Pros & cons of Extreme/Express to extend Time Capsule?

We currently have Time Capsule running for wireless coverage at one end of our house, and want to extend coverage to the far end. From what I can tell, it seems that we could use either Airport Express or Extreme to extend coverage (correct me if I'm wrong here). It may come down to the availability of Guest password/login. Question: If we have Guest access set up on Time Capsule, will that automatically carry over to the far end of the house regardless of whether we use Express or Extreme? Or will we need to use Extreme in order to extend Guest access?

Welcome to the discussions!
+We currently have Time Capsule running for wireless coverage at one end of our house, and want to extend coverage to the far end. From what I can tell, it seems that we could use either Airport Express or Extreme to extend coverage (correct me if I'm wrong here).+
Either an AirPort Express or AirPort Extreme can "extend a wireless network" providing that it is a newer "n" version of the product.
It sounds like you have a dual band Time Capsule, correct?
Important....if you want to extend both the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands, you would need to look at a dual band AirPort Extreme. The AirPort Express could extend one band, either the 2.4 GHz band or the 5 GHz band, but not both at once.
Unfortunately, it is not possible to extend the Guest network, so this network will not "carry over". "Guests" will have to connect directly to the Time Capsule if you enable the guest network. Their wireless performance will depend on how far and how many obstructions there are between the Time Capsule and their computer.

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Unable to get Airport Express to extend Time Capsule via WDS

Hi all,
I have a Time Capsule that's a couple years old, and recently decided to try to extend its network given that we recently did a lot of re-arranging things in our home. I followed the instructions posted here for using version 5.5.2 of the Airport Utility but I'm not having any luck... I've triple-checked that the SSID, security settings, etc. are identical between the two devices. I set the Time Capsule as the main WDS device and entered the airport ID of the Airport Express into it, and set the Airport Express as the remote WDS device and put the airport ID of the Time Capsule there. As far as I can tell I've got all the settings correct.
What really confuses me is that I can get the two devices so that the Time Capsules status light is green but the Airport Extreme's status light is yellow. The Time Capsule reports that WDS is functioning properly but the Airport Extreme is unable to connect to the WDS network. I have the two devices only about 5 feet from each other so signal strength certainly shouldn't be an issue.
Any ideas what's going on?
Thanks,
-Bruce

I would not use WDS unless your AEX is so old that is all it supports. Much easier to configure the TC to allow the network to be extended under the Wireless tab. Then configure the AEX's Wireless Mode to Extend Existing Network from the dropdown menu.

I have a time capsule and two air port expresses. The time capsule is in the middle of my house, the expresses equidistant in opposite directions. I would like the expresses to both connect directly to the capsule, but they are connected in serial. How?

I have a time capsule and two air port expresses. The time capsule is in the middle of my house, the expresses equidistant in opposite directions. I would like the expresses to both connect directly to the capsule, but they are connected in serial. How to reconfigure.
I ask because I have music running out of both expresses, and the one that is most distant from the time capsule (routed through the first express) regularly drops the music signal from itunes. And I am guessing the serial configuration of the routers has something to do with this, but my root problem is music dropout - any thoughts would be appreciated.

If you have the the most current model of the Express devices, the default setup is to "extend" the wireless signal. In this type of setup, each Express communicates directly to the Time Capsule.
How did you setup the AirPort Express devices?
What version of the Mac operating system are you using on your MacBook? Or, do you have AirPort Utility installed on your iPad?

HT4145 I want to add airport express. I now have time capsule and I am confuse. Do I setup the express and then time capsule to the express?

I want to add airport express. I now have time capsule and I am confuse. Do I setup the express and then time capsule to the express?

Setup the Express to wirelessly extend the Time Capsule, or vice versa depending on which one is already set up. Or you could use bridge mode which involves using an Ethernet cable or Powerline plugs.

Weak signal on AX extending time capsule

I just extended my network with an AX, using a new Time Capsule as the base station. Airport Utility sees the correct setup, Time capsule as the base creating the network and the AX as extending the same network.
When I move to a range close to the AX, the signal is down to one bar - if it's extending the network, shouldn't the bars be full?
thx for any help

An older b/g AirPort Express and your Time Capsule can be configured in a WDS (Wireless Distribution System) arrangement, but the setup is a more complicated process. The upside is that your wireless coverage will improve. The downside is that WDS cuts the bandwidth of the network in half, so you may notice slower operation on the network.
Both the Time Capsule and AirPort Express must be configured for WDS. For step by step instructions, refer to the Designing AirPort Networks guide, pages 42-44.
http://manuals.info.apple.com/enUS/Designing_AirPort_Networks10.5-Windows.pdf

How can I Connecticut two Airport Express with One Time Capsula?

Only by Wifi or by LAN in a row?

What are you trying to accomplish with the AirPort Express devices?
Where will the Express devices be located in relation to the Time Capsule?
If you are planning to use the Express devices to "extend" the wireless range of your network, Ethernet LAN will always provide far better performance than trying to connect the Express devices using wireless only.
You have the option of connecting both AirPort Express devices directly back to two LAN <-> ports on the Time Capsule....or....connecting one Express back to the Time Capsule and then connecting the second Express to the first Express using Ethernet. This assumes that you have a "new" Express with both WAN and LAN ports.
If you choose wireless only, both Express devices will connect back directly to the Time Capsule, so both of them should be located where they can receive a strong signal from the Time Capsule wireless.
A "hybrid" approach can also work. Connect one Express to the Time Capsule using an Ethernet cable and then setup the second Express to connect to the first Express using wireless only.

My macbook pro is connected to internet via my time capsule but my iPad and iPhone won't. it shows wifi connection to the time capsule but when i go on to the internet on the iPad or iPhone, it comes up with network error. can anyone help?

my macbook pro is connected to internet via my time capsule but my iPad and iPhone won't. it shows wifi connection to the time capsule but when i go on to the internet on the iPad or iPhone, it comes up with network error. can anyone help?

This can be caused by a number of issues.
Was everything working and then suddenly stopped??
Or is this a new clean setup and has never worked.
Do you have a cable modem which is not a router and the TC setup in bridge? That will cause it. The TC must be in router mode, ie dhcp and nat.
Check the IP the MBP gets including dns and gateway..
Then check the ipad/iphone.. post what IP dns and gateway (router in applespeak) they get.

I just upgraded from my 2008 MacBook to a new Macbook Pro. How do I get my time capsule to work on my new MacBook? I did data migration, but the time capsule did not pick it up. Any ideas?

I just upgraded from my 2008 MacBook to a new Macbook Pro. How do I get my time capsule to work on my new MacBook? I did data migration, but the time capsule did not pick it up. Any ideas?

If you migrated all the info from time machine to your new MBP. The TM will usually ask to connect to the old backups.. sorry I am not sure is this what you want to do.. Personally I think you start a fresh backup.
BTW Time Capsule does not do anything.. it is a dumb hard disk in a box.. it is TM that does everything.
Look at B5 and B6 here about connecting to your backup.
http://pondini.org/TM/Troubleshooting.html

Can I extend time capsule by adding external drive connected TC via USB?

Hi,
I use my TC drive for backups, i's now full. Can I extend time capsule backup drive by adding external drive connected TC via USB? If yes, how do I his? I have 1TB WD external drive connected via the TC's USB, I can see the WD drive in the finder and the TC set-up...but I don't know where to go from here...
Thanks for your help
Steveru

Welcome to the discussions, Steveru!
I think what you are asking is can you simply continue Time Machine backups by adding the new USB drive, correct? The answer is not exactly. See below for details.
To use the new USB drive for Time Machine backups, you'll need to Open System Preferences (gear icon) on the dock and open Time Machine. Click on Select Disk and click your USB drive to highlight it, then click Use for Backup. Here's the rub....Time Machine will make a new full complete backup of everything on your Mac's hard drive. There's no way to avoid this. After that, it will continue to make scheduled incremental backups just like it did before on the Time Capsule.
If you ever need to go back to your original backups on the Time Capsule, you'll need to right-click the Time Capsule icon on the dock and choose Browse Other Time Machine Disks.
When the USB drive start to fill, you may decide that you no longer need all the old backups on the Time Capsule disk since you should have a good history of backups on the USB drive at that point.
So, you could erase the Time Capsule disk and then start backing up to the Time Capsule disk again. At that time, it will also make a complete backup on the first pass and then normal incremental backups from that point forward. When the TC begins to fill again, then you could erase the older backups on the USB drive and start backups again on that drive. Then switch to the other drive in the future to keep things going indefinitely. If you go with this type of flip flop plan, you should always have a solid history of many months of backups at any given time.
Will a plan like this work? I don't answer a question on the forum unless I've done it myself. This has been working well for me for almost 3 years.
Pondini, the resident expert on Time Machine and Time Capsule affairs, may have some comments on this as well. If you haven't already seen his excellent guide, Using Time Machine with a Time Capsule or +Time Machine FAQ+, these are the best available sources of information on this subject on the Internet.
Or, if you don't want to erase any your backups, you could of course keep adding a new USB drive when the current drive is about to fill.

The HD was recently changed on my MacBook Pro and I lost my iTunes library (Time Capsule also died!) but have all my songs on my iPhone. How can I copy them to my laptop?

The HD was recently changed on my MacBook Pro and I lost my iTunes library (Time Capsule died also!) but all my songs are still on my iPhone4. How can I copy them back to my laptop? Tks

Your i-device was not designed for unique storage of your media. It is not a backup device and media transfer was planned with you maintaining a master copy of your media on a computer which is itself properly backed up against loss. Syncing is one way, computer to device, updating the device content to the content on the computer, not updating or restoring content on a computer. The exception is iTunes Store purchases which can be transferred to a computer.
iTunes Store: Transferring purchases from your iOS device or iPod to a computer - http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1848 - only purchases from iTunes Store
For transferring other items from an i-device to a computer you will have to use third party commercial software. See this document by turingtest2: Recovering your iTunes library from your iPod or iOS device - https://discussions.apple.com/docs/DOC-3991

Replacing Airport Express '08 w Time Capsule 11?

How much stronger and faster a signal would the 2011 Time Caspule be over an Airport Express purchased in late 2008? The time capsule clearly offers the convenience of daily data back up. However I fear having to reconnect all my wireless devices to the new network. Some of them are very tempermental and might cause hours of pain before cooperating.
Can anyone provide an opinion based on their own upgrade experience? And I live in a small NYC apartment, so there really is no need for more than one to be connected to wi-fi.
Thanks.

Unless you are also updating all of your wireless clients, just upgrading from the older Express to the Time Capsule may not necessarily show a lot of improvement.
However, the overall bandwidth should be better as the TC uses a 3-stream antenna design over that used in the Express which would provide a higher maximum bandwidth for your wireless clients that can take advantage of it.

Replaced Airport Extreme router with Airport Time Capsule-now printer won't connect to network

I had no issues with connecting to the Airport Extreme. I have recently replaced the Extreme with an Airport Time Capsule (the new one that is 802.11 ac). All of my other products were able to detect the WIFI router and connected with no issue once I entered the password. However, the HP 2710 finds the WiFi router, allows me to select it but when I enter my password and click OK, it comes back after several minutes saying that it can't connect to the network. I checked the IP address and it's all 0.0.0.0 - it's won't establish an IP address either.

Hello @theros1093 , and welcome to the HP Forums, I hope you enjoy your experience!
I understand that you're having issues connecting to your router. I would like to help!
I'd recommend powering down your computer. Once it's powered down, go to the printer and select Setup , select Network, and select. Restore Network Defaults. Power down the printer. Once it's all shut down, unplug the router power for 60 seconds, and plug it back in. After it broadcasts, power on the printer and computer, and reconnect to the wireless network.
Good luck and please let me know the results of your troubleshooting steps. Thank you for posting on the HP Forums!
Please click “Accept as Solution " if you feel my post solved your issue, it will help others find the solution.
Click the “Kudos, Thumbs Up" on the right to say “Thanks" for helping!
Jamieson
I work on behalf of HP
"Remember, I'm pulling for you, we're all in this together!" - Red Green.

Extend time capsule with a time capsule

I have two time capsules. Can I wirelessly extend the range of one with the other?

Yes, you can if the "extending" Time Capsule is located where it can receive a strong wireless signal from the "main" Time Capsule.
Keep in mind that an "extending" device can only extend the quality and speed of signal that it receives, so a good general location for the extending Time Capsule would be a point that is about half way between your main Time Capsule and the general area that needs more wireless coverage.
Your next question might be "how do you do this?"
The answer will depend on what version of operating system that you have on your Mac or PC, or whether you want to use an iPhone or iPad to configure things.
If you have a Mac, and do not know what opeating sysem it is using, click the Apple icon in the upper left corner of the screen, then click About This Mac. Post back with the OS X version number that you see there.

The internet coming from my AirPort Extreme, which is extended by an AirPort Express and my Time Capsule, is being very flaky. It is dropping and I have to reconnect every few minutes. Any solutions?

To be more detailed, my AirPort Extreme needs to be extended by an AirPort Express, which then is extended to my personal Time Capsule. The internet drops on my MacBook Pro and other MacBook Pros randomly. We then reconnect with no problem and go on with what we were doing. The internet is fine. Always able to connect. We have Open DNS set up as well. But the flaky internet is annoying. Any ideas how to fix this?

The primary issue that you will need to contend with is the distance between routers. 300' would be at the fringe of the signal coming from the base station located in the house which, most likely, make it too "weak" to extend/repeat with the second base station at the shop.
There is a method to configure a relay base station between them in a Wireless Distribution System (WDS), but a WDS has two major drawbacks: 1) It can only operate in the 802.11g Radio Mode, and 2) For every base station participating in the WDS, the overall bandwidth will be cut in half .., so with a total of three (main, relay, & remote), the maximum of 54 Mbps (for 802.11g) would be more like 15-17 Mbps. If you plan on streaming HD video (either 720p or 1080p), your local wireless network may not have enough bandwidth to do so successfully.
You proposal to run the DSL line to the shop does offer another option. Instead of running a DSL line, run an Ethernet cable between the house and the shop. You would connect one end to any of the available LAN ports on the AirPort Extreme to the Ethernet port on the AirPort Express. You can then configure both base stations into a roaming network and not have bandwidth loss of the WDS.

Is Airport Express the best way to extend Time Capsule wifi network?

I have a Time Capsule which I use for wifi as well as backups. I would like to extend its wifi range. Is an Airport Express the best way to do this? Or would an Airport Extreme get better range? Thanks.

Welcome to the discussions!
You did not mention whether you are trying to extend using wireless only, but we'l assume that this is the case.
The AirPort Express and the AirPort Extreme have the same range, so there would be no difference in performance between the two devices.
If you have a newer dual band Time Capsule, a dual band AirPort Extreme would extend both bands...IF....the AirPort Extreme is positioned where it can receive a strong signal from the Time Capsule. The AirPort Extreme would also provide you with 3 ethernet ports if you needed to connect any ethernet devices.
The AirPort Express will extend one band, as it is a single band device, but that may be all you need. Since the AirPort Express can plug directly into an AC outlet, it is usually somewhat easier to place the device where it will be needed.
A good location for an extending device is a point that is about 1/2 to 2/3 the distance from the Time Capsule to the area that will need more wireless coverage, assuming there no major obstructions in the signal path. The idea situation would have the extending device placed where it has close to a line-of-sight relationship with the main router.
Post back if you need configuration details on the extending device, or if you need more information.

Pros & cons of Extreme/Express to extend Time Capsule?

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