milnuts
Level 1 (5 points)
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Q: How do I update firmware on extreme

I have an old 2nd generation Airport Extreme that my wife picked up at a garage sale for me.  When I try and set it up with my MBP, it gives me a message Screen Shot 2014-01-11 at 1.39.25 PM.png

That link provides no real help as it takes me to the top level of airport support.  I installed an older version of Airport Utility (5.5) on my Windows PC in an effort to hook up the Airport Extreme.  That worked, as the older Airport Utility was willing to communicate with the older firmware (7.2) on the Airport Extreme.  So its setup and working, but now I want to update the firmware on the Airport Extreme and I can't figure out how to do it.  Like I said, my MBP won't talk to it and directs me to the link in the image above.  On my Windows PC it asks me to point to the firmware I want to update to.  Makes sense, but the Apple website does not seem to let you download the firmware directly.  But pages like this (http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1218) imply the only way to update firmware is via the "Update" button in Airport Utility.  This seems like a major chicken and egg problem.  I need to update firmware, but my MBP won't talk to it until I update it.  And my Windows PC wants to download the firmware onto my hard drive, but that doesn't seem possible.

MacBook Pro, OS X Mavericks (10.9), 2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo/2GB/160GB/SuperDrive

Posted on Jan 11, 2014 11:47 AM

by Bob Timmons,Solvedanswer
Bob Timmons Bob Timmons
Level 10 (105,433 points)
Wireless
A:

Last ditch effort......

 

Open AirPort Utility

Click on the AirPort Utility menu in the upper left corner of the screen

Try hold down the option or alt or control key while you click on the listing for Check for Updates.....if it appears

 

I'm out of ideas after that

Posted on Jan 12, 2014 6:29 PM

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milnuts

Q: How do I update firmware on extreme

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  • Helpful answers

  • by Kappy,

    Kappy Kappy Jan 11, 2014 11:52 AM in response to milnuts
    Level 10 (271,850 points)
    Desktops
    Jan 11, 2014 11:52 AM in response to milnuts

    You use Airport Utility in the Utilities folder to update firmware. If an update is available and the device is on the Internet, then it will update itself automatically.

  • by Bob Timmons,

    Bob Timmons Bob Timmons Jan 11, 2014 11:57 AM in response to milnuts
    Level 10 (105,433 points)
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    Jan 11, 2014 11:57 AM in response to milnuts
    So its setup and working, but now I want to update the firmware on the Airport Extreme and I can't figure out how to do it.

     

    If the AirPort Extreme is set up and working, then it should be a simple matter to update the firmware on the AirPort Extreme if you wish to do so.

     

    Open up AirPort Utility, click on the AirPort Extreme and click Manual Setup

     

    Then, click directly on the word Version on the summary page.

     

    If all is well, and you have an active Internet connection, options to update the firmware will appear. Choose the version that you want to use......7.6.4 is the most recent....and the AirPort Extreme will be updated and then restart.

  • by Bob Timmons,

    Bob Timmons Bob Timmons Jan 11, 2014 12:03 PM in response to Kappy
    Level 10 (105,433 points)
    Wireless
    Jan 11, 2014 12:03 PM in response to Kappy
    You use Airport Utility in the Utilities folder to update firmware

     

    There might be a Utilities folder on a PC, but AirPort Utility will not be in there. 

     

     

    then it will update itself automatically.

     

    Nothing will happen automatically until a specific update is selected, and a manual click on the Update button is applied.

  • by milnuts,

    milnuts milnuts Jan 12, 2014 6:23 AM in response to milnuts
    Level 1 (5 points)
    iLife
    Jan 12, 2014 6:23 AM in response to milnuts

    If the AirPort Extreme is set up and working, then it should be a simple matter to update the firmware on the AirPort Extreme if you wish to do so.

     

    Open up AirPort Utility, click on the AirPort Extreme and click Manual Setup

     

    Then, click directly on the word Version on the summary page.

     

     

    Ok, I don't think you are understanding my problem here.  On my Mac, when I open up Airport Utility and click on the Airport Extreme I do not have the option of doing a manual setup.  Clicking on it in Airport Utility brings up the image I included in my original post.  I can do absolutely nothing with the Airport Extreme from the Mac since I have version 6.3.2 installed, which apparently refuses to play at all with the older Airport Extreme.  Here's the full image.
    Screen Shot 2014-01-12 at 8.20.34 AM.png

     

    Now, as I said, if I use Airport Utility from my Windows PC I can interact with the Airport Extreme.  In fact, it will even let me try to update the firmware.  However, unlike the Mac version of Airport Utility which just has an "Update" button next to your firmware level, the Windows version of Airport Utility attempts to search your hard drive for the firmware bundle to load.  As far as I can tell, Windows version of Airport Utility isn't equipped to just update the firmware automagically like it does on the Mac version.

  • by Bob Timmons,

    Bob Timmons Bob Timmons Jan 12, 2014 7:24 AM in response to milnuts
    Level 10 (105,433 points)
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    Jan 12, 2014 7:24 AM in response to milnuts

    You indicated that you were using AirPort Utility 5.5.x, so the instructions assume that you are using that version.

     

    You will need to use the 5.5.x version to perform the firmware update that you select.

     

    Once you do that and the Extreme has been updated with newer firmware.....then.....AirPort Utility 6.x will be able to administer the AirPort Extreme.

     

     

    Screen Shot 2014-01-12 at 9.21.15 AM.png

  • by milnuts,

    milnuts milnuts Jan 12, 2014 6:07 PM in response to Bob Timmons
    Level 1 (5 points)
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    Jan 12, 2014 6:07 PM in response to Bob Timmons

    Ok, thanks for the clarification.  So I went to my Windows PC, since that is the only place I have the back level Airport Utility (5.5.3) installed.  When I click on my Airport Extreme and select "Manual Setup" I see this. similar to what you see:
    airport2.png

    My problem, I still can't update the firmware.  If I click on Version, next to the 7.2 above, Windows opens a new "Open File" window and is waiting on me to point it to the spot on my hard drive where the firmware is located.  From the screenshot you pasted in, it looks like you are using a Mac.  I'm just curious, on the Mac version of Airport Utility, if you wanted to update to a newer level of firmware, what do you do from here?  On my Mac, when I use Airport Utility for my Time Capsule, it has an update button next to the firmware and then just automagically downloads it for me.  I'm not asked to save the firmware image to my hard drive first.  Clicking the "Update" button on the bottom right of Airport Utility on my PC version does not force it to update its firmware, so I'm assuming that only updates any changes you might make to other settings.

     

    So to summarize, on my Windows PC there does not appear to be a way to update the firmware without first downloading the firmware image onto my PC.  And Apple does not appear to give you any way of downloading the firmware image by itself, that I can tell.

  • by milnuts,

    milnuts milnuts Jan 12, 2014 6:14 PM in response to milnuts
    Level 1 (5 points)
    iLife
    Jan 12, 2014 6:14 PM in response to milnuts

    If you look at this link which is specific instructions about how to update firmware, nowhere does it give instructions for how to do it from a Windows PC.  So I wonder if I'm screwed and can't do it.

     

    http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1218

  • by Bob Timmons,

    Bob Timmons Bob Timmons Jan 12, 2014 6:16 PM in response to milnuts
    Level 10 (105,433 points)
    Wireless
    Jan 12, 2014 6:16 PM in response to milnuts
    I'm just curious, on the Mac version of Airport Utility, if you wanted to update to a newer level of firmware, what do you do from here?

     

    Select the version of firmware that you want to use. My AirPort Extreme already has the latest version....7.6.4....so previous versions appear.

     

    Screen Shot 2014-01-12 at 8.10.56 PM.png

     

    Sorry, I don't have a PC here to test with, but when I used one in the past, AirPort Utility on the Mac and PC mirrored each other.  No real differences that I could detect other than cosmetics.

     

    Looks like you are going to need to call Apple for support on this one, unless a PC user who is reading will post to help us out.

  • by milnuts,

    milnuts milnuts Jan 12, 2014 6:23 PM in response to Bob Timmons
    Level 1 (5 points)
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    Jan 12, 2014 6:23 PM in response to Bob Timmons

    Ok, I know the exact screen you are showing.  I get a screen like that on my PC, but its not populated with any firmware versions, only the option of "Other" (see image below).  When I select that, then it opens the "Open File" dialog and asks me to point it at the firmware bundle... which I don't have.

     

    airport3.png

  • by Bob Timmons,Solvedanswer

    Bob Timmons Bob Timmons Jan 12, 2014 6:29 PM in response to milnuts
    Level 10 (105,433 points)
    Wireless
    Jan 12, 2014 6:29 PM in response to milnuts

    Last ditch effort......

     

    Open AirPort Utility

    Click on the AirPort Utility menu in the upper left corner of the screen

    Try hold down the option or alt or control key while you click on the listing for Check for Updates.....if it appears

     

    I'm out of ideas after that

  • by milnuts,

    milnuts milnuts Jan 12, 2014 8:18 PM in response to Bob Timmons
    Level 1 (5 points)
    iLife
    Jan 12, 2014 8:18 PM in response to Bob Timmons

    Bob, you are the man!  If I could buy you a drink I would.  You pointed me in the right direction and I think I finally got it to work.  I'm going to document this with pictures for posterity sake, and hopefully to save any other poor sap that has to do the update via a PC.

     

    On my Windows PC, running the old 5.5.3 version of Airport Utility. 

     

    1.  Clicked on 'File' in the upper left hand corner of the app, then selected "Check For Updates...".  Note I did not click Alt or Ctrl or any of the suggestions you made.  Just a straight forward left-mouse click.

     

    airport4.png

     

    2. That brought me to an update screen for the Airport Utility itself.  I didn't want to update Airport Utility, so I selected 'Cancel'

     

    airport5.png

     

    3.  After hitting Cancel, I got the following two screens.  The first told me there were updates available for my devices.  On that window I selected the "Show Details" button.  That brought me to a screen showing all of my devices and the firmware that was available for them.  I selected my Airport Extreme and hit the Download button.
    airport6.png

    airport7.png

     

    4.  That downloaded the firmware for me.  The next thing it asked me is if I wanted to update the device to the new firmware.  I hit "Update", but it failed immediately.  No worries though, back at the main Airport Utility window, I clicked on 'Version' again next to 7.2.  Now I get a window similar to what you posted earlier.  Previously my only option was "Other", now I have the option of 7.6.2.

     

    airport8.png

     

    5.  Click OK on the screen from above and after about 5 mins, this is what I see:
    airport9.png

     

    BOOM!!! Bob is the man!!!!

  • by Bob Timmons,

    Bob Timmons Bob Timmons Jan 12, 2014 8:30 PM in response to milnuts
    Level 10 (105,433 points)
    Wireless
    Jan 12, 2014 8:30 PM in response to milnuts

    Glad that you got things figured out.  Nice work!

     

    Now you can use AirPort Utility 6.x to administer the AirPort Extreme.....but I think that the 5.x version that you have is a lot more useful.