Jack Broyles Jr <enigmafan420@comcast.net> hath wroth:

>and please forgive me if this topic has been addressed, there are SO
>MANY messages here I can't tell ;)

No, you are not forgiven. You should know better. The Google Groups
search works very nicely. Start at:
<http://groups.google.com/advanced_search?hl=en>
Insert "alt.internet.wireless" into the Group box.
Insert your search key and you'll find your topic. However, for this
problem, there's very little to be found. Using just the main google
search page, and looking for "WPA rekey interval", I find several
relevent pages.

>Anyway, I have a Linksys 54G wireless router as well as a Linksys 54G
>wireless access point.

No, you don't have a "Linksys 54G". You have a model number inscribed
on the serial number tag. Kindly supply the exact model numbers and
include any hardware versions. Extra credit for looking at the status
page and supplying the firmware version.

>I am trying to change my security from WEP to WPA. I am able to get
>both pieces working on WPA and they talk to each other.

However, you also seem to have left out the maker and model of the
client radios. Could I trouble to disclose what you're using for a
wireless client to communicate with your "Linksys 54G" boxes?

>However, once the "time limit" expires (currently set for 600 seconds),
>the router will no longer talk to the wireless access point.

There is no setting for "time limit". It's usually called WPA re-key
interval or something similar. It's the amount of time where the two
wireless devices exchange new encryption keys. The default is usually
3600 seconds as set by the wireless access point. 600 will work. You
can probably set it to less for testing. Some combination have
problems with the re-key interval and disconnect when it fails. If
your unspecified model router or access point has a log or status
page, you'll see the failure in the log file. The usual problem is
either a router firmware update is required, or a client WPA shim
update is required. Check your version levels and update if
necessary.

>I have a small wired network behind the wireless access point, which is
>currently acting as a repeater for my internet access (because of the
>shape of my house, I can't hook directly to the router, I am using only
>the wireless portion of the router).
>
>I have 1 PC and a network printer behind the wireless access point and
>then I have a MAC using wireless and 3 other PCs upstairs, all wireless.
>
>Once the WPA key (or whatever it is called) time expires, I can no
>longer access the internet with anything other than the MAC.

Well, then the WPA re-key works with the Mac but not with your
unspecified other client. Therefore, things are basically working. My
guess is that a firmware update on the hardware, and a software update
on the PC(?) will fix the problem.

>Hope this makes sense and thanks for any suggestions.

It doesn't. I'm a lost as to how you have things wired and where this
"repeater" is located. Again, maker and model number would be useful.
It appears that it was working with WEP, so it should work with WPA.
However, there's one configuration where WPA will not work. If you
have your unspecified pair of Linksys boxes configured for WDS
bridging, then WPA and WDS only works on a few models and firmware
combinations. Again, maker and model number would be useful.

--
Jeff Liebermann jeffl@comix.santa-cruz.ca.us
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558