MacBook can't detect AirPort Express

I have a MacBook 2.4 Ghz which is about 6 months old. I have a Netgear Super G wireless Modem router which I have been experiencing some problems with (does not always connect to MacBook or my older PC). So I bought an Airport Express which I have plugged into an older, more reliable Netgear wired modem router. I want to use the AirPort Express as a wireless transmitter for the wired router. However no matter how I seem to set it up, my mac can't connect to the AirPort Express and the light on it blinks Orange. I know that the router is Ok because I have plugged it straight into my Mac and it works fine.
I tried to do the same with my Wireless Modem/Router and the Airport Express light turned green and it appeared in the airport utility application. However when I turned the wireless transmitter on the router off I was unable to connect to the AirPort Express again.
I have tried to set it up in several different ways (as a bridge or as a new network etc...) and soft/hard/factory resets but nothing seems to work. So I took the AirPort Express back to the shop and exchanged it as faulty only to find that the replacement is exactly the same.
Am I missing something here? Should the AirPort Express connect to the Mac straight out of the box without connection to the internet? Or does it need an internet connection before it is visible in the AirPort Utility? Can it act as a wireless transmitter when connected to a wired modem router by ethernet? If so, how do I set that up?

I want to use the AirPort Express as a wireless transmitter for the wired router.
Mine is set up that way and works fine.
Should the AirPort Express connect to the Mac straight out of the box
Not for what you want to do....
1.) Plug the Express into a wall socket and connect an Ethernet cable from your MacBook to the Express.
2.) Open System Preferences -> Network and set a Ethernet Only connection (turn off all connections except Ethernet.
3.) At this point the Express will show up in the Airport Utility. (If it does not show up, use the reset button to return to factory defaults)
4.) Open Airport -> Wireless and set up a simple (Open, no security) wifi network.
5.) Apply and restart the Express
6.) Open Internet and set up DHCP addressing for the Express.
7.) Apply and restart the Express.
8.) On the same page - at the bottom - set the Connection Sharing to OFF (Bridge Mode).
9.) Apply and restart the Express.
10.) Unplug the Express from the wall, and turn off the wired router. Move the Ethernet cable from the MacBook to the wired router. Restart the router and then restart the Express.
11.) WAIT - go have a cup of coffee. Sometimes my Express takes two or three minutes to obtain an IP address and go from orange to green.
12.) Open the Macbook, go to System Preference -> Network. Create and Airport Only location (turn off Ethernet, Bluetooth, etc - all other connections)
13.) Connect to the wifi network created by the Express. Again, wait. The Macbook has to first connect to the Express and then the wired router has to recognize the request for an IP address and assign one. (Second cup of coffee maybe.)
14.) At this point, you can open Airport Utility and change the wifi network to a secure hidden network or any wireless configuration that you prefer.
PS Took me a long time and many attempts to figure this all out but my complex little home LAN works just fine now.

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IMac suddenly can't detect airport express; all other devices can -help!

Literally overnight and with no changes in settings, etc. my iMac (running the latest version of Tiger) will not detect airport express. My laptop still detects it and connects just fine; my iphone connects via wifi, etc. It's just the iMac that isn't working.
Upon starting up my iMac this morning, I was prompted to "update airport firmware" which I did. Ever since then I can't get the computer to recognize airport.
I've worked on it for 2 hours disconnecting and resetting the modem; checking and unchecking boxes in the network settings, trying to renew the dhcp lease, etc. When I scan for wireless devices, the iMac does not detect one. If it does detect it, I get an "there was an error connecting" message.
So frustrating, especially since I have used this in the same way for over two years and have had NO problems until this morning.
The airport express has a solid green light. Any help is much appreciated!! Thank you.

Hi guys, its me again....
Dunno if is the same problem, but i dont think the problem is the airport, all of you (as i did too) tried making new users, deleting preferences, etc etc...
I tried resetting the airport, and is the same, is something in the computer that trigger the issue after the firmware in the airport, dunno how, but as far i saw, its the problem...
At least for me, after lost the connection, my airport on-off button stop working, if i turn off the airport in the upper menu or in the network preference panel, go off of course, but if i try to turn it on again, desnt work anymore, the button works of course, but never change to ON state...
that button issue isnt a hardware airport issue, is a OS issue...
:S
P.D.: i've trying to replicate some situations on the computer, programs, task etc, bcuz' by some reason there's something that trigger the desconnection... by example, right now i've more than 4 o 5 hours without the problem yet.... but.... i've using none or unusual programs to make the regular tasks...
And last night, i leave the computer connected to internet the whole night, no user interference and was online all the time...
something is the trigger..
Message was edited by: daniac
Message was edited by: daniac

Macbook can't recognize Airport Express!

Hi guys,
I have a Macbook Pro Retina 15" Early 2013 running Mavericks 10.9.1. My router is the Apple Airport Express A1088 and what is happening is: I did the setup of the Airport Express last year and everything was working fine. I had to download the Airport Utility 5.6 and then I configured the Airport Express. Alright. But today, my wifi connection was not showing in my Macbook Pro, but it was working fine in my iPhone 5. I tried to turn the Airport Express off, and the same for my Macbook Airport, but it doesn't work. So I decided to do a hard reset and also a reset to factory settings. What is happening is my Macbook Pro showed only one time after doing the reset and I did all the steps of the setup using the Airport Utility 5.6. But when the airport express restarted, it was working only with my iPhone 5, not with my Macbook. So I tried to reset again to factory settings and now I can't do the setup because the Airport Express doesn't show up in my Macbook as a new base station or anything else. With my iPhone 5 I can see the Airport Express as a new base station, however I am not able to setup it because it is a old version (A1088).
I don't know why my Macbook Pro is not showing up the Airport Express. I have already tried to make it work with Windows (via virtual machine) and using Airport Utility 5.6. I also know that THIS IS NOT A HARDWARE PROBLEM! Any other network I am able to join with my Macbook.
I also looked in this forum about other users that had the same problem, but almost all of them started working after a hard reset or reset to factory settings, which is not working for me.
I just wish my Macbook to recognize the Airport Express, until yesterday everything was working fine. And today it is only working with my iPhone, but I am not able to set up it with the iPhone.
Help!
Thanks!

Hey Luis!
I am sorry - i only searched for Apple Airportutility and Mavericks to post the Link :-)
Did you already tried
- to delete your Wifi from the list of known Wifi's from your MacBook/System Prefs/Network/AirPort/Option/
- or maybe delete and reinstall the AirPort Service from your MacBook/System Prefs/Network
Cheers
Robo

Macbook no longer detects Airport Express Network

I've been using my macbook to connect to my Airport express base station for my home wireless daily for like a year now. Today however, my macbook refuses to connect to the network. After a few scans it detects the network, then when I try to connect it brings up the "this network requires a WEP password" which I put in, and then the connection times out on every attempt.
I tried using the Airport Utility which fails to even detect the base station.
Yes I've restarted my MB, yes I've restarted the express/modem. Thing is, I'm connected to the same network right now on my iPhone which doesn't seem to have any problem.

Update: my macbook can connect to the wireless network at my university, but still not the airport express network.

MacBook can't see Airport Express when waking from sleep

Hi,
I have an airport express unit specifically for using with air tunes. I am find that every time my macbook wakes from sleep although it reconnects to my wireless network ok it (and therefore itunes) can't see the AX anymore.
Rebooting the AX unit fixes the problem and i can again stream from itunes but i dont want to have to reboot the AX each time beacuse my MacBook goes in and out of sleep 5+ times a day as i move it around the house.
I am not having any issue with audio drop out or stuttering as mentioned by others, nor does the ax stop working once streaming has begun.
My Setup is:
MacBook OSX 10.4.11
Airport Express (latest firmware)
BeBox wireless router (rebranded speedtouch) running WPA2 security
Any suggestions on what i can do to stop this recurring?

I've recently developed a similar problem. When my PowerBook G4 wakes from sleep it can no longer see the Airport Express. It still connects to the Internet, and the AX continues to shine a steady green light. I've written an Automator script that restarts the router, and once it reboots the AX shows up again in iTunes or the AirPort utility.
Customer service for my router claims this is an issue with the AX. Anyone have any ideas?
Computer: PowerBook G4, 10.5.2
Wireless network: TrendNet TEW-432 G router, WPA, DHCP, SSID broadcast off, no MAC filter, Airport Express set up to join network (not extend).
Thanks,
tyler

Macbook can't find airport express?

just got the airport express today. plugged the ethernet cord from the modem to the airport. plugged it in. on the macbook running leopard, used airport utility and it can't seem to find the airport express? am i doin something wrong?

Did you connect to the new AirPort Express Base Station's (AX) wireless network, through the AirPort menu, before attempting to access it with the AirPort Utility? If yes, and the utility still couldn't find it, I suggest that you (temporarily) connect you computer directly, using an Ethernet cable, to the AX's Ethernet port, and then, try accessing it with the AirPort Utility again.

Can't detect airport express

i got another Airport Express and i am trying to set it up. the Airport Express utility couldn't detect the new airport express.

by default, an out-of-the-box airport express (AX) will create a seperate network. click on the airport icon in your menu bar. you should see something like Apple network xxxxxxxx.
in order to set up the AX, you will have to temporarily join its network ! you will get a message asking "do you really want to switch networks ?" and you want to do that.
now you should see the AX in airport utility. click on the icon of the AX once to highlight it and click continue. follow onscreen instructions and, when prompted, choose to join (or extend) an existing network and enter the required information for your network.
running an ethernet cable from the AX to your computer will also help airport utility to see the device.

Computers can't detect Airport Express after configuration

I've been using AE devices since 2006 and have never seen what I'm about to describe.
A couple of months ago I setup an older AE at a friend's house. He wanted to print wirelessly, so I set up his AE to join his wireless network and connected it his printer via USB. All his computers (lots of Macs, one Windows 7 PC with airport utility 5.6.1 plus Bonjour) saw the printer through Bonjour and printed just fine.
Until last week, when no computer was able to see the printer through Bonjour.
The light on the AE was solid green. I thought unplugging the AE and plugging it back in would solve the problem. It didn't.
So I reset the AE and reconfigured it from scratch using the Windows machine (as I had done the first time two months earlier). The configuration went well, but Airport Utility on the PC would not detect the AE after initial setup.
So I thought the AE was defective. The next day I brought one from my house (a first generation N one). This one was working fine at my house, so I knew it wasn't defective.
I reset it and reconfigured it with Airport Utility on the PC. Again, after initial configuration, Airport Utility would not detect the AE.
"It's the PC's fault," I thought. Let's use a Mac.
I fired up the latest Airport Utility on a 2011 iMac with 10.8.4. It would not see it. So I reset it again and reconfigured it from scratch. It found it. Great.
So I plugged the AE near the printer and connected it to it via USB. Went back to the Mac, added the printer via Bonjour and printed a test page. It printed the page, but lost connection to the printer immediately after. It never reestablished connection.
I took a Macbook with 10.6.8. Fired up Airport utility and set the laptop near the printer with the AE connected to it. It could not find the AE.
I then reset and reconfigured the AE one more time, this time using the laptop. And again, after initial configuration, the laptop could not find the AE.
In all these instances, the light on the AE was solid green after initial, successful configuration.
I then purchased the latest AE (the dual band N one), went through the same steps, with the same results. No computer can see it.
What gives? I retested all these AEs at my house, and they work just fine.
Nothing has changed at my friend's house since his AE was working last week. What can possibly cause the problem?

Fixed it. It was not an Apple problem. I just had to cycle the wireless access points.

MacBook Pro that my Airport Express WiFi profile was created crashed. Can i reset the Airport Express either to an iPad or Windows 7 computer?

MacBook Pro that my Airport Express WiFi profile was created crashed. Can i reset the Airport Express either to an iPad or Windows 7 computer?

Get the Airport Utility for the your iPad from the App store. You will need to know the password for the Airport Express (not the WiFi password) to access the AE. The iPad utility will, I think, do all of the actions to control your AE.
You can reset the AE back to factory default but with the iPad app you should not ned to.

Macbook Pro can't see Airport Express

I have an older Airport Express together with a recent iMac and MBP, both running 10.6.2. The iMac can see the Airport Express, configure it in Airport Utility, and access the internet fine. However, the MBP can't find the Airport Express at all - it doesn't even show up in Airport Utility. I've been beating my head against the wall all night trying to fix this, but no matter what I try, the MBP cannot see the AX. It can see that my network is available, but trying to login to the network results in an immediate connection failure, with a system.log entry of:
*Nov 19 21:51:49 Greywolf Apple80211Agent[461]: Error joining NETWORKNAME: Connection failed (-3930) result unavailable)*
Any ideas?

Managed to "solve" this on my own. I ended up deleting every airport and network preferences file from the system that I could find, and also trashed all the related keychain entries. Eventually, my MBP noticed the AX sitting two feet away.

How do I share a 3G USB modem connected to my Macbook Pro with my Airport Express?

Hi. I have a 3g USB modem connected to my macbook pro, and I want to try share the signal with my Airport Express (latest model).
Now before everybody screams that it can't be done, I was searching the forums and found a discussion in which someone describes how to do it from 2008, unfortunately it is archived and I couldn't ask the author directly, and the description doesn't go into much detail.
In the thread, the author describes turning internet sharing on to share the USB modem, creating a network on the macbook, then renaming the Airport Express network name the same as the macbook, and setting the AX to Join a Network.
Problem being there is no description of whether the macbook connected to the AX via ethernet or wifi, what settings were changed on the AX eg bridge mode.
Is this possible in theory, and has anybody had any success sharing a 3g USB modem via a macbook pro to an AX? I know there are other options like getting 3g ethernet modems, unfortunately not an option in this case - new house, waiting for DSL to be installed, 2-3 month wait.
Thanks

Well, you cannot use the 3G USB modem plugged directly into the Express. However, you can configure your MacBook Pro to do 'Internet sharing' (SysPrefs>Sharing) over the Ethernet port, and then connect your Express into the Ethernet port. Alternatively, you could always get your MacBook to 'create a wireless network'.
new house, waiting for DSL to be installed, 2-3 month wait.
You could always look for open WiFi networks to *cough*borrow*cough* .

Airport Utility can't find Airport Express after setting up as repeater station

I wanted to extend my 2Wire-based wireless network into a specific room that never seems to be able to pick up the signal, and found the following instructions on how to do so on Apple's website:
(note: these instructions were submitted by another user in response to a question as to whether or not an Airport Express could be used as a repeater station for non-Airport Extreme-based wireless networks - linked here http://store.apple.com/us/question/answers/product/MB321LL/A?pqid=QY4CAJJC7KFTTD KYH72DKPXF4CAUA9D4J).
Yes, you can do this two ways: If you can connect your airport express to your router via ethernet, then you will perform the following steps in the airport utility:
1. Select your airport express.
2. Select manual set up.
3. Under Wireless, select Participate in a WDS network
4. Enter your network name, radio mode, channel, and security
5. Under WDS, select WDS main
6. Check wireless clients
7. Add the MAC address of the router
8. Click update
That's it
Now, if you connect your airport express to your router wirelessly, all the steps are the same except for step 5. In this step, select WDS remote instead. Everything else is the same.
I followed those instructions exactly with my Airport Express and, after restarting, the amber light is flashing on and off continuously and the Airport Utility can't find the Airport Extreme base station. What the heck went wrong here?

Update:
I restarted the laptop I used to set up the AX as well as pushing the "reset" button on the AX (first time - pressed it for 1 second, Second Time - pressed and held for 15 seconds then let go). The Utility still isn't recognizing the base station.
I also upgraded the Utility's software to 5.5.3 right before I went through these steps, and now it's not recognizing the base station. ARGH.
Update #2: I plugged the AX into my laptop with an ethernet cable and the utility STILL can't detect it. This is ridiculous.
Update #3: Not 30 seconds after update #2, it FOUND the **** AX >.< I'm updating the firmware, but I still can't get it to work as a repeater station if I have to plug it into my laptop all the time JUST to get the Utility to recognize that yes, Virginia, there IS an Airport Extreme.
Message was edited by: bleedingrose19

Macbook can not detect any keyboards or mouses

My macbook can't detect any keyboards or mouses on the USB-port. USB-sticks or disks are no problem.
A week ago there was no problem connecting everything. So today I used a USB-hub to connect my devices and mybe this was the problem.
After connecting, the mac can't decect any keyboards or mouses also without using the hub.
I tried:
restart
battery removal
PRAM reset
SMC reset
But always no result.
So what can help?
Tanks.

I believe it has to do with my Airport Utility on my MacBook (since the problem occers since I upgraded to the latest version). Is there any way to reinstall this App?
EDIT: Sorry, I believe I need to read this thread http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=2644274&tstart=0
Message was edited by: Jaap74

ITunes on Vista can't see Airport Express

As above, really. I've got an Airport Express configured to join my wireless network which works fine with my MacBook Air. iTunes on the Air sees the Airport Express and streams to the speakers it's connected to; but iTunes on Vista can't see it.
My Vista PC is connected by ethernet cable to a DLink router, to which the MacBook Air and the Airport Express connect wirelessly. This setup worked fine with my previous Belkin router.
Any thoughts? Many thanks in advance.

On your Vista PC, temporarily disable your Windows Firewall. Did this solve the problem?
To disable the Windows Firewall:
o Control Panel > Network and Internet > Windows Firewall
o Turn Windows Firewall on or off

Can't install AirPort Express Assistant because I already have Utilities

Just having some annoying trouble here.
I have a MacBook Pro that came installed with AirPort Utilities, and it has the latest version.
I bought an AirPort Express so I could stream music to my speakers with AirTunes. I'm not hooking an ethernet cable to the airport, because my wireless already works fine in my house.
I need to install AirPort Express Assistant in order to set up the network between the express and my computer, but I can't even use the CD it came with because once I get to the part to select where I want to save it, it says "this computer already has a more recent version of AirPort on it etc..." However, I only have Utilities, not the assistant.
With the Express plugged in, I go to Utilities and it doesn't pick anything up, which makes sense. So basically, what can I do?
I tried deleting Utilities off my computer so I could just install the whole CD but even that did nothing.
Thanks.

Your version of Snow Leopard already had the latest version of AirPort Utility 5.5.1, which is the version that you should use to configure the AirPort Express.
The disk which came with the AirPort Express was produced some time ago and the version of AirPort Utility on the disk is out of date.
Not sure what you mean by Assistant. There is a guided setup process in AirPort Utility that is initiated when you click the Continue button. That may be what you are thinking of.
You made a mistake by deleting AirPort Utility 5.5.1 from your computer. You should download AirPort Utility 5.5.1 and install it so that you can configure your AirPort Express.
http://support.apple.com/kb/DL955

MacBook can't detect AirPort Express

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