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How best to connect a switch to my Airport Extreme?

Hi, I am having some difficulty using my airport with a network switch. My understanding is that as long as the airport and other devices are all connected through the switch, then they should talk to each other, however that does not appear to be the case, they have to be in a certain order.


My current setup:

Modem->Airport (main wifi network)->Switch-->Device A

->Device B

->Time Capsule (with wifi extension)


I need to move the Airport to a different room because the wifi signal is weak, but I can't move the modem, so I would like the set up to be this:


Modem->Switch->Airport (in new room)

->Device A

->Device B

->Time Capsule (with wifi extension)


However when I do this, my devices and Time Capsule do not see the Airport and there is no internet connectivity.


Can this be solved using my existing gear, or do I need to run a new cable? Thanks

Posted on Apr 29, 2020 6:54 PM

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6 replies

Apr 30, 2020 11:11 AM in response to Jamie Crain

A simple modem expect to only "see" one network device connected to it. Typically that would either be a single computer or a router. If you place an Ethernet switch between the modem and the router, any other device connected to the switch will also be "seen" by the modem ... and basically will confuse it. That is because, the modem will attempt to connect to the first device it "sees."


In your second scenario, you would effectively have four different devices vying to connect to the modem. Again, the modem would attempt to connect to the first device it can access. There would be no guarantee that device would be your AIrPort Extreme.


As Bob has mentioned, a router "knows" what devices are connected to it and will communicate with them as required on separate ports. This eliminates the issue with using an Ethernet switch. What may be confusing is that your AirPort Extreme has a built-in Ethernet switch, but because it performs as a router, it (again) knows what's connected to each of those switch ports. Also as Bob has mentioned, you can extend the number of ports by adding your Ethernet switch to one of the LAN-side (opposing arrows) ports on the Extreme.

How best to connect a switch to my Airport Extreme?

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