Config of TG582 router via wireless

A friend of mine is having Plusnet FTTC installed later this week.

He only has a laptop, and it's an iMac, so no LAN port apparently, only WLAN ?!

I'm also moving to Plusnet FTTC this week, I'm going to be using my own Netgear router
but the PN one arrived this morning. I've had a quick play, but it seems you can only
access the set up (192.168.1.254) via a LAN and not the WLAN interface ?

Is that so ?

By default it only accepts admin access via wired ethernet. You can change that via the CLI but not via the GUI (I would have to dig out the exact CLI command to do that, but I know I've done it before! In any case, you need a wired connection to access the CLI although that only needs to be done once)
If your friend can borrow another router, he can always connect wirelessly to the other router, and connect one of the LAN ports to the TG582... which will see the connection as wired and wouldn't know it is really wireless. But the other router needs to have its own DHCP server disabled or it will conflict with the one in the TG582.
Hope this makes sense, if not I'll try again after a lot more coffee.

In reply to a post by Uilebheist:

By default it only accepts admin access via wired ethernet. You can change that via the CLI but not via the GUI (I would have to dig out the exact CLI command to do that, but I know I've done it before! In any case, you need a wired connection to access the CLI although that only needs to be done once)
If your friend can borrow another router, he can always connect wirelessly to the other router, and connect one of the LAN ports to the TG582... which will see the connection as wired and wouldn't know it is really wireless. But the other router needs to have its own DHCP server disabled or it will conflict with the one in the TG582.
Hope this makes sense, if not I'll try again after a lot more coffee.

Ha !! Many thanks. Seems the PN router is just a bit too crippled, to do anything remotely 'off the wall' I think he'll be better off getting himself something a bit more 'up market' !!

The PN router is free, so he can't really complain

Edited by broadbandjockey (Mon 21-Jan-13 12:49:00)

In reply to a post by broadbandjockey:

He only has a laptop, and it's an iMac, so no LAN port apparently, only WLAN ?!

If he only has a laptop, then it's not an iMac as those are desktop Macs
It's probably a Macbook Air or Retina Macbook Pro. Those (stupidly!) don't have ethernet, but he can buy an ethernet adapter for it from Apple.

But unless he wants to tweak the router setup, he doesn't need to connect to it via ethernet as it will set itself up automatically when first plugged in.

Hi there, sorry to hear about the hassle with that. I wonder if that's something we might need to bear in mind for Mac users in the future.

In reply to a post by thatadamwalker:

Hi there, sorry to hear about the hassle with that. I wonder if that's something we might need to bear in mind for Mac users in the future.

Might be Adam, my friend is a die hard and committed Mac user, but I know nothing about those devices, so I'm a bit stuck helping him, and I live 200 miles away (though ironically he lives a stone's throw from your office !! )

A true Mac fan would have one of the USB Ethernet adaptors for that horrible day when you changed your wireless encrpyption key but find you cannot get access to the router.

In reply to a post by MrSaffron:

A true Mac fan would have one of the USB Ethernet adaptors for that horrible day when you changed your wireless encrpyption key but find you cannot get access to the router.

Ha, yes, point taken

I should point out he's making a quantum leap from dial up access, to 62 Mb/s FTTC !!!!

I should think Plusnet will finally be able to switch off their last DU modem at their end on Friday

In reply to a post by broadbandjockey:

I should point out he's making a quantum leap from dial up access, to 62 Mb/s FTTC !!!!

Can't be allowed to do that, and cause the extinction of an endangered species

/me looks at Andrew, quizzically.

That sounds like the voice of experience ....