Using Airport Extreme- Printers & Hard Drives - Mac and WIndows XP Network

I might be asking a really dumb question now, I have a Mac Pro, a PC my sons use and a laptop my wife uses. The PC and laptop both run XP Pro.
I have my Airport Extreme set up and working well with my BT Home Hub acting as my modem only - that went much easier than I thought.
All I want to do is to set up a network - my Mac (wired) to my Airport Extreme with a Canon Printer and external hard drive. I also want to be able to share files on the PC and Laptop (wireless) with other users as well as the printers. Ideally, i'm looking for a video website that will easily show how to set this up. I appreciate I may need to view several clips to get this sorted. I have tried YouTube without much success.
As I said, this may be a dumb question.
Thanks in advance, Matt

1. So, what I want to do now is share an external hard drive also connected to my AEBS using a USB hub.
AirPort: How to mount an AirPort Extreme USB hard disk volume in Mac OS X and Windows
2. Share files on my other PC machines as well as their printers. So, if I need some text printing done quickly, I would print it from my sons' pc printer downstairs but request it from my mac upstairs.
I'm sure that Windows has the ability to share a printer, but I have no details on how to enable it.
3. Access / share files between Mac Pro, laptop and PC
On your Macs, go to the Sharing preference pane and enable File Sharing. Now they can be seen by other devices.
"How to Share Files between your Mac and PC"
"File sharing between Mac and PC"
4. Access Mac Pro online via Back to my Mac (I do have a mobile me account for this).
In the MobileMe preference pane on the Mac Pro, enable the Back To My Mac feature. Then on your remote Mac the Mac Pro should appear in the Finder's sidebar as a shared item.

Similar Messages

I wanted to know whether i can diffuse music to the bluetooth only speakers from a airport extreme-connected hard drive through my mac?

I'm interested in the new soundlink mini Bose wireless speakers that function only via bluetooth. I wanted to diffuse music to them from an airport extreme connected hard drive through my macbook air. I don't want to stoc music on my mac given the limited flash drive and don't want to go though wires again. Is that possible? Also I can't go with airport express since those speakers don't have the airplay function.
Thanks a lot for your help or ideas

Hello jeri004,
Thanks for using Apple Support Communities.
For more information on this, take a look at:
iTunes for Mac: Moving your iTunes Media folder
http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1449
Best of luck,
Mario

Airport Extreme usb hard drive connection loss after closing finder window

I just did a software update on my MacBook Pro and now I am experiencing a weird Airport Extreme usb hard drive issue. I can see the name of my airport extreme in the Shared section of my finder window. However when I click on it, the finder indicates the it's connecting, but it stops immediately and displays the 'Not Connected' message. When I click on the 'Connect As' button, I am prompted to enter my password and if I click 'Connect', it just spins out endlessly. However, when I re-enter the password and press Connect, my usb drive mounts. I can view, access and use the drive's contents, but if I close the finder window, the connection drops and I have to re-connect. What else is weird, is that once I see my drives, the finder indicates that I am connected as another user(not a user native to this computer). This issue did not exist before my software update.
My software log update indicates that the following items have been installed:
Canon Printer Software Update 2.3 and Security Update 2010-003.
I suspect it has something to do with the Security Update. Is there a way I can revert to the previous security version? Or is there any other solution that could help me avoid re-connecting to my airport extreme usb hard drives?
I will really appreciate any feedback.

Free Solution:
Sure there's a »fix« with Apple software. You'll need to install the Developer Tools (Xcode) from the Snow Leopard Install DVD, though.
After you've done that, you can use "SetFile" to clear the Alias bit from the misbehaving Volume:
/usr/bin/SetFile -a a /Volumes/<YourExternalDriveName>
Please keep in mind that using this command might be dangerous, so don't try this solution unless you feel confident on the command line. (See http://developer.apple.com/mac/library/documentation/Darwin/Reference/ManPages/m an1/SetFile.1.html or invoke /usr/bin/SetFile without arguments for more info on the SetFile command.)
...a similar discussion and answer can be found at: http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=2131824&start=45&tstart=0

Remote access the airport extreme usb hard drive over the internet with multiple users?

I just purchase the new airport extreme 802.11n and set it up on my LAN behind a comcast modem with broadband. I plugged a 3 tb Seagate hard drive formatted with fat32 (default) to it and have set it up for access for all of my computers, ipad, iphone, android in my house. Everything works as expected, internet access, file access to the USB HD on all devices locally through back to my mac. I would now like to allow my daughters in another state to access this drive through the Airport Extreme remotely from their location and have there own accounts on this hard drive to store and move their files for on the go access. I have studied many of the forums and have enabled share disks over WAN, Enable file sharing but no body really gives an exact method of connecting remotely. I had one of my daughters try on her Macbook Pro laptop through the finder, connect to server, by giving her the IP address. She could see the name of the Airport Extreme but could not access the hard disk and got a "Not able to connect message". I am obviously missing something simple that needs to be checked or setup but have drained my brain trying to figure it out. Most of the forums describe clicking manuel setup on the Airport utility, but with version 6.1 this is now where to be found. I have a DYN account but could not figure out where to input this in the Airport utility.
There is a network option which has DHCP lease and range and a box for Enable NAT port Mapping Protocal with Enable default host at:
I am guessing that this is for some other purpose though. Please help

Try installing AirPort Utility 5, then you may be able to follow the guides you mentioned earlier:
http://macintoshdesktop.blogspot.co.uk/2012/12/airport-utility-56-and-mountain-l ion.html

Using Time Capsule with Both a Mac and Windows PC

All ... is it possible to backup both Mac and Windows computers to the same Time Capsule? My current networked devices include:
1 Windows 7 desktop (wireless/ethernet capable)
1 MacBook Air (wirelessly connected to home network)
1 New iPad (wirelessly connected to home network)
2 iPhone 4S (wirelessly connected to home network)
1 Airport Extreme (currently hardwired to my Windows 7 desktop)
Thoughts/comments on leveraging the Time Capsule as purely a backup storage solution for all the devices listed above? Is it possible? Please advise. Thanks!

I use a backup software to save backups to the TC from windows... it is no big issue.. but the TC should never get any where near close to full.. TM takes a lot of space to work efficiently.. so make sure there is still more than enough space.. since TM will do hourly incremental backups it can grow rather quickly if you do lots of big file edits on the Mac.
Hanging a USB hard disk off a windows desktop is a better solution in lots of way.. it can be formatted native windows NTFS.. and is faster than TC without adding to network bandwidth.
But the TC is great for wireless with windows laptop same as Apple side.

Trying to connect to Airport Extreme with Dell Wireless 1370 and Windows XP

Home network using Airport Extreme Base Station with WPA-PSK (TKIP) Security. All works well with MACs in the house (G5, iMac, and Powerbook). Trying to connect a Dell Latitude D610 with built-in Dell Wireless 1370 WLAN mini-PCI Card to the home network.
Initially home network is not seen on Dell Laptop in available networks (as expected as it has not been added to list of available networks and is a "closed" network)although I do see the neighbors network so card is working and sees "open" networks.
Set-up options for the Dell 1370 card include:
Network Name (SSID)
Network Authentication (Includes "open", "shared", "802.1X", "WPA", "WPA-PSK", and "CCKM")
Data Encryption (When WPA-PSK is selected it defaults to Auto)
Network Key
Confirm Key
All other configuration items are greyed out.
I enter my SSID, select WPA-PSK, Data Encryption defaults to auto, tried entering passwrod in Network Key and Confirm Key which does not seem to work. Adds to list of preferred networks but does not indicate availability.
Question is I have a password that I use on MACs for access to WPA-PSK network. On the Dell there is no spot for a password and it does not seem to work in the Network Key or Confirm Key boxes.
Any assistance would be appreciated.
Thanks
mark
Airport Extreme Base Station Windows XP Dell Wireless 1370 WLAN Mini-PCI card

Initially home network is not seen on Dell Laptop in
available networks (as expected as it has not been
added to list of available networks and is a "closed"
network)
Open (broadcast your SSID) your network and see if that makes a difference.
Often (especially in crowded airwaves) a closed network can cause connection issues for some adapters.
iFelix

How do I use Airport Extreme to create wired access point on wireless network?

Bit of an odd situation. I just went from cable to DSL at home and the modem moved from right by my computer to upstairs.
Trouble is, there's no real easy way to get a cable from the modem upstairs to my X-box (sans wireless connector) downstairs.
I could buy the wireless adaptor for the X-Box, but I was hoping I wouldn't have to spend any more money.
I have my airport extreme, and I was hoping I could use it to create a wired access point on the network, recieving the signal from the wireless modem upstairs and allowing me to plug in the X-Box.
Is this possible? If so, how? I've been through the config panel about a dozen times, but can't figure out what combination to set up.
Thanks.

Will it work if I use the express to create the network?
Yes, providing that you have an 802.11n version of the AirPort Express and the Express has been configured to "Allow this network to be extended".
Then, the AirPort Extreme can be configured to "extend" the Express network. When you do this, the AirPort Extreme will provide more wireless coverage and the LAN Ethernet ports are enabled, so you can connect an Ethernet device.
This will not be a "normal" Ethernet connection. It will only work as well as the wireless "hop" between the Express and Extreme allow.
For best results and performance, a wired connection through the hole in the wall is always best. If you decide to do this, you will need the "new" AirPort Express with both a WAN and LAN port on the device. But, you could try wireless first to see if it will meet your goals before you reach for the tools.

How do I find my airport extreme connected hard drive?

I've connected a hard drive to my airport extreme...but it doesn't appear in my devices list in Finder or on my desktop...what am I doing wrong?

In addition to Kappy's comments, make sure that the drive is formatted as Mac OS Extended (Journaled) and that you are using a powered USB hub since the port on the AirPort Extreme is under powered.
You won't find the drive under Devices in the Finder.
Instead, look for your AirPort Extreme icon under the SHARED heading on the left of pane when you open the Finder and then click on the AirPort Extreme icon to display a folder representing your drive in the right hand side of the window.
Double click the folder to mount the drive on the desktop.

Time Capsule or AirPort Extreme + External Hard Drive for iTunes Library

Hi, I currently have an Airport Extreme (Gigabit) and am planning on getting a MacBook Pro. What I want to do is keep my iTunes Library on an External Hard Drive and attach it to my AirPort so I can access it anywhere in the house (and world). Now I have been reading various reviews that perhaps a Time Capsule would be better for my needs. I don't plan on using it for Time Machine backups right now, just as a NAS Drive. If anyone has any experience with this I would appreciate the advice.
Thanks!
Message was edited by: Mr. Macintosh693

Hi,
I have something like that working at the moment. My setup is based on a Mac Mini Core Duo [ OS 10.5.6 ] connected to a Time Capsule. I have configured iTunes to store all archived music on the Time Capsule. I use the Apple Lossless format for my CDs and approx 420 titles have taken approx 130Gb from my 1Tb Capsule. In general this setup works well [ especially the optical out of the Mac ] but be aware of the following potential pitfalls:-
1. The Time Capsule is a little on the noisy side and depending on the quality of your playback equipment, your choice of music, ambient noise and your values of "satisfactory" you may want to put your Capsule or HDD in another room. This seems OK for generic playback, but in my experience wireless is not a good way to go for streaming content.
2. iTunes v8.0.2 has a preferences capability to allow you to redirect it's archive to the Time Capsule. However, even if you leave the Capsule switched on it goes into a "sleep" mode. Rip a new CD and iTunes won't tell you this; instead it will silently reconfigure itself to store on your local hard drive and then you're left with the challenge of moving your collection piecemeal if you want it in one location, followed by manually updating iTunes to "point" it to the new location of the music.
One nice thing about the Capsule is that it does allow other connection types. I have mine networked to a PC running Ubuntu Linux and a music player called Amarok and I am able to stream the Mac-Ripped lossless files and play them over Linux perfectly... Works very well. Apparently you can do this with a Windows client and iTunes for Windows, but I don't run Windows as a matter of principle and can't validate that.
My 1Tb Time Capsule runs hot, too. Not dangerously so, but hot to the touch. There are no cooling fans, but you might want to think about placement; it needs plenty of fresh air circulating around it.
For what it's worth [ and I appreciate this is going beyond your question ] I also wanted my setup to be able to store and retrieve recorded TV. I have Elgato EyeTV and a USB Freeview decoder. I quickly learned that despite claims to the contrary the performance of the wireless connection just isn't up to streaming video content. So I went out and purchased a pair of Ethernet-over-mains adapters from Zyxel that are absolutely perfect for the job.
Yes, the Capsule is a little pricey for what is little more than a Hard Drive in a box, but it does work very well.
Beware the timeout disconnections and the silently re-configuring iTunes thought...

AirPort Extreme & USB Hard Drive Time Machine Backups

Hi everyone. I'm a brand spanking new MacBook Pro owner and am looking at ways to backup my machine and to save my films, photos and files on a wireless network that is available to everyone in my home.
I'm the first to admit that I'm not the most computer savvy person but I'm okay with the basics. I've read through a lot of forum sites and the community pages on here and most seem to recommend Synology products. They do seem very good but are a good price too once you've bought the hard drives to go with it. I already own an external hard drive so I thought that maybe the AirPort Extreme would be the ideal choice as I know that it can be connected and files can be saved wirelessly. I did read tonight however that you cant backup your macbook using time capsule which is a little bit annoying.
I have two questions really, firstly is it the case that time machine won't backup to an external hard drive connected to the AirPort Extreme and secondly, how important is it to back up through time machine? I'm what you could describe as a low level user and will only be using it for simple tasks such as watching/saving films, storing and editing photographs, surfing the web and saving the odd pages and numbers document.
Thanks in advance for any help you can offer.
Simon

I have two questions really, firstly is it the case that time machine won't backup to an external hard drive connected to the AirPort Extreme and secondly, how important is it to back up through time machine?
The very latest 802.11ac version of the AirPort Extreme DOES support Time Machine backups to attached external USB HDDs. All other 802.11n models are not supported by Apple for these types of backups. A number of folks have been successful doing so, but most typically post here about data corruption issues.
Time Machine is not the only backup strategy, but it is very convienent. I would recommend that your overall backup strategy includes at least two types of backups: 1) Incremental ... like the ones Time Machine supports, and 2) Disk cloning. The latter is very effective for quickly getting you back up and running if your Mac suffers an internal HDD loss.

When connected to NETGEAR WNR1000, I can't remotely access Airport Extreme attached hard drive.

I have a hard drive connected to my Airport Extreme at home and I am staying at a friend's place where I am connecting to the Internet via a NETGEAR WNR1000 router (which is routing a broadband-cable connection from Comcast Xfinity).
When I am connected directly to the cable modem, the Airport Extreme's drives shows up in my Finder but when I'm connected via the NETGEAR router it doesn't show up.
There must be some setting in the NETGEAR router that is blocking access but I've not got clue one what setting I need to adjust or change on the router.
Could someone please advise me?

I checked the NETGEAR router settings and it was not configured to block any services or sites. I did as you advised and set up Port Mapping/Forwarding from 548 to the IP assigned to my Mac but nothing showed up in the Finder (no Shared Devices etc).
I then connected directly to the cable modem via ethernet and Shared Devices showed up in my Finder window with my Airport Extreme. I connected to one of the drives connected to the AEBSn, then unplugged the ethernet and connected the NETGEAR back to the cable modem and thus my MacBook Pro was connected via WiFi to the NETGEAR router and to the Internet.
Shared Devices disappeared from my Finder window, BUT the HD I had connected to remained connected. It was listed under my MacBook Pro's name (3rd item after the local HD, "Network"). The icon is a blue and white drive with the WiFi logo on it.
I verified that I could access the files on this remotely connected drive and did a Get Info and in the window that popped up it said "Server: afp://MilkBar._afpovertcp._tcp.malckwan.members.mac.com/Untitled%2001".
I tried to use the Connect To (Cmd-K) to connect to another drive attached to the AEBSn (Untitled%2002) using the same formatted address but could not connect.
PS. I did verify that I was mapping Port 548 to the current IP assigned to the MacBook Pro.

Time capsule or Airport Extreme + USB hard drive

I would like to get a wireless update solution (to work with time machine) and I am considering the following options:
1. Time Capsule 1TB
2. Time Capsule 500GB + USB external hard drive attached to the time capsule (in case I need more storage than the 500GB on the Time Capsule)
3. Airport Extreme Base Station + USB external hard drive attached (to use with Time Machine)
I am wondering what the opinions are in this forum. What is cheaper? More reliable? Better?
Any other suggestions? Thanks!
I am running Mac OS X 10.5.5 on an iMac

Yeah, I've seen your explaination that those are glasses before. But I can see why some might be confused. (First laugh of the day!)
No I hadn't tried that yet because my 2 external HDs are Firewire. But it just so happens that I picked up a USB WD500Gig yesterday and am starting an initial TM backup to it now via USB - after having reformatted it of course.
I am assuming, though, that as soon as I move it from my MB Pro to the TC that the TM backups will be broken and I'll have to start a new set of backups to create the disk image (sparsebundle). However, it will give me an opportunity to see if backups created locally (USB) can be viewed via "Browse Other TM Disks" when they are connected to a TC.
I'm curious how it works out, though, because I've noticed a few comments here that state these drives (or one of the WD models) has trouble waking from sleep for routine backups when connected to the TC USB port. I guess I'll find out.
Great to hear from you.

Access AirPort Extrems USB hard drive from Android

I'm starting a new discussion because I erroneously marked my earlier discussion "solved".
I've been using a USB connected disk drive on my AirPort Extreme from my Android tablet for years. Since upgrading the AirPort to version 7.6.4 I can no longer access the disk drive from the tablet. I have not changed anything on the tablet, only the AirPort.
The tablet can see the AirPort itself as 10.0.1.1 and can see the attached disk drive, but when I try to access the drive I get a series of possible errors including Firewall issues, SMB service is off or out of scope and WLAN is off.
I don't know how to look at the firewall on the AirPort or check on the SMB service (I can't find either topic in AirPort Utility).
I have tried a factory reset, and also reverting back to version 7.5.2 as suggested in the other thread, but I still get the same message when I try to connect.
The drive is fully accessible from either of the two Macs on the network.
Please help - I really need to access files on this disk from the tablet. I konw Dropbox will work, but ti's cumbersome and I don't really want some of the files to live on Dropbox.
Walt

I would venture to say that the issue may be related to the AirPort firmware update not being compatible with the current version of firmware on your Android tablet. Of course, you probably already know this. I'm not aware of any incompatibilities between these two devices as Apple has not provided any information on this.
As far as firewall on the AirPort, unless you are accessing the Extreme from a remote location its NAT firewall would be a mute issue. About SMB, this is automatically enabled when you configure the Extreme to share out an external USB HDD. So there is no setting to change there either.
I have tried a factory reset, and also reverting back to version 7.5.2 as suggested in the other thread, but I still get the same message when I try to connect.
If your Android was not having this issue when the Extreme was running 7.5.2 firmware, but is now after downgrading it to this version tends to make me believe the issuse may be with your tablet. Is there a potential firmware update for it?

Airport extreme hosted hard drive not recognized by Disk Utility

Hi, all. I've had success for a month now hosting a 4T hardrive wirelessly via my Airport Extreme. I use it for Time Machine backups and remote storage. So I'd like to repartition that hardrive via Disk Utlity, however Disk Utility no longer recognizes the 4T hardrive hosted via my Airport Extreme. How can I get my Airport Extreme external drive to show up in Disk Utility so I can format it again?

I'm not sure you're aware but I wanted to let you know that using an external drive connected to the Airport USB port as a Time Machine backup device isn't supported/recommended by Apple. don't be surprised if you think it's working and you go to use it to restore from a crash, and you can't. Just a warning.

Windows Vista Home Premium Computer Doesn't Connect to Airport Extreme's Hard Drive

I have a hard drive connected to an Airport Extreme. The hard drive is recognized by the Windows computer; that is a dialog box appears that states 'The Airport Disk became available'. But when I attempt to supply a password it tells me "Could not connect to the disk. Make sure netBIOS is enabled and try again (53)."
The hard drive connected to the Airport Extreme is 500Gb and formatted as FAT32. The hard drive has its own power source. There are no spaces in the hard drive's name or in the Airpot Extreme's name. I've assigned WORKGROUP as the workgroup on both the Airport Extreme and the Windows Vista comptuer. I've enabled netBIOS for the TCP/IPv4 connection.
The vista computer is connected to the Airport Extreme via an ethernet cable; the cable is connected to a LAN slot of the Airport Extreme.
All help is appreciated.

Sounds like you are on the right track but I will have to say that I am very sorry but I am out of ideas - you are getting way out of my experience level - and I have to apologize about my previous post - I spelled Tesserax name wrong - you need help from one of the high level participants - I answered your orignal post because I have had sharing issues with Vista and thought that I could help - having said all that, I just thought of a last resort suggestion - make sure that your hard drive works when connected directly to your computer and then reset your Extreme and start from scratch - if that doesn't work then you might just have an incompatible setup - also if you wait a while and reword your question with your new findings, maybe a more experienced participant will respond - good luck.

Using Airport Extreme- Printers & Hard Drives - Mac and WIndows XP Network

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