New AirPort Extreme: Dedicate IP address by MAC address?

[hipnetic]

My wife bought me a new AirPort Extreme (802.11ac) for Xmas because she harassed me for Xmas gift ideas and I put it on the list since I was upgrading to a MacBook Pro Retina w/802.11ac. I already have a previous-gen AirPort Extreme that I've been fairly happy with. I haven't taken the new one out of the box yet. But I've read that these Apple routers are pretty behind the times in terms of some of the more advanced features (and/or allowing you to *set* those features via the config apps they provide).

One feature I'd like to have is the ability to dedicate IP addresses to specific computers/devices via MAC address (including, and especially, ones which are connected via ethernet - not wireless). Can I do that with Apple's latest router?

 

[richard13]

My wife bought me a new AirPort Extreme (802.11ac) for Xmas because she harassed me for Xmas gift ideas and I put it on the list since I was upgrading to a MacBook Pro Retina w/802.11ac. I already have a previous-gen AirPort Extreme that I've been fairly happy with. I haven't taken the new one out of the box yet. But I've read that these Apple routers are pretty behind the times in terms of some of the more advanced features (and/or allowing you to *set* those features via the config apps they provide).

One feature I'd like to have is the ability to dedicate IP addresses to specific computers/devices via MAC address (including, and especially, ones which are connected via ethernet - not wireless). Can I do that with Apple's latest router?

I have one of the new Airport Time Capsule's (same as the Extreme but with a built in HD) and looking at the Airport Utility it looks like you can do what you are describing. It is under Network > DHCP Reservations.

 

[drsox]

My wife bought me a new AirPort Extreme (802.11ac) for Xmas because she harassed me for Xmas gift ideas and I put it on the list since I was upgrading to a MacBook Pro Retina w/802.11ac. I already have a previous-gen AirPort Extreme that I've been fairly happy with. I haven't taken the new one out of the box yet. But I've read that these Apple routers are pretty behind the times in terms of some of the more advanced features (and/or allowing you to *set* those features via the config apps they provide).

One feature I'd like to have is the ability to dedicate IP addresses to specific computers/devices via MAC address (including, and especially, ones which are connected via ethernet - not wireless). Can I do that with Apple's latest router?

Yes, you can. In Airport Utility go to Network>DHCP Reservations and click on +. Then enter the DHCP you want to set, the MAC address and give a description.

 

[hipnetic]

Thanks for the replies. So I just checked my iPhone AirPort utility app and see the option there for my current AirPort Extreme as well. I could have sworn I read somewhere that the AirPort utility apps were feature-poor and you couldn't do this sort of thing.

 

[drsox]

Thanks for the replies. So I just checked my iPhone AirPort utility app and see the option there for my current AirPort Extreme as well. I could have sworn I read somewhere that the AirPort utility apps were feature-poor and you couldn't do this sort of thing.

Yes, they are compared to the latest Asus etc, but they do do a good job of making is easy to set up the most needed stuff. If you want to read an expert's opinion, have a look at the review on SmallNetBuilder of the AEs. http://www.smallnetbuilder.com/wire.../32158-apple-airport-extreme-80211ac-reviewed

 

[ElectronGuru]

But I've read that these Apple routers are pretty behind the times in terms of some of the more advanced features (and/or allowing you to *set* those features via the config apps they provide).

I think if it as: simplicity has its costs. I bought a fancy ethernet switch with more features than you can shake a stick at and got bogged down in the manual. It shouldn't take a college class to configure a device.

Apple err's the other direction. The last major revision they actually removed a bunch of capabilities. Like reducing signal strength to less than 100%. The last few revisions have tried a new tactic, hiding the advanced stuff, like reservations, in a separate section.