Trouble Connecting Powerbook to Windows Using Airport Extreme Card and Linksys

T

tedkwan

Registered
Hi, hope someone can help me out. I recently got a new powerbook with built-in airport extreme card. However it can't detect my wireless internet network at home. The wireless network is run by a Linksys 802.11b Router, and this router is connected by cable to my desktop PC.

I don't know anything about networking, so when I tried to click on 'Other Network' in my Airport settings, I don't understand all that WEP, WPA, ASCII etc. The question I want to ask is: Is it possible to hook my Mac system wirelessly to the PC-controlled Router? If yes, then how do I get the Powerbook to see the connection?

Here are the specs:

Powerbook
OSX 10.3.7
G4 1.5 GHz
768 RAM
80 HDD

Desktop PC
Windows XP Pro
Pentium 4 2.4Ghz
512 RAM
80 HDD
 
Hi tedkwan and welcome to the forum.
Of course it is possible to connect your Mac to your network. Remember, you are now using a mac. A mac can do anything! ;)
One question before: what kind of internet connection are you using and where is it plugged? To the pc or to the router?
I always start connecting the network-computers by the ethernet cable first to test the general settings on the router and the computers. You should keep your network settings on the mac on automatical. Is it working?
If yes, then we can take the next step: trying the wifi connection. Before you do that make sure you have these settings on your router:
DHCP on
MAC filter off
WEP off
WPA off
I am not familiar with the linksys routers so check out the manual for these settings.
Now, when you turn on your mac, it should give you a signal over the airport icon in the menu bar (the one on top). Now everything is working.
The next step would be to make your wifi connection secure. Now we will need Mac filters, WEP, WPA...
 
Zammy-Sam said:
Hi tedkwan and welcome to the forum.
Of course it is possible to connect your Mac to your network. Remember, you are now using a mac. A mac can do anything! ;)
Click to expand...
Thanks! I've heard a lot of good things about Mac which is why I made the switch and am going to use it during my University days.

One question before: what kind of internet connection are you using and where is it plugged? To the pc or to the router?
Click to expand...
Let me see if I can explain it clearly. I'm using a cable modem for internet access (not sure which type), and this modem is plugged to the Linksys router with an Ethernet cable (at least I think that's what it is). Well, behind the router, there are 5 more ethernet sockets (Channels I presume), and in Socket no. 1, another ethernet cable is plugged from the router to my PC. So what I can guess is that the desktop PC is in fact using direct cable for the internet access.
My dad has an old Windows based notebook and he uses a Adaptor card to provide the wireless connection from his notebook to the desktop.

I always start connecting the network-computers by the ethernet cable first to test the general settings on the router and the computers. You should keep your network settings on the mac on automatical. Is it working?
If yes, then we can take the next step: trying the wifi connection. Before you do that make sure you have these settings on your router:
DHCP on
MAC filter off
WEP off
WPA off
Click to expand...
I was wondering if this is a software problem, eg. the settings on my desktop or router has somehow disabled my Airport from accessing it. I think this is called Closed Network, but so far I have been unable to find any info in my PC's settings that have helped me.

P.S Thanks for the reply. ;)
 
Ok, the situation is clear now. You should simply plug your powerbook to one of those empty plugs behind your router. Your router is sharing the internet connection to your pc and when you plug your mac to the port next to it (No. 2) then it will be shared to your mac as well.
Do the following first:
1. find an ethernet cable as such that you use between your pc and the linksys router
2. plug it to your powerbook and the No. 2 port on your linksys
3. make sure your powerbooks network settings are on automatic (click on the apple logo on the left top corner of your screen -> location -> automatic
4. open System Preferences -> Network: is the Built-in Ethernet green?
 
After I do all that, what do I do next? Isn't connecting a cable from Port 2 to the Powerbook the same as having a desktop connected to the internet? My wish is for the Powerbook to be able to roam around, using Airport to provide wireless internet connection. Is that possible?

:eek:
 
Yes, I will guide you to the wireless connection. For troubleshooting it is good to start save and in your case it's the wired connection. The wifi connection is actually easy to setup, but there are many more options you will need to deal with (this is not mac related but a general network procedure).
For now, let's see if the wired connection works fine. If you can access the internet this way, we'll go on with the wireless connection.
 
Okay. I'll have to borrow the cable plugged into Port 1 and PC, because I don't think I have anymore such cables right now. The connection works...internet access is faster now. Previously I was leeching onto a neighbours server without knowing it, until I realised I accessing internet when my router was switched off. Anyway, so what do I have to do?
 
Very good. Let's start:
1. open a browser (safari) and type in the web-adress of your routers interface (192.168.1.1 ? or 192.168.0.1 ?)
2. look for a wifi section in the menu and turn on the access point (wifi support) on your router (check out your manual)
3. look for a section on security and turn off WEP or WPA
4. turn on your airport (the icon in the menu bar shouldn't be empty)
5. click on that icon and select a base station (your router might have the label "default")
6. go to System Preferences -> Network -> Built-in Ethernet AND Airport should be both green. Is that right?
If yes, simply unplug the ethernet connection and test your wifi connection.
Good luck!
 
There's a problem: A name and password is required when I try to access 192.168.1.1 . When I try 192.168.1.101 (stated in System Preferences' Network), it says that permission is refused. This is awkward because to my knowledge there is no password set.
 
The dumb thing about the Manual is that it only explains installation for Windows platforms. It does talk about accessing the server, but it says the default setting is blank for Username and 'admin' for password.

However, this does not work. Your suggestion too. This is getting frustrating. :mad:
 
If the default password is username free and password 'admin' and it's not working then you should reset the router. It looks like the login was changed. There must be a reset button somewhere or you check the manual.
You will need to enter the web interface of your router. I am sure the problem is lying there and not on your mac.
 
I think it worked. Thanks. But now there is something else. I had to reset the router like you said and after that I could select the router name (linksys in this case) from the Airport icon.

So although I'm getting a very strong signal from the router, I can't access the internet, as well as my desktop, even after I've plugged back the ethernet cable. I'm not sure if the problem is from the source, or is it because I resetted the router, I have to re-configure the desktop LAN settings?
 
Resetting the router will delete your login info from your ISP (internet service provider). You will need to setup your "WAN" once more. Look for something like "WAN" (wide area network).
Let's discuss the pc / mac access later. You will still need to make your connection more secure. Now anyone that is in the range of your routers wifi can access your lan and use your internet connection. I don't think you want that, right? ;)
So, setup your WAN connection and post again.
 
It seems that my connection settings weren't deleted, so what I did was to turn off my modem and router and turn it on again. And now there's internet access again, including my Powerbook! :rolleyes:

What do I have to do for security settings? Now that it's all working properly, I don't know if I want to tamper with it anymore. Not to mention my Dad's notebook also uses the wifi access.
 
For security I would suggest you to enable a MAC filter and a WEP encryption of your wireless signal.
You should enter the web interface of your router once more and look for the MAC filter. Every network card has a permament adress looking like this: 00:0a:95:9a:ed:72. You will need to add the MAC adress of your PC and the one of your mac (your mac has two: one for the built-in ethernet connection and one for your airport card) to a list of admissive MAC adresses. Any other MAC adress from other computers will be ignored and the access to your router will be denied. This will secure your lan and your wan connection.
To not get spied out when you use your wireless lan connection, you should encrypt your wifi data transfer. That's what WEP is good for. You will need to declare a key. This one can be in HEX or ASCII code and in different length (64bit, 128bit...).
I would suggest you to use a 128bit HEX key. Valid HEX signs are:
1-255; a-f. One example for a 128bit HEX key would be:
abcdefabcdefabcdefabcdefab
After you setup a key your powerbook won't be able to connect anymore. You will need to tell your powerbook the key. After you typed in the WEP key as a 128bit HEX code, you will be able to log on your router and use the internet connection and the lan.
Your system is now sufficiently secure.
Next step will be to get a proper lan connection including file-sharing between the mac and the pc.
 
Thanks for the help Zammy-Sam, really. I'm very grateful that my Airport is even working. I may not want to configure the settings anymore, though I understand security is important too. Just that I'm not really dealing with classified stuff so it's no biggie for me yet. Still, many thanks once again!
 
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