Router and Cable Modem Trouble

[McWhite]

Hello all,
I currently have prolog as an isp for my cable modem. They provided me with a motorola surfboard SB5100. The problem is that it will only allow two computers to connect to the internet via my crappy hub and I need to be able to connect three. I have a linksys befsr41 router which works well with my dsl modem at home, but I can't get it to work with the cable modem. At home, I have to dial to connect the dsl, but the cable is "always on" and I get my ip from the modem itself. Is there any way I can use the router to get an ip from the modem, then share the internet access with all the computers connected to it?
Thanks,
McWhite

 

[Syndil]

Yes, absolutely you can. However it sounds like you have hit the Max CPE limit for your cable modem. "Max CPE (consumer premisis equipment) limit" is just the terminology used for describing how many devices the cable modem is allowed to connect to. The way it works is that the cable modem will remember the unique 12 digit MAC address of whatever hardware you attach to it. With a Max CPE limit of 2, the first 2 devices the modem detects become the only 2 devices that will work with that modem, until the modem's CPE list is reset by the ISP. And whereas a hub will simply pass through the MAC addresses of every device attached to it, a router has its own unique MAC, and will appear to the cable modem as a single device, regardless of how many PC's are connected to the router. I'm guessing you already have 2 computers working via the hub attached to the modem, so those 2 PC's MAC addresses are on the modem's CPE list, with no room for more. You need to disconnect everything from the modem, call the ISP, and have them reset the CPE list. Then you can attach your router and once it is set up properly it should work fine.

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