Swap out which is base station in 2 extreme set up

Hi. I have two extremes. One is the base station and connected (wired) to the cable modem the other acts as a wireless signal booster for the other half of the house (non wired). My issue is this the base station has only two of the three available ports going out available (lightening fried the other). The wireless one has all 3 ports available. My son wants to connect his xbox to the base station (via wire) my computer needs to be connected to the base station (wired) and our World book is connected to the base station. He constantly unplugs my wired computer connection for his xbox. A major inconvienience since they are top floor and basement away from each other. Can I just swap out the location of the two extremes for each other (so the one with all 3 ports working is the base unit) or will I need to reconfigure them in order to do this? If I need to reconfigure them do I just copy over the setting from one to the other? Thanks for the help.
Running a windows 7 computer.

You can swap the AiPort Extremes, but both of them will need to be completely re-configured....quite a chore.
If all you really need are more Ethernet ports, it would be simple matter to add a 5-port Ethernet switch to one of the Ethernet ports on the "main" AirPort Extreme to create more connection capability.
Any computer / electronics superstore will have what you need. Something like this, for example:
http://www.walmart.com/ip/5-Port-Gigabit-Ethernet-Switch-10-100-1000-Mbps/101048 35
Just connect an Ethernet cable from one of the working ports on the AirPort Extreme to the switch. Now you have 4 available Ethernet ports for devices. If you need even more connections, you can buy an 8-port switch, 16-port switch, etc.

Similar Messages

How do I know which AirPort base station I am connected to?

I have an AirPort network which consists of a Time Capsule and 2 AirPort Expresses connected in 'extended' mode. I want to test each of the AirPort Express units to ensure that they are doing what they should be (i.e. extending my network). However, I can't figure out how to determine which base station I'm actually connected to at any given moment. When I look at the AirPort status in the menu bar or at Network Preferences it simply tells me the name of the network that I'm connected to but not the specific AirPort unit. Is there any way to see this information?
For all I know, I could be connected to the Time Capsule no matter when in my home I'm located.
Cheers,
Barry

OK, let's recheck some settings as you definitely should not be picking up a wireless signal from the TC if you have an Express much closer to the computer.
Using AirPort Utility here, click your TC and click Manual Setup.
Click the Wireless tab below the icons
Wireless Mode should be set to "Create a wireless network"
There must be a check mark next to "Allow this network to be extended"
Update to save any changes.
On each Express, using Manual Setup again.
Wireless Mode set to "Extend a wireless network"
The network name that the TC is creating should be displayed
There must be a check mark next to "Allow wireless clients"
Please check your settings to verify. Then start with only one Express device and put it in a another room not too far away from the TC. Power it up and keep your laptop close to the Express. Using the "option" click on the Airport icon, test to see if you see the MAC address of the Express. Any luck? If yes, then power down the first Express and test the second the same way, etc.
The "extend" a wireless network feature works like the hub and spoke of a wheel. The main router is the hub and Express devices are at the ends of the spokes. Each Express communicates directly with the TC. There are no "relays" or "in between" devices. If the TC is at one end of the house, you may find that you get better results using fewer Expresses. It will take some experimenting to get the best location for each Express, etc.

Controlling which WDS base station a machine connects to... how?

I'm trying to isolate a problem I've got with a simple WDS configuration. Configuration is:
Airport Extreme (n) Fast Ethernet - main WDS
Airport Extreme (Snow) - relay
Airport Express - remote
Due to configuration, machines that connect to the Express can also 'just see' the other two machines. One of them (a CoreDuo iMac) is reporting very poor Airport signal strength - even when the Airport Express is plugged in within 2 feet of the machine. We think that it is connecting to one of the other base stations - but can't work out how to find out if this is so, and if so how to stop it.
The iMac has recently returned from Applecare having had a new screen installed - is it possible that the airport antenna could have been disconnected as part of this? This might explain problem - but again I can't work out how to test this.
Suggestions anyone?

Airport Extreme (Snow) - relay
I know that you mean round AirPort Extreme base station (AEBS) but I want to clarify something.
There is not a snow AEBS. Referring to it that way is confusing because there IS an 802.11b Dual-Ethenret (aka "snow") AirPort base station (ABS). The snow ABS does not do WDS and does not have a USB port.
The iMac has recently returned from Applecare having had a new screen installed - is it possible that the airport antenna could have been disconnected as part of this?
Quite possibly.
There isn't any way to control which base station it connects to BUT you can see which one it is connected to. If the iMac is running OS 10.5, hold down the OPTION key while selecting the network name on the AirPort menu. You will see the MAC address of the base station which the iMac is connected to.

Using Powermac G5 as a Base Station w/Airport Extreme Card...

Hello. Can anyone tell me if I am able to install an Airport Extreme card into my Powermac G5 and use it as a virtual base station to share the internet and network with my Powerbook (which has an Airport card)?
I have DSL going to my G5 via ethernet, and would like to share it wirelessly with my Powerbook. The cheapest way, if it works, would be to purchase an Airport Extreme card and install it into my G5. Any info is appreciated. Thanks!

Yes it's possible:
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=107484
The down side is that the G5 has to be on for it to work and the setting doesn't stick between restarts or sleeping.

Remotely Access Base Station through Airport Extreme

Someone may have already asked this but i couldn't find it. I have a 500 Gb hard drive connected to my Airport Extreme set up as a base station which all the computers on the network are able to access with password. Is there anyway to connect to the base station when im not at home. I know a little about VPN but not sure if thats the best thing to do or even how to set it up here.
Any adivce is awesome.

1. Enable remote access to your base station's hard drive via its WAN port. See:
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?path=AirPortUtility/5.1/en/ap2051.html
2. When you are remote location (you cannot test this from a computer on your own LAN) go to the Finder, and from the Go menu select "Connect to Server...". You will need to enter the public IP address of your Base Station.
Notes:
1. This access is not going to be a secure connection like that provided by a VPN (because it is not supported by the base station)
2. Make sure your base station's disk password is a good one, because anyone on the internet that can guess it will also be able to access the data on the drive.

Utilities says my base station is "at default setting"

I really had a hard time this afternoon messing with the network, all is well except MY airport utility says that the base station is yellow(in fact the express is green) and says it is in its default settings. My other computers in the house show a green icon and normal utility verbage.
The network is working fine. How can I fix this?

Open AirPort Utility and click Manual Setup
Click the amber dot on the summary page and a window will open explaining the reason for the amber light.
It may be a notification that a firmware update is available for your device.
If not, what does the message say?

Using Dlink 524 as base station and airport extreme as remote?

hello,
is it possible to use a dlink 524 as a WDS base station, and set up my airport extreme as a remote station?
I have tried to use the airport setup utility however I dont seem able to connect to the internet. I have also tried to set up the Dlink, however there doesnt appear to be any referenced to WDS. Sorry, I know nothing about networks.

No the D-Link is not compatible with Apple's WDS.

Does Airport Express work with Airport Base Station (not Airport Extreme)?

I'm needing to extend the range of my Airport base station. I purchased an Airport Extreme to funcion as a repeater, but it's not working. Will Airport Express work with a (white) Airport base station. If not, how can I extend the range besides moving the base station?

Can someone actually tell me how to set-up the Airport Express (with my Airport) so that it will act like a repeater. Once again, this is an Airport and not an Airport Extreme.

Which airport base station?

Do I want for ibookg4 running OS X 3.9? Very confusing. Have dsl. Can I get by with original Airport Base or do I need Extreme , etc? Have working airport card installed in machine. Thanks.

Well the only problem I see is that my linksys wrt54g doesn't work worth a darn. I consider it junk. As I am sure a lot of other people who bought one. It worked when I had it w/cable so machine #2 could get a signal, but in the last week I messed with it a lot and can not get it to pull down a page from my ibook. Sees it and it's strong, but will never load a page. Now I am willing to spend no money if someone can tell me how to get the junk wrt54g to work. Got close w/ this link:
http://garrickvanburen.com/archive/how-to-set-up-a-linksys-router-with-mac-os-x
And besides, Cisco/Linksys has a poor attitude when they will make, what presumably is a mac compatible item, yet offer no support. So thats why the question of Airport, one model or another.

Snow Base Station Connection Flashes In and Out

I just got a 'new' snow base station, and once I set it up, its connection cycles in and out and in and out. AP Grapher shows spikes in noise, signal, quality, everything. Connection last less than a second, drops for maybe a full second, connects again for less than a second, ad nauseam. The old, graphite one, is fine. I checked to make sure the new one is on the same channel, same multicast rate, same interference robustness, etc. Everything is the same except that the snow base station has a 128 bit password. What's going on with this thing?

Woops. Should have gone through all the settings. In case it helps anyone else - resetting and resetting-up does not remove Access Control Settings. My computers weren't on the authorized list.

Apple Base Station Connection/Recognition Problem

I have just purchased a Airport base station to use as a replacement for another router which has died. I have gone through the set-up routine, double and triple checked my connections and despite it all, I cannot connect to the Internet nor can I reestablish a wireless network within my home. All the lights on the base station are appropriately lit as per the manual. When I connect my internet connection directly to my iMac I have no problem accessing the Net.
My iMac does not appear to recognize the base station. Can anyone give me any troubleshooting tips as to how I can reestablish my wireless network and also connect my iMac directly to the Net. It should not be so much trouble to do so with all Apple equipment.
Thank-you.
iMac G5 Mac OS X (10.4.3)

Gary as you say it shouldn't be this much of a problem with all Apple equipment.
However sometimes after doing one thing or another you will need to do a system reset to make it work.
Normally you simply connect from the Modem they furnised you to the WAN port on an Airport Extreme Base station that is the port with the circle of dots, and the port with the 2 arrows pointing away from one another is for plugging in a hardwired computer.
It should be set up for the Airport to DHCP and it should assign IP's
Most of us that use the Airport Extreme or Express Base Stations use the Airport Set-up Assistant and Airport Admin Utility Software that comes with your Mac with Airport technology.
Often times if your confiquration is correct, and if you have a Power blip or you loose the connection there is a correct way to reset your system when about all else fails, and that is first turn off your computer.
Next pull the Power adapter from the back of both your Modem and the Airport Base.
Next is normally the hardest part because when this happens we are normally mad enough to throw it all out the window from jacking with it for an hour or 2.
You have to wait at least 5 minutes.
After your wait.
Plug in the power adapter to the Modem and wait until it reaquires the signal and depending on the modem they furnished you want 3 lights from left to right.
After you get this far and all looks ok you can plug in the Power Adapter to the Airport Base and again you must wait for the lights and signal, this will also take about a minute. NOTE: If you get in to big a hurry and don't let the equipment do it's work you will have to repeat to get it to work properly.
Now that you have both of these up and running you can restart your computer. This is the recommended reset by almost all Modem and Router Manufactures.
You should be good to go.

Graphite base station not working with my Intel Based Mac Mini and iPhone.

My Airport Express died after 2 years of use. I had to resort to plugging in my old but still functioning Graphite Airport base station. Since the set up assisant on my Mac mini does not work with the older base station, I used my G4 400 tower to set it up. I got it working and tested the connection. On to testing my iPhone. It sees the new network. Password is entered and the wifi icon shows full signal strength, but does not connect to the web. Next I try my Mac mini out on the new network and it too sees the network, but does not connect to the web. I double check the older G4 and the connection is still strong and fast. I shut the G4 down thinking that maybe the Graphite can only support one computer at a time, and the Mac mini and iPhone still can't connect to the web. I'm not sure what to do with this one. Is there a setting that I need to use? As far as security goes, the Graphite base station was set up with a WEP password. Any help would be great
Message was edited by: Soriano

I suggest using AirPort Admin Utility (version 4.2) to check the base station settings and change them, if necessary. (AirPort Admin Utility should be able to configure a Graphite base station from a computer running Mac OS X 10.4, even though AirPort Setup Assistant can't.)
In the Network pane of AirPort Admin Utility, please make sure that "Distribute IP addresses" and "Share a single IP address (using DHCP and NAT)" are checked, and that everything else is unchecked. I am assuming that the Graphite is the only router in your local network and that there are no computers connected via Ethernet.
The Access Control pane of AirPort Admin Utility should list either all of the relevant AirPort ID's or nothing. You can find the AirPort ID of an OS X computer by looking at System Preferences>Network>Show:AirPort>AirPort.
The Internet pane of AirPort Admin Utility should be set in accordance with your Internet provider's requirements. Most likely, it should be set to Connect Using:Ethernet and Configure:Using DHCP.
After verifying the settings, power down the computers, base station and cable or DSL modem for a few minutes, then start them up sequentially, leaving time for each to get fully up and running: first the modem, then the base station, and finally the computers.
The network preferences on the Mac Mini and the iPhone are also relevant. I assume that the preferences are unchanged from those that worked with the AirPort Express.
I hope this helps.

Simple How-To # 1: Adding additional base stations

That's all I need. A series of simple, step-by-step 'how-to's'.
I've been using Macs for almost 20 years, but find the instruction manual and software for the new Airport Utility [AEBSn device] to be particularly unhelpful.
I need to add an AX to extend the range of my network [and be able to use my brand-new printer]. The software seems to be instructing me to, "change base stations"? Why? The older Airport Admin Utility [supplied with AX's] did not use such counter-intuitive instructions and was much simpler to set up multiple base stations. What gives Apple?
Give it to me simple Apple, my brain cells aren't getting any brighter! Is there anyone out there that can post simple step-by-step instructions? I'm sure I won't be the only one appreciating that kind gesture.
Anyone?

AEBSn - WDS Setup
(Note: To facilitate the WDS set up, place the base stations within near proximity of each other during the set up phase, and then relocate them to their desired locations when complete.)
Main Base Station Setup (AEBSn)
- Click the AirPort status menu in the menu bar and choose the wireless network created by the base station you want to set up as the main base station.
- Open AirPort Utility (located in the Utilities folder in the Applications folder on a Macintosh computer, or in Start > All Programs > AirPort on a computer using Windows).
- Select the main base station, and choose Manual Setup from the Base
Station menu, or double-click the base station to open the configuration in a separate window.
- Enter the base station password if necessary. If the base station is using the
default password of public, you will not be prompted for a password.
- Click Wireless in the toolbar, and then choose “Participate in a WDS network” from the Wireless Mode pop-up menu.
- Click WDS and then choose “WDS main” from the WDS Mode pop-up menu.
- Select the “Allow wireless clients” checkbox if you want client computer to connect to this base station.
- Click the Add button and enter the MAC address of the base stations you want to connect to this base station.
- Click Update to send the new settings to the base stations in the WDS.
Remote Base Station Setup (AX)
- Click the AirPort status menu in the menu bar and choose the wireless network created by the base station you want to set up as a remote base station.
- Open AirPort Utility (in the Utilities folder in the Applications folder on a Macintosh computer, or in Start > All Programs > AirPort on a computer using Windows).
- Select the remote base station, and choose Manual Setup from the Base Station menu.
- Enter the base station password, if necessary. If the base station is using the default password of public, you will not be prompted for a password.
- Enter the same network password as the main base station, if necessary.
- Click AirPort in the toolbar and click Wireless. Choose “Participate in a WDS network” from the Wireless Mode pop-up menu, and choose the same channel as the main base station from the Channel pop-up menu.
- Click WDS and choose “WDS remote” from the pop-up menu.
- Enter the MAC address of the main base station in the WDS Main field. The MAC address is also referred to as the AirPort ID and is printed on the label on the bottom of the base station.
- Click Update to transfer the settings to the base station.
(ref: Pages 41-45 of "Designing AirPort Extreme 802.11n Networks.

Trouble with Extreme N base station and Express station wireless

Upgraded extreme base station with new extreme "N" base station. Currently have the extreme "N" base station connected to cable modem on 2nd floor. I have wired the house to have the demarc on the 2nd floor. I purchased the express base station to be placed on 1st floor to extend the wireless range from the extreme "N" base station.
Prior to this setup, I had a wired bridge on the 1st floor to the main router on the 2nd floor. I was able to connect all wireless connections to the bridge where there was weak signal to the main router on 2nd floor.
The trouble I am having is that whether I have the express base connected or not. My signal is near the same as having only the main base station on 2nd floor. I can be seated right next to the express on the 1st floor and have only 1-2 bars on the signal.
I have updated and running the latest utilities for the airports. I have also been seeing the same trouble with other Mac's and PC's.
Also, I have been noticing the extreme "N" base station blinking amber when no Mac's or PC's are accessing the network or even when they are.
So, even when both the extreme and express have solid green LED, I still have the problem.
I am not sure if I am setting up this incorrectly or if I have hit a brickwall with this setup in my house.
Could I hard wire the express from the extreme from the second floor as I did with the bridge I use to have? I am not sure if the express would work as a wired bridge.
Just appears to be performing less then my prior PC networking products.
Thanks everyone...hope to get some insight. I have read all the prior discussions and still not getting good results.

Tesserax....Thanks for the quick clarification on using the expresss as a wired bridge. I did avert back to a wired bridge now using all apple products. I was trying to get away with reusing the hard wire from the base station since I was running out of ports on the base station. {Apple has to be difficult with only having 3 ethernet ports.}
So I had to run a linksys switch off the extreme "N" base station.
Thanks again..
Guess I have to live with the quirks...

Combining old base stations to strengthen network?

Hi
I recently purchased an Airport Extreme base station for my school. We currently have two old base stations.
I'd like to set up a triangular network using the three of these. Is this possible? Will the old base stations work with the Extreme?
Can someone point me to some documentation to achieve this --
Won't the older base stations cause the Extreme to default to a slower speed?
Thanks for any help

Daniel, If the older bases are 802.11b compliant (Slower) then the newer 802.11g compliant (Faster) like the Airport Extreme and Express which happen to handle either protocall.
You can extend your Network if your older Routers are WDS compliant.
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=108040
Deepending on several factors will determine exactly what your network is capable of. I will give you a couple of links that should help you sort through and decide the way you want to extend.
http://www.apple.com/airportextreme/
The link above shows you another way to extend your Network with Airport Extreme Base and Omni Directional Antenna.
Like I said there are several options for you to decide which way to go.
http://www.apple.com/airportexpress/
Toward the bottom of the above link you will see another option to extend.
Last but not least is another option that Apple gives for Schools.
http://www.apple.com/airportextreme/campus.html
Good Luck on your choice.
Cheers Don

Swap out which is base station in 2 extreme set up

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