Home network & ip address query

Notts_Dave

Notts_Dave

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Hi all, i'm having a bit of grief from my home network and i'm want to run something by the "knowlegeable people" on here. This is the problem:

I wrangled a wireless N router out of VirginMedia for nothing and when i put it onto my network instead of my G router i lost all connectivity despite using the bundled install software. Switch back to my old router and all is ok.
I've checked and double checked the security settings on all machines on the network to make sure they are all on the WAP/PSK settings and have the same and correct network key.

After doing some digging my new N router which is Dlink has the ip address of 192.168.0.1 and my old G router which is Linksys has the ip address of 192.168.1.1 . My best guess is that if i change the ip address of the new router to that of the old unit all will be well. I just wanted to run the idea by someone with more idea than me.

What do you think?:thinking:
 
Are all the machines capable of using N ?? Seems to me that they are running on G fine (the most common) but having trouble with N

Im sure someone with more knowledge will help further!
 
you havent mentioned your operating system but i sounds like the old bonjour issue to me..

click start and type in:

cmd (click ok)

in the black box type in:

ipconfig /all (press return)

do you get 2 gateway addresses by any chance?
 
Boy that was quick....

I have a PC hardwired to the router running Win7, a IBM Thinkpad wireless with XP sp2, another PC running XP sp2, an Xbox 360 does the Xbox live thing wirelessly and a NAS and print server hardwired.

The xBox does work quite happily with the N router and the litrature with the N router tells me the new N router is backward compatible with G wireless cards (i'm waiting for new N cards to be delivered for the laptop and wireless PCs).

I seam to remember from my old job about 6 years ago in telecoms that the cards will be looking for 192.168.1.x and thats why i cant get anything.

Its a pain in the bum putting the new router on and changing all the security stuff on the machines so i'm doing as much research as i can before i have another go at it.

The infuriating thing is my 65 year old mother in law installed the same sort of router router in ten minutes out of the box and she only picked up a laptop for the first time a month ago grrrrr. Admittedly she only has the one machine on it.

:shrug:
 
How are the other machines on the network getting their connection settings? DHCP or manually configured?
 
Can we clarify what isn't working?

With the new router can the home computers see each other? can they see the internet?
Virgins cable modem only works with an 'approved' mac address. The registration process approves the routers mac address or that of a single computer if no router. If you have internet with the old router but not the new that may be the reason.
 
I haven't done the ipconfig thing with the N router but just done it now from the laptop and the DHCP server ip address is shown as the same as my network storage unit???? Most odd.

I only get one gateway address which is that of the router (192.168.1.1). The machines are getting thier address automatically, i only have static IPs to the print server, NAS and routers as you'd expect.

I have a few hours tomorrow to spare so my plan is to switch the routers then and install the new N adapter (pcmcia) in the Thinkpad that has just laned on the door mat.
 
I don't get why you are hung up on IP addresses.

If the router does DHCP which it probably will by default, just set everything to auto and forget about it.

You still haven't said what the problem is :)
 
RobertP... Thats a thought... I didnt get internet connection on any machine with teh new router but the hard wired machine could access the NAS drive. Maybe i should connect the new router and walk away for a while so that the router and VM modem have time to get to know each other and verify stuff.

With the N router, The only device able to connect to the internet was the Xbox. the other wireless pcs had not access to any other device on the network.
 
Just clone the old routers mac address to the new one for VM connection to work without doing any virgin registration stuff
 
your laptop is showing the IP of the NAS as its DHCP server? some NAS units have built in DHCP, make sure that is disabled as it might be conflicting. also check your NAS isnt set to a static address that the router is trying to use/issue
 
RobertP, you're probably right, i'm getting hung up with my notion of an ip issue.

I think my best plan is to reset to factory default the N router, and use the CD install as if i knew nothing. I think its probably as case of a little knowledge being a dangerous thing and i was (am) trying to be smart about it. As you say out of teh box it should do most of it automatically.
 
Go into your old routers config and get the mac address. Then go into the new ones config and find clone mac address and type in the old routers mac. No virgin setup CD needed.
 
Neil G, yes you are right, the NAS unit had DHCP enabled. I've changed that now.
 
If this is a Dlink DIR 615 you need to get a new modem from Virgin if you are having probs
 
Admirable: Why? Have you had issues with teh DIR 615. It is teh 615 they sent me.
 
I was one of the testers for Virgin last year. They gave us that router and a couple of usb receivers to try. I had the old Motorola modem and it was hard to configure at first but would connect. I'm fairly computer literate so someone less informed (my wife) would struggle. They changed the modem and that sorted it fine.

There was sequence to switching it all on, I think it was modem first and then router.

It's super fast now and a great range.
 
Why can't you change the IP address of the new router to that used by the old one? Cloning mac addresses is a bit of overkill and probably wouldn't work anyway if your machines are looking for the old IP address.

And, while I'm at it, take the bundled install cd/dvd and chuck it in the bin. If you ever have to use bundled software on a device such as a router then you have failed already.
 
I've just spoken to VM broadband support who tell me the moden i have (NTL250) is compatible with the DIR615.

2Blue4U, CD flying toward the bin as we speak, that was my original thought, make the new one the same as the old one.

Off to bed now because i've got a night shift to do later. I'll catch up with this when i get in tomorrow morning.

A big thanks to all for your time and advice, much appreciated.
 
Assuming you have virgin media cable then you need to switch off both the modem and the router then switch the modem on first and the router second.

Basically the modem needs to know the MAC address of the new router and the only way to do this is to follow the steps above.

As everyone has said above, IP addresses are a red herring unless you have your devices configured to use static (Manual) instead of DHCP (Automatic). DHCP is the best way to have it which means any device in the house will ask the router for an available IP address to use. If you do have static addresses, you can either change them all to the new routers IP range (192.168.0.1) or as you suggested, change the IP range of the new router to the old range (192.168.1.1)
 
I can't remeber which order i powered up the devices. I'm certain its pilot error on my part its just that after a while I loose track of what i have checked or have not checked, what i have or have not done, etc etc. Armed with all this advise i'll be in a much better position.

Off to bed now.

Later folks and please dont be offended if i dont reply till tomorrow (nights, i love em)
 
UPDATE:

Taking onboard all the suggestions and advice from you lot, i have reconnected the N router this morning and set its IP address to the same as the old G router. I also made sure i powered up the cable modem first and that the security settings were the same for both routers.

Hey guess what.... it works.

Thanks again for the help guys.
 
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