I have the classic Linksys WRT54G router. At the back is a label that claims it's MAC address is XX-XX-XX-XX-XX-AA. However, when I go into the router's status page via http, it claims the MAC address is XX-XX-XX-XX-XX-AB. I am trying to install a range extender, and it recognises my router's MAC address (BSSID) as XX-XX-XX-XX-XX-AC. What does the last two digits of the MAC address represent, and why is it inconsistent?
My TP-LINK TL-WA730RE range extender seems to be unable to connect to my router when my SSID is hidden. Without doing anything to the range extender, if I change my Linksys's SSID to hidden, the range extender disconnects. When I broadcast the SSID again, it reconnects. What could I possibly be doing wrong in the settings of the range extender for it to fail to connect when the SSID is not broadcast?
Hope someone can help me with the above questions, which might or might not be related. If my understanding is correct, the SSID is for human use only, and the machine uses the BSSID only. So why does it matter if the SSID is hidden or not?