A product of Apple Inc., Airport Express is a Wi-Fi base station that allows you to connect Wi-Fi enabled devices to your network on the 2.4GHz and 5GHz wireless bands. A relatively compact and simpler Wi-Fi base station, it offers an easy configuration of Airport Express Router and allows you to connect to a range of smart devices such as iPhones, iPads, iPod touch, Mac, or a personal computer. Read further to explore how to configure Airport Express, how to reset it, and how to connect the device to another router.
How To Configure Airport Express?
The steps for Airport Express Configuration involve the following steps. Here’s a look:
- Use the Airport Setup Assistant for Mac OS X, or the Airport Express Assistant for Windows XP.
- Connect the Ethernet cable (RJ45) to the Ethernet port on the Apple Airport Express.
- Plug in the AC adapter to an electrical socket and switch it on.
- Ensure that the wireless adapter on your computer is enabled. From the drop down of the available networks, connect to the Apple Airport Express. It will appear as “Apple” network with some letters.
- If you are using a Mac, open the Airport Setup Assistant by locating Applications/Utilities. For Windows XP, open the Airport Express Assistant by locating Start>All Programs>AirPort.
- Configure and share the internet access on your Airport Express by following the onscreen instructions.
- The Setup Assistant might ask you to upgrade the firmware to a newer version. You should do so, and then click on Continue.
- The set up wizard then asks you to enter a Base Station Name and Password. Enter these and click Continue.
- Select “I do not have a wireless network and would like to create one” and click Continue.
- Select WPA/WPA2 Personal option, enter a desired network name, wireless password, and verify it. Click on Continue to proceed further.
- Select “I connect to the Internet with a DSL or cable modem using DHCP” and click on Continue.
- The next screen on the set up wizard will review your setup information. Click Update.
- Now that your Airport Express base station has been configured, it needs a restart for the configuration to be effective.
- Connect to your new wireless network with the set password.
How To Reset a Airport Express Router?
Instances might occur when you need to reset Airport Express to its default state. It typically includes situations when you forget the password or if the device is not functioning properly. An Airport Express reset can be of following types:
Soft Reset: A soft reset resets the password of the base station and disables security for five minutes. If you do not make any changes within five minutes, the base station moves to its earlier settings.
Hard Reset: A hard reset allows you to reset the base station to an unconfigured state; however, it retains the recent saved configuration.
Factory-default Reset: Just like a hard reset, factory-default reset allows you to remove any saved configuration and profiles.
Let’s see how to perform these resets.
How to Soft Reset Airport Express Router?
- Ensure that the base station is powered on.
- Press and hold the reset button until the status light changes its color to amber.
- From the list of available Wi-Fi networks in the menu bar, select your Wi-Fi network.
- From the Utilities folder, open Airport Utility.
- Now select the icon of your Apple Airport base station and click on Edit from the pop-up menu.
- Reconfigure the base station or change the password as needed and click on Update.
How to Hard Reset Airport Express Router?
- Ensure that the base station is powered on.
- Press and hold the reset button until the status light changes its color to amber and flashes rapidly. Then release the button.
- Wait until the base station restarts automatically.
- From the Utilities folder, open Airport Utility.
- Select the icon of your Apple Airport base station and click on Edit from the pop-up menu.
- Click on Other Options followed by “Restore previous settings”, and click Next.
- Now the Airport Utility will indicate the set up status as complete. Click Done.
Factory-default Reset of Airport Express Router:
- Switch off the base station.
- Hold down the reset button on the base station and connect it to a power source. Continue holding the reset button for about five seconds until the status light changes its color to amber and flashes rapidly.
- The base station will now restart automatically and will allow you to reconfigure it using the Airport Utility.
How to Connect Airport Express to another Router?
If you have an additional Apple Airport Express, you can reconfigure it to make it an AirPlay 2 streaming target. You can stream music to a speaker further. Let’s have a look how to achieve this:
- Plug in the power adapter of your Airport Express and switch it on.
- Connect your printer, speakers, or both into the Airport Express, and launch Airport Utility.
- For a pre-configured Airport Express, you can see the information onscreen. If you see a green dot just before your wireless network name, then it’s fine. If it is yellow, it means you don’t have the upgraded version of firmware installed. However, you can still upgrade by clicking on the “Upgrade” button.
- In the Base Station menu, choose Restore Default Settings.
- Click on Other Wi-Fi Devices.
- Select the base station.
- At bottom left of the screen, click on Other Options tab. It will offer you to create a new network or replace an existing one.
- Choose “Add to an existing network” and click on Next.
- Lastly, choose your wireless network and enter the password to make your non-Wi-Fi-enabled device to connect to your Wi-Fi network.
With the list of information on how to configure and reset Airport Express and connect it to another router, we hope that you can easily achieve your desired goals with this wonderful product from Apple.Inc.
