Apple AirPort restart, firmware, NAT-PMP and DNS

Sign in to the Apple AirPort

Factory default. After a hard reset, Apple sets the base station password to public. Set your own straight away under Edit › Base Station.

1. Open AirPort Utility from Applications › Utilities on your Mac.

2. In the graphical overview, select the base station, then click Edit.

3. Enter the base station password if asked.

4. To change it, click Base Station, enter a new password and click Update.

Forgot it? Press the reset button for 1 second (a soft reset). For five minutes the password is cleared, so you can set a new one in AirPort Utility. If you change nothing, the old settings return.

Restart it properly

1. Open AirPort Utility and select the base station.

2. Enter the base station password if asked.

3. Choose Base Station › Restart from the menu bar.

If AirPort Utility can’t reach it, unplug the base station for a few seconds and plug it back in. With several base stations, restart the main one, plugged into your modem, last.

Restart from an iPhone or iPad

1. In AirPort Utility, tap the base station, then tap Edit › Advanced › Restart Base Station.

Schedule a restart

Apple’s AirPort guides describe no scheduled restart.

Update the firmware

All AirPort products are discontinued. The final firmware is 7.9.1 for the 802.11ac AirPort Extreme and Time Capsule, and 7.8.1 for 802.11n models. Apple calls these final, so no further security fixes are coming.

1. Restart the base station first.

2. In AirPort Utility, select the base station to see its details and firmware version.

3. If an Update button appears next to the version, click it.

4. With several base stations, start with the one furthest from the main one and update the main one last.

Each base station restarts after updating, and its network and shared disks are unavailable for a while. To be told about updates, choose AirPort Utility › Settings and tick Check for updates automatically.

See connected devices

Apple’s AirPort Utility guide describes no list of connected devices or their traffic. It covers these related tools instead.

1. Open AirPort Utility. The graphical overview shows your network and its base stations.

2. Hold the pointer over a base station for more details about it.

3. To give a device a fixed address, click Edit › Network and add it under DHCP Reservations by MAC address.

4. To limit when a device may join, use Network › Enable Access Control › Timed Access Control.

UPnP and port forwarding

Apple documents no UPnP on AirPort base stations. Its pages describe their automatic port mapping as NAT-PMP, and mention UPnP only for third-party routers.

NAT-PMP

1. In AirPort Utility, select the base station and click Edit.

2. Click Network and check Router Mode is DHCP and NAT.

3. Click Network Options, tick Enable NAT Port Mapping Protocol and click Save.

4. Click Update. The base station restarts and the Wi-Fi drops until it is back.

Port mapping by hand

1. Under Edit › Network, click Add below Port Settings.

2. Choose IPv4 Port Mapping, enter the device’s private IP address and the service or ports.

3. Click Save, then Update.

Give the device a DHCP reservation first, so its address doesn’t change.

Prioritise calls and gaming

Apple’s AirPort Utility guide has no QoS, traffic priority or bandwidth settings. Timed Access Control only allows or blocks a device at set times.

2.4 and 5 GHz, and the channel

By default a dual-band AirPort uses one Wi-Fi name for 2.4 and 5 GHz. You can give 5 GHz its own name, which leaves the main name to cover 2.4 GHz for older or smart-home devices.

1. In AirPort Utility, select the base station and click Edit.

2. Click Wireless, then Wireless Options near the bottom.

3. Tick 5GHz network name and enter a different name.

4. Click Save, then Update.

Change the channel

1. Open Edit › Wireless › Wireless Options.

2. Choose a channel from the 2.4 GHz Channel and 5 GHz Channel menus.

3. Click Save, then Update.

The best channel is picked automatically by default, and Apple says Automatic is usually most efficient. Devices follow the new channel by themselves.

Mesh: which node a device uses

AirPort has no mesh, but you can extend a network with more AirPort base stations. They share the same network settings.

1. Connect the new base station’s WAN port to a LAN port on the main one by Ethernet, if you can.

2. On your Mac, click the Wi-Fi icon in the menu bar and choose the base station under New AirPort Base Station.

3. Follow the setup assistant, which offers to extend your existing network.

Apple notes that throughput is better with an Ethernet link than a wireless one.

Guest network

1. In AirPort Utility, select the base station and click Edit.

2. Click Wireless and tick Enable Guest Network.

3. Change the guest network name if you like.

4. Set Guest Network Security to WPA2 Personal or WPA/WPA2 Personal and enter a password.

5. Click Update.

Choosing None makes an open network. With several base stations, turn the guest network on at the router base station first, then on each extender.

DNS settings

1. In AirPort Utility, select the base station and click Edit.

2. Click Internet.

3. Enter your chosen servers in the DNS Servers fields, and IPv6 DNS Servers if needed.

4. Click Update.

Apple advises changing the DNS fields only if your provider or network administrator tells you to.

Connection status and logs

1. Open AirPort Utility. A green dot next to a base station means it is working properly.

2. A flashing amber dot means it can’t reach the network or internet. Click it to read the status message.

3. To have AirPort Utility open when there is a problem, choose AirPort Utility › Settings.

4. Tick Monitor AirPort base stations for problems.

Flashing amber and green means a start-up problem; the base station restarts and tries again. Apple’s guide describes no event log to read.

Manuals and downloads

• AirPort Utility User Guide for Mac
• AirPort Extreme 802.11ac technical specifications
• AirPort Time Capsule 802.11ac technical specifications

Links go to the maker’s own pages.

Questions

Sources

• Apple Support: Update the firmware on your AirPort base station
• Apple Support: How to reset your AirPort base station
• AirPort Utility User Guide: Change your base station’s name and password
• AirPort Utility User Guide: If you forget your AirPort base station, Time Capsule or Wi-Fi password
• AirPort Utility User Guide: Keep your base station up to date
• AirPort Utility User Guide: Direct network traffic
• AirPort Utility User Guide: Reserve a DHCP address
• AirPort Utility User Guide: Control access to your Wi-Fi network
• AirPort Utility User Guide: Set wireless options
• AirPort Utility User Guide: Extend an existing Wi-Fi network
• AirPort Utility User Guide: Set up a guest network
• AirPort Utility User Guide: Connect to the Internet using DHCP
• AirPort Utility User Guide: See your Wi-Fi network
• AirPort Utility User Guide: If your base station’s light is flashing
• Mac Help (macOS High Sierra): If Back to My Mac doesn’t work (enable NAT-PMP)
• Apple Support: Back to My Mac requires AirPort base station or UPnP-capable third-party router

Checked on 1 November 2026.

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