Time Capsule won't run at gigabit speed

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Level 1

16 points

Time Capsule won't run at gigabit speed

We have a 4th generation Time Capsule 2TB (updated with firmware 7.6.1) connected to an HP ProCurve 2510G-48 gigabit switch. The Time Capsule is in bridge mode with the DHCP server disabled -- it's basically acting as a wireless access point. We've got 30 other gigabit devices connected to this switch, and they all run at gigabit speed -- but the TIme Capsule will only connect at 100baseT. All ports on the Time Capsule are supposed to be gigabit-capable, so that doesn't make sense. I've tried the obvious solutions -- swap in a new network cable, update firmware on the switch -- and, in fact, our HP switch was entirely replaced over the weekend due to a power supply failure in the switch, and the replacement switch still only talks to the Time Capsule at 100baseT.

Not sure why this is happening. Anyone got any suggestions?

MacBook Air, Mac OS X (10.7.4)

Posted on Jun 11, 2012 8:55 PM

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Answer 1

Jun 11, 2012 11:34 PM in response to fortbailey

Can you just confirm it by plugging a computer into the TC that you know is gigabit..

The TC has been gigabit ever since release.. if it won't connect just return it for warranty replacement.

There is no place in the TC to control the port speed except the WAN port.. and that is only when connect as router.

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Answer 2

HACKINT0SH

Level 5

5,810 points

Jun 12, 2012 1:43 AM in response to LaPastenague

I was going to suggest something out of curiousity, and Pastenague already hinted at it... the WAN port setting.

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Answer 3

Jun 12, 2012 2:55 AM in response to HACKINT0SH

Yes, you can set the TC to router and use WAN connection to the switch.. then force that to gigabit and see if it works.. gigabit does occasionally have issues.. if your HP switch is managed, then force the port it is plugged into to gigabit only.. that is probably easier and achieves the same thing.. you are forcing the two to talk gigabit instead of trying to auto negotiate the speed, which doesn't always work.

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Answer 4

fortbailey Author

Level 1

16 points

Aug 23, 2012 1:03 AM in response to LaPastenague

Interesting development tonight. I finally got back to looking into this matter. First thing I did was change the hard-wired connection form using the WAN port to using one of the LAN ports. I guess I always figured that the WAN port was the same as "Internet connection goes here" but I forget that you can simply treat the three remaining ports as a simple hub with a built-in wireless bridge. Hooking up this way also worked fine, but I was still running at 100baseT. So I went into the HP switch configuration and switched the port to "auto-1000" to try to force it to run at gigabit speed. The Capsule immediately broke its link to the wired network. The switch simply says "lost connection to multiple devices" on that port -- the event log simply says the port went offline. I got back into the switch config and turned the port back to auto -- click, everything was back to normal.

Very strange, considering the Capsule is supposed to be able to run at gigabit and the rest of our network is as well. It could be a problem with wiring in our walls, I suppose -- unfortunately my cable tester broke a few weeks ago. But we are moving to a new facility in six weeks, so rather than continue to muck with this, I think I'll just table the whole matter until we get there. If it works in the new building, then I can just write it off to a wiring problem in the old building. If it still won't work at the new place, then I guess I'll return to this forum post then.

Thanks for your advice, all.

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