Take Control of Your 802.11n AirPort Extreme Network

Take Control of Your 802.11n AirPort Extreme Network

Released October 2007
Publisher(s): Peachpit Press
ISBN: None

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Book description

This is the Safari online edition of the printed book.

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.

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?

Table of contents

  1. Copyright
  2. Read Me First
    1. Who Needs This Book
    2. Who Doesn’t Need This Book
    3. Basics
    4. What’s New in Version 1.1
  3. Introduction
  4. Airport Networking Quick Start
  5. Quick Troubleshooting Guide
    1. Reset the Base Station from a Lock-Up
    2. Printer Problems
    3. Other Troubleshooting
  6. Key Glossary Terms
  7. Learn Wireless and AirPort Basics
    1. Access Points and Adapters
    2. The Spectrum Part of Wi-Fi
    3. Wi-Fi and AirPort Flavors
      1. Original AirPort (1999)
      2. AirPort Extreme (2003)
      3. AirPort Express (2004)
      4. AirPort Extreme (2007)
    4. Extreme N Details
      1. 802.11n technology
      2. Not yet finished
      3. Apple’s version of 802.11n
      4. Physical features
      5. Adapters in Macs
      6. Third-party adapters
        1. QuickerTek
        2. Other World Computing
        3. More coming soon
    5. Compatibility among AirPort Generations
  8. Put Your Base Station into Action
    1. Set Up your Base Station
      1. Unpack and power your base station
      2. Install new software
      3. Keep up to date
      4. Connect to your base station
      5. Handle initial setup
      6. Reconfiguring a base station
      7. Create and manage profiles
      8. Export and import configuration profiles
      9. Connecting remotely
    2. Configure the Spectrum and Channel
      1. Consider your spectrum choices
      2. Set a band and a channel
    3. Pick the Right Place for Your Base Station
      1. General Testing Advice
      2. Testing from base station to client
      3. Testing from client to base station
  9. Set Up Your Network
    1. Simplest Case: Plug and Go
    2. Get a WAN address
      1. Dynamic addressing
        1. Log in via PPPoE over broadband DSL
        2. Deal with MAC-address-restricted cable broadband
      2. Static addressing
    3. Hand Out LAN Addresses
      1. Dynamic private addresses
        1. Set up the base station
        2. Set up client computers
        3. Refining base station DHCP settings
      2. Dynamic public addresses
      3. Reserved addresses
      4. Passthrough and bridging
  10. Connect Your Computers
    1. Connect in Tiger
      1. Discovery
      2. Connecting
        1. Connect to a named network
        2. Enter an encryption key (WEP, WPA/WPA2 Personal)
        3. Connect to a simplified secured network with WPS
        4. Connect to a closed (hidden) network
      3. Saved locations
      4. Managing profiles
      5. Advanced connection options
    2. Connect in Windows XP
      1. Discovery and Connecting
      2. Advanced connection options
      3. Creating a preferred network profile (WPA/WPA2)
    3. Connect in Windows Vista
      1. Discovery
      2. Connecting
      3. Managing profiles
  11. Connect Multiple Base Stations
    1. Add Access Points via Ethernet
      1. Set up a main wired base station
      2. Set up additional wired base stations
    2. Bridge Wirelessly
      1. How it works
      2. Distribute wirelessly
        1. All Extreme N
        2. Mix of Extreme N and older Extreme/Express units
  12. Mix Legacy, New N Networks
    1. Update Your Older Base Station
    2. Configure Your New Extreme N
    3. Put Printers in the Right Place
  13. Reach Your Network Remotely
    1. Map Ports for Remote Access
      1. NAT maps private to public connections
      2. Port mapping maps public to private connections
        1. Set a reserved address
        2. Set base-station-to-computer port mapping
    2. Punch Through from Certain Programs
    3. Set a Default Host for Full Access
  14. Set Up a Shared USB Printer
    1. Add a Printer
    2. Rename and Widely Share a USB Printer
    3. Add a Shared Printer in Mac OS X
    4. Add a Shared Printer in Windows XP and Vista
      1. Add a Shared printer in Windows XP
      2. Add a shared printer in Windows Vista
      3. Additional Steps
    5. Troubleshoot an Unavailable Shared USB Printer
  15. Set Up a Shared USB Disk
    1. Viewing Connected Volumes
    2. Grant Access
      1. Kinds of access
      2. Other network settings for file sharing
    3. Gain Access
      1. AirPort Disk Utility
      2. Normal volume mounting
        1. Mount in Mac OS X
        2. Mount in Windows
  16. Secure Your Network
    1. Likelihood, Liability, and Lost Opportunity
      1. Likelihood
      2. Liability
      3. Lost opportunity
      4. Your spot in the security spectrum
    2. Simple Tricks That Don’t Work
      1. Closed network
      2. MAC address filtering
    3. Use Built-In Encryption
      1. WEP
      2. WPA & WPA2 background
      3. Turning on WPA/WPA2 with AirPort Extreme
      4. WEP Transitional
      5. Use WPS
  17. Overcome Interference
    1. Eliminate Conflicting Signals
      1. Do some basic testing
      2. Try a solution
    2. Set Interference Robustness
  18. A. Stream Media with Airport
    1. Apple TV
      1. Choose a Band
      2. Connect an Apple TV
    2. AirPort Express and AirTunes
      1. Set up music features in Airport Utility
      2. Play music with iTunes
  19. B. Setting up a Software Base Station
  20. C. Advanced Extreme Features
    1. Revert to Older Firmware
    2. AirPort Pane
      1. Base station settings
      2. Wireless settings
      3. Access Control settings
    3. Advanced Pane
      1. Logging & SNMP settings
      2. Bonjour settings
      3. IPv6 settings
  21. About This Book
    1. About the Author
    2. Acknowledgements
    3. About the Publisher
    4. Production Credits
  22. Featured Titles

Product information

  • Title: Take Control of Your 802.11n AirPort Extreme Network
  • Author(s):
  • Release date: October 2007
  • Publisher(s): Peachpit Press
  • ISBN: None