DLink 655 connect issue

Last week I bought a DLink 655 Extreme N router for the house. I was able to connect without any problems until today when although my computer said that I was connected, my browsers (both firefox and safari) could open any websites. Distance did not appear to be a problem with this. I was wondering if bandwith was, but my housemates were not using their computers at the same time that I was. My computer is a macbook intel core duo version 10.4.11. Reseting the mac has normally fixed the issue, but it would be a pain to turn the mac on and then reset it each time to connect to the internet. Does anyone have any ideas why my mac would be doing this?

Thanks.

You purchased a very good router with plenty of range. I would consult the router manual and make sure you have everything setup properly. Check security, SID, broadcast channel, DNS settings and so forth. Do likewise with the airport settings on your MacBook.

Regards.

What kind of security are you using?

We're using. WEP 40/128 bit hex. The weird thing is, I had no problems connecting earlier until a couple of days ago, and I know that neither me nor my housemates changed any setting on either my computer or the router.

Switch it over to WPA instead of WEP and you'll be fine. WEP is an old, insecure protocol - and in my experience - can cause these kinds of issues. I use a DIR655 and have never had any issues using WPA.

Thanks!

But would that be an issue if I can't find the start up CD? How do I change the settings without reseting the router?

The CD is useless. All of the routers settings can be accessed through its built in web portal. More details to follow - am writing this on my iPod touch.

First off, you should connect the computer directly to the router via an Ethernet cable to attempt this configuration.

In order to use your router's web portal, you'll need its IP address. This can vary depending on how the router was setup, but it should be easy enough to find. On one of the connected computers, you'll need to look up the "default gateway". Assuming your housemates are using Windows, it can be done by doing the following:

Start => Run => Type:

CMD

..press Enter.

This should bring up a command prompt. In the command prompt, type:


...press Enter.

One of the tidbits should be the default gateway:



(The window pictured above is from a VM session - your address should be 192.168.1.1 or something similar).

If you're doing it on your Mac, you can see your default gateway by going to the Terminal (Applications => Utilities => Terminal) and type:


...which should yield something like:



Then, on one of the connected computers, open a web browser and type that default gateway address into the address bar in the browser. You'll be prompted for a username/password, these should have been setup during the installation process. If you didn't set them up, or left them as default, the username will be admin and the password will be blank. Hit Enter and you should be taken to the portal page.

Security settings are configured in Setup tab => Wireless Settings (left window pane) => Manual Wireless Settings (middle pane) => Wireless Security mode section:



Here, you'll choose the settings as shown above. Be sure to set a "Pre Shared Key" and save your settings. The "Pre Shared Key" is the password you'll be prompted to enter on each one of your client devices.

I know it sounds like a lot, but not only will your network be more secure, it should be faster and a lot more reliable.

Wow, thanks a lot! i will let you know how that works. also, i've noticed that i can sometimes fix the problem if i reset my browser. do you know why that works?

If you have no wireless connectivity at all, reseting your browser shouldn't make a difference. So not sure what the deal is there. Either way, changing to WPA is the smart move - I'm not even sure why modern routers ship with WEP support.

Hey, the problem seems to have resolved itself (for now at least) without me having to change the security settings. Any idea why that would be?

I've been having the same problems with my macbook. I'm visiting home for a week and the fam also has a d-link router. Connecting to the internet can take 5 minutes sometimes. Most, frustrating, thing, ever. The thing is, all of the other computers don't have the problem, so I don't want to toy around with the router just for my short time here.

Hi,

The problem started itself up again, so I'm going to take your advice. Can I use the same ethernet cord that the router is hooked up to the modem, or will I need to use a different one, so the router is hooked up to the modem the same time it's hooked up to the computer. Also, will I need to switch settings using the same computer I started the network on, or can use my computer for it?

BrooklynStudent said:

Hi,

The problem started itself up again, so I'm going to take your advice. Can I use the same ethernet cord that the router is hooked up to the modem, or will I need to use a different one, so the router is hooked up to the modem the same time it's hooked up to the computer. Also, will I need to switch settings using the same computer I started the network on, or can use my computer for it?

Click to expand...

You should leave it connected to the modem. Use a separate Ethernet cord, plugged into one of the four port on the back of the router. Also, you can use any computer you like as you're just using it as a venue to connect to the router's built in web interface.

thank you very much.

you don't happen to think that the connection issue is also due in part to a defective router, do you?

Doubtful. The DIR-655 is one of the best routers out there. You might also want to check to see if it's ready for a firmware update while you're in the web console.