airport extreme

For people experiencing problems with Time Machine giving an "Error 109" when backing up to Airport Extreme Base Stations, you may be able to get the backups working again by repairing corruption in the sparsebundle image file. While the root of this issue may ultimately be compatibilities with the connection to the AEBS, by repairing the sparsebundle you should be able to continue your backups.… Read more

A number of Snow Leopard users have run into a problem where upon backing up with Time Machine they get an error "109" claiming the backup disk image could not be accessed. This is happening for people who are backing up via the network, and mainly when using an Airport Extreme Base Station with an attached hard drive for their backups.… Read more

Apple "announced" upgrades to both their Time Capsule and Airport Extreme Base Station in October. After much ado, attempting to get the new revisions and the old ones in-house to test, we've finally completed testing and have updated the reviews.

The thing about network testing is that because so many factors can potentially affect wireless network traffic, results can be quite unpredictable. This is especially true in an office environment like CNET's San Francisco office, where everyone and their mother seems to own an iPhone or BlackBerry.

While we attempt to minimize interference by analyzing the spectrum … Read more

Along with the major Apple announcements that took place Tuesday, Apple also--quite stealthily, I might add--announced upgraded performance, specs, and support for both its Time Capsule and Airport Extreme Base Station.

Time Capsule received the most updates, with Apple claiming that with the new technologies and refinements added to both Time Capsule and the Time Machine software, backing up using Snow Leopard is up to "60 percent faster than before."

That number is based on internal testing done by Apple comparing a new preproduction (unreleased) Time Capsule with the version released earlier this year.

Apple also claims that … Read more

I finally got a chance to review Apple's first true dual-band Wireless-N router, the new Airport Extreme Base Station.

The new router, like the previous model, makes a great home router for novice and especially Mac users. It incorporates MobileMe for remote access and administration, offers fast wireless speeds, and has a very good range.

Savvy and Windows users, however, will find a lot of networking features missing, including the very popular Wi-Fi Protected Setup, the capability to filter Web sites, and access to manage the router's setting via a Web browser.

The Airport Extreme Base Station's … Read more

Updated at 10:05 a.m. on Wednesday: Apple confirmed that the new devices are true dual-band, meaning both bands (2.4GHz and 5GHz) and both networks (primary and Guest) offer 802.11n.

Without much ado, Apple has just rather silently upgraded its networking products, including the Time Capsule and the Airport Extreme, with two significant features: dual-band wireless-N and guest networking.

At its Web site, Apple states that its new simultaneous dual-band Wi-Fi allows for maximum range and compatibility, as the AirPort Extreme Base Station and Time Capsule work simultaneously on both the 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands.

However, … Read more

The wireless backup feature that disappeared from Apple's promotional copy for its Leopard operating system has snuck in through the back door.

Macworld did a little poking around with the recently released Mac OS X software update for "Time Machine and Airport" and realized that Time Machine now recognizes a generic USB hard drive plugged into an Airport Extreme base station, allowing Airport Extreme users to wirelessly back up their notebooks with Leopard's Time Machine. You need to mount the external hard drive using Finder to make sure Time Machine can see it, according to Macworld.… Read more

Apple released on Wednesday a security update for the AirPort Extreme Base Station with 802.11n.

The Firmware 7.3.1 update addresses the Apple Filing Protocol (AFP) vulnerability detailed in CVE-2008-1012.

Apple said there is an input validation issue in the way AirPort Extreme Base Station validates AFP requests. A maliciously crafted AFP request may cause file sharing to become unresponsive. This issue does not affect Time Capsule or AirPort Express.

The update for the Fast Ethernet version of Airport Extreme and the Gigabit Ethernet editions is available on from Apple support. Earlier this week Apple released an update … Read more

I've been hunting for a good network-attached storage device for my home wireless network for several years. I've come close to buying one several times (though there haven't been many from which to choose), but always ended up deciding not to because of cost and poor integration with my Mac.

I was therefore very excited to learn about Apple's new Time Capsule. Time Capsule doubles as a wireless router and network-attached storage. Once you have it set up, it automatically backs up your hard drive using Mac OS X's Time Machine software.

By automatically, I do mean "automatically." It is the most seamless, easy to use backup system I've ever seen. At $299 (for the 500GB version) it's not cheap, but considering that you get a great a rock-solid wireless router along with a large hard drive for that price, it's definitely worth it.… Read more