Time Capsule not assigning IP addresses after Spectrum outage

Power off everything on the network......all devices.

Wait a minute, then start up the "modem" only and let it run for a full minute by itself

Start up the next device.....likely your Time Capsule....and let it run for a full minute

Keep starting up other devices one at a time about a minute apart until everything is powered back up

Check the network

Not a big deal, but your Spectrum ET2251 is more than a "modem". It is a modem/router, also known as a gateway. This is the product that is assigning IP addresses to devices on your network.......not the Time Capsule.....although you might be using the Time Capsule Wi-Fi.

The Time Capsule should be configured to operate in Bridge Mode. It simply passes through IP address information from the modem/router to the devices on your network. Normally, this setting on the Time Capsule would be configured automatically.

Report back if you see a blinking amber light on the Time Capsule. This would indicate that a setting needs to be changed on the Time Capsule......because the power outage messed up some things.

OK, thanks. AirPort Utility on an iPhone is OK.

The Time Capsule has what is known as a Public IP address, so it can act as a router for your network.

There should also be a LAN IP Address listed for the Time Capsule, and that is normally 10.0.1.1. Is that what you see?

IIf yes, click Edit in the upper right corner of the AirPort Utility screen

Tap Advanced

Tap DHCP and NAT

Router Mode should be DHCP and NAT

Is that correct? If not, and the setting for Router Mode is (Off) Bridge Mode, change that setting to DHCP and NAT and save the new settings so the Time Capsule can restart.

Once the Time Capsule has restarted, check the network to see if devices can now connect to the Internet.

Open AirPort Utility on your Mac (Applications > Utilities > AirPort Utility)

Click on the Time Capsule and a smaller window will appear

If the Time Capsule is distributing IP Addresses, the IP Address of the Time Capsule will be 10.0.1.1

If the Time Capsule is NOT distributing IP Addresses....(and your Spectrum modem/router is)..... the IP Address of the Time Capsule will be something like 192.168.x.x

What is the IP Address of the Time Capsule? Is there more than 1 IP Address for the Time Capsule? If yes, what are they?

Unfortunately, the Spectrum modem and Time Capsule are not communicating correctly. The 169 IP Address on the Time Capsule indicates that the Time Capsule is not receiving a valid IP address from the modem.

At this point, all that I can suggest is that you try to get a technician out to check over the Spectrum modem and make sure that it is operating correctly. Then, reset the Time Capsule back to factory default settings and then set it up again.

There are no guarantees that this will work, but it is really the only left to try at this point. If you have a Best Buy in your area, the Geek Squad is familiar with the Apple routers.

I am using the time capsule via wifi

That does not mean that the Time Capsule is assigning IP addresses.

Post back after you have completed the complete power cycle of your network as I detailed above.

IF.....you want the Time Capsule to assign IP addresses, it can be configured to do this.....but the amber light will be blinking to tell you that you have a Double NAT error on your network......something that you would want to avoid.

We have been supporting Time Capsules on this user site for 16+ years. We know what we are doing.

Whatever is providing DHCP needs to be started first.

That can be the ISP box or the Time Capsule, but not usually both.

Either the ISP modem or the Time Capsule is usually set bridged, as only one (the one not bridged) should be doing NAT.

If the Time Capsule is your router (and presumably also DHCP server), then your ISP box is (should be) bridged.

If the the Time Capsule reset and re-configuration fails, and if the ISP modem is working, it's possible the Time Capsule itself is failing.

On the off chance that the patch cable is bad, change the network cable between the ISP modem and the Time Capsule, too. Preferably with a known-working (or new) Cat 6 or Cat 6A cable.

If you decide to replace, and have now or may add a Mac, consider a router with Time Machine server support.

oreste wrote:

Hi, Thank you for all your help. I will look for a new apple base stations. For now I am sharing thru my Mac internet sharing. Work well for me.

Enabling the ISP router and using its Wi-Fi and (usually) wired port will work for most cases.

And if that works well enough and you want Time Machine, then either a locally-connected hard disk drive, or a locally-connected NAS with Time Machine server capabilities, should work.

Apple hasn’t been making AirPort and Time Capsule gear for most of a decade. The newest Apple design debuted in 2013.

If you want to give it one last shot, let me know and we'll use AirPort Utility on your Mac to set up the Time Capsule again from scratch. This will not affect any of the stored data on the Time Capsule hard drive.