Letter to Linksys tech support

Can't get my WAP54g access point to work.

Here's what I've done so far.

1) I came home from the electornics store and plugged a Cat 6 cable into the router that supplies the signal to the

WAP54g access point (it is a NETGEAR router with permanantly fastened antennae).

2) I plugged the cat 6 cable into the WAP54g access point, and I powered it on.

3) The WAP54g access point worked great.

4) I then unscrewed one of the WAP54g access point's antenna and replaced it with a more powerful antenna.

5) The WAP54g access point continued to work great, and the more powerful antenna extended my range.

6) Having established that the WAP54g access point worked well, I then unplugged the cat 6 cable and attached a

coupler, and attached another CAT 6 cable to extend its distance from the NETGEAR router.

7) At this point, I could not get a signal from WAP54g access point

7.5) At this point, I may have messed things up more by pressing the "Cisco" button on the left of the front panel

of the WAP54g access point.

8) I unplugged the second CAT 6 cable, and restored the original setup with just one CAT 6 cable leading to the

WAP54g access point. I wnated to get back to where thing were working originally.

9) The WAP54g access point still wouldn't work.

10) I was further confused because the WAP54g access point now wanted a network key, when before it didn't require

one. I put in the network key for the NETGEAR router, and that got rid of the screen asking for a network key.

11) The WAP54g access point told me (and still is telling me) that it is connected, that the signal is excellent,

but that it is "Acquiring Network Address" or something like that.

12) That is the wall I am up against. The WAP54g access point gets stuck "Acquiring Network Address"


13) I tried the reset feature on the back of the WAP54g access point. Still no luck.

13.1) One good thing DID happen when I used the reset feature on the back of the WAP54g access point. When I looked

at the "View Available Networks" screen, the Linksys option no longer required a network key. It had become

unsecured.

14) I tried the set up disk. It told me to check my connections. I am at a loss to see what connections are bad. I

have checked every connection. And, the WAP54g access point had, at one point, worked, so I know that the

connections were at least at one point good.

I called Linksys support. They said I would have to get the settings from the NETGEAR router. But when I called

NETGEAR, they said I had to either get the password from Comcast (the cable provider), or completely reset the

router. The router is the property of my landlady who is technophobic to the point of near-psychosis, and she will

almost have an emotional breakdown (I'm not kidding!) if I start messing with her router. Even hooking up the CAT 6

cable to her router in the first place required waiting for her to be out of the house, and then getting her

boyfriend to let me in the house so we could do a stealth hook-up of the CAT 6 cable for the WAP54g access point.

Long story short, re-setting the NETGEAR router is an option I want very much to avoid. Even though I am a paying

tenant, the technophobia of the landlady overrides any logical arguments.

I'm stuck. I just want the access point to work like it had in the first place. Anyone have any ideas? Thanks in advance.
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