Using ethernet Hub with Airport Express..

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Using ethernet Hub with Airport Express..

Hi. Looking for some help and clearly out of my depth...

I'm trying to plug an Asante ethernet hub into my home wireless network to get an extra physical ethernet connection for an orphaned PS printer. I currently have an Airport Express connected to my ISP cable-modem. (which receives a dynamic address) I want to add the orphaned PS printer to my network via an ethernet cable, but obviously since the cable modem is already occupying the one ethernet port, I can't do so without adding a hub. When I add the hub my internet connection still functions but I can't get my ethernet printer recognized by the network.

So here's my question:

Is what I am trying to do even possible or should I just give up and buy a new base station with more ethernet ports? (Okay, I'm cheap! Already had the hub.)

With the hub added I can make the PS printer appear in the print menu as a shared printer but it still won't print. Or, I can configure an IPP printer in the Printer Setup Utility using the printer's fixed IP address but it won't show up in print menu.

So am I just wasting time with this? Or is there a head-slapping "Doh!" of a solution I'm missing here?

TIA to anyone who can help, even if it ends up being a "you can't get there from here" sort of answer. At least then I'd feel better about having to pull the wallet...

thokitts

Titanium Powerbook 867, Mac OS X (10.4.9)

Posted on Mar 18, 2007 6:29 PM

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Answer 1

Tesserax

Level 10

158,208 points

Mar 18, 2007 8:49 PM in response to thokitts

Most likely, your ISP is only expecting a single device connected to their cable modem. If you place an Ethernet hub or switch between the modem and both the base station and printer, you effectively doubled the number of devices attached...as the modem "sees" it.

Also, in this configuration, you have created multiple local area networks (or subnets), with different IP addresses schemes. That would mean that computers connected on one subnet would not be able to communicate with those on another.

One option, if your printer has an USB port, it to use something like the Linksys WPS54GU2 Wireless Print Server, and then, connect it to your AirPort's wireless network.

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Answer 2

thokitts Author

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Mar 19, 2007 9:44 AM in response to Tesserax

Wel, I suppose that is possible, but I configured my Airport Express to distribute IP addresses, which I believe means my ISP modem sees one IP address (the Airport Express') for all devices upstream of the Airport Express. I can connect all three of my laptops to the internet at the same time without problem and I've never received a warning notice from my ISP after I changed to that setting.

I think it is the hub causing the difficulty. Or perhaps, my Airport Express isn't configured properly to recogize it, or won't play nice with the hub -- which does seem another possibility...

Here's the desired in-line connections:

1. ISP <connected to> Cable Modem <connected to> Ethernet Hub <connected to> Airport Express & GCC ps printer.

2. My three laptops < wirelessly connected to> Airport Express. Airport <connected to> second USB printer via short USB cable. (USB connection working fine.)

3. Thigh bone <connected to> the knee bone<connected to> the shin bone... (kidding. Couldn't help myself!)

So, any other possibilties?

TIA

thokitts

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Answer 3

Tesserax

Level 10

158,208 points

Mar 19, 2007 3:07 PM in response to thokitts

configured my Airport Express to distribute IP addresses, which I believe means my ISP modem sees one IP address (the Airport Express') for all devices upstream of the Airport Express. I can connect all three of my laptops to the internet at the same time without problem and I've never received a warning notice from my ISP after I changed to that setting.

Yes, that would be correct, but my concern would be that by introducing an Ethernet hub between the modem & the AX, your ISP will "see" multiple IP addresses: one for the AX and one for each device connected to the other ports of the hub.

So, any other possibilties?

Yes, either of the following should do:
1. Replace the hub with the new 802.11n AirPort Extreme Base Station (AEBS), or a third-party wireless router from vendors like Belkin, D-Link, Linksys or Netgear.
2. Add another AX, and then, create a WDS between the AXs. Then connect the hub to the WDS's Remote Base Station and add any wired devices to the hub.

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Answer 4

DonH49

Level 6

16,716 points

Mar 19, 2007 6:30 PM in response to thokitts

To help you decide why not do some download speed testing. I had the Asante hub (bought it years ago) and it prohibited my download speed on the Macs connected to it by ethernet cable by 4x.

You can have my old Asante hub if you like.

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Answer 5

thokitts Author

Level 1

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Mar 19, 2007 11:36 PM in response to Tesserax

Great. Thanks for the clarification.

Decided to go and buy a new Airport Extreme since it has the extra ethernet ports to hook the printer into, and well, I guess my time is worth something. Brought it home, fired it up, created a new network and also included the two AX's laying around previously hooked into stereos for iTunes. So the good news is that ps ethernet printer and that other stuff is up and running. That's nice.

However, I got it working for only two of three laptops in my house, the first two being a titanium and aluminum Powerbook running OS 10.4.9. But my teenage son inherited my wife's old blue & white clamshell (ack!) and it's still running OS 9.x something, whatever that last version was before OSX came along. (Apple's specs discouraged me from upgrading the clamshell to OSX. Has anyone out there done it?) When I try to connect the clamshell to the network it fails without provinding a comprehensible reason why so I guess I'll be calling AppleCare tomorrow to get an answer.

Any guesses?

My son's outdated clamshell drove this whole darn AX-to-Extreme upgrade because I wanted him to output his homework on the B&W ethernet printer and not burn up so many ink-jet cartridges. It's going to be ironic if I can't get his clamshell to connect to the Extreme Base Station.

And since I am complaining (-grin-) I was a tad disappointed to open up the box and discover the Airport Extreme had no iTunes audio jack like the AX. (Yo! Apple Marketing! Serious product oversight! Would have paid more for that...) I should have looked at the specs more closely. So now the AX sits on top of the Extreme when it would have been nicer to take a blinking light off the table, instead of adding one. Time to stick piece of masking tape over that flashy-thingy too... (sigh)

Anyway, almost there. Just got to get the clamshell to join the netywork...

TIA in advance,

thokitts

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Answer 6

Duane

Level 10

124,293 points

Mar 20, 2007 7:52 AM in response to thokitts

thokitts, Welcome to the discussion area!

...but I configured my Airport Express to distribute IP addresses, which I believe means my ISP modem sees one IP address (the Airport Express') for all devices upstream of the Airport Express.

The AirPort Express (AX) distributes IP addresses ONLY to wirelessly connected devices... not to the AX's Ethernet port.

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Answer 7

thokitts Author

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Mar 20, 2007 9:31 AM in response to Duane

Thank you.

That seems to me a definitive answer, even though it wasn't what I hoped.

Appreciate the information and decided to buy an Airport Extreme to hook the printer into.

Thanks all,

thokitts

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Answer 8

Jun 4, 2007 8:44 AM in response to Duane

Duane: I have a Mac Pro w/o airport card. I have a Airport Extreme Base Station connected to a cable modem. I connected an Airport Express to the Mac Pro's Ethernet port and configured the AX with a different network name (the only option that would work). My other airport card equiped Macs find both networks but only the one from the AEBS connects to the internet.
The Mac Pro's Ethernet status is orange and the AX flashes orange. Obviously something is wrong. Must I connect the MP directly to the AEBS?

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Answer 9

Duane

Level 10

124,293 points

Jun 4, 2007 8:54 AM in response to Joe Beerman

The Ethernet port on the AX is ONLY active if the AX uses WDS to wirelessly join a network.

You must configure the AirPort Extreme base station (AEBS) as a WDS main and the AX as a WDS remote or relay. Follow the directions in KB 107454, Using the AirPort Admin Utility to create a WDS network with multiple base stations.

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Answer 10

Jun 4, 2007 2:11 PM in response to Duane

Duane:
107454 list instructions using the older airport version. The new version doesn't have the same options that are obviious to me. Trying to figure it out I proceeded to loose the AE and find the AX, but not both.

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