Time Capsule Network Accessible But "Can't be Found"

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Level 1

32 points

Time Capsule Network Accessible But "Can't be Found"

I am perplexed to say the least.

Since upgrading to TalkTalk Fibre Medium Broadband I have had the British Telecom engineer fit the BT wall box (which picks up the fibre signal from the local street cabinet) and install the new fibre cable-connected TalkTalk-supplied wireless router(a Huawei model I'm led to believe). My set up therefore is as follows:

Talktalk supplied fibre-capable router ground floor adjacent to the master telecom socket

Ethernet cable connection to TC upstairs

iMac accesses internet from either the TC network or Talktalk network

MBP accesses in same way

iPad likewise

All have been working fine on both my LANs and the TC was detected automatically when system was 'disturbed' and reconnected by the recent upgrade to fibre and associated router installation.

Last night I noticed when I selected Airport Utility that up came the standard window with a green internet light showing my named TC below with an amber light. I clicked on m TC and, as best as I can recall, was shown some message akin to this TC will be removed from the network - which I did!! If I go through the same process I now get the same picture but with no TC showing and nothing but a whirling search wheel below:

If I then click on the 'world' I get:

still with the whirling wheel below and STILL whirling - yet I'm writing this with the TC Network selected from the menu bar Wifi icon window:

I tried last night to go through the advertised set-up and TC configuration process but, having opened Airport Utility, my TC was never detected.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, I'm still getting perfectly good access to the internet from all my devices on either LAN - how does that work then?!!!

Time Capsule 1st Generation -OTHER, Firmware 7. ??

Posted on Jan 14, 2014 1:24 AM

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Answer 1

Jan 14, 2014 2:04 AM in response to PaulSG

A Gen1 TC just needs a reset.

Full factory.

The Factory Reset TC Gen1-4. Or AE Gen1-5

Unplug your TC/AE. Hold in reset. and power the TC/AE back on.. without releasing reset for about 10sec. When the status light flashes rapidly; release it.

Be Gentle! Feel the switch click on. It has a positive feel.. add no more pressure after that.

TC/AE will reboot after a couple of minutes with default factory settings and will wipe out previous configurations.

No files are deleted on the hard disk.. No reset of the TC deletes files.. to do that you use erase from the airport utility.

Once you full reset you can do the setup to bridge it again.

It is just lost because of the change in setup.

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Answer 2

PaulSG Author

Level 1

32 points

Jan 14, 2014 5:40 AM in response to LaPastenague

Thanks LaPastenague - was kind of hoping it would be you who got back to me! I will give that a try whe I return; am still baffled though as to how I can benefit from internet access on my TC Network when, apparently, I don't have one!!

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Answer 3

PaulSG Author

Level 1

32 points

Jan 14, 2014 8:33 AM in response to PaulSG

All sorted as per your advice - very many thanks. Question above still remains - but, there again, its only as baffling as the incompetent performance of our test team; please keep the Ashes urn safe as we'll need to bring it back home next year!!!!

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Answer 4

Jan 14, 2014 11:30 AM in response to PaulSG

LOL... for a while there it looked like we would not get it back in my lifetime.. what is left of it.

It was rather too one sided this time though.

Why does the TC not exist as a drive when it works as a router.. is a question we have been asking since Lion arrived and caused this mess.

I do not have a simple answer..

Apple hide as much as they can .. this is stuff built by geniuses for idiots.. they do not want the idiots understanding what is going on.

Some recommendations.

1. Keep names short, no spaces and pure alphanumeric.. in the whole network.. really long names.. spaces and strange characters like apostrophe are not helping.

2. Manually mount drives.. the TC should be manually mounted in finder. Use Go .. Connect to Server.

Type in AFP://TCname and if it is static IP (eg working as a router) using IP instead might even work better.. AFP://TCIPaddress.

3. Keep dhcp leases short.. if the TC is the main dhcp server set lease time to 30min.. it causes almost no increase in traffic in your local network.. it can also help to use dhcp reservation although I haven't checked links between the two.

4. A crude way that comes from my poor adsl router days.. an electrical timer power unit.. that forces the TC to power cycle at midnight every night.. before it turns into a pumpkin. Amazingly simple but it often keeps the network going.

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