here are the network components - someone please tell me how to set this up:
PC #1 (has wireless card, but I've connected it by ethernet to the router)
PC #2 (no wireless card; connected via ethernet to router)
MACBOOK, 1 1/2 years old (2.1 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo, 4 gigs RAM), running OS 10.58, connected wirelessly to router.
AIRPORT EXTREME BASE STATION, Model A1143.
I'm not thrilled about using a wireless 3G signal as my primary one, (sprint network, claims 600 - 1400 kbps speed), but it costs 1/2 to 1/3 of what a slightly faster satellite signal would.
I have not ordered this service yet. Before I do, I'd like a clear understanding that I can, in fact, set up my simple network, which I'd probably do the same as it's now configured with cable broadband - both PC's plug via
ethernet into the Airport Extreme router, the MacBook connects wirelessly - AND,
my question is this:
Can I plug the wireless card - a Novatel U760 USB-stick device - straight into that USB slot in the Airport Extreme base station and will it automatically recognize that device?
Or, do I have to plug it into the MacBook and somehow share that wireless signal between the 2 PC's (only 1 of which has a wireless card, so I'd have to get a card for PC #2)?
And help anyone can provide will be much appreciated!
Thanks,
Em

from the Airport FAQ #14:
"Question: Can I connect my Soundsticks or other USB speakers to AirPort Express?
Answer: No. The USB port is for connecting a printer, not for other devices."
Im assuming other devices include USB modems.
So, I would say your cheaper route would be to get a second wireless card and just share your internet connection from one of your PC.

I need to improve the wireless router range of my time capsule. What sort of extender (repeater?) should I be considering?

I need to improve the wireless router range of my time capsule. What sort of extender (repeater?) should I be considering? Will it affect my use of the time capsule as a hard drive backup?

In order to insure compatibility, you need to consider an Apple AirPort Express or AirPort Extreme if you are thinking about "extending" or "repeating" the network wirelessly.
It is also possible to extend the network by connecting an AirPort Extreme or Express back to the Time Capsule using a permanent wired Ethernet cable connection, which will provide better performance.
If you have a new "tower" model of the Time Capsule, then you would need a new "tower" version of the AirPort Extreme to take full advantage of the capabilities of the Time Capsule.
If you have an earlier "flat" or "square" version of the Time Capsule, then an AirPort Express would be a good match for the capabilities of the Time Capsule.
An "extender" will not affect the operation of your Time Capsule other than allow wireless devices to connect from a greater range at higher speeds.

I need help choosing a new MBP (previous one was stolen)

Hello everyone, I need help choosing my next macbook pro because my previous one (15" Core i7 high res anitglare screen) was stolen . As you probably tell I spent a lot of money on my previous one and now I am a broke college student that doesn't have $2,400 to drop on a replacement.
So this is where you come in... because of budget reasons I have been looking at the 13 inch macbook pro but I just cannot bring myself to spend $1200 on a laptop with old technology (Core 2 duo processor) not to mention it is only 2.4ghz. I am not really sure what to ask about it I think i just need some good stats or other convincing information to allow me to buy it.
I know about the student discount and the refurb. macs, are there any other reliable ways to get a less expensive MBP?
I am a converted PC user and I LOVE macs, please don't let my budget make me revert back to a PC...

Like you’ve already said refurb is a good option.
I know it’s a bit late now but let me point you in the direction of Prey Project.
Prey Project is an open source program I use on my MacBook Pro, it’s a program that can track your computer and phones if stolen using GPS / Google Maps etc to give you location of it.
It will also take pictures of who is in front of it, log what they are doing etc.
Check it out here http://preyproject.com/ this such an amazing program that is free to use, will work on Apple, Windows, Linux and Android phones.

Need help choosing how to extend my existing home network to my detached garage?

I have done as much research as possible on this scenario but cannot seem to match the ideal solution with my wants. Perhaps I simply just do not understand networking as well as I thought I did. Either way, any helpful information or suggestions are greatly appreciated.
Objective: Extend my wireless network to my detached garage.
My current ISP provider is Time Warner Cable. I have RoadRunner Extreme, which in my area gives consistent speeds of 50 Mbps download and 5 Mbps upload when I am connected via ethernet cable. When I upgraded to the "Extreme" package i found out I was forced to use their Motorola SB6580 ... its a DOCSIS 3.0 cable modem + wireless router. I was able to access the Motorola's setup options on the internet and I disabled the wireless function. This has allowed me to use my Time Capsule as the primary router to provide wireless access on my home network. I have not had any issues with this setup and is my preferred way to operate.
I have recently moved my home office to the 2nd story of my detached garage and need to extend my wireless network to meet the demands of all my gear. I have decided to achieve this goal by going with one of the following 3 options:
1.) enable the wireless function on the motorola modem making it the primary router. move my time capsule out to the office and use it in bridge mode. However I do not think I understand bridge mode correctly. I thought the secondary router (in this case my TC) in bridge mode needed to be connected w/ an ethernet cable at all times to enable this feature? If I understand similar networking discussions I will lose the ethernet ports with this option? If this isnt called Bridge mode once i take away the ethernet cable what is it "technically" called?
2.) buy a 2nd airport extreme base station and create the same type of wireless network extension setup. The difference here is I would leave my motorola's wireless features disabled, use 2 apple products that speak apples to apples wirelessly and relieve myself of all the headaches involved with a neopolitan setup. This seems like the obvious choice b/c Apple products are much more user friendly, but I dont want to spend the $200 on a new router if I can achieve a comparable setup by just enabling the equipment I already have.
3.) use either of these 2 scenarios above & go buy a 150' ethernet cable to join them together. if this is the case wouldnt a $50 hub suffice on the end of the cable? I dont necessarily need to have wireless, just reliable connectivity. I can access the existing wireless network now, but download speeds are not great and things really start to slow down when i have multiple clients connected. I would rather not have to drill through exterior walls, bury conduit and install learn how to install data wall plates, but i will if this is the pros far out way the cons.
Current modem/router placement: if standing @ the front door of my 1 story house facing out towards the street my motorola modem/router is in the front right-hand corner of the house.
Distance location of the detached garage office setup: if standing @ my front door my my work area is in the far back left corner of my property. it is approx 175' from the router and on the 2nd story of the garage. I said 150' cable earlier b/c i could relocate the router to a bedroom on the opposite end of the house, however this would eleminate the current wired status of the items connected to it and I would prefer to keep them wired in.
clients connected in the house: (4) apple tv's; Roku; Xbox; Wii; Playstation 3; (2) Lenovo laptops; iPad; (2) Blackberry's; (2) iPhones; iPod touch; (2) wireless netowrk printers; (2) smart tv's ... a handful of these are currently wired into the time capsule now which provides an uninterupted viwing experience for the MLB package. This of course trumps all opportunity costs involved with moving the router. There is nothing more frustrating than a screen buffering in the botton of the 9th inning after you've sat there for 3 hours.
clients connected in the office: (2) 27" imacs; apple tv; iPad; network printer; Wii; Harmony Link universal remote; Mac Book Pro ...
I have approx 5TB of digital media that is shared over the network via shared iTunes libraries that I would like to access as well. iCloud helps with all of our household gadgets as far as acessibility but with all the backups going on simutaneously it also creates headaches when you need the throughput. I need to do a better job of managing those settings. nonetheless, I would like some guidance on the best way to extend my current netowrk, suggestions for better scenarios i did not mention and thus am probably not aware of and any networking 101 schooling if it doesnt sound like i understand the way bridge mode/network extension works. sorry for the long post and thank you for your time & help.

Ethernet beats all other solutions hands down..
A single ethernet connection from wherever is the closest point in the house to the garage office... wins. You can plug a router working as AP and switch or pure switch on to it. Get a cabler in to do the job.. and they can probably figure it out and do the whole job whilst you scatch your head.. yes you will pay for it.. but a cabler knows how to do it. And most likely leave the inside network exactly as it is. Since office is important to be reliable.. there is one and one only reliable method.. ethernet.
If the garage and house are on one electrical circuit.. which is doubtful if it is a separate building then EOP adapters can often work well.. They do not handle earth leakage protection, breakers (rather than fuses) or meters at all well.. but if they are simply all connected to power.. behind the same meter and using old fashioned fuse box.. EOP rated at 200mbps or some now are 500mbps can work reasonably well. Speed about the same as wireless at its best but if it works when installed will generally not change with the weather, moon, and wind direction which wireless is liable to do.
Wireless bridging.. hmm avoid if possible. For reliable connection no.. apple products can do wireless repeater but as you mentioned that turns off the ethernet ports except for the Express.. that is the only unit you can use as a bridge and plug a switch into it. Why Apple why??
So if you want to bridge two points by wireless buy specialised wireless bridge.. that means an AP in the house plugged into the existing network.. and AP unit perhaps on the outside of the garage.. or in windows if you have a window in the house that looks at a window in your office. Look at products from companies like ubiquiti.. they are not too expensive but professional equipment and designed for precisely this kind of work.
Hence the reliability is dramatically better than domestic stuff.. and will require a lot less work to maintain the link.
Conclusion.. wire it.
Unless you rent the house.. an investment in ethernet cabling install once properly and forget .. beats every other solution even if it costs x5 as other solutions.

Need help configuring: 2 wireless routers with 2 different SSID's on one network

Hello everyone:
I've been reading around on the forum trying to find the answer to this question, but have not found any clear cut answer that satisfies all my requirements. A more in-depth explanatiion.
I have 1 IP address coming in via cable modem. I want to configure two wireless routers (one secured with WPA-TKIP, and one unsecured--a "guest network" if you will) each with different SSID's. The secured network would be for my server, home PC's, IP webcams, DynDNS updating; while having an unsecured wireless router that friends and family can access. Ideally, I do not want anyone who accesses the unsecured wireless router to be able to get access into my secured network.
Can someone please tell me if this is possible. I think it is based on some posts I have already seen, but specific details about how to do it would be appreciated. Additionally, my DynDNS has to still be able to update with my ISP's IP so that I can access my server and home webcams.
EQUIPMENT
2 - WRT54G
1 - EZXS55W
1 - WVC200
1 - WVC54GC
(all of my stuff --webcam, server, dyndns, etc -- is working currently on my secured network. I just need to add the unsecured network)
I know this is a lot, but I would appreciate any help. THANKS.
Solved!
Go to Solution.

You must have the main WRT54G router connected to the modem. Set up the secured wireless network on the main router. Connect all your wireless computers or devices to the main secured wireless network.
Let's consider the IP address of the main router is 192.168.1.1.
Now connect only one computer to the Port 1 on second wireless router.
Open the setup page of the second wireless router. Change the wireless settings, SSID, unsecured.
Change the IP address of the second router to 192.168.2.1. Save the settings.
Connect the cable from the Ethernet port on the main router to the Internet port on second wireless router.
Power cycle the second wireless router.
Now the guest computers connected to the second wireless unsecured wireless network will be able to access the Internet only. They will not able to see the computers or devices connected to the first wireless router.

Need to buy a wireless router that is compatible with 10.4.11 and macbook pro, and pc. Current Airport Extreme not a compatible option. Please help with suggestions.

Any mid range options would be helpful. Thank your.

You can set up and administer the Airport Extreme from any computer, Mac or PC. The only requirement is the version of Airport Utility appropriate for the OS, in order to accomplish its initial configuration. For Tiger, it's the one I linked.
Apparently the "chat" participant simply read from Apple's web page. Anyone can do that
Client operating systems are meaningless to the Airport itself (or any other wireless router).
Linksys made fine products before Cisco bought them. Cisco is focused on large corporate deployments, not small users - abandonment of the Flip is evidence of that. Their individual consumer support is horrible.

Need Help WRT54G v5 Wireless-G Router Cannot Access Internet

Hello, we have been experiencing trouble with our router. Using our wireless router we cannot connect to the internet. We use a cable to connect the modem to the router to the computer.
This problem first occured when a buddy of mine connectred to our wireless signal with his Xbox-360 Wireless adaptor. After that we could not connect to the internet using our router.
Any help would be greatly appreciated

Logon to www.linksys.com/downloads and download the firmware for the router and upgrade the routers firmware and reconfigure it .

Need help setting up wireless on G5 tower

I recently inherited a G5 tower and I am trying to set it up with my existing wireless connection. I currently have a D-link router that works for my laptop.
I am 99% sure that the G5 tower has Airport. It has an airport icon on the top of the screen, and I can turn it on/off. Also, under About This Mac -> More Info it shows an airport extreme card.
After setting up the computer, I was dissapointed to see that it didn't pick up a wireless signal. It is about 25-30ft from the wireless router. I bought an antenna because I thought it would fix the problem, but it still doesn't find any networks.
Am I missing something?? I am new to Macs so maybe I have to type in the network name or something? I would think it would just show up as an option when I open Internet Connect. Please help! I have been trying to figure this out for weeks and it is driving me crazy.
Reed

Hi Reed, and a warm welcome to the forums & Macdom!
Go to System Preferences
Click Network
Highlight AirPort and click Configure...
Then click the plus this time to add your access point. Enter the correct password, save, reboot.
(The Interface that connects to the Internet, needs to be drug to the top of Network>Show:>Network Port Configurations and checked ON.)

3 56G wireless ready Macs need info on a wireless router.

We have a two level house and the macintosh that will have the router will be on one end of the house on the seconds level while the other two mac are on the first floor.
The first would be in the middle of the of the other two and we estimate the distance with the wireless antena pointing down to the lower level that would would need a wireless area coverage of about 70ft a 100 would probably cover us and be the better choice.
anyone help me as we are stuck on dialup till I find out which would be the better wireless router for out problem.
Thanks.
Lee
Mac Mini 1.42 8X DVD+-RW Dual Layer 24X CD-RW 250 Gig Ministack Version 2 Mac OS X (10.4.7) Apple Bluetooth keyboard 19" Nec VGA CRT Flat Screen 1 Gig Memory iSight

There are of course several different options available to you.
One of many is this set-up here.
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=107454
Bear in mind that if you do not use an Airport Extreme Base (Router), The Router you use must be able to use WDS set-up to extend the network with Airport Express.
There are literaly 100s of different Routers on the Market from the various manufactures all of them make good products it is really hard to guage which has the best coverage area, I have had several and the Airport Extreme is by far and away the easiest to confiqure for Mac.
Good Luck with your choice.
One last thing many users cringe at the price of the Airport Extreme, but remember it is also a print server as well and if you fiqure each as a stand alone hardware it's cheap.
Don

I need help choosing a wireless router (Networking Noob)

Similar Messages

Maybe you are looking for