AirPort Base Station (Dual Ethernet) : How to reload software from Mac OS X

Learn how to use a Mac OS X computer to reload software to an AirPort Base Station (Dual Ethernet) after the base station has been hard reset.
Your base station must be in hard reset mode to follow these instructions. If you have not already reset the base station, see Resetting the AirPort Base Station (Dual Ethernet).

Important:
  1. Be sure to review the Notes referenced in the individual steps.
  2. You may not be able to complete the procedure if you do not review the notes, particularly Note 3 for Step 15.


Follow these steps to upload software:

  1. Connect a computer to the LAN port on the base station with an Ethernet cable. Either standard or crossover type cable will work. The connecting computer must have the AirPort Admin Utility 2.0 or later installed.

    The LAN port icon:

  2. Choose System Preferences from the Apple menu.
  3. Click Network.
  4. Look at the Location menu, and note what it says now. The default setting is "Automatic", but you may have changed it. You will need to know this later.
  5. Choose New Location from the Location menu (see Note 1).
  6. Type: AirPort Reload
  7. Click OK.
  8. Choose Network Port Configurations from the Show Menu (Note 2).
  9. Because you created a new location, all ports in the list should be checked. If an AirPort card is installed, uncheck it.
  10. Choose the Ethernet port from the Show menu.
  11. Click the TCP/IP tab.
  12. Choose Manually from the Configure pop-up menu, and type this information in the corresponding fields:

    IP Address (Note 4): 192.42.249.14
    Subnet Mask: 255.255.255.0
    Router: 192.42.249.13

  13. Click Apply Now.
  14. Open the AirPort Admin Utility.
  15. Select the base station. If the base station is not listed see Note 3.
  16. Click Configure. You should then see a message that says: "The base station you have selected has been reset and is currently not configured."
  17. Click OK.
    Note: When you are prompted to authenticate here, the Mac OS X user name and password are required (not the base station password).
  18. After the AirPort Admin Utility reloads the software, quit the AirPort Admin Utility.
  19. In System Preferences, choose your original location from the Location menu (which you noted in Step 4), then click Apply Now. This restores your original network settings.
  20. If you need to change the configuration of your base station, you may now reopen the AirPort Admin Utility (Note 5). Otherwise, you can use the base station in its factory default configuration.


Notes:

  1. Step 5 uses the Location menu to avoid disturbing your original network settings. Step 19 restores your original network settings. To learn more about this feature, see Mac OS X: How to Use Locations. You may delete the "AirPort Reload" location when you are finished, or keep it for future use.

  2. This is the language for Mac OS X 10.2 or later. For versions 10.1 to 10.1.5, you would choose "Active Network Ports". For versions 10.0 to 10.0.4, you would choose "Advanced" from the "Configure" menu.

  3. If the Manual configuration does not work, go back to step 12, and replace it with this action: Choose Using DHCP from the Configure pop-up menu. If this method allows you to connect to the base station, you may have triggered a soft reset instead of a hard reset.

  4. Some other Apple documents may suggest an IP Address of 192.42.249.15. Either may be used, or any other 192.42.249.x address that is not held by the router. For related background information on configuration via DHCP, see AirPort 2.0.4: About Using Link-Local Addressing.

  5. Depending on how you had your base station configured, your original network settings may not connect to the base station. If necessary, change your TCP/IP setting to Configure via DHCP, which will connect to the base station in its default state (see Note 6). To avoid disturbing your original network settings, you may choose to create a new location as you did in Step 5. A suggested name for this location is "AirPort Default".

  6. If your computer is already set to configure via DHCP, which it probably is after following these steps, it may hold the previously-obtained IP address longer than you expect. The previously-obtained address may no longer be valid, preventing you from connecting. In this case there are different ways to prompt the computer to immediately obtain a new IP address, and this one is the fastest: Change the Location menu to a different location. Click Apply Now. Change the Location menu back to the one you are using. Click Apply Now.

  7. Wireless Internet access requires an Internet service provider (fees may apply) and AirPort (or AirPort-compatible) wireless Ethernet card and base station. Some ISPs are not compatible with AirPort. For more information, see AirPort: Requirements for Wireless Internet Access.


Published Date: Oct 7, 2016