Buffalo Forums

Hi,
I have a problem accessing my link station through NASNavigator2. It is visible in the network, I can administer it by entering the ip address in the browser, but it does not show up in NASNavigator2!? I already re-installed the latest Version, I rebooted the NAS Drive several times...no luck!

Please help! I am using Windows 8.1

I am accessing the NAS through my local WLAN.

regards
Joachim

This is probably an issue with the Windows firewall. If you temporarily disable the firewall can you see the device in NAS Navigator?

I have a similar problem accessing my LINKSTATION (LS-WV4.0TL) with NASNavigator2 in my Windows 7 laptop. ADSL modem in my home network runs the only DHCP Server in the network (range: 192.168.1.33..64/24). DHCP gives a fixed IP address to LINKSTATION.

When I connect my laptop with a LAN cable directry to the IP switch of my home network there are no problems accessing the LINKSTATION with NASNavigator2 and also Windows Explorer shows the LINKSTATION within the Network folder.

But when I connect my laptop to my home network via WLAN using my Buffalo NFINITY Wireless Router (WZR-AGL300NH) I am facing problems with NASNavigator2 and also with Windows Explorer. I have to press "Refresh" button quite many times before NASNavigator2 recognizes my LINKSTATION and after a while it's lost again. Also it takes quite a while before Windows Explorer shows LINKSTATION as one of my Network drives. My Buffalo NFINITY Wireless Router is configured as an Access Point e.g. there is no DHPC running there, it just connects all WLAN devices (provided a correct password is given) to the same LAN administered by my ADSL modem.

There is a standard Windows firewall active in my laptop. Thus this is hardly a firewall problem? Could it be that WLAN router (allthough configured as an AP) prevents some IP protocols getting through?

So this is a pc issue still.. or maybe even a network issue. If it works fine when you are connect via network cable but not wireless.  Could be a firewall issue, could be something else in general like slow wireless speeds. Just because its a standard fire doesn't excuse it at all. A firewall is a firewall, simple as that. They all do the same thing just some are better then others. Just because something is configured as a AP, that shouldn't prevent some protocols from going through.

How is your network setup. Need to know from Gateway or modem to the buffalo router. Also need to know how you turned it in to a AP, and what is the address you use to access the buffalo router and to access your gateway/modem. Giving me that doesn't make you vulnerable so don't think that. All this info is on the web per models. Just need to map how you did it and what not. The issue has to be in how you have it setup or wireless speeds are to slow.

"joma90", thanks for your reply!
Just to be sure that this is not a firewall issue, I inhibited it temporarily. No difference in operation.
As an answer to your enquiry how to turn the wireless router to Access Point Mode: my Buffalo NFINITY Wireless Router (WZR-AGL300NH) has two Operation Modes available on it's main Setup page: "Router Mode ON" or "Router Mode OFF (Access Point Mode)".

Your last comment "...or wireless speeds are too slow." finally made me to examine the Wireless Mode setting that I have been using. My Buffalo NFINITY Wireless Router provides three alternative Wireless Modes:
- IEEE 802.11n/a together with IEEE 802.11g
- IEEE 802.11n/g/b
- IEEE 802.11n/a
I had been using IEEE 802.11n/g/b.

When I tried any of those two remaining Wireless Mode alternatives laptop's NASNavigator2 recognized my LINKSTATION easily and it didn't loose that recognition.

All Wireless Modes provide about the same wireless speed. If I run (regardless of the Wireless Mode) an internet speed test against any speed test web page I got the same results: 10Mbit/s downlink & 0,9Mbit/s uplink (which equals my internet access specs). But the amount of Wireless Channels are different: IEEE 802.11n/g/b provides only 1 channel (or 2 depending on router config page you look at!) while others provide minimum 36 channels.

Normally there are already two WLAN devices (mobile phones) active when I switch on my laptop. Is it possible that the shortage of wireless channels in WLAN Access Point could block laptop's NASNavigator2 to access LINKSTATION?

The channels shouldn't.. If anything, Try doing a factory reset on the Buffalo router and see if there is a new firmware for download. The issue has to be at the wireless level from the router to your computer. Somewhere between there is whats the issue. Maybe update check if there is a update for your laptops drivers. Giving suggestions to try as I have no way to pin point it with out testing the equipment myself.

Sorry for few weeks silence, I've been testing this issue.

First I have to withdraw what I said in my previous post:

" My Buffalo NFINITY Wireless Router provides three alternative Wireless Modes:
- IEEE 802.11n/a together with IEEE 802.11g
- IEEE 802.11n/g/b
- IEEE 802.11n/a
I had been using IEEE 802.11n/g/b.

When I tried any of those two remaining Wireless Mode alternatives laptop's NASNavigator2 recognized my LINKSTATION easily and it didn't loose that recognition."

Actually none of the Buffalo NFINITY Wireless Mode alternatives will ensure an interminable access to LINKSTATION from NASNavigator2. There are moments when pressing the "Refresh" button in NASNavigator2 there is information about LINKSTATION visible and a moment later there might not be that info. Windows Explorer seems to operate more or less the same, sometimes LINKSTATION is shown under the Network and sometimes not.

Most up-to-date FW version of my Buffalo NFINITY Wireless Router (WZR-AGL300NH) is fairly old (1.53): http://buffalo.jp/support_ap/support/products/wzr_agl300nh.html (http://buffalo.jp/support_ap/support/products/wzr_agl300nh.html). Does this mean that Buffalo has given up distributing corrections to this product? Anyway I have had this FW version in my unit for quite a while now. I did a factory reset as you proposed. Changes that I noticed were: Wireless Channel in IEEE 802.11g/b mode changed from 1 to 11.

Wireless drivers of my laptop are up-to-date. Lenovo Thinkpad E540 keeps constantly track on it's drivers.

FW in my LINKSTATION was old. I updated it to version 1.69: http://www.buffalotech.com/products/network-storage/home-and-small-office/linkstation-pro-duo-1 (http://www.buffalotech.com/products/network-storage/home-and-small-office/linkstation-pro-duo-1)

Behaviour of Windows programs in my laptop depends on how they are trying to access files in LINKSTATION. Programs that use Windows Explorer kind of an access are totally unusable if LINKSTATION is not visible as a Network element. E.g. ACDSee Photo Manager 2009 is one example of these programs. Programs that use URL kind of as access (\\LINKSTATION\Heikki\Documents\...) are capable to access files in LINKSTATION even if LINKSTATION is not visible in NASNavigator2. E.g. MS SyncToy or FreeFileSync are examples of these latter ones. However none of the laptops nor mobile phones have had any problems to access to my home network or to internet via WLAN provided by my Buffalo NFINITY Wireless Router.