[G4] Ethernet/router problems

[Joseph B. Gurman]

     Bill in Lakewood WA wrote:

>I recently got, and am trying to get fully functional, a Sawtooth AGP
>G4.  So far most has gone well but I'm at an impasse now in trying to
>get an Asanté FriendlyNET 4 port router up and running.
>
>Apparently the problem is the G4's connection with the router as what
>ever port I put the cable connection from my machine into, it does not
>lightup/is not recognized by the router.  Profiler shows the built-in
>ethernet link as "down" and the router as "not available".  I switched
>ethernet cables around to test them and the results were the same.  I
>also have switched ethernet ports with the other computer on the system
>and the other computer shows up well no matter where it is put, but mine
>doesn't show at all.
>
>Bottom line, my computer ethernet that works well when plugged into the
>modem doesn't work when plugged into the router.  There might be other
>signs of problems also but I won't know until this problem is solved -
>the signs being that when using the modem only, the modem normally shows
>it's running at the 100M speed but when the router is connected to it,
>only the modem's 10M speed light is lit.
>
>In all my reading so far, nothing like this has been addressed. Any help
>would be appreciated.

     Well, there are several things you don't say. 
I believe the FriendlyNET router to which you;re 
referring is  an FR1004 (no wireless) or FR1004AL 
(adds wireless). If it's different, I don't know 
if my guesses are applicable.

     You also don't say what "the other computer 
on the system" (by which I assume you mean 
another machine on your local area network) is. 
Is it another Mac? A PC? (It's OK, folks on the 
list will be understanding, many of us use or are 
forced to use them, too, and your proximity to 
Redmond can be considered a mitigating factor 
when we get to the sentencing phase....) The 
other machine is relevant, because its TCP/IP 
settings are obviously of interest.

     Likewise, you don't say if your cable modem 
requires a fixed IP address. If so, and your G4's 
TCP/IP settings are still set to that IP address, 
while the router is serving DHCP, you're out of 
luck. You've probably checked all these things, 
but we can't tell from your post.

     Finally, you don't say what OS you're 
running, so it's difficult to suggest some

     In any case, some guesses/suggestions:

1. if it's an FR1004, is the firmware up to date? 
(probably only affects a security issue, but you 
never know)
If you do update the firmware, make certain the 
cable modem is not connected to it when you 
perform the update.

2. my dim recollection is that there was an issue 
with some vendors' hubs/switches (and the Asanté 
routers are routers plus hubs) use of the 
spanning tree algorithm that affected their 
ability to autonegotiate (full or half duplex) a 
connections with first generation Apple 10/100 
interfaces --- but I thought that was a Blue & 
White G3 problem, not Sawtooth. In any case, the 
problem was soluble for older switches on a 
port-by-port basis, but the FR1004 shouldn't have 
that problem --- but I don't know what issues 
that firmware update on Asanté's support site 
addresses. If this is the problem, it's on your 
G4's side: the router is expecting full-duplex, 
but your Ethernet port may be defaulting to 
half-duplex if autonegotiation fails. Under OS X 
10.2, you can force the interface to be 
full-duplex with some Terminal (shell) commands; 
see:

	http://www.macosxhints.com/article.php?story=20020902082941913 .

I _believe_ the same shell commands will work in 10.3, but YMMV.

3. the FR1004 and FR1004AL allow hardware MAC 
address control; I doubt it's been set out of the 
box, but if you've had "the other system on it" 
with MAC address control, and your G4's MAC 
address hasn't been entered into the router's 
access control list through the router's Web 
interface, you're SOL

4. Asanté's home routers (and most everybody 
else's now) support MAC address cloning. If your 
cable company only provides service to a known 
MAC address (presumably the one of the machine 
connected during installation), and your router 
is configured to mimic that address (otherwise, 
"the other machine" wouldn't be able to see the 
Internet), there may be some conflict with your 
machine, whose MAC address you've cloned --- 
though I doubt it, as that's the whole point of 
the feature.

     Finally, for good advice rather than idle 
speculation, Asanté's moderated support forums 
are really helpful:

	http://www.asante.com/forums/

(Scroll down to "Internet Access Routers" and 
"FriendlyNET FR1000 Series" is the first forum.)

     Good luck,

						Joe Gurman
-- 
"I love deadlines. I love the whooshing sound they make as they go by."
 
- Douglas Adams, 1952 - 2001

Joseph B. Gurman, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Solar Physics
Branch, Greenbelt MD 20771 USA