Airport utility 6.3 and new Airport Extreme transmit power level

Question

Level 1

7 points

Airport utility 6.3 and new Airport Extreme transmit power level

I'm replacing a dead 5 year old time capsule with a new airport extreme. I bougt it because of it's purported range. My old time capsule did better.

So I'm wondering:

1 - How to disable 802.11n - so it forces longer range G.

2 - How to set the transmit power level. You used to be able to do this but I sure can't find it in the settings with the newest airport utility.

3 - How to set the interference option - there used to be one to use if you were in a wifi saturated area.

Anyone know how to get to any of these settings using the 6.3 airport utility?

Thanks

MacBook Pro, OS X Mountain Lion (10.8)

Posted on Jul 1, 2013 2:28 PM

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Answer 1

Sep 21, 2016 6:34 PM in response to Pangolin1

I have an airport extreme base which I set up using an early version of airport utility - The power is set to low - I want to increase the power but Apple has dumbed down its airport utility and it doesn't have a power selection option anymore in Airport Utility 6.3.5

- Should I do a hard reset

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Answer 2

Bob Timmons

Level 10

186,188 points

Jul 1, 2013 2:50 PM in response to Pangolin1

1 - How to disable 802.11n - so it forces longer range G.

This is not possible. You can assign a separate name to the 5 GHz band as an option if you want, but it is not possible to disable the 2.4 GHz band.....it is always "on".

2 - How to set the transmit power level

This is not possible with AirPort Utility 6.3 or AirPort Utility 1.3 for the iPhone / iPad.

3 - How to set the interference option

This is not possible since the setting does not exist in AirPort Utility 6.3 or 1.3.

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Answer 3

Pangolin1 Author

Level 1

7 points

Jul 1, 2013 5:01 PM in response to Bob Timmons

Bob,

Hardly seems like an upgrade but I resolved the issue by changing the 5ghz network name and not connecting to it. That increased my reliable range.

I also loaded a Windows version of the airport utility and confirmed transmit power at 100%.

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Answer 4

Crozlo

Level 1

4 points

Nov 17, 2013 5:47 PM in response to Pangolin1

A more accurate answer..

1 - How to disable 802.11n - so it forces longer range G.

In AirPort Utility 6.x, under Wireless settings click Wireless Options... Option-click the Radio Mode drop down. You will see all available configurations of radios (2.4 / 5) and WiFi protocols. 802.11n operates in 2.4 as well as 5Ghz ranges, which is why you can't disable it automatically by turning off the 5G radio. Choose "802.11a - 802.11b/g" to accomplish your stated goal, without completely disabling the 5G radio.

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Answer 5

elf55

Level 1

28 points

Dec 21, 2014 1:48 PM in response to Bob Timmons

Does anyone but me think it's unfair for Apple to only support advanced Airport Extreme features in the Airport Utility for Windows and not for Mac? Why do they penalize users of their own products over those from other manufacturers?

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Answer 6

roncoe

Level 1

20 points

May 31, 2015 9:34 AM in response to Pangolin1

One can also use the Airport 6.3 utility to export the current configuration of the base station, open the exported file (it's an XML plist) in a decent text editor--I use VI, modify the raPx value under radios to the desired value, save the file, and then import the configuration to the base station. This process worked perfectly for me.

I did use the Windows version of the Airport Utility to ensure that the modification affected the right configuration parameter.

I hope this is helpful.

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Answer 7

Sep 22, 2016 12:33 AM in response to Bazza McKenzie

A hard reset will return the power level to 100% which is default.

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