gns1013
Level 1 (11 points)
Wireless

Q: Airport Utility dotted line to Airport Extreme connected via ethernet to modem

After reset Airport Utility displays dotted line to Airport Extreme and solid line to Airport Express that is set to Extend wireless network and unable to access NAS devices.  Airport network current device settings: Airport extreme with ethernet to modem Creating Wireless network, Airport Express Join wireless network (AE-1), Airport Express Extend wireless network (AE-2).  Previously Airport Utility displayed in tree structure Internet > Solid line to Airport Extreme directly below > Dotted line to AE-1 below left > Dotted line to AE-2 below right.  Current Airport Utility pictured below and unable to access NAS connected via ethernet to Airport Extreme or NAS connected via ethernet to AE-1:

Airport Utility.png

Mac mini (Late 2012), OS X Mountain Lion (10.8.5)

Posted on Jun 23, 2016 11:46 AM

by gns1013,Apple recommended
gns1013 gns1013
Level 1 (11 points)
Wireless
A:

I believe the issue has been found.  We have Mediacom as our ISP and last week switched to them for television and telephone service.  The Arris modem was not appropriate for the phone service so a Hitron modem was placed and connected to one of the Airport Express's (AE-2) via a switch that is extending as a client so the AE-2 is connecting to the Internet via this and not communicating with the Airport Extreme the NAS devices are connected to via ethernet.  Which explains the solid line to the AE-2 in Airport Utility.

Posted on Jun 24, 2016 7:15 AM

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gns1013

Q: Airport Utility dotted line to Airport Extreme connected via ethernet to modem

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  • by Tesserax,

    Tesserax Tesserax Jun 23, 2016 12:00 PM in response to gns1013
    Level 9 (54,398 points)
    Wireless
    Jun 23, 2016 12:00 PM in response to gns1013

    Unfortunately, the graphical representation of your current network in the AirPort Utility is not very dependable. It is not uncommon for it to not display the network configuration correctly periodically. It appears to still be a work "in-progress" at best.

     

    However, let's see if we can get your network up and running again.

     

    I suggest that you start over with just the AirPort Extreme (& modem) powered-on. What is the make & model of the modem and the exact model of the Extreme? In this configuration, can you both access the Extreme with the AirPort Utility and access the Internet with either wired or wireless network clients?

  • by gns1013,

    gns1013 gns1013 Jun 23, 2016 3:03 PM in response to Tesserax
    Level 1 (11 points)
    Wireless
    Jun 23, 2016 3:03 PM in response to Tesserax

    Modem Arris SB6183 and I believe the Extreme model number is ME918LL/A firmware 7.7.7 and Airport Utility version 6.3.6.  In this configuration the extreme and express's are accessible within the utility, as is the Internet via both wired and wireless clients.  The inability to access either NAS is the primary issue, besides the fact the network is not appropriately configured.  Also, as an aside because it appears my profile may not be correct I am using OS X El Capitan 10.11.5

  • by Tesserax,

    Tesserax Tesserax Jun 23, 2016 3:20 PM in response to gns1013
    Level 9 (54,398 points)
    Wireless
    Jun 23, 2016 3:20 PM in response to gns1013

    Thanks for the updated information.

     

    Just so you are aware, there have been numerous posts here at the Apple Support Communities (ASC) about incompatibilities between the Arris / Motorola SB61XX-series and the 802.11ac AirPort base stations. Although it does not sound like consistent Internet connectivity is an issue in your case. Just wanted you to know.

     

    As far as clients not being able to access either NAS, leads me to believe that your network is not currently set up so that it is all on the same subnet.

     

    Again, I would suggest just leaving the modem & Extreme powered-on. Also, temporarily connect both NAS devices directly to the Extreme by Ethernet. Can network clients, connected to the Extreme either by wire or wireless, access the NAS devices now?

     

    If so, we can add back AE-2 to extend the Extreme's Wi-Fi network. This time I would recommend leaving the NAS devices connected to the Extreme, and temporarily bringing AE-2 into the same room as the Extreme to set it up for extending. I also recommend that you perform a "factory default" reset on AE-2, and reconfigure it for extending from scratch.

     

    Please post back your results.

  • by gns1013,Apple recommended

    gns1013 gns1013 Jun 24, 2016 7:15 AM in response to Tesserax
    Level 1 (11 points)
    Wireless
    Jun 24, 2016 7:15 AM in response to Tesserax

    I believe the issue has been found.  We have Mediacom as our ISP and last week switched to them for television and telephone service.  The Arris modem was not appropriate for the phone service so a Hitron modem was placed and connected to one of the Airport Express's (AE-2) via a switch that is extending as a client so the AE-2 is connecting to the Internet via this and not communicating with the Airport Extreme the NAS devices are connected to via ethernet.  Which explains the solid line to the AE-2 in Airport Utility.