Netgear EX2700 User Manual

N300 WiF Range Extender

Model EX2700
User Manual

June 2018

202-11395-04

350 East Plumeria Drive

San Jose, CA 95134

USA

N300 WiF Range Extender

Support

Thank you for purchasing this NETGEAR product. You can visit www.netgear.com/support to register your product, get help,
access the latest downloads and user manuals, and join our community. We recommend that you use only official NETGEAR
support resources.

Conformity

For the current EU Declaration of Conformity, visit http://kb.netgear.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/11621.

Compliance

For regulatory compliance information, visit http://www.netgear.com/about/regulatory.

See the regulatory compliance document before connecting the power supply.

Trademarks

© NETGEAR, Inc., NETGEAR and the NETGEAR Logo are trademarks of NETGEAR, Inc. Any non-NETGEAR trademarks are
used for reference purposes only.

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Table of Contents

Chapter 1 Overview

Meet Your Extender . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Front Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

When to Use Your Extender. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

How the Extender Works. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Chapter 2 Get Started

Use the Extender. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Place the Extender and Apply Power. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Connect to an Existing WiFi Network . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Connect an Ethernet-Enabled Device . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Log In to the Extender After Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Run Smart Setup Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Chapter 3 Extender Network Settings

View Connected Devices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

View WiFi Settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Change the WiFi Network Name. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Turn Off the SSID Broadcast to Create a Hidden Network . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Disable or Enable the WiFi Radio. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Change the WiFi Speed. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Customize the Extender’s WiFi Coverage Area. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Use WPS to Add a Computer to the Extender’s WiFi Network. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Use WPS With the Push Button Method . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Use WPS With the PIN Method. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Deny Access to a Computer or WiFi Device . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Set Up an Access Schedule. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Set Up the Extender to Use a Static IP Address . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Use the Extender With MAC Filtering or Access Control. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Chapter 4 Maintain and Monitor the Extender

Change the Extender User Name and Password. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

Turn Password Protection Off and On . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Recover a Forgotten User Name or Password. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Automatically Adjust for Daylight Saving Time. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Manually Set the Extender Clock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Back Up and Manage the Extender Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

Back Up the Configuration Settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

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N300 WiF Range Extender

Restore the Configuration Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

Return the Extender to Its Factory Default Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

Update the Firmware . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

Restart the Extender Remotely . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Chapter 5 FAQs and Troubleshooting

FAQs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

Cannot Connect to the Extender . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Cannot Join a WiFi Network and Receive an Error Message. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Appendix A Supplemental Information

Factory Default Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

Technical Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

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1. Overview

The WiFi Range Extender boosts your existing network range and speed.

This chapter covers the following topics:

• Meet Your Extender

• When to Use Your Extender

• How the Extender Works

Note: For more information about the topics covered in this manual, visit the

support website at support.netgear.com.

Note: Firmware updates with new features and bug fixes are made

available from time to time on
products can regularly check the site and download new firmware, or
you can check for and download new firmware manually.

downloadcenter.netgear.com. Some

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N300 WiF Range Extender

Meet Your Extender

Before you install your extender, familiarize yourself with its LEDs, buttons, and port.

Front Panel

Router
Link
LED

Power LED
WPS LED

Power On/Off
button

WPS button

Factory Reset
button

Figure 1. Front panel

The following table describes the LEDs.

Device
Link
LED

Ethernet port

Table 1. Front panel LEDs

LED Description

This LED indicates the connection between the extender and the router or

Router Link

Device Link

access point:

• Solid green. Best connection.

• Solid amber. Good connection.

• Solid red. Poor connection.

• Off. No connection.

This LED indicates the connection between the extender and a computer or WiFi
device:

• Solid green. Best connection.

• Solid amber. Good connection.

• Solid red. Poor connection.

• Off. No connection.

Overview

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N300 WiF Range Extender

Table 1. Front panel LEDs (continued)

LED Description

Power • Solid amber. The extender is booting.

• Solid green. The

• Off. The

extender is powered off.

extender is powered on.

WPS

• Solid green. WiFi security is enabled (WPA or WPA2).

• Blinking green. A

• Off. WiFi security is not enabled.

WPS connection is being established.

When to Use Your Extender

We recommend that you connect through the extender network only when the WiFi device is
in a “dead zone” where connection from the existing network is poor or nonexistent. Data
traffic routed through the extender is inherently slower than traffic routed directly from the
network.

How the Extender Works

The extender works like a bridge between a WiFi router (or a WiFi access point) and a WiFi
device outside the range of the WiFi router. The extender performs two main jobs:

• The extender connects to a working WiFi network.

When the extender connects over WiFi to an existing network, it functions as a network
client, similar to how a WiFi device connects to a network.

• The extender acts as an access point for WiFi devices.

The extender broadcasts its own WiFi network that WiFi devices can join. In its role as an
access point, the extender performs tasks that WiFi routers do, such as broadcasting its
network name (SSID).

The extender must do each of these jobs so that both ends of the bridge are in place.

WiFi Range Extender
Boosts the range of
your existing WiFi
and creates a
stronger signal in
hard-to-reach areas.

Figure 2. Range extender in a home

Overview

7

Existing WiFi
Sometimes your
router does not
provide the WiFi
coverage that you

need.

2. Get Started

This chapter covers the following topics:

• Use the Extender

• Log In to the Extender After Installation

• Run Smart Setup Installation

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N300 WiF Range Extender

Use the Extender

The extender repeats the signals from an existing WiFi router or access point. Place the
extender, apply power, and connect it to your WiFi network.

Place the Extender and Apply Power

 To place the extender and apply power:

1. Place your extender in the same room as your WiFi router.

Proximity to the WiFi router is required only during the initial setup process.

2. Plug the extender into an electrical outlet.

3. Wait for the Power LED to light amber and then turn green.

If the Power LED does not light, press the Power On/Off button on the side of the
extender.

Connect to an Existing WiFi Network

To extend the range of your WiFi network, you must connect the extender to your existing
WiFi network. You can do this in one of two ways:

• Connect with WPS. For more information, see Connect With WPS on page 9.

• Connect with web browser setup. For more information, see Connect With Web

Browser Setup on page 10.

Connect With WPS

Wi-Fi Protected Setup (WPS) lets you join a secure WiFi network without typing the network
name and password.

Note: WPS does not support WEP network security. If you are using WEP

security, follow the instructions in
on page 10.

 To use WPS to connect the extender to your WiFi router:

1. Press the WPS button on the side panel of the extender.

Connect With Web Browser Setup

The WPS LED blinks.

2. Within two minutes, press the WPS button on your router or access point.

The WPS LED on the extender lights solid green, the Router Link LED lights, and the
extender connects to your existing WiFi network.

Get Started

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N300 WiF Range Extender

If the Router Link LED does not light, try again. If it still does not light, see Connect With

Web Browser Setup on page 10.

3. Find the new extender network name on your computer or WiFi device.

The extender creates two new extended WiFi networks. The extender’s new WiFi
network name is based on your existing WiFi network name, with _EXT at the end of the
name.

For example:

• Existing WiFi network name. MyNetworkName

• New extended network name. MyNetworkName_EXT

4. Connect your computer or WiFi devices to the new extended WiFi network.

Use the same WiFi password that you use for your WiFi router.

5. Unplug the extender and move it to a new location closer to the area with a poor WiFi signal.

The location that you choose must be within the range of your existing WiFi router
network.

6. Plug the extender into an electrical outlet.

7. Wait for the Power LED to light amber and then turn green.

If the Power LED does not light, press the Power On/Off button on the side of the
extender.

8. Use the Router Link LED on the front panel to help you choose a spot where the

extender-to-router connection is optimal.

Connect With Web Browser Setup

You can use a web browser to log in to the extender and set up its WiFi connection to your
existing WiFi router.

 To use a web browser to connect the extender to your WiFi router:

1. Use a WiFi network manager on a computer or WiFi device to find and connect to the

extender WiFi network NETGEAR_EXT.

After the connection with the computer or WiFi device is established, the Device Link LED
lights.

2. Launch web browser.

3. Enter www.mywifiext.net in the address field of the browser.

The New Extender Setup page displays.

Get Started

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N300 WiF Range Extender

4. Click the NEW EXTENDER SETUP button.

The first time that you log in to the extender, the Create Account page displays. If the
Create Account page does not display, visit www.mywifiext.net.

5. Complete the fields and click the NEXT button.

6. Select a WiFi network to extend and click the NEXT button.

7. In the Password (Network Key) field, type the existing WiFi network password (also called

passphrase or security key) and click the NEXT button.

8. Set the network name (SSID) and password for your new extender WiFi network and click

the NEXT button.

Wait for the page to display a list of available extended WiFi networks, which might take
up to one minute.

9. Connect the computer or WiFi device to the new extended WiFi network using the extender

SSID and password that you created in Step 8.

Note: To connect additional devices, repeat Step 9.

10. Make sure that your computer or WiFi device is connected before you click the Continue

button.

11. Click the Continue button.

Get Started

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N300 WiF Range Extender

A message displays confirming that the extender is connected and ready.

12. Click the Next button.

The registration page displays.

13. Complete the registration fields and click the Finish button to complete the setup.

If you do not want to register your extender, click the Skip Registration link. Note that
you must register your extender before you can use NETGEAR telephone support.

The Status page displays.

14. Unplug the extender and move it to a new location that is about halfway between your router

and the area with a poor router WiFi signal.

The location that you choose must be within the range of your existing WiFi router
network.

15. Plug the extender into an electrical outlet and wait for the Power LED to light green.

If the Power LED does not light, press the Power On/Off button.

16. Use the Router Link LED to help you choose a spot where the extender-to-router connection

is optimal.

17. If the Router Link LED doesn’t light amber or green, plug the extender into an outlet closer

to the router and try again.

Keep moving the extender to outlets closer to the router until the Router Link LED lights
amber or green.

18. Reconnect your computer or WiFi device to the new extended WiFi network.

19. T

est the extended WiFi range by moving your computer or WiFi device to the area with a

poor router WiFi signal:

a. Leave your computer or WiFi device in the area with a poor router WiFi signal and

return to the extender

.

b. Check the Device Link LED on the extender:

• If the Device Link LED is solid green or amber

, your extended WiFi network
reaches the area with a poor router WiFi signal and your network setup is
complete.

• If the Device Link LED is red, your extended WiFi network does not reach the area

with a poor router WiFi signal.

You must move the computer or WiFi device closer to the extender until the
Device Link LED turns solid green or amber

Get Started

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N300 WiF Range Extender

Connect an Ethernet-Enabled Device

After the extender is connected to your existing WiFi network, you can connect a wired
device to the extender using an Ethernet cable. The device can then access your existing
network through the extender’s WiFi connection.

Extender

WiFi router

Figure 3. You can connect a device to the extender’s Ethernet port

Log In to the Extender After Installation

After installation, you can log in to the extender to view or change the extender’s settings.

 To log in to the extender:

1. Use a WiFi network manager on a computer or WiFi device to find and connect to the

new extended WiFi network.

After the connection with the computer or WiFi device is established, the Device Link LED
lights solid green.

2. Launch a web browser

3. Enter www

A login window opens.

4. Enter your email address and password and click the LOG IN button.

The Status page displays.

.mywifiext.net in the address field of the browser.

.

Get Started

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