CAN connect with router, CANNOT connect without it

Here's the thing: I want to replace a Linksys BEFSR41 with a wireless WRT54G.

The user guide for the wireless router said to connect the computer directly to the modem and run the enclosed CD so it could detect settings. OK, I disconnected the old router and connected directly to the cable modem. No Internet. I emailed comcast support and they told me to power cycle the modem. I did that twice.

Anyone have any insight before I put in a call and stay on the line for a few hours? I figure it's just a simple settings thing but I'm lost. TIA

If it's a wireless router, don't you want the modem plugged into itself rather than your computer?

The setup guide for the new wireless router says to connect to the Internet with a wired connection directly to the cable modem and run the install program on the cd. Then when it detected some settings I was supposed to connect the modem to the wireless router to my PC and configure the router. I don't know if this is something all wireless routers require or not as this is my first wireless router.

But, I can't get an Internet connection with the ethernet cable connected straight from my PC to the modem. Yet I can still connect fine by going through the old wired router then to the modem.

I called my ISP support and she walked me through a bunch of stuff and she was baffled. So someone is coming out tomorrow. The tech said that she thought the modem was still seeing the MAC address of the old router for some reason and refused to give it up.

I'll let you know how it works out.

When you power cycle the modem, disconnect everything but the incoming cable at the same time. Leave it off a minimum of 30 seconds, two minutes is good. I have had to do this with a DSL modem. When I replaced my router (same as your two) on an ordinary cable modem, I had no problems, but I didn't connect my computer directly to the cable modem, I connected it through the new wireless router, loaded the stuff, and it came right up. Have you gone to the router's setup page? The stuff isn't too complicated. Also, you don't happen to have Firewire on the computer, do you?

Hi, Edwin, came over to see if I won a prize :-).

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lol... but don't talk to me about the signature It's a new project and the domain name is being so unreliable at the moment, so I can't even see the signature myself right now...

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Comcast makes it easy

Put the original router back in. go into it and write down the wan settings.

Take it out and connect comcast into the wireless router and your pc into one of the switch ports. Use iexplorer or other browser to go to the default lan ip address [it is listed in the router documentation] along with account name [admin usually] and password.

Put the copied down entries into the wan settings of the wireless router. Set the lan side to do dhcp.

Set your workstation client tcp/ip properties to use dhcp. Reboot the router. Wait a minute. Reboot your pc.

Once up go to a cmd/command window and type ipconfig. You should see a ip address in the range you set on the router.

Now see if you can browse the internet.

Had the comcast guy come out and he was baffled. Couldn't get the modem to "pull its own IP" and gave me a new modem. Worked like a charm. Thanks for all the thoughtful replies. Sorry it was for naught.