Airport Express-Airtunes via a Linksys WAG54G Router/Gateway

Hi All
I have an iMac G5 running Tiger,
A Linksys WAG54G ADSL Gateway/Router/Wireless Access point.

I bought an Airport Express(AX), mainly to use the Airtunes feature on
iTunes.

After much searching these forums, I found a way to setup the AX and
connect it to my existing wireless network in client mode. My
understanding, is that although I hav updated the Linksys firmware to
enable WDS, this is currently not a supported interface between the AX
and Linksys.
So, airtunes was working just fine, until we had a power failure. It
wil just not friggin' well work now!!

I have done a soft-reset, hard-reset, factory-reset etc.
When I plug it in near my mac to set it up, the mac can "see" the AX,
no problem.
As soon as I have completed the setup using Airport Setup Assistant,
the AX is no longer "visible" on the mac. At all.

I have disabled WEP or any security on the Linksys, and have
restrictred access to specific clients, namely using MAC addresses. I
have checked and re-checked that I have the correct MAC for the AX, but
when I look for clients accessing the network (sorry, can't recall the
correct terminology), the AX is not there!

HELP!
Please?

Cheers,
Chris

In article <1140008668.594009.321470 RemoveThis @g47g2000cwa.googlegroups.com>,
<chrismichdxb RemoveThis @gmail.com> wrote:

> A Linksys WAG54G ADSL Gateway/Router/Wireless Access point...
> I bought an Airport Express(AX), mainly to use the Airtunes feature on
> iTunes.

I have a similar setup, though with a different brand of third-party
router.

> After much searching these forums, I found a way to setup the AX and
> connect it to my existing wireless network in client mode. My
> understanding, is that although I hav updated the Linksys firmware to
> enable WDS, this is currently not a supported interface between the AX
> and Linksys.

That's correct. Officially, the WDS mode only works with other Apple
base stations. I believe there are a few others that'll work with some
tweaking, but I haven't experimented. (In my small apartment, I don't
have any need.)


> So, airtunes was working just fine, until we had a power failure. It
> wil just not friggin' well work now!!...
> As soon as I have completed the setup using Airport Setup Assistant,
> the AX is no longer "visible" on the mac. At all.

I'm assuming you've set your Airport to "Join An Existing Wireless
Network," correct? And you've specified the network, by name? You
might also ensure that you've given the Linksys a different name than
simply the default "Linksys" that it came with -- it's entirely
possible you have a neighbor who's *also* using the default, and that
may confuse the Airport and it'll join the wrong one.

> I have disabled WEP or any security on the Linksys, and have
> restrictred access to specific clients, namely using MAC addresses.

MAC address filtering truly does *nothing* to enhance security, and
makes a lot more work for yourself when you want to add a device to
your network. I recommend turning it off as well (at least until you
get this problem solved). Hiding the SSID is equally useless for
securing the network

On that topic, the only wireless security that's worthwhile is WPA.
WEP was cracked a while back, and is very easy to break through --
especially if you have a constant stream of traffic, such as an
Airtunes connection. It's better than nothing, but not a lot better.

If your Linksys supports WPA, switch it on and use it unless you need
to support an older device that doesn't support it. WPA also has the
advantage of using passwords rather than hexidecimal keys, which makes
things a lot easier for you on the setup end.

> I have checked and re-checked that I have the correct MAC for the AX, but
> when I look for clients accessing the network (sorry, can't recall the
> correct terminology), the AX is not there!

As I wrote earlier, try switching off the MAC filtering on the Linksys,
and make sure you have a unique network name. MAC filtering won't
keep intruders out -- if they want in, they'll simply change their
settings to match one of the MAC addresses that are in use (and which
are broadcast in the clear), and you'll never even know they're there.


Any luck?

--
Garner R. Miller
Clifton Park, NY =USA=
http://www.garnermiller.com/