HOW TO Configure Linksys WET54G Bridge for XBOX System Link play
Jim Harkins
I purchased 2 Linksys WET54G Wireless-G Ethernet Bridges with the intention
of getting rid of the last strand of CAT5 cable running across my floor, a
crossover cable used to connect my 2 Xboxes for System Link play.
The good news is WET54G's can support System Link Play. The bad news is
proper configuration of the WET54G bridge for this application is not
obvious. Unfortunately I failed to find guidance anywhere on the Internet.
After configuring the WET54G's normally I tested with Halo. I created a game
on the first Xbox, and could see it from my other Xbox. I thought, "Great".
But then I selected the game to join and received this error message:
"Failed to join the System Link game".
If you are experienced and in a rush, here's the short answer: Enable MAC
Address Cloning using the WET54G's Web-based utility's Advanced tab. Good
luck.
If you have having the same problem with a Linksys WET11 bridge, Linksys is
offering a firmware update fix, check their web site. I don't have any
experience with the WET11.
Now for the details: I tried everything I could think of but failed to find
a solution. Then I called Linksys support where I waited on hold for almost
10 minutes before explaining my problem to a support representative. Within
another 5 minutes the support representative at Linksys made a suggestion
that proved to be the solution.
Here are the steps:
0. Perform basic configuration of your WET54G. If possible connect WET54G
to the Xbox (and only the Xbox) via CAT5 Ethernet cable (this arrangement
will simplify later steps).
0.1. Notes: If you have a Wireless Access Point (such as a WAP54G), you'll
probably want to select Infrastructure mode, otherwise select Ad-Hoc mode.
It's important to give each bridge a unique name. If you want to participate
in an existing wireless network, be sure to use the same SSID. If you have
a DHCP server (such as integrated into a Linksys WAP54G Wireless Access
Point / Router), automatically obtain an IP address, otherwise you'll have
to come up with manual settings. If you are participating in an existing
network, you'll have to match its WEP settings. Otherwise I'd recommend
getting it working without WEP and turning it on later, if desired.
1. Connect your WET54G to a computer with a web browser. Use a wireless
connection if your WET54G is configured to participate in the same wireless
network as the computer. If it's not configured or you run into problems,
connect directly using an Ethernet cable.
2. Start the WET54G's Web-based utility.
Open your Web browser and enter the address of your WET54G. The default is:
2.1. If you are running Windows, you can set or find your WET54G's address
using the Linksys Wireless-G Ethernet Bridge Setup Wizard.
2.1.1. To start the wizard put the disc that came with the WET54G into your
computer. The wizard should start automatically. If it doesn't, run
Setup.exe on the disc.
2.1.2. Click "Setup". Click "Next". The wizard will scan for WET54G's.
2.1.3. Click on your device on the left and its status summary, including
IP address, will be displayed on the right. Enter this address into your
browser.
3. Enable MAC Cloning Mode.
3.0 (Optional) If you can, at this point make sure the bridge is connected
to your Xbox and only your Xbox. Launch a System Link game and go to the
screen where it's "Looking for Games". This will cause your Xbox to generate
some network traffic for the bridge to see.
3.0.0 Getting to the "Looking for Games" screen in Halo.
From the main Halo screen select "Multiplayer", then "System Link Play",
select a player then press A to continue. Now you should be at the "Looking
for games" screen
3.1 Click "Advanced" in WET54G's Web-based utility. Scroll down to MAC
Address / Cloning Mode. Select "Enable" from the list.
3.2 Select "Auto" or "Manual" MAC
3.2.1 Select "Auto". Click on "Auto" radio button.
Auto mode automatically clones an Ethernet address the WET54G bridge finds
on the wired connection, for example you're Xbox. And the bridge does this
dynamically, meaning if you swap devices the cloned MAC address is
automatically updated. This is a great idea, but there are a couple
potential issues. For one this doesn't work well if you have multiple
devices connected to the bridge (using a hub).
I've noticed another problem. Automatic MAC address updating is not as
dynamic as the documentation suggests. When the bridge starts up, if it
doesn't see any MAC address to clone (the selected device is not on or is
not transmitting any packets), it uses its default MAC address. This can be
a problem because the Xbox doesn't send packets until it's ready to start a
System Link game. When the bridge fails to Clone the MAC address dynamically
(Automatically), it prevents System Link play.
3.2.1.0 (As needed) Force synchronization of bridge MAC address with Xbox.
To workaround this situation, on the Xbox go to a game's (Halo) System Link
screen where it's "Looking for games" (see 3.0.0). While on this screen the
Xbox Ethernet broadcasts an, "Are any games out there", message. Now unplug
and re-plug the WET54G (the documentation suggests pulling and reconnecting
the Ethernet cable should be enough to cause the MAC address to re-clone,
but I've had better luck cycling power).
3.2.1.1 Click "Apply" button.
When you hit "Apply" the bridge starts looking on the wired connection for
traffic so it can find an address to clone. There are a couple
possibilities here. Ideally you have only the Xbox connected (and "Looking
for games") on the wired connection (with the web browsing PC connecting
wirelessly). In this case the bridge will clone the Xbox's MAC address. When
you reconnect to the bridge its MAC address (shown on the "Setup", "Status",
and "Advanced" tabs) will be changed to your Xbox's MAC address. Apparently
(so far) Xbox's MAC addresses start with 00:50:F2, the Company ID assigned t
o "Microsoft Corp".
Remember Auto Cloning is dynamic. If you had to take your bridge to your
computer to configure it, that's okay. When you attach the bridge to an
Xbox that's sitting on the "Looking for games" screen, and turn on the
bridge, it will pick up the address of the Xbox. But in this case it will be
difficult to recover the Xbox's MAC address needed for Manual Cloning.
3.2.2. (Optional) Select "Manual" and enter your Xbox's MAC address.
I've found manual configuration more reliable. Too often Auto configuration
fails to pick up the Xbox's MAC address, but see 3.2.1.0 on how to force
synchronization. Manual configuration requires you to discover your Xbox's
MAC address.
3.2.2.1. Find your Xbox's MAC address. Note: Apparently your Xbox MAC
address will start with 00:50:F2.
3.2.2.1.1. Use bridge's cloned MAC address after successful "Auto" clone
from Xbox. See 3.2.1.
Note: If you point your browser at a WET54G bridge that's already
successfully auto cloned the Xbox's MAC address, that's the MAC address it
will report as its own. To switch to proper Manual configuration just click
the "Manual" radio button in the "MAC Address" section under the "Advanced"
tab.
3.2.2.1.2. Or if you have installed Xbox Live, you can go to the Dashboard,
select "Xbox Live", and select "Network Setup". In the lower right corner
you should see MAC=0050f2xxxxxx (where x is a Hex digit), this is your MAC
address.
3.2.2.1.3. One more way you can recover your Xbox's MAC address is to use a
network sniffer, for example Ethereal which is free (see
http://www.ethereal.com). To generate traffic for sniffing, make sure your
Xbox is on the "Looking for games" screen (see 3.0.0).
3.2.2.2 Remember to click "Apply" button to save your changes.
When you hit "Apply" the bridge will store the provided MAC address in
persistent storage, in a sense marrying the bridge to the specific Xbox. If
you want to move Xboxes around, you'll have to manually reconfigure the
bridge to match its Xbox.
4. Repeat step 4 for all WET54G bridge / Xbox pairs you are deploying.
5. Play System Link Games!
Xbox Live:
If your wireless network is connected to the Internet (for example through a
Linksys WAP54G Access Point/Router), you should be able to access Xbox Live.
This is working well for me.
Why cloning MAC address works:
So why do we have to do this anyway? To find out I installed and ran
Ethereal, the free network protocol analyzer for Unix and Windows (see
http://www.ethereal.com for more information). The problem became apparent
after comparing protocol captures with and without MAC address cloning. For
broadcast packets, the bridge replaces the source Xbox MAC address with its
MAC address. In effect the bridge is re-broadcasting packets under its own
MAC address. I don't understand why the WET54G would do this or if a bridge
is even allowed to change packets in this way. But this MAC address
substitution was enough to prevent establishment of a connection (while
allowing the game to be seen).
MAC Address Cloning is an effective workaround because once the bridge is
using the same address as the Xbox, the Address replacing re-broadcast has
no effect (as both addresses are the same).
I hope this helps,
Jim Harkins
Joseph J
I doubt you would have ever guessed someone would be trying to do the same thing almost 20 years later. Still very useful information! I'm hoping to get my two OG Xbox systems up and running soon.
Thanks,
Joe