Connecting AirPort Express to Citron (Rogers Rocket) Modem/Router WIRELESSLY

Does an Airport Extreme have the ability to EXTEND a HITRON WiFi signal?

I no longer require some of the nice features of the APE such as Back to my MAC and special ports needed to support a game server. (Yes, this can be set up on my HITRON but..)

I have the HITRON Rocket modem/WiFi device from Rogers which seems to have better range and and higher speeds so I have replaced my APE as my main WiFi router, similar to the above user.

There is one place the APE doesn't reach and I'd like to use it as an extender. When I set it up to JOIN A NETWORK, the light on the APE is green and I can talk to it on my HITRON network using the APPLE Airport utility,

but cannot connect to the WiFi network through a hardwired ethernet connection from my computer to the back of the APE.

If it select the EXTEND the network button the APE light turns Yellow and I lose all communications with it.

So.

What should I do differently to EXTEND (WiFi from the HITRON to the WiFi on the APE to the ethernet to my MBP.

Apple uses the term " wireless extend" to mean that the AirPort Express receives a wireless signal from the main Apple router and then "re-broadcasts" or "re-transmits" or "repeats" that wireless signal again to provide additional wireless coverage.

This is a proprietary feature of Apple routers, so "wireless extend" will not work with other third party wireless routers. That is why nothing works when you try to setup the Express to "extend a wireless network".

If you have the 802.11n version of the AirPort Express......either the one-port A1264 or two-port A1392 version of the Airport Express......that product can usually "receive" a wireless signal from most wireless routers and convert that to an Ethernet signal. It has worked with every third party router that I've ever tried.

While you could call this "extend" if you want, Apple does not, since the AirPort Express "joins" the wireless network, it does not extend or re-broadcast the wireless signal from the main router.

Something is wrong if you have an A1264 or A1392 version of the AirPort Express since it can do what you ask....."join" a wireless network and provide an Ethernet signal for a remote device to connect. This connection though, will only be as good as the quality of the wireless connection between the AirPort Express and the main router.

In other words, you might use Ethernet to connect from your Mac to the AirPort Express, but the connection will be the same or worse, as if the Mac simply connected to the wireless network directly. There is no "boost" to the wireless signal, so using Ethernet to connect from the Express to your Mac just makes things more complicated, since there is some loss in the wireless to Ethernet conversion process.

You will likely have better results by simply connecting the Mac directly to the wireless network......assuming that the WiFi card is working on the Mac.

If you have an older A1084 or A1088 version of the Airport Express, that product cannot do what you want, so no sense in continuing the discussion regarding that product.

Thanks.

I read a post that stated the wireless repeater didn't work for an AP Express.

I have an AirPort Extreme and was hoping that it might have more radios to make this trick work.

Does anyone have experience with the Airport Extreme?

Thanks

Barry

The AirPorts all behave the same way.......they can only wirelessly "extend" the network that is provided by another Apple AirPort router.

Another way to say the same thing.....if you want to wirelessly extend a network with Apple AirPort routers, you will need two of them to do it.

Thanks Bob. That would explain why the setup had no wireless extender setting.

I still will attempt to make the ethernet connected setup work corrrectly. So far when the APX joins the net work the base loses track of it. That maybe ok but I was unable connected to reach the internet via this reconfigured APX.

Probably made some silly mistake.

Anyway thanks.

Barry

If you need more help, and can tell us what device you are using to try to set up the Airport Express.....a Mac, a PC, or an iPhone / iPad.....we might be able to give you a few more tips on the correct setup of the AirPort Express.

But.....if your MBA can connect to the Hitron wireless router using wireless, that is going to be a better setup than trying to connect the MBA to an AirPort Express using an Ethernet cable connection.

As I explained, even if the AirPort Express is working correctly, there will some significant loss at the Airport Express in converting the wireless signal to Ethernet. You can avoid that by simply connecting the MBA directly to the Hitron wireless and not using the AirPort Express at all.

In addition, if you are trying to connect a MBA to the AirPort Express using an Ethernet cable connection, you are likely going to need a USB-to-Ethernet or Thunderbolt-to-Ethernet adapter to do it.....unless your Mac has a built in Ethernet port. Every MBA that I've ever seen does not.

I'm assuming that you have a current or recent version of the AirPort Express with default settings.

As long as the AirPort Express is located where it can receive a strong wireless signal from the Hitron modem/router....and the Hitron device is providing a wireless signal that is using industry standard wireless settings, the AirPort Express can "join" the wireless network. An Ethernet cable connection is not needed.

Note that the AirPort Express will not "extend" or "repeat" the wireless signal from the Citron modem/router to provide additional wireless signal coverage, but it can be used to join the wireless network and provide an AirPlay signal for your stereo.

Simply use a Mac running a current or recent operating system, or an iPhone/iPad and use Apple's configuration "wizard" to set things up. The wizard will automatically suggest the correct setup to "join" the wireless network. All that you really need to do is enter a device name that you want to use for the AirPort Express and the password for the wireless network and confirm.

Start up the wizard by clicking on AirPort Express under the heading of New AirPort Base Station.

On an iPhone or iPad, the screen will look like this:

In the example below, the wizard has detected a network named "2WIRE902" for the AirPort Express to join. You will see the name of the wireless network that the Hitron modem/router is providing on your screen. Just enter a device name for the Express, then type in the wireless network Password and type it it again to Verify.

Click Next at the lower right of the window and the AirPort Express will display a green light in a minute or two and you are done.

The setup process of the Apple TV will walk you through the configuration, which is quick and simple like the AirPort Express.

Strongly recommend that you use Ethernet to connect the Apple TV to your router, if at all possible. Video is a whole lot more difficult to send over wireless than simple audio.

Bob

I completely agree. Was just trying to see if I could set the APX as an extender for my daughter.

Narry

Got it. Post back if you need a few tips to get the AirPort Express providing an Ethernet signal.