Damager
Level 1 (0 points)

Q: Airport Extreme wired AND extend network - Need Input

I just bought 2 Air Port Extreme units (the latest 5th generation).  I'd like to use them in the following configuration:

 

 

1.  Unit 1 connected to my cable modem, providing wireless service and wired to a switch which distributes the connectivity to a few other places in my house via ethernet cable.

 

 

2.  Unit 2 on the opposite side of the house, extending the wireless signal from Unit 1, and hardwired to the ethernet in the house.  Then several other items plugged into Unit 2 for connectivity.

 

 

Problem is, I seem to have 1 of 2 choices:

 

 

1.  Configure Unit 2 in bridge mode.  Hardwire to network works and connectivity works, but there is no wireless turned on, hence no wireless extension.

 

 

2.  Configure Unit 2 to Extend Network.  Wireless is extended, and works fine.  Items can be plugged into Unit 2 and get connectivity, but I cannot connect Unit 2 to the wired network.

 

 

Am I right that I can't get what I want - Unit 2 wired into the internal ethernet network AND extending the wireless network from Unit 1?

AirPort Extreme 5th Gen, Mac OS X (10.7.3)

Posted on Feb 26, 2012 1:51 PM

by Joseph Kriz,Solvedanswer
Joseph Kriz Joseph Kriz
Level 5 (5,144 points)
iPhone
A:

Connect them in a "Roaming" network which is the best wireless network available.

 

Roaming Network (Ethernet-connected Wi-Fi base stations)

For 802.11n Wi-Fi base stations, creating a roaming network is by far the best choice. This will provide the best throughput between the base stations and your Wi-Fi devices.

 

This set up requires that your Wi-Fi base stations are connected via Ethernet.

 

The primary base station provides DHCP Services, while the extended base station will be configured to use bridge mode.

All Wi-Fi base stations within the roaming network should use the same passwords, security type (Open/WEP/WPA), and network name (SSID).

These would all use the same "Create a wireless network", same password, same network name, same security, etc.....

Sounds like you can do this with all the cables you have througout the house....

 

You would not use "Join", "Extend", or "Bridge"..... You would choose "Create a wireless network" on all the base stations.......

Posted on Feb 26, 2012 1:59 PM

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Damager

Q: Airport Extreme wired AND extend network - Need Input

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  • by Carlo TD,

    Carlo TD Carlo TD May 31, 2012 10:19 AM in response to jwilker
    Level 3 (558 points)
    May 31, 2012 10:19 AM in response to jwilker

    umm no.

  • by jwilker,

    jwilker jwilker May 31, 2012 12:46 PM in response to Carlo TD
    Level 1 (5 points)
    May 31, 2012 12:46 PM in response to Carlo TD

    uh thanks?

  • by MauroDiaz,

    MauroDiaz MauroDiaz Jan 4, 2013 6:50 AM in response to Damager
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jan 4, 2013 6:50 AM in response to Damager

    Hello,

     

    Quick question.  Having the airport extreme as my DHCP base, is there a way to have more than 3 wired routers on a roaming network (there are 3 ports for connecting routers)?

     

    Thanks in advance

  • by Bob Timmons,

    Bob Timmons Bob Timmons Jan 4, 2013 6:54 AM in response to MauroDiaz
    Level 10 (105,268 points)
    Wireless
    Jan 4, 2013 6:54 AM in response to MauroDiaz

    Connect an Ethernet switch to one of the LAN <-> ports on the AirPort Extreme to add as many additional Ethernet ports as you need.

     

    Ethernet switches come in 5-port, 8-port, 16-port, etc versions.

  • by MauroDiaz,

    MauroDiaz MauroDiaz Jan 4, 2013 7:07 AM in response to Bob Timmons
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jan 4, 2013 7:07 AM in response to Bob Timmons

    Excellent, Bob, many thanks.  I guess I need to ensure the switch has gigabit ports, correct?  Any other hint to ensure I don't loose performance with the addition of the switch?

     

    Again, thanks for taking the time to respond.

  • by Bob Timmons,

    Bob Timmons Bob Timmons Jan 4, 2013 7:17 AM in response to MauroDiaz
    Level 10 (105,268 points)
    Wireless
    Jan 4, 2013 7:17 AM in response to MauroDiaz

    Yes, since the AirPort Extreme has Gigabit Ethernet capability, you would want to have a Gigabit Ethernet switch feeding signals to other AirPort Extremes.

     

    Make sure that all Ethernet cabling is rated for CAT5e or CAT6.

  • by AKEH,

    AKEH AKEH Jan 20, 2013 12:33 PM in response to Damager
    Level 1 (16 points)
    Jan 20, 2013 12:33 PM in response to Damager

    This is indeed a very helpful and clear thread. One additional question. My modem takes care of the DHCP as this can't be turned off. My AirPort Extreme is attached to the modem with an Ethernet cable. The AirPort Extreme creates the wireless network. I want a second AirPort Extreme upstairs. Will this work as described at the beginning of the thread even though neither AirPort Extreme do the DCHP?

  • by Bob Timmons,

    Bob Timmons Bob Timmons Jan 20, 2013 12:47 PM in response to AKEH
    Level 10 (105,268 points)
    Wireless
    Jan 20, 2013 12:47 PM in response to AKEH
    I want a second AirPort Extreme upstairs. Will this work as described at the beginning of the thread even though neither AirPort Extreme do the DCHP?

     

    You can have as many AirPorts as you want, as long as all of them are configured to operate in Bridge Mode.

     

    In other words, except for the name of the device (to keep things organized), the AirPorts would all be configured exactly the same.

  • by G4Monster,

    G4Monster G4Monster Feb 12, 2013 11:04 PM in response to Joseph Kriz
    Level 2 (334 points)
    Feb 12, 2013 11:04 PM in response to Joseph Kriz

    This didn't work for me. AirPort Utility said I needed to power down my modem for a bit and then continue.

  • by bullfrog23414,

    bullfrog23414 bullfrog23414 Feb 19, 2013 10:54 AM in response to coleclark
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Feb 19, 2013 10:54 AM in response to coleclark

    I am having the exact same issue as coleclark.  I have an Airport Extreme and an Airport Express that I purchased new in December 2012.  Setup is Modem -> Airport Extreme WAN Port -> Gigabit "dumb" switch -> Airport Express.  Latest firmware, latest Airport Utility etc.  Airport Express works fine for streaming audio etc. and will show up in the Airport Utility, but as soon as I set it to extend the wireless network of the Airport Extreme, the whole system comes crashing down and nothing can connect to the wireless network.  The only way that I can connect again is by unplugging the Airport Express. 

     

    If Coleclark is out there (or anyone else) did you get this issue resolved and if so, how?

  • by Bob Timmons,

    Bob Timmons Bob Timmons Feb 19, 2013 11:08 AM in response to bullfrog23414
    Level 10 (105,268 points)
    Wireless
    Feb 19, 2013 11:08 AM in response to bullfrog23414
    but as soon as I set it to extend the wireless network of the Airport Extreme, the whole system comes crashing down and nothing can connect to the wireless network.

     

    You don't really need to set the Express to do anything other than accept the recommended settings if you are using the latest version of AirPort Utility 6.x.

     

    AirPort Setup will literally take care of everything for you as long as you have "n" versions of the AirPorts.  The Express qualifies as an "n" device.  How about your AirPort Extreme?

  • by jwilker,

    jwilker jwilker Feb 19, 2013 11:25 AM in response to Damager
    Level 1 (5 points)
    Feb 19, 2013 11:25 AM in response to Damager

    The Set up that finally worked for me was

    Modem.

    Airport Extreme as Router. DHCP, etc.

    A switch

    Airport Exreme upstairs.

     

    Settings wise, i gave up on the Wireless "extend existing network" was incredibly prone to collapsing and just bringing the whole network to it's knees.

     

    This set up is a replication of what we did at the office with 4 AP Extremes.

     

    Once we had the main AP set up, each subsequent AP was connected over ethernet and set to create the exact same network, same Channels, everything, Exception being, not set as DHCP etc.

     

    Both at work and at home the end result was a seemless network spanning the building. No crashes, no drops, totally solid for months (8 so far at work).

     

    Under the "extend wireless network" setup i had the same issues (in both places) as Bull frog. The network was up, but nothing could connect. Things that were connected sometimes stayed connected, sometimes lost and couldn't reconnect. That problem is now 100% gone.

  • by Bob Timmons,

    Bob Timmons Bob Timmons Feb 19, 2013 11:34 AM in response to jwilker
    Level 10 (105,268 points)
    Wireless
    Feb 19, 2013 11:34 AM in response to jwilker

    i gave up on the Wireless "extend existing network" was incredibly prone to collapsing and just bringing the whole network to it's knees.

    "Extend a wireles network" is used only when you are connecting AirPorts together using wireless.....not Ethernet.

     

    The network will crash if you configure an AirPort manually to "extend" and then try to connect to it using Ethernet.

  • by jwilker,

    jwilker jwilker Feb 19, 2013 11:37 AM in response to Bob Timmons
    Level 1 (5 points)
    Feb 19, 2013 11:37 AM in response to Bob Timmons

     

    "Extend a wireles network" is used only when you are connecting AirPorts together using wireless.....not Ethernet.

     

    The network will crash if you configure an AirPort manually to "extend" and then try to connect to it using Ethernet.

     

    I know. Sorry wasn't clear. Was using extend wireless, over wireless and it would crap out regularly.

     

    Went from extending the network wirelessly, to setting each AP up to create the same network, so it's a larger seemless network, without the instability.

  • by bullfrog23414,

    bullfrog23414 bullfrog23414 Feb 19, 2013 12:30 PM in response to Bob Timmons
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Feb 19, 2013 12:30 PM in response to Bob Timmons

    Bob, I'm not sure I understand what you mean by "AirPort Setup will literally take care of everything for you as long as you have "n" versions of the AirPorts." [my Extreme is latest version, so yes, it is "n"].  So if I were to do a hard reset on my Express and just plug it in, my wireless will be extended without me changing any settings whatsoever, or do I have to do what jwilker said and configure the Express with the exact same settings as the Extreme in order to get the enhanced network coverage?  

     

    Goal is to have 1 seamless "roaming" network in my house. 

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