Using Airport Extreme Base Station with MacOS 9.2.2.

Hi all

I am posting this message, as I just purchased an Airport card and
wireless router via the internet from CompUSA. I bought these with the
hope that I could do the wireless internet thing.

This router was a store branded unit that I thought I would try, as it
was only $30 after a $40 instant rebate. After hocking it up as the
manual states I am unable to access the web page for setting up my
router. If I remember right I get an error message stating that a
"connection failure occurred", but I could be wrong.

In any event a friend of mine is suggesting that I return the wireless
router and exchange it for an Airport Base unit. Only problem I see
there is that it does not list my operating software (MacOS 9.2.2)
under system requirements for Airport Extreme Base Station. Just
wounding if I can use the Airport software already installed on
computer to set up this unit.

Thanks
M. Graham

 

Not sure if the Airport Extreme can be managed by a Mac OS 9.2.2 system.
Sorry.

However, just a few sanity check questions about talking to the $30 WiFi
base stations.

Did you connect an ethernet cable between your Mac and the LAN side of
the base station. Not the WAN side as that side should block any
attempts to adminster it.

Did you set your TCP/IP control panel so that it was using the same IP
address range as the $30 base station. For example:

manual eithernet configuration
192.168.0.10 for you
255.255.255.0 your mask
192.168.0.1 for your base station (manual should give value)

Close the TCP/IP control panel

Now if you have the right IP addresses, your browser should bring up an
Admin login page.

I have seen 3rd party base station IP addresses of

192.168.0.1
192.168.1.1
192.168.2.1
10.0.1.1
10.0.2.1

That is the general pattern where typically the last digit is 1 and the
2nd to last digit varies.

It is possible that your base station comes configured by detaul to
provide DHCP addresses, in which case you might also try setting your
TCP/IP Control Panel to DHCP.

However, a lot of base station vendors do not like to do this as it can
cause problems if someone without thinking attaches one of these to a
Corporate network, and the base station starts to interfer with the
corporate DHCP servers (I've actually had this happen to me a work when
a home Linksys router was plugged into our corporate network, and my
Pismo keep getting a 192.168.*.* address; which didn't work very will in
our network).

Anyway, if you can get your $30 base station working, you can avoid
having to worry about getting an Airport Extreme.

Good luck.

Bob Harris

 

Thanks for the reply. I went through double checked everything from
your reply. Still no luck after that. I still get the same error
message "a connction failure accured."

Thanks again
M. Graham

 

Bummer!

I've managed an SMC Barricade WiFi via my Mac browser, and I've talked
to a D-Link DI-704 Cable/DSL router (no WiFi). So I know it can be done.

If you find out that Airport Extreme requires Mac OS X (I don't know),
and you do not want to upgrade to Mac OS X, then you should try one of
the following:

Another Vendor's WiFi base station

Or try getting a Snow Airport which should work with Mac OS 9. The
Snow has 2 Ethernet ports and is the 2nd generation Airport base
station. The 1st Generation Airport base station is the Graphite. This
one is not suitable as a router to a cable/DSL modem as it only has 1
ethernet port. The Graphite is only good for routing between your home
ethernet and a dialup ISP connection.

Anyway, good look.

Bob Harris