How to setup an Airport Extreme in hotel w/o an ethernet connection

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How to setup an Airport Extreme in hotel w/o an ethernet connection

How to I set up an Airport Extreme network in a hotel room without the hotel having an ethernet connection in the room?

More to the point I would like to setup a private network for my room in the hotel. If the hotel room had an ethernet connection that wouldn't be too difficult but the room/hotel doesn't have the ethernet connection, only WiFi. So how do I set up the Airport Extreme and then connect an airport express to it via WiFi?

Thx.

Michael

Airport Extreme-OTHER, Windows 7

Posted on Aug 14, 2013 11:11 AM

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Answer 1

Aug 14, 2013 11:21 AM in response to mannfeld

How to I set up an Airport Extreme network in a hotel room without the hotel having an ethernet connection in the room?

Is the AirPort Express that you have an 802.11n model?

So, you have both an AirPort Expess 802.11n....and....an AirPort Extreme, correct?

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Answer 2

mannfeld Author

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Aug 14, 2013 11:23 AM in response to Bob Timmons

I do have an Airport Express in addition to the Airport Extreme. how would that work i.e. the Express with the Extreme?

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Answer 3

Aug 14, 2013 11:26 AM in response to mannfeld

Configure the AirPort Express to "Join a wireless network".

But, you must have an AirPort Express 802.11n product for this to work.

Then connect an Ethernet cable from the AirPort Express to the WAN "O" port on the AirPort Extreme and configure the Extreme to "Create a wireless network"

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Answer 4

mannfeld Author

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13 points

Aug 27, 2013 4:53 PM in response to Bob Timmons

OK, here's the situation.... I have an Airport Express (MB321LL/A w/7.6.4 firmware) set up to "Join a wireless network" of the hotel. It's picking up it's IP address (192.168.2.104) via DHCP and the hotel is on a 192.168.2.xxx NAT scheme. And it's in Bridge Mode. I have an ethernet cable running from the AE to the Airport Extreme.

The Airport Extreme (5th gen) is setup to except ethernet connections, Wireless mode = "Create a wireless network" and is in "Bridge Mode" when set to DHCP it finds an address of 169.254.173.xxx and then shows a connection error i.e. no internet connection. If I configure the IP manually and set to 192.168.2.254 (which I determined with an IP scanner is available) This works sometimes and the AEx connects and I have a private network in my room. However even if it does connect will not "hold" the connection and the next morning while it still shows as conected to all there is no internet.

Now to add to this, if I allowthe laptop to connect directly to the hotel it picks my an IP from the 192.168.2.xxx scheme. When I connect to the AEx and do an ipconfig /release and it gets a new IP it picks up a 169.254.75.xxx scheme with a subnet of 255.255.0.0

I'm baffled as to how to make all this work together. Can someone tell me how to make this work so I can have a private network in my hotel room (I do have my reasons for this)

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Answer 5

Aug 27, 2013 5:59 PM in response to mannfeld

And it's in Bridge Mode

The AIrPort Extreme needs to be in a Router Mode of DHCP and NAT.

You will see a Double NAT error on the AirPort when you do this, but you can click to "ignore" that minor error and the AirPort will display a green light.

With a setup like this, the AirPort Express acts as the "modem" for your network and the AirPort Extreme acts as the router......exactly what you want.

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Answer 6

mannfeld Author

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13 points

Aug 27, 2013 6:27 PM in response to Bob Timmons

How does one put the Extreme into "Router" mode? Whether I try to change the settings using the "Manual Setup" button or the "Continue" button I am unable to find anything that even has the word "Router"

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Answer 7

Aug 27, 2013 6:37 PM in response to mannfeld

This sounds like you are using an older version of AirPort Utility.

Click Manual Setup

Click the Internet icon

Click the Internet Connection tab just below the icons

Connect Using = Ethernet

Ethernet WAN Port = Automatic

Connection Sharing = Share a Public IP Address

Update to save settings

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Answer 8

mannfeld Author

Level 1

13 points

Aug 27, 2013 6:43 PM in response to Bob Timmons

Using v5.6.1 Airport Utility for Windows. It's showing as the most recent version and that no updates are available. Is there a newer version I am unaware or?

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Answer 9

Aug 27, 2013 6:45 PM in response to mannfeld

Not for Windows.

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Answer 10

mannfeld Author

Level 1

13 points

Aug 27, 2013 7:01 PM in response to Bob Timmons

Click Manual Setup

Click the Internet icon

Click the Internet Connection tab just below the icons

Connect Using = Ethernet

Ethernet WAN Port = Automatic

Connection Sharing = Share a Public IP Address

Update to save settings

Well that doesn't work. FWIW I'm not sharing a public IP. the hotel network is already doing NAT. You don't say whether to use manual IP or DHCP. Specically using manual IP doesn't work. And If I choose DHCP following update I get an error message stating the WiFi base station does not have a valid IP etc. So there's no internet connectivity.

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Answer 11

mannfeld Author

Level 1

13 points

Aug 27, 2013 7:06 PM in response to mannfeld

Do I have the Express configured incorrectly? It is in Bridge mode with DHCP. Is that how it should be?

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Answer 12

Aug 27, 2013 7:13 PM in response to mannfeld

If I configure the AirPort Expess to "join a wireless network" and connect the Ethernet cable to the AirPort Extreme and configure the Extreme to Connect Using DHCP, then set the Connection Sharing to Share a public IP address, this setup has worked in dozens of hotels around the world.....including Austin TX last week.

Technically, you are getting a "private" IP address from the hotel. Do not be concerned about this. You have to treat that as if it were a public IP address.

When you do that, you will get Double NAT on the AirPort Exterme....a very minor error that Apple will let you ignore so you have a green light. There is actually an advantage to having the extra NAT layer because it shields the AirPort Extreme network from the hotel network....so other hotels guests cannot "see" the devices on your AirPort Extreme network.

You are trying to make this much more complicated than it needs to be. You don't need Manual or Static IP or anything like that. Keep it simple.

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Answer 13

mannfeld Author

Level 1

13 points

Aug 27, 2013 7:27 PM in response to Bob Timmons

I don't doubt your expereince or expertise. I'm just telling you what I have and whether it works or not. so starting with the Express here's how it is...

Airport

Summary Tab >

Status > normal

Version> 7.6.4

Wirelss Mode> Join a wireless network

Wireless Clients> 1

Connect using> Wireless network

IP address> 192.168.2.104

Wireless Tab >

Wireless mode> Join a wireless network

Allow ethernet clients> yes (checked)

Wireless security> None

Internet

Internet connection tab>

Connect using> Wireless network

Bridge mode

TCP/IP tab

Using DHCP

Airport Extreme

AirPort icon

Summary tab>

Status> Internet Connection> Yellow

Wireless mode> Create a wireless network

Wireless Security> WPA2 Personal

Connect using> Ehternet

IP Address> 169.254.173.178

Internet Icon

Internet Connection tab>

Connect using> Ethernet

WAN Port> Automatic

Connection Sharing> Sahre a public IP Address

TCP/IP tab

Using DHCP

DHCP tab

DHCP schema> 10.0.1.xxx

NAT tab

Default Host> 10.0.1.x

Enable NAT port mapping protcol> Yes (checked)

That's the way everything is configure and it doesn't work. so tell exactly what needs to change or what I need to do to make this work

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Answer 14

Aug 27, 2013 7:39 PM in response to mannfeld

Settings look good except for the 169.254.173.178 IP address on the AirPort Extreme. It needs to be a 192.168.2.x IP address since that is what the hotel is providing.

Power off the AirPort Express, wait a few minutes and power it back up.

Then test the AirPort Express connection by connecting a computer directly to the Ethernet port on the Expess to verify that you can get an Internet connection. If you can, this same Internet connection will now be delivered to the WAN port on the AirPort Extreme.

Try a Factory Default Reset on the AirPort Extreme to clear everything out and then configue the Extreme again.

If that does not work, then I gave it my best shot by telling you what has worked for me for years, but yet have failed.

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Answer 15

mannfeld Author

Level 1

13 points

Nov 28, 2013 11:45 AM in response to Bob Timmons

Well it certainly took me a while to dig back into this but I did finally get everything working as per Bob's instructions with one caveat. The AirPort Extreme outside IP is set static at 192.168.2.254 and the internal (my local lan is based on a 10.0.1.xxx series. However how do I set the AirPort Extreme to have an address of 10.0.1.5? I did a DCP reservation for the Extreme based on it's MAC address and the DHCP available address range (what it can "hand out") as 10.0.1.16 - 10.0.1.25. However the Extreme keeps going for 10.0.1.1 as it's address.

What am I doing incorrectly?

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