airport time capsule won't extend network, What am I doing wrong?

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airport time capsule won't extend network, What am I doing wrong?

I have an Airport Time Capsule (flat 802.11n.. 3rd Gen I think?) that I decided to replace with a new Airport Extreme (Tower,802.11ac)

so I went through the process in Airport utility to swap them out and that worked okay. But I need to use the Time Capsule to extend the network into another room for some devices that need to plug into the ethernet ports.

I reset the Time Capsule to Factory defaults, and I have tried setting the Time Capsule to extend the existing network. I've tried several different setups with no luck.

Does anyone have any advice? It's driving me nuts.

I have an even older Airport Extreme that can extend the network. but I would prefer to us the time capsule so I can still do backups, and the older Extreme doesn't have duel antenna/bands.

Thanks!

~Ark

Airport Extreme 802.11ac-OTHER, OS X Yosemite (10.10.1), Airport Extreme 802.11ac

Posted on Dec 2, 2014 1:51 PM

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Answer 1

Dec 2, 2014 2:06 PM in response to arkling

On yosemite.. you held you tongue wrong when the wind was blowing by moonlight.

It is the worst piece of voodoo for setup of airports ever. It seems to be unable to handle some setups.

I wrote up how to do it manually which worked.

use airport extreme A1354 to provide wired connection

Read down to the bottom of the thread.. I have given a whole lot of screenshots.

If you still have issues use iOS version airport utility or anything but yosemite.

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Answer 2

Bob Timmons

Level 10

187,274 points

Dec 2, 2014 2:12 PM in response to arkling

Might you have an iPad or iPhone that could be used to set up the Time Capsule to extend the network?

If yes, post back for step by step instructions.

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Answer 3

arkling Author

Level 1

25 points

Dec 2, 2014 6:46 PM in response to Bob Timmons

I do! I have an iPhone 5, and an iPad mini 1

(both on iOS 8)

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Answer 4

Bob Timmons

Level 10

187,274 points

Dec 2, 2014 7:01 PM in response to arkling

Then, let's try the iPad, since it is bit easier to see the screen.

First, power off the new 802.11ac AirPort Extreme for a minute, then power it back up.

Temporarily, locate the Time Capsule in the same room or an adjacent room to the AirPort Extreme.

Next, perform a factory default reset on the Time Capsule as listed below. This is tricky.....you almost need to have 3 hands.

Power off the Time Capsule

Wait a minute

Hold in the reset button first, and then keep holding it in for an additional 10 seconds while you simultaneously plug the power back into the Time Capsule

Release the reset button after the hold period

Allow a full minute for the Time Capsule to restart to a slow, blinking amber light status

On the iPad......

Go to the home screen

Tap Settings

Tap Wi-Fi

Wait a few seconds for the Time Capsule listing to appear under the heading of Set Up a New AirPort Base Station

Tap on Time Capsule

The setup utility will open up and take a minute to analyze things, then suggest that the Time Capsule be configured to extend the AirPort Extreme network.

Enter a device name that you want to use for the Time Capsule, then tap Next

The utility will set up everything for you. When you see the message of Setup Complete, tap Done.

Now move the Time Capsule to the desired location. The more that you have line-of-sight between the AirPort Extreme and Time Capsule, the better the network will perform.

The Ethernet ports on the Time Capsule are enabled as well, so you can connect Ethernet devices to any of the ports, including the WAN "O" port.

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Answer 5

arkling Author

Level 1

25 points

Dec 4, 2014 8:52 AM in response to arkling

Thanks to both of you for taking the time to respond. Unfortunately I've tried everything you've both said and so far no luck.

Here's some interesting tidbits of other things I tried.

I have 3 devices

* Dev1: Airport Extreme (802.11ac) [2013 model tower]

* Dev2: Airport Time Capsule (802.11n) [1TB - 3rd Gen]

* Dev3 Airport Extreme (802.11n) [1st gen]

So from my perspective any of these 3 devices could serve in any of the following 3 Functions

* Func1: Main Router (Connected to Cable Modem)

* Func2: Extend Wireless network of Main Router

* Func3: Extend Wireless network from Func2 Device.

I've tried about every permutation and they all seem to work EXCEPT any scenario where Dev2 is extending the wireless network by connecting to Dev1.

(But the reverse works: Dev1 CAN extend the network by connecting to Dev2 )

It's driving me nuts... shouldn't it work?

I even tried setting up these variations from Yosemite, wiping the devices to factory, then setting them up from iPhone / iPad (iOS 8.x.x)

Really I'm wanting to retire Dev3 (give it to someone else) and just have Dev2 Extend the wireless network provided by Dev1

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Answer 6

Bob Timmons

Level 10

187,274 points

Dec 4, 2014 9:30 AM in response to arkling

A bit of info that might help and explain some of the difficulty that you may be having if 3 devices are all powered on.

Apple's extend a wireless network feature will only allow you to extend the network one time. Another way of saying the same thing is that any device that extends the network must connect directly to the "main" AirPort router.

It is possible to have more than one device extend the network, but all the extenders must be located about the same distance from the "main" AirPort, and they must also be closer to the "main" Airport than they are to each other.

Think of wheel and spokes. The "main" AirPort is the hub and each extender resides at the end of a separate spoke. As such, each extender communicates directly to the hub.

It is not possible for an AirPort device to extend the signal that another device is already extending. If an AirPort picks up a signal from a device that is already extending, that AirPort will "join" the network, but it will not provide any additional wireless signal coverage.

Really I'm wanting to retire Dev3 (give it to someone else) and just have Dev2 Extend the wireless network provided by Dev1

That is doable, providing that Dev3 is powered off, and that Dev2 is located where it can receive a strong wireless signal from Dev1. Performance wise, it would be much better if Dev 1 and Dev 2 could be connected using an Ethernet cable, if that is at all possible.

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Answer 7

arkling Author

Level 1

25 points

Dec 4, 2014 10:13 AM in response to Bob Timmons

Thanks Bob, in those multiple combinations I tried. I did try with only 2 devices.

and Dev2 still would not Extend Dev1, even with Dev3 powered off.

However as an oddity. If I had Dev1 set to be the main router, and Dev3 as the Extender, I could connect Dev2 as an Extender of the same wifi network but as soon as I unplugged Dev3, then Dev2 would disconnect, and when I powered Dev3 back up then Dev2 would reconnect. Which led me to believe that Dev2 was extending Dev3 even though Dev3 was already extending Dev1. So now I'm really confused.

All combinations have been wireless connections only (no Ethernet except for the cable going from the Cable-Modem to the main router)

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Answer 8

Bob Timmons

Level 10

187,274 points

Dec 4, 2014 10:18 AM in response to arkling

Things will work, assuming that your products are operating correctly, and that the Yosemite bugs are not crawling all over the network. Let's start over.

What Apple device is your "main" router?

What Apple device will "extend" the signal?

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Answer 9

arkling Author

Level 1

25 points

Dec 4, 2014 11:27 AM in response to Bob Timmons

I'm kind of a visual person, here's a quick & dirty map of what I'm trying to do.

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Answer 10

Bob Timmons

Level 10

187,274 points

Dec 4, 2014 11:59 AM in response to arkling

Power off the Time Capsule for now. I assume that it will be located where it can receive a strong signal from the AirPort Extreme. I also assume that you have tested (not assumed) that your Ethernet cables are working correctly.

Power off the AirPort Extreme for a minute or two and then restart it. Make sure that everything is operating correctly.

Hold in the reset button on the Time Capsule first, and keep holding it in for an additional 10 seconds while you simultaneously plug the power back into the Time Capsule.

Release the reset button

Allow a full minute for the Time Capsule to restart to a slow, blinking amber light status

Use the same setup as I outlined above. I have verified that this works perfectly on my 4th Gen Time Capsule and a new AirPort Extreme, so this is very close to the setup that you have.

On the iPad......

Go to the home screen

Tap Settings

Tap Wi-Fi

Wait a few seconds for the Time Capsule listing to appear under the heading of Set Up a New AirPort Base Station

Tap on Time Capsule

The setup utility will open up and take a minute to analyze things, then suggest that the Time Capsule be configured to extend the AirPort Extreme network.

Enter a device name that you want to use for the Time Capsule, then tap Next

The utility will set up everything for you. When you see the message of Setup Complete, tap Done.

The Ethernet ports on the Time Capsule are now enabled as well, so you can connect Ethernet devices to any of the ports, including the WAN "O" port.

Please report on your results.

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Answer 11

arkling Author

Level 1

25 points

Dec 11, 2014 12:49 PM in response to Bob Timmons

Hi Bob,

I wanted to thank you for your help. Sorry it has taken me so long to get back with you. Our Main sewer line for the house collapsed (old Clay pipe finally gave out) and so I've had the repercussions of that to deal with.

I tried following your steps (or at least I thought so) but still no luck.

I did get things working, what I basically did was to Factory reset all airport devices, Do the initial setup using my iPhone/iPad for all airport devices and finally manually setup the Timed Access rules using a Mavericks VM I made. (before I got that working, I tried resetting everything and just importing access rules, or just importing other bits, and nothing worked until I just did it all manually using non Yosemite tools)

Thanks again,

~N

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