Dual-Mode (2.4 GHz and 5 GHz) Time Capsule network problems

[gwsat]

I have succeeded in setting up a 5 GHz 802.11n network with my Time Capsule and a 2.4 GHz 802.11g network with a Belkin Pre-N wireless router. I still have a problem, though. My Oki C5300n network printer is on the g network and my MB Pro, which is on the n network can’t see it. Thus, print commands given in MP Pro apps result in error messages, not good.

Can I solve this by using Airport Utility to change Connection Method from Share a public IP address, to Off (Bridge Mode), or must I do something else, too? I gather that there is a way for me to configure Time Capsule to allow me to use the printer on the g network but still have only my n devices, the MB Pro and Apple TV, as the Time Capsule’s only clients but I haven’t been able to figure out how to do it.. Any help will be much appreciated.

 

[gwsat]

I finally solved the problem on my own by connecting the Belkin router used on the g network to the cable modem and the TC to the Belkin via Ethernet cable, which was the reverse of the setup when I had 2 discrete networks, one g and the other n. Then I reran Airport Utility and setup the TC’s Internet connection as “Bridge only.” That got the job done. I now have a single dual-band network so that I can print again, all my wireless devices still have the same IP addresses, and file transfers from my MB Pro to the TC are just as fast as they were on the discrete n network. Life is good.

 

[akm3]

But you only have a G network?

Wasn't the point to have one of each?

 

[skorpien]

akm3, if set up properly, you can have two networks for different devices. The N network would only allow N devices to join, and the G network would allow for older devices to join. This way, G devices don't slow down the N network speeds when they join, and if both networks on the same subnet (as is the case when one router is running in bridge mode), all devices can see and access one another no matter which network they join.

gwsat, great to hear you've solved it, but wouldn't it have also been possible to set your Belkin as a bridge and effectively have the same setup but with TC doing the routing? That's what I've done, but with a Linksys WRT54GS acting as the bridge. Not that it matters, but just saying. Not to mention Apple makes it a cinch to set their base stations into bridge mode.

 

[gwsat]

But you only have a G network?

Wasn't the point to have one of each?

Actually, it’s not quite a g network. If I understand what is happening and the information in Airport Utility encourages me to believe that I do, the TC is still set for 5 GHz so that it’s n clients, the MB Pro and the Apple TV exchange data with the TC’s hard drive at n speeds. All of the router services are being handled by the Belkin. That’s all right, though, because cable modem speeds are slower than even a 2.4 GHz network’s capabilities and all communications between the n clients are going first to the TC and then to the Belkin via Ethernet.

The test I ran before my last post, which involved the copying of large movie files from the MB Pro to the TC’s hard drive, confirmed that data transmission speeds are the same now as they were on the discrete 5 GHz network. Thus, as noted, I’m a happy camper.

All of that said, this stuff is so arcane that I can’t state what is going on with a lot of confidence.

 

[gwsat]

gwsat, great to hear you've solved it, but wouldn't it have also been possible to set your Belkin as a bridge and effectively have the same setup but with TC doing the routing? That's what I've done, but with a Linksys WRT54GS acting as the bridge. Not that it matters, but just saying. Not to mention Apple makes it a cinch to set their base stations into bridge mode.

Thanks. Yes, it would have been possible to bridge the Belkin instead of the TC and have used the TC as the router. I decided not to do that, though, because by using the Belkin I could guarantee that my wireless devices’ IP addresses would be preserved. I probably could have setup the TC to preserve them with Airport Utility but lacked both the courage and the patience to undertake the exercise.