Tap once, and you’ll see a list of clients. The Wireless Clients section is useful only for the exceedingly gearheaded. Tap the network name and a further screen reveals the network encryption method (such as WPA/WPA2 Personal), and the channel or channels over which Wi-Fi is in use.Ī base station’s firmware can be updated via the AirPort Utility app. Tap the firmware’s version number, and you can update the access point to a newer release or revert it to a previous one. The main screen for a base station shows its IP address, serial number (useful for AppleCare service or questions), the current firmware release installed, its network name, and the number of attached wireless clients if any are connected. You can also change the base station’s password using the Mac version of AirPort Utility, which will prevent the iOS app from being able to connect.) If you’re concerned about someone being able to access your base station’s settings using the app, be sure to set a passcode lock on your iOS device. Even worse, that password is visible in clear text, to anyone with access to the app, by tapping the Edit button for a base station and then navigating to Advanced > Show Passwords! The only way I was able to get AirPort Utility to forget passwords was to restore my iPhone’s firmware and then restore data from a backup. (Note that the AirPort Utility iOS app currently has a gaping security flaw: Once you enter a base station’s configuration password, that password is saved, with no way to force the app to forget it-not even by deleting the app and reinstalling it. On the iPad, a pop-over menu is used instead.) Once the password is accepted, you can get into reviewing or changing the device settings in earnest. (On the iPhone, this is a subsequent screen. Tap a base station and you’re prompted for a password, which is stored in the app. Tap the Internet, and it shows the current network status, IP address, DNS servers, and the domain name if one’s assigned. I’m dying to see what a network with 50 base stations looks like-you can pinch and expand to pan around the network graphic. The illustration is hierarchical, with the Internet on the top layer, followed by the coordinating base station, and then the others. In a screen capture provided by Apple in the App Store, a network is shown in which a main base station connected to broadband in turn provides network access (and DHCP-assigned addresses) via a wireless link, shown as a dotted line, and a wired Ethernet connection. On more complicated networks, the illustration becomes much more useful. That dot turns yellow with errors and red with show-stopping problems, such as a dead Internet feed.ĪirPort Utility shows the topology of the network: the base stations that comprise it, and the connections among them. Note that a green dot appears next to the Internet if it’s available, and next to each properly configured base station. This is neatly depicted as a giant globe for the Internet, with solid lines linking it to the three base stations. My home network is currently set up with three base stations, all of which obtain private addresses via DHCP from a cable modem to which they are connected via Ethernet. The app shows the correct hierarchy and differentiates between wired and wireless links. Topology defines the connections among devices, and as the author of books about Wi-Fi and AirPort since 2002, having a program present a visualization of your network before you even dive into troubleshooting or extending it is a godsend. The first thing you see when you launch AirPort Utility for iOS on an existing network with multiple base stations is what I’ve been wanting in the desktop version for years: a graphical schematic (with accurate icons for each variety of hardware) that shows network topology.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |