10 Steps to Adding a Router to an ATT Broadband Cable Modem Configuration
What follows are my notes from installing a router between my PC and cable modem. ATT Broadband technicians wouldn't install my router. They only install the cable modem to one PC. The three techicians who came to install my cable modem knew nothing about routers. What follows are the steps I took to place a router between the PC and the cable modem after the ATT Broadband people left my house. These steps worked for me. I hope they can give you something to try if you get stuck.
Please note that I couldn't find STEP #5 below documented anywhere. When I talked to ATT they said they knew it wasn't documented anywhere. Yikes. Good luck.
1. Go buy a Linksys Ethernet Cable/DSL Router Model BEFSR41.
2. Unhook the cable from your PC Network card and plug it in to the WAN port of your ROUTER. Now you have the cable hooked up between the modem and the router. My modem is a Motorola SURFboard Model SB4100.
Note: You can purchase your own modem instead of leasing one from ATT Broadband.
3. Now plug a new CAT 5 cable from your PC Network Card to an open plug in your ROUTER. Let's try plug #1.
4. Go into Linksys setup and get the WAN IP Address: MAC ADDRESS:
It is in the form: XX-XX-XX-XX-XX-XX
You can get to the Linksys config page by opening this page in your browser:
http://192.168.1.1/
5. Call ATT Broadband, 866-447-7333, and inform them that you are adding a Router and have the MAC ADDRESS for it.
You can also CHAT with them from their support web site.
6. On your PC: Go into Control Panel/Internet Options/Connections/LAN and remove Proxy Server by unchecking all the boxes.
7. From the START menu, choose RUN, winipcfg, Press RELEASE then RENEW.
8. Try to open a web site with your Internet Browser.
9. If you are having trouble, go back to the Linksys config page and make sure the MAC ADDRESS hasn't changed. If it has, click ADVANCED, then click MAC Addr. Cloning, and key in the MAC ADDRESS you told ATT about earlier.
For more help try the ATT Help pages and the Linksys Knowledge Base Search Engine. You can unhook the router and hook back up directly to the modem and get directly to the web by doing step 6 again, RELEASE/RENEW.
10. Still troubled, make a phone call to Linksys. If it works, great! If not, it's beyond me.
Here's a good place for a lot of information that I wish I had earlier: Cable Modem Troubleshooting Tips.
This looks good too: Cable-Modems.Org Your Cable Modem Reference Guide.
Tim from Salted Wound shares this: Linksys Cable/DSL Router Help - Basics.
