Take Control of Your 802.11n AirPort Extreme Network
Covers the latest AirPort Extreme Base Station, and updated for Leopard!
Get the most out of your 802.11n AirPort Extreme! Find real-world advice on setting up either model of Apple's 802.11n AirPort Extreme Base Station from Wi-Fi expert Glenn Fleishman. You'll find help with all the picky details: choosing the 2.4 GHz or 5 GHz band, including old Wi-Fi gear without hurting performance, handling complex Internet addressing configurations, the ins and outs of sharing USB disks and printers from an AirPort Extreme, connecting to an Apple TV, and connecting from Macintosh and Windows clients. You'll also learn how to set up a multi-base-station network to cover a larger area.
This title begins with a quick look at useful terminology and then walks readers through setting up a new AirPort Extreme Base Station: hooking it up, connecting to it with AirPort Utility, and setting up a new wireless network that can either connect to the Internet or to another network segment.
"The detailed information on what works (and what doesn't!) was extremely helpful when setting up my AirPort Extreme 802.11n Base Station." —Olaf Pluta
You will learn how 802.11n fits with older networking standards like 802.11a, b, and g; find help with band and channel choices for the AirPort Extreme; and learn how to extend your network's coverage and range. The book also helps you consider and configure your wireless network's security, noting oft-suggested security approaches that don't work well and explaining how to implement measures that do work well.
For more advanced readers (or those who are about to be more advanced), Glenn explains how to handle tricky Internet IP addressing situations for communication from inside and outside a base station's network, complete with detailed explanations and configuration steps for the many possibilities, including the new reserved addressing feature. You'll also find info about the many options in AirPort Utility and get help with setting up a software base station.
"If anyone knows about real-world Wi-Fi, it's Glenn Fleishman."
—Mark Frauenfelder, co-founder of bOING bOING
Read this book to learn the answers to questions like:
I have an older AirPort base station - should I still use it on my network?
How do I set up and print to the USB printer attached to my AirPort Extreme?
What should I consider as I set up USB disk sharing?
How can I add an 802.11n adapter to an older Mac that lacks the newer standard?
How do I set up dynamically assigned addresses?
How do I create a password to restrict access to my base station?
What are the steps for connecting an Apple TV to a network?
Save $5 on your next order from Small Dog Electronics! A coupon at the end of the book saves you $5 when you shop at Small Dog Electronics.
Book Info
183 pages
Version 1.2
Published 01-May-08
3.7 MB download
Free 31-page PDF sample with Table of Contents, Introduction, Quick Start, and section starts.
About the Author
Glenn Fleishman is editor of the daily Web log Wi-Fi Networking News, a contributing editor for TidBITS, the Practical Mac columnist for The Seattle Times, and a regular contributor to The Economist,
Macworld, Popular Science, and The New York Times.
Welcome to Take Control of Your 802.11n AirPort Extreme Network, version 1.2. This book helps you install and get the most out of an 802.11n Wi-Fi network. This book was written by Glenn Fleishman, edited by Tonya Engst, and published by TidBITS Publishing Inc.
Who Needs This Book
I wrote this book for people who have purchased or are considering buying the thoroughly overhauled, 802.11n-compatible AirPort Extreme Base Station, released in January 2007 with new software, and updated with new hardware and revised software in August 2007. My goal is to help you configure this base station model to meet your needs, and to use it with existing and new networking equipment and computers.
Who Doesn't Need This Book
If you're not yet using a 2007-or-later, 802.11n AirPort Extreme Base Station, this book would be worthwhile only for background research if you are considering buying that new base station. If you use earlier networking hardware on a Mac, consider purchasing Take Control of Your AirPort Network, which covers gear released before 2007.
Introduction
Apple introduced integrated wireless networking to the world with AirPort in 1999. Although corporations had already been using forms of wireless networking for warehouse tracking and to connect buildings in a large campus, the cost was high, speeds were low, and complexity was manifest. Other companies were selling similar wireless hardware in 1999, but Apple's products shot off the shelves due to their relatively low initial price, simple configuration interface, and excellent performance.
AirPort came out of the same approach that allowed Apple to ship the iMac the year before: taking parts that were available and standard, and combining them in a unique package that provided more value than any of the parts.
The AirPort Card fit into a special slot in Macintoshes; its stand-alone, central coordinating hub was called the AirPort Base Station. Apple replaced the original AirPort line with AirPort Extreme: first, in 2003 with a somewhat faster flavor (known as 802.11g), then again in 2007, with a substantially faster version (802.11n). Today, AirPort Extreme is built into every Mac, except the Mac Pro, for which it is an add-on option, and the Xserve, which is designed for server rooms.
Despite Apple's 8-year history with wireless networking and the general excellence of their software and support, setting up a wireless network isn't always a snap. This book helps you set up a wireless network and offers tips to help save time, improve security, extend range, and enjoy a technical edge when working with AirPort.
Although the title of this book references 802.11n AirPort Extreme networks, I also cover compatibility and connections with older hardware, as well as connecting to a new network using Mac OS X, Windows XP, and Windows Vista.
I start with wireless basics, move through installation and configuration, explain how to share printers and hard disks, tell you how to connect to a Wi-Fi network, give advice on extending a network's range and quality, look at adding devices like an Apple TV or AirPort Express, and finish with how-to information on security for those who want their AirPort networks safe from freeloaders and intruders.
Quick Start
If you read this book in order, you'll be guided through the steps shown below - unpacking an 802.11n AirPort Extreme Base Station, configuring the gateway, and getting on the Internet. The book also guides you through adding devices like printers, hard disks, and Apple TV, and securing the network.
If you are reading this book in order to solve a particular problem, flip ahead two pages to the Quick Troubleshooting Guide, also, you may especially wish to consult Eliminate Conflicting Signals.
Learn wireless basics:
Get a quick grounding in wireless terminology and technology. See Key Glossary Terms and Learn Wireless and AirPort Basics.
Set up your network:
Unpack and power your base station, and Install new software.
Handle initial setup for the base station. This might be all you need to get on the Internet.
Learn about options and tradeoffs for which frequency band and channel to use, in Configure the Spectrum and Channel.
Place your gateway in the right place for optimum coverage. See Pick the Right Place for Your Base Station.
Hook your AirPort Extreme into the Internet or a larger network, while learning the difference between public and private network addresses, and static and dynamic addresses in Get a WAN Address.
Set up your local network connections for computers to connect wirelessly and via Ethernet to the base station. Read Hand Out LAN Addresses.
Control how your computers connect to the network with Connect Your Computers, which covers Mac OS X, Windows XP Service Pack 2, and Windows Vista.
Open your local network up to the wider world in limited ways for gaming, remote control, and Web servers. See Reach Your Network Remotely.
Add printers and external drives to your base station to share across the network--or the Internet. See Set up a Shared USB Printer and Set Up a Shared USB Hard Disk.
Stream media on your network through an Apple TV or with AirPort Express and AirTunes.
Extend your network with more routers:
Add access points to your network with the right settings to create
seamless roaming. See Connect Multiple Base Stations
Don't throw away your old gear: combine old and new for the best of both worlds. See Mix Legacy, New N Networks.
Extend your network over your home electrical system. Read Extend with HomePlug.
Bridge Wirelessly among access points, in order to avoid wiring.
Eliminate Conflicting Signals by investigating your surroundings and by talking to your neighbors.
Secure your network:
Decide if you need encryption. Read Likelihood, Liability, and Lost Opportunity.
Avoid security tricks that don't work, while using a new method that does. See Simple Tricks That Don't Work.
Apply encryption using the best--and often simplest--method. See Use Built-In Encryption.
Wi-Fi Standards & Gear Covered in This Book
This title focuses on setting up a network based on the two 802.11n-capable AirPort Extreme models that Apple released in 2007. Although it assumes that you have one of these AirPort Extreme base stations and want to use it on your network, it also covers how to incorporate older Wi-Fi gear on the network. Although setting up a Time Capsule is very much like setting up an AirPort Extreme, the book does not specifically cover the Time Capsule. We've tentatively begun work on a different ebook, "Take Control of Your Draft N AirPort Network in Leopard," which will include Time Capsule. Assuming our tentative beginning results in a finished ebook, that title will be free to those who purchased this ebook in 2008.
Previous Book Covers Older AirPort Base Stations
Unfortunately, Apple didn't change the name of the AirPort Extreme Base Station when they switched it to supporting 802.11n from its previous 802.11g; if you own an older AirPort Extreme and don't plan to buy a new one soon, check out our older title, Take Control of Your AirPort Network, which covers the older AirPort Extreme, as well as other old AirPort base stations, under Panther, Tiger, and Windows XP.
Operating Systems Covered in This Book
The AirPort Extreme Base Station comes with utility software, AirPort Utility, that runs on Mac OS X and on Windows XP (and sort of on Vista). This book assumes that readers might run that software on a Macintosh or on a Windows computer. The book also covers connecting to an AirPort Extreme Base Station (and to any shared disks or printers on the base station) from Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger, 10.5 Leopard, Windows XP, and Windows Vista.
Ask a Question
Feel free to ask us if you have a question about this book!
Blazingly Fast Internet Connection Now in Place
I bought the book because I'd just purchased a Time Capsule and I
wanted to know (a) if my old Graphite Base Station was now a white
elephant and (b) if the older Macs on my home network would prevent
me from getting top speed from my new Time Capsule.
Glenn's book showed be how to use Airport Utility to set up a 2.4 GHz
and a 5 GHz network in parallel, answering both questions. Thanks to
that guidance, and the tip about OpenDNS, I now have a blazingly fast
Internet connection. —David Travis
Restarting Wireless Zero Configuration to the Rescue
Your book saved the day for me. In fact, it saved several days. A Windows laptop connected to my AirPort network via a WEP connection suddenly failed to recognize the AirPort signal. After 2 wasted days of troubleshooting, I thought to consult your ebook. It described precisely the problem I was having and advised me to restart 'Wireless Zero Configuration.' I was up and running with about two mouse clicks! Many thanks for your on-target advice. I won't be so slow to consult your material in the future. —W.P.
