Linksys WRT54G Router

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Cecil2006

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I have a Linksys WRT54GS version 5. Mine was working fine until I decided to update it so that I could change my security from WEP to WPA. I updated the firmware for the Linksys a month or so ago and I started to have problems. The internet would just stop working. I would reset the both the modem and the wireless router and it would work for a while. But still all wireless (two PC and one G4) plus a wired PC would still work. When the internet would quit 3 to 4 times in a day, I contacted Linksys. They had a newer firmware that should take care of the issue. And it has except for the G4. The G4 can see the wireless router but there is no connection to the internet. Took the G4 to the Apple Store today and had them clear all previous internet data (like new). In the store it connects quickly to both Airport (wireless) and wired. Turns out it was firmware upgrade. Tried downgrading the firmware and it worked for about 3 hours then kicked all (pc's and Mac's) off the internet. So I put the Linksys away and set up a Netgear.
 
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This is the only router that actually withstands a decent flow of traffic.. I had an SMC wireless and it'd crap out whenever I'd start moving a lot of traffic over the network as well as from the Internet

I have not had a problem with this router on any of my computers. Definitely go with it.
 
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I have been using Linksys for like 5 years now. I have had no problems with it, not even one bit. Out of curiosity i wanted to try Netgear, so i did. And they are horrible. Linksys has better support than netgear. If i did had problems with my linsys, a phone call always fixed it. Netgear on the other hand if i am not mistaken, have limited support. I think after a couple of days or months, you will have to pay in order to get technical help. Also, Netgear gave me problems where some computers were connected and some weren't (i have 3 laptops and 2 desktops). So overall, i say Linsys is worth every freaking dime. Online chat helps a load lot.. Free too.
 
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stay away from it, i have found that D-Link works well with the mac's airport card
 
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I just bought it last week to replace my wiredd Linksys router....it is working great...i have 2 PC's wired in and my Macbook connected via Airport card all downloaded torrents very quickly over a DSL connection and have yet to been disconnected in one full week.....if it keeps up like this I will be very happy with it.
 

eric


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after a few years of solid performance from my WRT54G, i had my cable modem swapped for one that can handle digital voice (by comcast). as soon as this swap was done, i found that my wireless would vanish periodically - just the wireless. if i hook an ethernet cable from the router to my macbook it's rock solid. it does seem to have more of a problem with location now. i can leave my macbook in one place, and move the router around and eventually find a place that it will be ok for hours.
i'm wondering if the new modem is somehow emmitting some sort of interference?

i did, as a troubleshooting measue, download the latest firmware (i was at least two full versions behind). this didn't seem to help - though, luckily, it didn't hurt either.

i think i'm going to try to use a longer crossover cable and move the router farther from the modem...
 
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M

mlem

Guest
Linksys has released a firmware upgrade for the WRT54G v5 and v6 that should fix the problem. Apparently there was an issue in the way the router assigned IP addresses to Mac clients.

I tested it out using my Intel and PPC computers. The new firmware seems to fix the problem.

For more information: macnewsonline
 
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I was trying to set up a WRT54G for my friend the other day, and I was going in to set up all the wireless options, and everything was in German and I couldn't change the language. I have had only mediocre luck with Linksys in the past, so I'm not trying to be a hater, I just thought it was funny.
 

eric


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odd thing, after leaving my linksys and modem on for days since my modem change, my wireless connection has slowly become rock solid again.

it seems almost as if the router had to settle. it's been perfect again, for days.
 
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I dont like linksys. I use my airport express which was way easyer to setup and configure than a linksys router. Sure it cost more but it was worth it.
 
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I

ibelli

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iBook G4 issues

I have a Linksys WRT54GS version 5. Mine was working fine until I decided to update it so that I could change my security from WEP to WPA. I updated the firmware for the Linksys a month or so ago and I started to have problems. The internet would just stop working. I would reset the both the modem and the wireless router and it would work for a while. But still all wireless (two PC and one G4) plus a wired PC would still work. When the internet would quit 3 to 4 times in a day, I contacted Linksys. They had a newer firmware that should take care of the issue. And it has except for the G4. The G4 can see the wireless router but there is no connection to the internet. Took the G4 to the Apple Store today and had them clear all previous internet data (like new). In the store it connects quickly to both Airport (wireless) and wired. Turns out it was firmware upgrade. Tried downgrading the firmware and it worked for about 3 hours then kicked all (pc's and Mac's) off the internet. So I put the Linksys away and set up a Netgear.

I have had the exact same problem with the Linksys that I just bought. I have tried everything to get this thing to work consistently. The wrouter would work fine for a half hour, an hour, but would imminently drop the connection of all the computers including the one desktop that its wired to. To try to solve the problem, I upgraded the firmware from version 1.50.6 to version 1.50.9 which resulted in my Mac Book Pro and the wired desktop functioning fine, but the G4 would not get an I.P. address. So then i downgraded the router firmware to 1.50.8 and all of the computers worked for a while untill the problem of dropped computers happened again. I thought it was a bandwidth/usage issue so i even reduced the WTU size from 1500 to 1450. That worked for about an hour. The I upgraded all the software on it including the airport fixes, and then thinking that the updates would solve the firmware compatibility issues, re-installed the 1.50.9 firmware, and then ended up back where I am now. With nothing from the G4

How has the Netgear been working with your G4?
 
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I

ibelli

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I have had the exact same problem with the Linksys that I just bought. I have tried everything to get this thing to work consistently. The wrouter would work fine for a half hour, an hour, but would imminently drop the connection of all the computers including the one desktop that its wired to. To try to solve the problem, I upgraded the firmware from version 1.50.6 to version 1.50.9 which resulted in my Mac Book Pro and the wired desktop functioning fine, but the G4 would not get an I.P. address. So then i downgraded the router firmware to 1.50.8 and all of the computers worked for a while untill the problem of dropped computers happened again. I thought it was a bandwidth/usage issue so i even reduced the WTU size from 1500 to 1450. That worked for about an hour. The I upgraded all the software on it including the airport fixes, and then thinking that the updates would solve the firmware compatibility issues, re-installed the 1.50.9 firmware, and then ended up back where I am now. With nothing from the G4

How has the Netgear been working with your G4?

So I am not pretty certain that Linksys has issues with certain airport cards, specifically ones found in iBook G4s. After being thoroughly perplexed and frustrated by all the fixes I had to try with the Linksys, i returned it and got a D-Link. Got it up and running within 5 min and has been stable ever since. No firmware downloads, no software updates. It has also been noticeably faster than the Linksys. In short, if you are trying to deploy a wireless network and have a Mac, I'd say think twice about getting a Linksys. Some may be fine, but the fact that there has been an attempt by Linksys fix of the mac compatibility issues, and people are still having issues says to me that they still have some things to work out.

Just an FYI
 
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stay away from it, i have found that D-Link works well with the mac's airport card

I also had an adsl dlink and it works badly. the problem is with IP assignment.

I was able to put the macbook working perfectly with wrt54g and also with wrt54gl after erasing all original firmware.

The best thing to do is to follow the steps here: http://www.dd-wrt.com/wiki/index.php/WRT54G_v4_Installation_Tutorial

This tutorial explains how to turn your wrt crap into a $600 machine. The idea is to erase linksys firmware and install open source dd-wrt one. after that you won't have more problems with macbook and in the end you will have a lot more possible configurations for you router.

If you are in the middle of trashing your wrt54g just give it a try and you'll see that this is one of the best routers around.
 

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