Have Airport. want to switch to Time Capsule

[BluesForDan]

I have been using an Airport Extreme for several years now. I want to switch to a Time Capsule in anticipation of adding a second Mac to my home network. I'm terribly guilty of not backing up as often as I should hence my decision to go with the TC.

Question: If I have an existing network, what happens when I try to introduce a new wireless base (the Time Capsule)? I want to keep the same name and password, **** I'll be lucky if I can even find the password (I have what I thought it was but most everybody's mobile devices are not working with it, well except my phone is. Go figure.)

My Airport Extreme base is currently plugged in at the basement entry of the cable from the utility pole to our utility closet. Will I just be able to unplug the old machine and plug in the new machine? When I signed up for the high speed internet package with the phone and cable TV included, we had to have a cable company tech help us get it all running and that was when we set up the wireless network. I hope I do not need to call them again.

sorry for all the luddite sounding questions. I'm a guitar player not a technician, Jim.

 

[Flavacraze]

All you will need to do when you plug in the new Time Capsule is go on your Mac and select the fan at the top (for wifi) and select the network it is creating... should be something along the lines of AppleBlah657fk or plug your computer directly into the Time Capsule and turn off wifi...

In either case, open Airport Utility and your device should show up. Refer to the documentation on how to exactly set everything up. (It's not hard, there's just lingo that's different). Also, when you disconnect your old device, it is disconnected and therefore will not be putting out a wifi signal. If you were asking if you can connect both to the same network, the answer is yes but given the language you used "I want to switch", I believe you are just switching the Extreme for the Capsule.

If you don't know the password, you are pretty much out of luck as far as creating the exact same network name and password... you can still use the same network name though but you will need to create a new password. And at any rate, it sounds like you need to change it anyhow due to the non-connectivity of the devices on your network (or is that just phones?)

And here is a quick run-through of what to do: In Airport Utility (you can find this by going to spotlight) your device should appear once you connect to it in either of the ways I mentioned above (wirelessly or by ethernet), when you click on said Time Capsule (I'm not sure for the first time... its been awhile but it might ask you if you want to run a wizard... I don't recall, maybe not) there will be a button "Edit". Click on that bad boy. Give it a name in the "base station" section and you can give it a password to (Note: this is not for the internet, this is simply a name for the base station and a password to access the base station)
Then there should be a "Wireless" tab-like button, click on that. You will need to make the network mode "Create a Wireless Network". This is where you will give your network a name and password... now again, you can use the same network name no problem (personally I wouldn't but it is up to you) but given you haven't the password, create a new one... and it is not that big of problem to go into however many devices you have and change it up. Finally, you gotta set up the disks portion by clicking on "Discs" which is on the same plane as Base Station and Wireless... enable file sharing by clicking hte checkbox and then I have mine set to "Secure Shared Discs: With Device Password". There you go... now you will have to use Time Machine on your respective computers and set them up to run with the Capsule but other than that... you are good.

Hope this is what you were looking for. Have a good one.

 

[Slydude]

Are you getting good wireless signal coverage with the current setup? If so here's something to think about: you can attach a hard drive to the Airport Extreme USB port and use that drive for Time Machine backups. I'm doing that at the moment even though I have a Time Capsule.

Here are a couple of reasons I chose that route:
1. If you use a Time Capsule and begin to experience directory/structure problems the drive doesn't show in most drive utilities to correct the errors. If you use a hard drive attached to the Extreme you can disconnect the hard drive, attach it directly to the Mac and attempt to correct the errors.
2. If the Extreme suffers a complete meltdown you don't necessarily loose the drive that holds your backup. With the Time Capsule you might.

 

[johnodd4]

you might have some problems let me explain.

when you switch out a router or wifi device on your network you also have to reset your internet service providers modem by unplugging it for 15 sec to re-establish a connection with the new device then you go to utilities and select airport utility and set it up from there

 

[BluesForDan]

Are you getting good wireless signal coverage with the current setup? If so here's something to think about: you can attach a hard drive to the Airport Extreme USB port and use that drive for Time Machine backups. I'm doing that at the moment even though I have a Time Capsule.

Here are a couple of reasons I chose that route:
1. If you use a Time Capsule and begin to experience directory/structure problems the drive doesn't show in most drive utilities to correct the errors. If you use a hard drive attached to the Extreme you can disconnect the hard drive, attach it directly to the Mac and attempt to correct the errors.
2. If the Extreme suffers a complete meltdown you don't necessarily loose the drive that holds your backup. With the Time Capsule you might.

you might have some problems let me explain.

when you switch out a router or wifi device on your network you also have to reset your internet service providers modem by unplugging it for 15 sec to re-establish a connection with the new device then you go to utilities and select airport utility and set it up from there

good points, both of you. thanks to everybody for the replies