0ldFasi0n
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Q: AirPort Time Capsule ethernet and WiFi setup

I’m trying to setup my home network, it’s also, in a way, the practice run for my future business setup…

 

So here are the component.

—Modem: Fast 5250 BELL FIBE Home Hub 2000.

—AirPort Time Capsule 1T (tall one)

—AirPort Extreme (tall)

—AirPort Express (Apple TV size)

 

Here are the different zone of coverage and device usually being used in them:

—Office: Printer via USB or ethernet, MacPro ethernet, 2xMacBookAir.

—Living room: Smart TV, Apple TV2, PS4 (all via ethernet if possible) plus a bunch of iOS devices and laptop via Wi-Fi

—Room’s: Apple TV and IOS device via Wi-Fi.

 

So okay here is the catch, the modem is in the entrance closet surrounded by concrete so I close the Wi-Fi on it. Ethernet wires run from there to the office, upstairs room and the main living room. The plan was to put the 1T TimeCapsule in the office, extreme in the living room, and express upstairs. But I already troubleshoot that they can’t be all plug in via Ethernet in the modem… Oh! What a mess it made… So I saw on the apple support page that it is preferable to put the Airport Time capsule 1T as main to create the network. So If I put the Time Capsule in the closet as the main will it be backing up my stuff via ethernet?

Also I Have the older version of Time Capsule (flat 500 GB). Shud I use it as the main since all the other Airport will be connected to it via ethernet anyway?

And at last, I connect the main to the bell modem using PPPoE and the other Airport to the main via DHCP Bridge mode. Is that right?

 

Probably all covered already in other posts so sorry if it’s redundant. Thanks in advance for taking the time to help me.

Mac Pro, OS X El Capitan (10.11.3)

Posted on Feb 25, 2016 10:57 AM

by Tesserax,Solvedanswer
Tesserax Tesserax
Level 9 (54,618 points)
Wireless
A:

The new one is (I know I made a mistake in the original post) 3 TB tall one bought a year and a few months ago.

The old one is modelling no A1302 500 MB from I don’t know … 2010 maybe.

Ok, then for future reference, you have: 1) An 802.11ac Time Capsule (model: A1470), and 2) An 2nd generation 802.11n Time Capsule (model: A1302).

But I want to make sure that if I use the old one as the main my network security will not be affected by a lower standard or something…

No differences to the level of security provided with these two models. Both offer the currently highest level of wireless security: WPA2.

And is there such thing as upgrading the firmware on any of those AirPort of is it automatic?

By default, the AirPort Utility will notify you when there is a firmware update when you access the base station. Currently the latest firmware version for your older TC is: 7.6.4 ... however, we find that v7.6.1 to be the most stable. If you find you already have 7.6.1 installed, leave it.

Posted on Feb 25, 2016 2:12 PM

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0ldFasi0n

Q: AirPort Time Capsule ethernet and WiFi setup

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  • Helpful answers

  • by Kappy,Helpful

    Kappy Kappy Feb 25, 2016 11:34 AM in response to 0ldFasi0n
    Level 10 (271,323 points)
    Desktops
    Feb 25, 2016 11:34 AM in response to 0ldFasi0n

    Probably all covered already in other posts so sorry if it’s redundant. Thanks in advance for taking the time to help me.


    Have you searched for the other posts that have covered this in one form or another? Perhaps you should do that first.


    AirPort base stations- Setting up and configuring an extended wireless network (802.11n)

    AirPort + Wi-Fi - Apple Support

    AirPort Utility 6.x- If your base station or Time Capsule is connected to a router providing NAT and…

     

    If you have documentation for your devices, then read it to see if it provides help. And, don't overlook the Help menu for the Finder or Airport Utility. If you are patient then most likely Bob Timmons will find your topic and help you. He is the resident expert.

  • by Tesserax,Helpful

    Tesserax Tesserax Feb 25, 2016 11:34 AM in response to 0ldFasi0n
    Level 9 (54,618 points)
    Wireless
    Feb 25, 2016 11:34 AM in response to 0ldFasi0n

    One option is to use a wired router, instead of your Time Capsule (TC) as your "main" router. This way the TC can be placed in a location that won't affect its Wi-Fi performance.

     

    An example of this wired router, would be the Cisco RV180.

     

    You would then connect each of your Apple base stations back to the Cisco by Ethernet. This would solve the problem of attempting to connect multiple routers to the modem ... which, as you know, does not work.

     

    With all the networking devices connected this way, you would have the basis for a roaming type network. This type of network uses each base station to create a wireless network to cover the areas needed. However, since each network will have the same network name, and use the same wireless security type & password, wireless network clients would see these as "one" network.

  • by 0ldFasi0n,

    0ldFasi0n 0ldFasi0n Feb 25, 2016 11:27 AM in response to Kappy
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Feb 25, 2016 11:27 AM in response to Kappy

    Probably all covered already in other posts so sorry if it’s redundant. Thanks in advance for taking the time to help me.

    Have you searched for the other posts that have covered this in one form or another? Perhaps you should do that first.


    Yes I did look at the first 2 link you just posted and it doesn't answer if the time capsule will back-up via ethernet since the signal from the concrete closet will be minimal. And if using the oldest Time Capsule as the main will lower or bottleneck the efficiency of the rest of the new AirPort hardware.

    But thanks anyway.

    But the 3rd link you post: AirPort Utility 6.x- If your base station or Time Capsule is connected to a router providing NAT and…

    did confirm that connecting the main via PPPoE in DHCP & NAT mode and the rest of the AirPort in bridge mode.

     

    Thanks,

     

    I'll wait for someone else input

  • by 0ldFasi0n,

    0ldFasi0n 0ldFasi0n Feb 25, 2016 11:49 AM in response to Tesserax
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Feb 25, 2016 11:49 AM in response to Tesserax

    One option is to use a wired router, instead of your Time Capsule (TC) as your "main" router. This way the TC can be placed in a location that won't affect its Wi-Fi performance. 

    An example of this wired router, would be the Cisco RV180.


    I've got a switch would that be enought to or this would just bring back the original configuration problem when all the AirPort were connected to the Modem?

    Could I use my old TimeCapsule (flat 500GB) for this?

    And would it bottleneck and slow down the rest of the network. Or better result would come from the newer Time Capsule as the main even if I loose the WIFI in that coffin of a closet i got?





  • by Tesserax,

    Tesserax Tesserax Feb 25, 2016 12:03 PM in response to 0ldFasi0n
    Level 9 (54,618 points)
    Wireless
    Feb 25, 2016 12:03 PM in response to 0ldFasi0n

    I've got a switch would that be enought to or this would just bring back the original configuration problem when all the AirPort were connected to the Modem?

    Sorry, no, the switch won't work, and yes, it would bring back the original configuration problem.

    Could I use my old TimeCapsule (flat 500GB) for this?

    And would it bottleneck and slow down the rest of the network. Or better result would come from the newer Time Capsule as the main even if I loose the WIFI in that coffin of a closet i got?

    Yes, you would be better off using the older TC as all models have 1 Gbps Ethernet ports. The newer TC would work better not in the closet to provide Wi-Fi ... but it may also depend on what exact version that this older TC is.

  • by 0ldFasi0n,

    0ldFasi0n 0ldFasi0n Feb 25, 2016 12:21 PM in response to Tesserax
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Feb 25, 2016 12:21 PM in response to Tesserax

    The new one is (I know I made a mistake in the original post) 3 TB tall one bought a year and a few months ago.

    The old one is modelling no A1302 500 MB from I don’t know … 2010 maybe.

     

    But I want to make sure that if I use the old one as the main my network security will not be affected by a lower standard or something…

    And is there such thing as upgrading the firmware on any of those AirPort of is it automatic?

     

    Also thanks a lot for helping me guy's it is appreciated at this end.

  • by Tesserax,Solvedanswer

    Tesserax Tesserax Feb 25, 2016 2:12 PM in response to 0ldFasi0n
    Level 9 (54,618 points)
    Wireless
    Feb 25, 2016 2:12 PM in response to 0ldFasi0n

    The new one is (I know I made a mistake in the original post) 3 TB tall one bought a year and a few months ago.

    The old one is modelling no A1302 500 MB from I don’t know … 2010 maybe.

    Ok, then for future reference, you have: 1) An 802.11ac Time Capsule (model: A1470), and 2) An 2nd generation 802.11n Time Capsule (model: A1302).

    But I want to make sure that if I use the old one as the main my network security will not be affected by a lower standard or something…

    No differences to the level of security provided with these two models. Both offer the currently highest level of wireless security: WPA2.

    And is there such thing as upgrading the firmware on any of those AirPort of is it automatic?

    By default, the AirPort Utility will notify you when there is a firmware update when you access the base station. Currently the latest firmware version for your older TC is: 7.6.4 ... however, we find that v7.6.1 to be the most stable. If you find you already have 7.6.1 installed, leave it.

  • by 0ldFasi0n,

    0ldFasi0n 0ldFasi0n Feb 25, 2016 2:44 PM in response to Tesserax
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Feb 25, 2016 2:44 PM in response to Tesserax

    I just found out for the security … thanks a lot anyway. I’m kind of doing a crash course on Wi-Fi by myself. Started yesterday!

    I was wrong on the older model I thought I had. I was looking in the 3rd gen. TimeCapsule, but you surely put me back on track now.

    Thanks for the heads-up on the update version I'll look into it right away… Well, I think this took care of pretty much all my present problem.

    I’ll let you guys know if it all work-out and will click on “This solve my problem.”

  • by Tesserax,

    Tesserax Tesserax Feb 25, 2016 2:53 PM in response to 0ldFasi0n
    Level 9 (54,618 points)
    Wireless
    Feb 25, 2016 2:53 PM in response to 0ldFasi0n

    If you want to get "up to speed on Apple networking" may I suggest an easy, but throughout, read: Take Control of your Apple Wi-Fi Network. This should help you get all the basics and be more specific to your current networking hardware.

  • by 0ldFasi0n,

    0ldFasi0n 0ldFasi0n Feb 25, 2016 5:56 PM in response to Tesserax
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Feb 25, 2016 5:56 PM in response to Tesserax

    Okay so everything is working great! thank you for all these info. And i will certainly read that book you suggested

  • by Tesserax,

    Tesserax Tesserax Feb 26, 2016 9:02 AM in response to 0ldFasi0n
    Level 9 (54,618 points)
    Wireless
    Feb 26, 2016 9:02 AM in response to 0ldFasi0n

    You're very welcome! Enjoy the book. Before you know it, you'll be back here helping others with their networking issues.