New SSID/WEP key, how to update Airport Express?

A simple change to my access point, and I can't find a way to actually configure my Airport Express with the new info. I have Mac OS 10.4.10, and using the Airport Setup Assistant doesn't help - the AE doesn't show up in any list. Can anyone help?

Hello jvreagan. Welcome to the Apple Discussions!
To set up the AirPort Express Base Station (AX), temporarily connect your computer directly (using an Ethernet cable) to the Ethernet port of the AX, and then, using the AirPort Admin Utility (located in the \Applications\Utilities folder), to change settings.

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How to Connect Airport Express to Existing Wireless Network (Client Mode)

I am posting this for everyone tearing their hair out trying to connect the Airport Express to your own existing home wireless network. After spending 2 hours last night installing this on my father-in-law's home network, I hope to be able to save someone else the agony we went through.
So here's the situation:
Say you already have your own home network set up, and all you want is to be able to use AirTunes to play music off iTunes into your speaker system. And, you don't need the printer sharing capability nor creation of another wireless network (2 of the features of Airport Express). Then this solution is for you - read on.
Unfortunately, Apple's user manual is very unclear how to connect Airport Express to your own network. When you look at the picture diagram they provide, they show Airport Express picking up its signal from another Apple-oriented base. This can make you think you need to buy another piece of hardware to make it work. DON'T If you read through the manual, the Support section here, etc., you will hear lots of talk about "Client Mode" - and that this is the only way to get it to work. Nice - but no one really tells you how to set up the Airport in client mode.
Do yourself a favor, toss that user manual aside and run these steps.
(Note: These directions assume your DSL/Cable Modem is hooked up to a wireless router or acts as its own wireless router)
1. Get a cat5 Ethernet cable (anything but an orange cable - that's a crossover cable) like you would use to connect your PC to your router to pick up the Internet.
2. Connect the Ethernet cable to the router on one end, and to the Airport Express unit on the other end.
3. Plug in your Airport Express unit to the wall (this will not necessarily become its permanent location - you will be able to move it later). The light will glow solid Amber for about 30-45 seconds while it starts up, then blink Amber. At this point, the unit is ready to operate.
4. Install the CD to the PC where your iTunes music is stored. This should be painless. Once you open the program, it should detect the Airport unit.
5. At this point, the on-screen wizard will present you with your options, and walk you through the setup. This is much like the user manual describes - and you should be good to go form here forward.
Some pointers:
- When asked if you want to create a new network, join an existing network, or connect via Ethernet, choose the middle option for joining an existing network. You will need to know the name of your network, the password to connect to the network (if present), and the type of encryption used on the network (e.g. WEP, WPA, etc.). Side note, WPA is recommended, as it is a higher level of security than WEP. You will be able to configure the Airport Express unit to automatically login to your network.
- I would recommend, when creating a password for the Airport Express unit, use the same password as your network, to avoid confusion.
6. The very last step will ask you to save the settings to the Airport Express. Here's the kicker - when you save the settings, you are TRICKING the Airport Express into no longer acting as a network broadcaster, but instead being a "slave" to your own network. What do I mean? You will lose the connection from your PC to the Airport Express - an error message will pop up telling you the unit can no longer be found. While you might think you did something wrong, you actually were successful!
7. Unplug your Airport Express, and disconnect the Ethernet cable from your router and the Airport unit. This will no longer be needed.
8. Go to your desired location where you want to plug in your Airport Express unit. Before plugging it in, connect your Audio cable from the Airport Express to your audio receiver. Once that is connected, then plug in the Airport Express unit. The light will glow solid Amber for 30-45 seconds while it loads, and then will blink Amber for a brief period of time before turning solid GREEN. When this happens, you have successfully connected the Airport Express to your home network!
9. Go back to your PC with iTunes. Open the Airport software - you should now have a listing for your Airport Express unit in the upper left. Click on this, and the wizard will guide you through connecting - you will need the password you created for the unit. You only need to go through this wizard once, and when finished, the software will tell you that can now use iTunes with your Airport unit.
10. Open iTunes. On the lower right, you will see a dropdown for Speakers, and it should be defaulted to My Computer. Click on that drop-down, and you will see the name of your Airport unit. Click on that name, and now your music will broadcast to the Airport unit!
11. Play a song in iTunes. Go to your audio receiver, and connect it to the channel for your external connection to the Airport Express unit. You should hear your music from iTunes. CONGRATULATIONS! =)
I hope these instructions were helpful - I am happy to answer any questions, so feel free to contact me, *******************@*****.**.
<Edited by Moderator>

Thanks for the detailed directions. You are absolutely correct in stating that people should toss the user manual; it's pretty worthless. I have had a problem setting up my new Airport Express as I have described in an earlier post - http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1839873&tstart=45
One quick question - does using your setup process set the AE up as part of a distributed network where the AE is acting as a wireless router where it is extending the range of your network? Or, is it simply a wireless connection to your stereo for iTunes? I am interested in having both, since my AE will be at the other end of the house from the main wireless router.
Thanks

When watching my Apple TV (3rd gen) the picture jumps a few frame every few seconds, this happens when I rent a film or play back from my new Mac Pro, my Wifi is the Airport Express.

When watching my Apple TV (3rd gen) the picture jumps a few frames every few seconds, this happens when I rent a film or play back from my new Mac Pro, my Wifi is the Airport Express.

These may be different issues, but lets look at rentals first.
Poor motion can result from mismatched output. If your source is 24 or 30 fps you should set the output of the Apple TV to 60 Hz, for 25 fps content use 50 Hz.
Additionally motion software on the TV itself can cause the picture to jump, check your TV settings and turn off any motion settings in use,

Trying to update airport express by downloading airport utility 5.6 on my macbook pro/lion. getting error message "version of OS X on this volume is not supported" What does it mean?

Trying to update airport express by downloading Airport Utility 5.6 (which it says I need). When installing I get an error message, "...version of Mac OSX on this volume is not supported." What does it mean/what do I do?

For OS X Lion, you need to download this version directly from Apple Support Downloads.

Since last Airport Update, Airport Express no longer connects to network

I Just get a flashing amber light.
I have hard reset and gone through the step by step, and all I want to do it use it for a remote printer.
I cannot even see the thing now.
Can anyone help ?

Not sure how you're resetting but try this...
Reset the Express back to factory defaults:
Use a pen or a paper clip to press and hold the reset button until the
status light flashes quickly (about 5 seconds). The following will occur:
AirPort Express restarts with the following settings:
AirPort Express receives its IP address using DHCP.
The network name reverts to default Apple Network.
The AirPort Express password is reset.
After you reset the express, airport utility should see the express with the default name. Double click the express and configure manually, the airport utility should tell you that you are switching networks, switch to the express network then continue with configuration and set the WEP key the same as the Extreme.

ITunes 9.2.1 Update & Airport Express Connection Problem

Hey, I bought an Airport Express recently, set it up on my current wi-fi network to stream audio.. worked perfectly and we had no problems. When iTunes 9.2.1 came out, I updated straight away and since then I've been having problems with the Airport Express. Now - if I want to use it to stream music, I have to go and unplug it and then plug it back in, wait for it to start up and then it will work. If I start streaming music pretty much straight away then I'll have about 45mins of playback before it will just stop. If I try to reconnect to the airport speakers then, it wont connect and comes up with a nasty looking error message in iTunes with loads of foreign looking symbols. I have to go unplug and then plug in again and wait for it to start up again before it will work again. If I don't start playing music soon after this 'reset', it loses its connection very quickly and I have to go plug out and in again to get it connected.
The green light is always showing, I've tried restoring to its default settings and then setting it up again, I've got the latest iTunes and Airport Express software.. but no idea how to stop this happening. Can anyone help as its getting very frustrating!
Thanks!

Same issue here. I just received a new Express N to replace my Express G (2004) since it was experiencing some minor stutter playing music (due to contention with the 10+ other clients on a 2.4Ghz wireless G network).
I have a dual-band Linksys 610n (latest firmware) with a 5ghz/40mhz N only network and a 2.4ghz/20mhz G only network. With the Express N configured to connect to the 5ghz N network as a client, I have to reset it every time I want to play music or I get the garbled error dialog in iTunes 9.2.1. In addition, after resetting, it only plays music for about 20 minutes and then starts to stutter and a minute later drops out completely and has to be reset once more.
I'm streaming from a 2009 MBPro/10.6.4 with 8GB Ram and it too is a client on the same N network. The MBPro is about 5 feet from the router and the Express N is less than 30 ft away through a few walls of drywall and wood studs. The Express G in the same configuration only experienced minor stutter during playback and never dropped from the network completely. I wanted to get the N express to remove contention by using the 5ghz network, obviously that's not going to work. I realize 5ghz has a shortened range (especially through objects), but 30 ft should be well within 5ghz reach and I have no problems with my other 5ghz devices (2 other MBPros).
The Express N has firmware 7.4.2 and the Express G has the latest firmware for it (6.x.x).
I'm going to try the Express N on the G network, but even if it works, I will probably just return the Express N and live with the Express G's minor stutters since there's no benefit to the N at that point.

Connecting a new HP computer with Windows 7 to Airport Express.

I have an AirPort Express set up with my home network, base station is configured on my IMAC. Now I have a new HP PC with Windows 7 for work, and I'm having trouble getting it to connect to the AirPort Express.
It asks for a "Security Key", and nothing in the literature or on the hardware seems to match that. I've tried every number sent with the Airport (ethernet ID, AirPort ID) but nothing works. Can someone provide advice on how to get this to work?
thanks,
Kevin

It is unlikely that the very long security "key" will solve your issue with the PC, but you never know.... it might be worth a try.
Open AirPort Utility, select the AirPort Express and click Manual Setup
Ignoring the window in the center of the screen, look way, way up to the top of the computer screen where the Help, AirPort Utility, Window, etc menus are located.
Click the Base Station menu
Click Equivalent Network Password password and your "key" will appear.

How to configure Airport Express N router and Netgear G router with Extreme

I have a primary Netgear G router (WRT54G) connected to my cable modem box. I have an Airport Express N router streaming music in another room and also extending the wireless network.
I am planning to demote the Netgear router as a switch + wireless network extender connected to my home theater setup (dish+apple tv+ps3) and purchase a new dual band Airport Extreme connected to the cable box and acting as the main router.
My question is if its possible for the N devices to still use N network while the G devices not demoting the whole wireless network to G? That's the reason why I want the Extreme. If yes, how to go about doing it? If not, I will just buy a cheap switch and use that for the Home theater and leave the current setup alone. Anyone who has a similar network, please advice. Thanks!

My question is if its possible for the N devices to still use N network while the G devices not demoting the whole wireless network to G?
Yes. To do so, you would need to connect the Netgear to the new 802.11n AirPort Extreme Base Station (AEBSn) by Ethernet, and then, reconfigure it as a bridge (disable both its NAT & DHCP functions).
In this configuration, the AEBSn & AXn can provide the 802.11n network and the Netgear can provide the 802.11g network.

HT1218 When trying to update Airport Express firmware I get an error message and it won't update.

When trying to update my Airport Express firmware I get an message that an error occured and it can't update.

most likey.Here is the new article apple has on it http://support.apple.com/kb/TS5376

How to setup airport express with time machine

just bought airport express so i can extend my wifi range,can anybody help on how to set up! I have time machine 2gb, my house is wired with cat6 cable in all the bed rooms, but now only half my house get wifi,so i want to extend it.I know i have to go into air utility and change some stuff, but sure what stuff?

I assume that this is a new AirPort Express and you have not tried to configure it previously.
Locate the AirPort Express in the general area where you would like to have more wireless signal coverage.
Connect the Ethernet cable to the WAN "O" port on the back of the AirPort Express
Power up the AirPort Express and let it run a few minutes. The amber light will be blinking slowly at this point.
Click the AirPort icon at the top of your Mac's screen and wait a few seconds for a listing of New AirPort Base Station to appear. Just below that, click directly on AirPort Express.
AirPort Setup will open up automatically on your Mac, take a minute to analyze the network, then announce that the AirPort Express will be configured to extend the Time Capsule network.
Enter a device name that you want to use for the AirPort Express and click Next
Wait a minute while AirPort Setup configures everything for you. When you see the indication of Setup Complete, click Done.
You should be all set.

Do I need to update airport express?

Can no longer play music from itunes on my MacBook Pro to my stereo. How do I know if my airport express modem is still working?

Then I would suggest opening up Airport Utility in your Utilities folder on your mac and it will tell you if there is an update for your Express.
Let us know what you find and thanks for the feedback.

HT1218 I get an Error 6721, while trying to update Airport Express. Solutions?

Tried to update my AirPort Express to 7.6.1 and got he error 6721. Anyone kno what that is and how toget around it? Thanks!

It should restore from the backup. If you don't have any backup then you will lose data but what you going to do you have no other alternative so go ahead and do it.
Allan

New Mac, Old Mac, Time Capsule, Old Airport express

Hi,
I have a couple of questions which I should be grateful if someone could answer:
I currently have an "old" mac (latest version of 10.4) and an "old" airport express (latest updates) connected to a modem which forms a basic wireless network with my mac connecting @ 802.11g speed. I also use airtunes.
I am looking at getting a new mac and a time capsule. My intention is to set up a new network with the time capsule as the main base connected to the modem. I only intend to use the backup facility with the new mac.
1.) Can I add the "old" airport express as a client to this network?
2.) If the answer is yes, then clearly the network will have to allow "g" and "n" devices to connect. will doing so mean that the new mac cannot take advantage of the greater speed available with the "n" standard? That is to say will the new mac only ever connect at the g speed?
Also is there the option to "zero" the time capsule hard drive?
Thanks

1.) Can I add the "old" airport express as a client to this network?
Certainly as long as the new Time Capsule is operating in an 802.11g compatible mode. The AirPort Express (AX) will connect wirelessly just like any other client.
2.) If the answer is yes, then clearly the network will have to allow "g" and "n" devices to connect. will doing so mean that the new mac cannot take advantage of the greater speed available with the "n" standard? That is to say will the new mac only ever connect at the g speed?
The 802.11n connection with the new Mac will take a speed hit whenever the old AX or old Mac are connected via 802.11g. The amount of the hit will depend on the amount of 802.11g activity.

HT204371 How to setup Airport Express to extend my network range?

I have an Airport Extreme as main router and want to install an Airport Express to extend the range of my wifi. However it only works when connected through an ethernet cable. How can I setup my Airport Express to work wirelessly and extend the wifi range?

I have a Time Capsule in the basement and my daughter is 3 stories up on her iMac and she complains about speed while online. She is about 40 feet up from me with 3 ceilings in between.
It is a nothing short of a miracle that she can get any signal at all under those conditions.
Found an AirPort Express Base Station (the one that looks like a power bar for Apple laptops) - model # is A1084.
Unfortunately, this older version of the Express does not have the capability to "extend a wireless network" using wireless only.
You need the A1264 version, or the "new" AirPort Express (that looks like a miniature Time Capsule) if you want to try to "extend" using wireless only. In this case, you would want to locate the extending device approximately half the distance between the Time Capsule and her computer.
I can't say that this will do a lot to improve things....it's going to be one of those situations where you won't know if it will work until you try.
(or am I better off trying to run a super long Ethernet cable to her somehow?)
This is by far the best choice in terms of performance. There is no signal loss in a wire. She will be amazed at how well and fast her Mac runs this way.

Can't update Airport Express (original - 802.11g) to firmware 6.3

I have an old Airport Express (original model - 802.11g) that I want to use only for AirTunes over ethernet. The current version of iTunes supports this only with 6.3 firmware in the Airport Express.
I have tried many methods to get the firmware from the 6.0 version that appears "burned in" to the device to 6.3. Whatever I do, the 6.3 firmware update always results in the device reverting back to 6.0. I've tried the following>
-> Standard updating via Airport Utility (5.4.1/MacOS)
-> Manual updating (using "Base Station-> Upload Firmware") to 6.0 and 6.1.1 basebinary
-> Manual updating using standalone firmware updater on Mac
-> Manual updating using standalone firmware updater on Windows
-> Booting Mac in Safe Boot and repeating all above Mac steps
I have tried all the above updating directly from 6.0 -> 6.3 and also updating to 6.1.1 and from there to 6.3.
I have tried all the above using both wireless and direct ethernet connections with the Airport card in my Mac disabled.
No matter what I do, the 6.3 firmware update completes normally, and then the AirPort Express reboots. When it shows up again in AirPort Utility or in the firmware updater program, it shows as running 6.0 firmware (even if it was running 6.1.1 prior to the 6.3 update).
It seems that rather than booting into the newly uploaded 6.3 firmware, the device is instead falling back to some version of 6.0 that must be somewhere in its memory.
One thing I haven't tried is direct uploading of the 6.3 firmware basebinary, which I was unable to find online -- if anyone knows where to find it, please let me know!
I'm at a loss of what to do next, and would appreciate any help folks can provide.
Thanks!
-drcheezie-

I had exactly the same issue. The software you need cannot be downloaded from Apple. You need the new Aiport Utility (sans Admin). Find the CD that came with with AEBS and you'll be good to go. Once installed additional updates can be downloaded.

New SSID/WEP key, how to update Airport Express?

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