[Floyde]

Hiya..

How can I make my windows xp lappy and powerbook keep there 192.168.0.x ip? The router is 192.168.0.1 I've managed to share my mac files with the XP machine but when I restart either laptop their not nesseccarily getting the same local ip back.

Cheers

Pete

[rjt1000]

Hi,

Heres how to set a manual internal IP address on Mac OS X:

1. go to Network preferences in system preferences. Under the show: popup choose the adapter you are using to connect to the internet (e.g. airport). Then click on the TCP/IP tab.

2. Note the router address before changing anything.

3. Now change the Configure IPv4 popup to "manually"

4. For IP Address choose an address with the same first 3 numbers as the router address and a last number that will be unique. (e.g. if your router address is 192.168.0.1 you can choose 192.168.0.50 as the manual IP address) (pick a number outside of the range that your router normally assigns, so that 2 computer on the LAN don't wind up with the same address)

5. Don't change the subnet mask or router address from the defaults set by the router.

6. For DNS server, enter the router address (in this example 192.168.0.1)

7. Then click on apply now.

That should take care of your Powerbook. (There should be similar settings for XP). Hope that helps,

rjt1000

[Camelot]

6. For DNS server, enter the router address (in this example 192.168.0.1)

This is not correct and in many cases will break your network.

The router rarely acts as a DNS server. Some vendors implement DNS servers in the routers, but they are the exception.

Instead you should check the DNS server settings you're currently getting (from your ISP) and apply those manually.

You might also be able to use 'DHCP with manual address' which gets the router and DNS server addresses from the DHCP server, leaving you to choose the specific IP address to use. Not all DHCP servers support this option, though.

Finally, for maximum compatibility you should edit your DHCP server settings so that they don't conflict with the manual addresses you choose.
For example, if your DHCP server is currently set to serve out 192.168.1.2-192.168.1.255 you might manually set your machines to 192.168.1.201, 202, 203, etc. and change the DHCP server to serve 192.168.1.2 through 192.168.1.200 so there's no overlap.

[rjt1000]

Originally Posted by Camelot

6. For DNS server, enter the router address (in this example 192.168.0.1)

This is not correct and in many cases will break your network.

The router rarely acts as a DNS server. Some vendors implement DNS servers in the routers, but they are the exception.

Instead you should check the DNS server settings you're currently getting (from your ISP) and apply those manually.

Hi,

With Airport extreme routers, using the router address for DNS server does work, and is the easier setup. A number of other router brands will work with this setup. But, point well taken, if your router doesn't, ask your ISP for its DNS servers or use public DNS servers available on the net.


rjt1000

[ghporter]

For most routers, using the router address as a DNS address causes the router to pass on the ISP's DHCP-supplied DNS addresses to the clients connected to it. It certainly works with my Linksys router, as that's how I have my desktops configured. This allows me to keep the desktops on static LAN IPs and still use my ISP's most current DNS servers. Of course there is no real DNS server in my router, but it's smart enough to simply pass this data to the client, and the client never knows the difference.

[cms]

Originally Posted by Floyde

Hiya..

How can I make my windows xp lappy and powerbook keep there 192.168.0.x ip? The router is 192.168.0.1 I've managed to share my mac files with the XP machine but when I restart either laptop their not nesseccarily getting the same local ip back.

Cheers

Pete

Why don't you just configure your router to assign static IPs to the client computers, printers, etc., on your network? That way, you'll always know where everything is! This is easy to do, and comes under the "DHCP" tab on most routers' setup pages.

You should be aware that if you manually assign an IP address on your laptop, Mac or Windows, as other posters have suggested, it will obviously always work on your home network but will probably make it well-nigh impossible to connect to other networks in other locations.Let your home router do the work and get it to assign static IPs to your laptops so they are always the same, but leave your laptops set to pick up an IP via DHCP automatically. You can hook onto wireless networks elsewhere without having to muck about with your laptops' DHCP settings, as they will automatically be assigned the appropriate IP address by each network's DHCP server (most usually the router).

[rjt1000]

Hi CMS,

With most routers, setting a manual address for a client computer is done by choosing it on the client computer as above. (The manually assigned address you are referring to in your router setup may be for setting how the router gets its address, not how the client computers get their address)

BTW, with OS X, you can set multiple locations. (In Network preferences click on the Location pop-up menu and choose New Location.)

So if you need a manual address in one location and DHCP in another, just save each setting separately with a descriptive name, and then its as easy as choosing from Apple menu: location.

rjt1000

[cms]

Errr....not necessarily. I have 6 client computers on my home LAN, all of which have a static IP assigned by the router.

And yes, I am very well aware that you can have multiple locations in OSX. But my point is this: why bother to keep switching locations if you don't have to? I take my laptops all over the place with me in my job as a network administrator, and pick up IPs automatically on the networks to which I have access in all the different locations I visit in my working day without having to do anything more than open the lid of my MBP. Don't have to switch between "Automatic" and "Joe Bloggs Inc" in my network preferences, and remember to switch back when I come home at the end of the day. So, as soon as I get home, my router has been configured to ALWAYS "reserve" and assign the same IP address on my home LAN. Very simple. Same for Windows, too.

[rjt1000]

Originally Posted by cms

Errr....not necessarily. I have 6 client computers on my home LAN, all of which have a static IP assigned by the router.

Interesting. Sounds like it would be a handy set-up, but as far as I know, there is no way to set that with the Airport extreme and other brands I am familiar with.

Which brand router do you use? How does the set up go? Do you enter the hardware address for each client computer and choose its ip address in the router setup? Or your router remembers the hardware address for each computer so it can assign the same ip address each time?

rjt1000

[cms]

I have a D-Link DI-634. I generally don't use the Apple networking kit for the simple reason that I find it limited and inflexible for the type of configurations I need for myself and my clients. I do have an Airport Express on my home network (on its very own router-assigned static IP....! ) but its sole purpose is to stream iTunes to my sitting room hi-fi.

On the D-Link router, and other brands such as Netgear, Linksys, etc., you have guessed correctly as to how the router can be set up to assign a static IP, via the MAC address of the wireless networking card or the ethernet card. You then pick whatever IP address you want within the router's IP range, and that's it. The router will then ALWAYS assign the same IP address to the MAC that matches it in the router's static IP setup.

It's a great way of keeping track of desktops, laptops, bridges, print servers, etc., on any LAN, whatever its size. It also means that I can mount the entire hard drive, and any mounted external (firewire) drives of any computer on the network, not just the home folder of the user who happens to be logged onto the machine at the time. All I have to do is select Go in the Finder, select connect to server, plug in the local IP of the machine I want, log in as the Admin user, and then mount whichever of the available volumes I want. This is useful for all sorts of admin and media sharing (music, movies, etc.) reasons, as I am sure you can imagine.

[rjt1000]

Sounds like the manual router setting works well for you, and its a shame Apple excludes it for those who could benefit.

It does have the downside though, of you having to set a manual ip address for every client, and enter all of those hardware addresses. For the most part DHCP works well for most of the devices on my LAN: I want a manual address on only one client (e.g. the computer setup for remote login). The DHCP router setting works well for the rest of the clients and the setup for the one computer needing a manual ip address is minimal.

rjt1000

[cms]

I only "have" to enter the MAC code for the machines I want/need to have a static IP. All others that come in for repair/upgrade/testing, etc., automatically pick up a DHCP-assigned IP from the router, no problem.

[EssentialParadox]

Hi cms,

I hope to do the same thing as you have suggested; set up a static local IP address from the router. I've tried doing it from the client side, on my Mac, as described earlier in the thread, but with no luck. But I don't know how to do it from my router, could you give me a little direction on where I should be looking in the setup?

I found this: Static Route Configuration - is this correct? If so, how do I fill out the boxes?

Thanks!

[cms]

Originally Posted by EssentialParadox

Hi cms,

I hope to do the same thing as you have suggested; set up a static local IP address from the router. I've tried doing it from the client side, on my Mac, as described earlier in the thread, but with no luck. But I don't know how to do it from my router, could you give me a little direction on where I should be looking in the setup?

I found this: Static Route Configuration - is this correct? If so, how do I fill out the boxes?

Thanks!

You will find what you need if you look in your router's "DHCP Configuration on LAN" settings. All D-Link routers allow you to set static IP addresses and, while the interface on each one might be slightly different, the theory is all the same. If you can show me the correct setup page, I can certainly walk you through it.

[EssentialParadox]

Great! Thanks,here is what DHCP configuration on LAN item looks like.

[cms]

Originally Posted by EssentialParadox

Great! Thanks,here is what DHCP configuration on LAN item looks like.

Hmmmm....not what I expected to see at all! How old is this router? It does not appear to be of recent D-Link "vintage".

[EssentialParadox]

Hmm… I didn't think it looked like the right kind of menu item. It's model number DSL-604+. I think it came out in 2003.

[Millennium]

Originally Posted by cms

Why don't you just configure your router to assign static IPs to the client computers, printers, etc., on your network? That way, you'll always know where everything is! This is easy to do, and comes under the "DHCP" tab on most routers' setup pages.

Alas, those of us with AirPort routers don't seem to have this. I've never really understood why this is so, and if someone knows of a way to do this on AirPort access points I would be grateful for any assistance.

[ghporter]

Let's see- "router assign" and "static IP" do NOT go together. You CAN assign a static IP to ANY computer-though it's smart to make sure it's outside the range of addresses the router can assign through DHCP (or turn off DHCP on the router).

There is one brand of router that offers a "static DHCP" option; once it assigns an IP to a particular device it leaves that IP assigned there. I really don't get the use of this, since it just works like giving the device a static IP...

cms, what brands are you specifically talking about when you say you can have your router "assign static IPs"?

[cms]

Originally Posted by ghporter

Let's see- "router assign" and "static IP" do NOT go together. You CAN assign a static IP to ANY computer-though it's smart to make sure it's outside the range of addresses the router can assign through DHCP (or turn off DHCP on the router).

There is one brand of router that offers a "static DHCP" option; once it assigns an IP to a particular device it leaves that IP assigned there. I really don't get the use of this, since it just works like giving the device a static IP...

cms, what brands are you specifically talking about when you say you can have your router "assign static IPs"?

As I said earlier in the thread, I have a D-Link 634-M. Under the router's DHCP settings, I am able to set static IPs for any computers or devices (bridges, printers, whatever), on the network. This is done, as I am sure you know, by configuring the DHCP server to assign the same IP address to a specific MAC code.

[Sherman Homan]

cms has it, let the router do the work.

You can leave your laptop on DHCP. That way you don't have to switch "Locations". You just have to enter a printer or computer's MAC address in the router's Static Map. As was noted previously, assigning a computer (Mac or PC) a static address can break the DNS information.

That way the computers and printers will always have the same IP address (even though they stay set to DHCP) File sharing and printing services will live happily ever after. Any computer that comes in with no known MAC address connects normally through DHCP. And you have the added advantage of just grabbing a DHCP address from the Starbuck's router the next time you connect your laptop on the road.

I don't understand why the AirPort still can't do this.

[ghporter]

I'm certain that this "static DHCP" feature is exclusive to D-Link products. I have never seen anything like it in the numerous Linksys products I've used or researched, nor in Netgear products either. If other brands have this feature, they hide it very well.

[Sherman Homan]

ghporter:
I got into the "static DHCP' thing with the Apple XServer. Made life very much more better.
Check out this for regular old routers:
Linksys WRT54G
Netgear MR814v2
DVR playground - Static DHCP: The Best of Both Worlds
I still wish the AirPort would work that way.

Anyone, ever been able to use the "DHCP with manual address" setting?

[ghporter]

Thanks for the info, Sherman. It's interesting, and obviously useful for centralized management, but I'm old fashioned-I like static stuff to be really static and dynamic stuff to be really dynamic. All my desktop machines have really static IPs and my laptops have dynamic ones. There's no problem with getting updated DNS servers and the like, because by setting the gateway to the local router gives me all the same functionality as DHCP for thoes settings. AirPort would indeed be "easier to use" with this feature, but it's not a standard and it's hard to say how Apple would lean on this matter.

[EssentialParadox]

Originally Posted by EssentialParadox

Great! Thanks,here is what DHCP configuration on LAN item looks like.

So I guess I can't do it with my router then, guys?

What's my best alternative? To do it from the network settings?

Also, is it better to use the dns proxy in my router or input the dns servers direct into my dhcp manual setup?

[cms]

Yes, you can fix yourself a static IP from your computer's network settings. Just make sure you input the correct subnet mask and your router's IP. You can set the DNS to either your ISP's settings or just pop your router's IP in there and let the router do the rest -- either will work. Only time I ever use ISP DNS settings in my network config is when my ISP is having DNS issues and I want to "piggyback" on another ISP's DNS temporarily.....!

[EssentialParadox]

Alright.

Problem with my dlink model is that everyone's been told to deactivate the in-built dns proxy due to a bug. So I will have to connect direct to the dns servers.

[ghporter]

ISPs don't change their DNS servers that often. That means that you can check what a computer on your network that's using DHCP has for DNS numbers every now and then (like monthly or when you suddenly start getting "server not found" mesages) and make any changes you need to then.

[Sherman Homan]

I agree with ghporter, for the minor inconvenience of typing in DNS settings which won't change very often, you can have a nice neat controllable static IP network. For years I did just that for one of my clients. Until OS X came along and I could do the "static IP" thing. For a small network, this is not a big deal. When your web browser times out, you just have to remember that it might be the DNS setting!

[ghporter]

One other trick that might work would be to set the router as your "gateway" address and leave the DNS blank, or entering the ISP's primary and secondary (for now) DNS server addresses there-your call. My PC desktop does fine with this setup, which allowed me to control static and dynamic IPs simply by setting static IPs in the desktops and letting the laptops get dynamic IPs. They can't overlap ever.

[Nuslos]

Configure your router for DHCP server. Let it distribute static addresses to your network computers as DHCP clients by MAC address. Works for me.

[ghporter]

Originally Posted by Nuslos

Configure your router for DHCP server. Let it distribute static addresses to your network computers as DHCP clients by MAC address. Works for me.

As has been pointed out, not all routers do "static DHCP." And that's not always the best solution for everyone anyway...

[Spoffo]

Bless this forum! For months I've been battling a "vanishing printer" and "vanishing shared files" problem on my simple little ethernet network. Sometime in early summer my old 4-port Linksys router gave up the ghost, so I replaced it with the equivelent new model. Right away, a shared printer I access through my wife's Mac started disappearing every few days, as did the share point for her public folder.

Turns out that, unlike the old router, the DHCP in new one was reassigning the IPs at the slightest provocation - - even something as simple as shutting one of the Macs down for a few hours. Unfortunately, Mac printer sharing (at least in 10.3.9) can't cope with this. It keeps trying to connect to the virtual printer it created at the old IP and won't even try to find a new one until you shake up the network by forcing the router to assign IPs from a new range.

Clearly, the easy answer is to give the Macs that are hosting shared printers or files a static IP, but I wasn't enough of a network maven to make this work. Finally, I stumbled on rjt1000's trick in this thread of entering the router's IP as a DNS server in the network control panel where you set up the static IP.

Voilla! It works like a charm. The fixed computers can find the shared printers and folders where they expect to, and the laptops that come and go can plug into the internet via DHCP. Maybe this doesn't work for all routers, but for my Linksys BEFSR41, it works like a charm.