Highs and lows with Apple's AirPort Express, Part 2

Last time, we got the Apple AirPort Express to work, but only by creating a separate network. We want the device to act as a client on our existing wireless network. Easier said than done.

Using the AirPort Admin utility, we changed the network name of the AirPort Express to match our wireless network and entered the Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP) key. The device seemed to re-configure itself, but when we re-joined our wireless network with the PC, the AirPort Express seemed to vanish. The base station name that had appeared when we opened the tool disappeared from the pop-up window. When we checked the DHCP client list on our router, the AirPort Express wasn't there.

Thinking the problem might stem from not having the AirPort Express Assistant installed on the PC, we put the utility on a new clean laptop, without iTunes software. This time, the AirPort Express Assistant installed properly, and we tried again to get it on our network. This time the process was different, but the results the same - the AirPort Express was nowhere to be found. 

To continue reading, register here and become an Insider. You'll get free access to premium content from CIO, Computerworld, CSO, InfoWorld, and Network World. See more Insider content or sign in.

Last time, we got the Apple AirPort Express to work, but only by creating a separate network. We want the device to act as a client on our existing wireless network. Easier said than done.

Using the AirPort Admin utility, we changed the network name of the AirPort Express to match our wireless network and entered the Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP) key. The device seemed to re-configure itself, but when we re-joined our wireless network with the PC, the AirPort Express seemed to vanish. The base station name that had appeared when we opened the tool disappeared from the pop-up window. When we checked the DHCP client list on our router, the AirPort Express wasn't there.

Thinking the problem might stem from not having the AirPort Express Assistant installed on the PC, we put the utility on a new clean laptop, without iTunes software. This time, the AirPort Express Assistant installed properly, and we tried again to get it on our network. This time the process was different, but the results the same - the AirPort Express was nowhere to be found. 

A cryptic message on an Apple support board suggested that the Zero Wireless Configuration settings on Windows XP might need updating, which required us to install Windows Service Pack 1 on our iTunes-enabled machine. At this point, we gave up, not wanting to mess with our operating system just so we can play iTunes on the stereo. 

Instead, we spoke to the AirPort Express product manager, who blamed everybody’s favorite culprit: WEP. He said AirPort Express was having trouble understanding 10-character WEP keys, and that if we inputted a five-character key, it would probably work. 

He was also perplexed that the Express Assistant refused to install and suggested we try to re-install it again (maybe after the Service Pack 1 upgrade, but we weren't going there).

But when I checked the router (Linksys 802.11g wireless 4-port), we found no way to input a five-character key; WEP settings allow only for 10-character (64-bit) or 26-character (128-bit) WEP keys.

It might have allowed for a five-character key, but the system wasn't going to give up its secrets that easily. So I disabled WEP to see if that was the problem, and somewhere my home security chief's (my wife) ears started to burn.

By restoring the AirPort Express’s default settings, I was now able to configure the base station to become a client on the wireless network - without the pesky WEP settings getting in the way. Using the new computer, the Express Assistant software restarted the base station and switched the PC over to the existing wireless network in one fell swoop. This let me boot up iTunes and begin playing songs on the stereo; only this time, I was on my (now unprotected) wireless network. 

Next, I dragged down my USB printer and attached that to the AirPort Express. After plugging it in, I went to the user guide, which offered perfect directions on how to connect a Windows XP PC to the now-networked printer (there's some IP addressing schemes that need to occur).