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Q: the ethernet port no longer works on my macbook pro (early 2011)

My MacBook Pro (early 2011) has an ethernet port.  It has worked well in situations were there was no wi-fi.

 

My problem is that is has stopped working and is no longer appears under 'Network' in System Preferences.  The computer simply does not see it.

 

I need my ethernet cable for speedy downloads/uploads for large files and for streaming.

 

Could it be that upgrades (to Mavericks and earlier) disabled my ethernet port?

 

I know that others have encountered a similar difficulty, but I have found no solution online.

 

I would appreciate help with this issue.

 

Thank you.

 

PS My current OS X is 10.9.5 (Mavericks) I haven't upgraded Yosemite because of negative comments about it online (it has slowed many computers among other issues).

MacBook Pro, OS X Mountain Lion

Posted on Jun 4, 2015 4:29 PM

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Q: the ethernet port no longer works on my macbook pro (early 2011)

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  • by Kappy,

    Kappy Kappy Jun 4, 2015 4:41 PM in response to Bective
    Level 10 (271,328 points)
    Desktops
    Jun 4, 2015 4:41 PM in response to Bective

    Please make a Genius Appointment and take it in for service. You can try re-installing OS X:


    Reinstalling OS X Without Erasing the Drive

     

    Boot to the Recovery HD: Restart the computer and after the chime press and hold down the COMMAND and R keys until the menu screen appears. Alternatively, restart the computer and after the chime press and hold down the OPTION key until the boot manager screen appears. Select the Recovery HD and click on the downward pointing arrow button.

     

    Reinstalling OS X Without Erasing the Drive

     

    Repair the Hard Drive and Permissions: Upon startup select Disk Utility from the main menu. Repair the Hard Drive and Permissions as follows.

     

    When the recovery menu appears select Disk Utility and press the Continue button. After Disk Utility loads select the Macintosh HD entry from the the left side list.  Click on the First Aid tab, then click on the Repair Disk button. If Disk Utility reports any errors that have been fixed, then re-run Repair Disk until no errors are reported. If no errors are reported click on the Repair Permissions button. Wait until the operation completes, then quit Disk Utility and return to the main menu.

     

    Reinstall OS X: Select Reinstall OS X and click on the Continue button.

     

    Note: You will need an active Internet connection. I suggest using Ethernet if possible because it is three times faster than wireless.

     

    Alternatively, see:

     

    Reinstall OS X Without Erasing the Drive

     

    Choose the version you have installed now:

     

    OS X Yosemite- Reinstall OS X

    OS X Mavericks- Reinstall OS X

    OS X Mountain Lion- Reinstall OS X

    OS X Lion- Reinstall Mac OS X

     

         Note: You will need an active Internet connection. I suggest using Ethernet

                     if possible because it is three times faster than wireless.

  • by Bective,

    Bective Bective Jun 4, 2015 6:39 PM in response to Kappy
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jun 4, 2015 6:39 PM in response to Kappy

    Thank you Kappy.  I'm reluctant to reinstall OS X, as I don't want to risk losing data.

     

    I'm sorry about the duplication. I'm an inexperienced visitor to this site and thought that I was posting the message to two distinct communities.

  • by lllaass,

    lllaass lllaass Jun 5, 2015 2:02 AM in response to Bective
    Level 10 (189,410 points)
    Desktops
    Jun 5, 2015 2:02 AM in response to Bective

    Does the Ethernet port appear in System Report?

    Apple icon in upper right>About this Mac>System Report>Hardware>Ethernet cards

     

    Try resetting the SMC and NVRAM/PRAM

    Intel-based Macs: Resetting the System Management Controller (SMC)

    About NVRAM and PRAM

  • by Bective,

    Bective Bective Jun 5, 2015 4:57 AM in response to Kappy
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jun 5, 2015 4:57 AM in response to Kappy

    Thank you Kappy, but I cannot do this without an ethernet port.

     

    I also fear losing data by reinstalling my OS.

  • by Bective,

    Bective Bective Jun 5, 2015 5:01 AM in response to lllaass
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jun 5, 2015 5:01 AM in response to lllaass

    Thank you Illaass.

     

    Yes, 'Ethernet cards' are included in the lefthand column of System Report under Hardware.

     

    I don't know this means for resolving my problem.  All help appreciated.

  • by lllaass,

    lllaass lllaass Jun 5, 2015 5:12 AM in response to Bective
    Level 10 (189,410 points)
    Desktops
    Jun 5, 2015 5:12 AM in response to Bective

    Did you do the resets?

    You can try downloading the Mavericks installer if it is listed in the Purchases section of the Mac App Store. Yes it will take a while. Then make a bootable USB device by using

    DiskMaker X

    Then boot from it and repair permissions and reinstall the OS. This will not erase any data or apps from the disk if not glitches. However. make sure you backup your date in case something happens

  • by Bective,

    Bective Bective Jun 5, 2015 5:22 AM in response to lllaass
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jun 5, 2015 5:22 AM in response to lllaass

    Thanks again Illaass.

     

    I don't have time right now to do a reboot.  I may have to postpone that until at least next week.

     

    I am also unfamiliar with the procedure of using a bootable USB device.

     

    I assume that I have a software problem as ethernet cards are listed in the system report.

  • by Bective,

    Bective Bective Jun 5, 2015 5:27 AM in response to lllaass
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jun 5, 2015 5:27 AM in response to lllaass

    A further question Illaass.

     

    Do you think that the problem could disappear if I simply upgraded to Yosemite?

     

    Of course, from what I have read upgrading may bring other issues.

  • by lllaass,

    lllaass lllaass Jun 5, 2015 5:37 AM in response to Bective
    Level 10 (189,410 points)
    Desktops
    Jun 5, 2015 5:37 AM in response to Bective

    I do not know if updating will resolve the problem.

    What you can try is booting to Recovery as Kappy said and see if you can get an Ethernet connection, not wifi. That will help determine if software is the problem since Recovery boots from the Recovery partition

     

    Also check your EFI Firmware version. The EFI firmware on the early 2011 MacBooks can be updated to add internet Recovery, That allows booting with a bare HD. For info see:

    Computers that can be upgraded to use OS X Internet Recovery - Apple Support