IMac G3 OS 9.2.2 with DHCP problems

Question

I'm totally new to Macs, so I apologize in advance if I don't know the correct things to mention in this post. I just received two nearly identical iMac G3's (the only difference is one is 350MHz, the other is 400MHz) and wanted to get them onto my home network, which is currently dominated by Windows PC's. I reinstalled the OS on one of the iMacs since its hard drive was wiped before I got it. I used the gray "iMac Software Install" CD with OS 9.1 on it that came with the system. Install worked fine, and the system seems to check out.
I hooked the computer up to an ethernet cable that is connected to my router at home. The link light on the router came on, and Apple's System Profiler says the ethernet connection is active and up. However, running through the Internet Connection Helper, I was unable to get DHCP working properly. I went into the TCP/IP control panel and here's what I have...
Connect via: Ethernet
Configure: Using DHCP Server
DHCP Client ID: [this box is blank]
IP Address: 169.254.84.226
Subnet mask: 255.255.0.0
Router Address: 169.254.84.226
Name Server Address: [this box is blank]
Implicit Search Path - Starting Domain name: [box is blank]
Ending domain name: [box is blank]
Search domains: [box is blank]
Clearly my system is not getting a valid IP address from my router (a D-Link DI-524 with the latest firmware version, 3.20). I checked the system's name in the File Sharing control panel since some people suggested it may be the problem. The name is fine - it is "blue" for one of the iMac's and "indigo" for the other. Creative, aren't I? Anyway, something is going on where the link is up but no DHCP address is being assigned.
I decided to hook the other Mac to the same cable. The exact same problem happens - only "169" addresses are assigned, not the "192" addresses that the router should be handing out. So I decided to test out the cable - it works fine with my Sony laptop. I connect it to the same cable and I'm online instantly. My router is set up to configure computers via DHCP, too, since release and renewal commands on the Sony laptop work just fine. I've rebooted, I've reinstalled the OS, I've updated to 9.2.1 and then to 9.2.2, and nothing seems to work. Both systems refuse to get DHCP addresses, but my Sony, on the exact same cable, works fine. I even changed the port that the ethernet cable connects to on the router - again, the iMac's fail to get an IP while other computers that I try with that cable and that port at a later time have no problem getting an IP.
On a final note, when I set the IP configuration of one of the systems up manually and connect it to the router (forcing it to have an IP of 192.168.0.150, for example), I am able to then ping the iMac from a windows based PC on the network. Also, I am then able to ping the Windows PC from the Mac using a program that I found online to allow me to ping on a Mac. Strangely, I can't ping the router's IP (192.168.0.1) from the iMac even though traffic MUST be going through the router to get to the Windows PC from the Mac and vice versa when I do those pings. I have no problem pinging the router's IP from the Windows PC. It's a really strange situation and I just can't figure it out...
If the cable didn't work with any computer, I'd blame that. If the router didn't assign IP's to my windows boxes, I'd blame the router. If I only had one Mac, I could theorize that it has some sort of problem with its ethernet port. If I couldn't ping in or out, I could also theorize that the link was broken somewhere in-between. But to have the exact same thing happening on 2 iMacs with virtually identical configurations and OS installations is really bothersome, considering all of the other networking equipment has been shown to work properly with the Windows machines. I have a feeling it is some setting that I don't know about on the Macs that must be changed or enabled / disabled, but I just don't know what it is. Any suggestions or help that anyone could provide would be greatly appreciated.
iMac G3 400MHz   Mac OS 9.2.x  

Answer 1

Access control lists aren't enabled on the router... like I said, it's strange that the pings are getting through (which an access control list would prevent). I reset the router to factory defaults and the problems I mentioned still remained.
I tried out a different router and suddenly, without explanation, both Macs started working. I guess my D-Link router (DI-524) just doesn't like these iMacs running OS 9.2.2. They work fine with a Belkin router that a friend brought over, though - and that has me satisfied with their condition. Looks like I need to buy a new router, or otherwise contact D-Link to figure out what the problem is. I have a feeling just getting a new router will be easier, though. Thanks for the help. Hopefully someone else searching for help with these iMac models and a D-Link DI-524 router will find this information useful. Oh, and lastly, I have another D-Link DI-524 available... I connected the Macs to it, and again, they couldn't get IP addresses autoassigned via DHCP. This is definitely a compatibility issue between iMacs and this specific router model.