Member Avatar for nat tunbridge

hey guys,
hope you can help me out.
I'm running a Powerbook G4 with OSX 10.3.9.
I've connected up my new Airport Express to the ADSL Nation X-Modem with the right cables. All the lights are green and flashing in the approved way on both devices.
I've run the Airport set-up application and it's successfully detected and configured the Airport device. Opening Internet Connect reveals that the it's all up and running smoothly.
BUT when I try to open Safari, it can't connect to the Internet???
I can still connecting via wire to my old SpeedTouch modem.
Where am I going wrong?
thanks,
Nat :eek:

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Dani AI

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Short expert note: this is a common Airport–DSL interaction problem where a wireless client can see the base station but cannot browse. The usual culprits are (a) name‑resolution (DNS) vs raw connectivity, (b) who performs the PPPoE login (the modem or the AirPort), and (c) whether the base station is running as a router or simply bridging the ISP device. The checklist below shows the fast, reliable checks and fixes that avoid trial‑and‑error setups.

Checklist (in order)

  • Confirm DNS vs connectivity: try loading a site by numeric IP or ping an IP. If that works but names don’t, focus on DNS (add ISP DNS to the base station and/or the Mac, then renew DHCP).
  • If the ISP uses PPPoE, configure the AirPort’s Internet settings (Connect Using → PPPoE) with the ISP username/password so the base station does the authentication. (support.apple.com)
  • If the modem is a modem+router, avoid double‑NAT: either put the modem into bridge mode or set the AirPort to router mode (or to Off/Bridge mode when the ISP box must do routing). Bridge mode changes how DNS and DHCP are handled. (support.apple.com)
  • Some ISPs bind service to the MAC of the first device seen; if a direct cable worked but the AirPort did not, try MAC‑cloning the original device’s MAC on the AirPort or ask the ISP to re‑provision the connection. (tp-link.com)
  • After making changes, Apply/Update, then power‑cycle in sequence: modem (wait), AirPort (wait), then the Mac. If DNS changes are made, flush the Mac’s DNS cache before testing again. For older Panther/Tiger systems the cache flush command is: 
lookupd -flushcache

(see platform notes on DNS cache commands). (osxdaily.com)

Why those steps matter: creating a fresh Network Location and restarting forces a new DHCP lease and clears stale DNS/DHCP state (that’s what helped in this thread). ’s diagnostic approach (separate DNS from connectivity) was exactly the right first step; if the problem recurs despite configuring DNS on both the AirPort and the Mac, focus on PPPoE vs modem router mode and MAC binding next. For detailed AirPort UI steps for PPPoE/DHCP see Apple’s AirPort Utility guide. (support.apple.com)

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Member Avatar for yellow

Are you sure it cannot connect to the "internet" or that it has no DNS?

If you can get to the following website:

Then the problem is with your DNS. Whatever DNS server you're supposed to have set up in your ABS aren't being passed to your computer. I'd suggest finding out what they IP addresses of the DNS servers are supposed to be (from your ISP) and putting them in the requisite spots in the Network prefpane.

If you cannot get to the website above, then the problem is with connectivity, and it's possible the ABS isn't getting to the outside, it may not be correctly configured.

Member Avatar for nat tunbridge

thanks for the quick response yellow, I can get to that link fine, so it must be the DNS as you say. I'll contact my ISP,
cheers,
Nat

Member Avatar for nat tunbridge

I called my ISP and got the DSN numbers. I went to System Preferences/Network, highlighted the Airport and under TCP/IP entered the two DNS IP addresses. However, it still won't connect!!!

Member Avatar for yellow

Did you Apply (Apply button at bottom) it after you entered them? Tried a restart?

You also might want to put those DNS servers in the Airport Base Station too..

Member Avatar for nat tunbridge

Is that in Applications/Utilities/AirPort Admin Utility? I went to the Internet section of that. There's already a DNS server number. in there, so I just added one of my ISP's in the empty dialog box beneath it. Didn't work, so I tried replacing the one there with my one. Still didn't work!

Member Avatar for yellow

I guess maybe you should take the ABS out of the loop and make sure the laptop works plugged directly into the broadband modem.

Member Avatar for nat tunbridge

no, same problem. I've run through the ADSL modem set-up and run the diagnostic. It passes all its tests but fails to connect to the Internet. Unbelievable.

Member Avatar for yellow

So, looks like the problem is either with the Mac or with the DSL modem.

I'd create a new Location in the Network prefpane and start fresh, using the information that your ISP provided for you to connect.

Member Avatar for nat tunbridge

yellow, it's working! no idea why it decided to change its mind and start working, perhaps the yelling and screaming helped...
thanks a lot for your help today, I'm naming my cat yellow...
Nat

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