Mac G4 desktop won't wirelessly connect to Linksys EA6350 router

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Level 1

4 points

Mac G4 desktop won't wirelessly connect to Linksys EA6350 router

I'm trying to find out possible reasons my G4 desktop, running 10.5.8 will not wirelessly connect to a new Linksys 6350 Dual Band Smart router. I just replaced my old router, a Linksys WRT 54G (made in 2006) for this new 6350 model. The G4 formerly connected without a problem on the old router. It will connect to the new router via ethernet connection with no problem, but not wirelessly. When connected via ethernet it shows up as a working device on the Linksys setup/management software page. I also have a Powerbook G5, iPad and android that all connect wirelessly to the new router without a problem.

Some things I've done to correct the problem...I have tried multiple times of resetting the airport connection and re-selecting the router. I have deleted the router profile in the airport settings and re-seleted a new profile for it, then did the router selection process again without success. I have also tried cloning the MAC address in the connectivity section of the Linksys Smart Wi-Fi setup page. I tried changing the Security mode in the Wireless setup from WPA2/WPA Mixed Personal to WPA2Personal then back again to Mixed (on both 2.4 GHZ and 5 GHz network. As recommended both the built-in 2.4 and 5 GHz networks of the router have the same name and password....any ideas?

PowerMac, Mac OS X (10.5.8), G4 "silver door"

Posted on Feb 5, 2015 4:35 PM

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Answer 1

BDAqua

Level 10

239,111 points

Feb 5, 2015 4:42 PM in response to jlh48

Depends which Airport card you have, but did it connect using WPA or WPA2 before to the older one?

One thing to try...

Instead of joining it from the list, click the WiFi icon at the top, and click join other network. Fill in everything as needed.

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Answer 2

Drew Reece

Level 6

10,660 points

Feb 5, 2015 5:07 PM in response to jlh48

jlh48 wrote:

I also have a Powerbook G5,

…

I tried changing the Security mode in the Wireless setup from WPA2/WPA Mixed Personal to WPA2Personal then back again to Mixed (on both 2.4 GHZ and 5 GHz network. As recommended both the built-in 2.4 and 5 GHz networks of the router have the same name and password....any ideas?

Wow a Powerbook G5, I hear they are very rare. 🙂

Tweaking security at this stage is probably irrelevant, the Quicksilver & Mirror drive door G4's shipped with a 802.11.b wifi card. It seems unlikely that any new router will have that enabled by default. Look at the manual to see if it even supports 802.11.b.

Some Powerbooks had 802.11.b/g so the router may be transmitting 802.11.g but not b.

Frankly you would be mad to use 802.11.b for networking nowadays, all of the 'silver' models of G4 had 1000BaseT ethernet which is many times better…

802.11.b = 1.3MB/s

802.11.g = 2-3MB/s

1000/T = 50-60MB/s

NOTE: these are based on my own tests (real world figures on Mac hardware), Wikipedia has the theoretical figures…

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_device_bit_rates

P.S.

This app is useful for working out what old models you have. http://mactracker.ca/

There were older versions of that app, so dig around to see if one can run on the PPC Macs, or use http://everymac.com

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Answer 3

jlh48 Author

Level 1

4 points

Feb 7, 2015 11:21 AM in response to BDAqua

The old router connected via WPA.On the new router I have it set to "Mixed WPA/WPA2 Personal" because that's the only option that has the regular WPA option included.

I have also tried filling in the info in the "join other network" option without success.

Also, I did not mention in my original post that the message I get when I click on "join" or "OK" for selecting the network is "connecting to network" but after about 5 seconds changes to "connection timeout" as if it's being blocked at some point, rather than not recognizing or not accepting connection. I also forgot to mention that when I take password protection off the new router completely I CAN connect to the router then. So it's recognizing the router and will accept a connection but only with protection off. So it has to do with the protection setup someway.

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Answer 4

jlh48 Author

Level 1

4 points

Feb 7, 2015 11:37 AM in response to Drew Reece

The router does support 802.11 both b and g. I have no problem connecting my powerbook or ipad or my android phone. I forgot to mention I CAN connect to the new router with the password protection turned off. That probably means it has to do the password setup. I think I will try resetting to factory settings and go though the set up again and use a different network name and password to see if that matters.

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Answer 5

BDAqua

Level 10

239,111 points

Feb 7, 2015 12:06 PM in response to jlh48

Can you setup a Guest Network on this Router?

Just curious, but what are the IPv6 settings on the G4?

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Answer 6

Feb 7, 2015 12:59 PM in response to jlh48

Wireless is very convenient for portable devices that you carry around the house frequently, but do you really move the G4 tower around that much? If you leave it in one place, you can run an Ethernet cable over fairly long distances without signal loss. You could run a wire out a window up to the second floor, etc and still get faster connection than the 802.11(b) WiFi. Drill a hole in a closet floor/ceiling and run the cable through there. There are also those Ethernet adapters that plug into a wall socket and use the power lines in the house to transmit the Ethernet signal. Just a suggestion.

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