Q: Dropping Wi FI Signal

I installed the 10.6.3 update yesterday. Before then, I hadn't had any dropping out problems with 10.6, unlike my husband's Mac Mini which dropped out constantly for weeks after installing the last update, then suddenly cured itself! (he thinks Apple snuck in a 'cure' without telling anyone!).

This morning I kept getting a message when I looked in Networks when the wifi wouldn't connect 'Airport has a self assigned IP address and may not connect to the Internet' or 'Airport is turned on but not connected to a network'. I continually tried to connect and reinserted the password (which I know is correct) dozens of times - it either timed out (after only a few seconds) or said password was incorrect. For a while I could see other computers on the network (which are all working perfectly) but no internet/email/Skype. I tried the diagnostics and new setup several times but always failed.

I've spent most of the day reading various posts (on another computer) and have tried the following things which were recommended (each thing tried several times):
• Repaired disk permissions in Disk Utility (there were thousands of lines referring to airport errors so I thought that might have cured it)
• Renewed DHCP license in network prefs
• Created new location for Airport in Network prefs
• Manually inserted IP address
• Changed the order of the services to make sure airport was at the top of the list
• Opened Network Utility and... didn't have a clue what to do with it when I got there
• Removed items from SystemConfiguration folder and restarted (Macintosh HD/Library/Preferences/SystemConfiguration)
• Got today's latest security update
• I've even downloaded and installed 10.6.3 v1.1 Update (Combo) as jpdemers has advised (not sure if this was the same as the 10.6.3 I got yesterday but was worth a try and it has allowed me to install so maybe it wasn't the same).
....and it STILL doesn't work! It's not just dropping out, it's not coming on at all.

Any more ideas please? I'm desperate to get this sorted. Thanks

Thanks jpdemers! I was leery about doing this because, well, I was getting superstitious after reading a few horror stories. But that's what backups are for, right? I repaired permissions several days ago and installed the combo successfully this morning as directed.

I'm glad I did! It only dropped the connection a few times in the hours since updating. Definite improvement--maybe even acceptable, if it lasts.

To recap my wifi problems for anyone interested: my connection drops (was dropping) sometimes every 60 seconds, sometimes every 10 minutes. Turning airport off and back on reconnects me. WEP/no security = no dropping problem. It never dropped the connection when Skypeing or downloading something. I tried every settings permutation on this computer and router when under 10.6.2, will do again for 10.6.3 and we'll see how that goes. PCs/iphones/Leopard macs have no problems with this router.

I think I must have a different problem (see my post just above Camomille's). I can't get it to connect at all - just keeps telling me my password is wrong. Two other Macs in the same room are having no problems connecting. PS forgot to put in my list above '• turning airport off then on again!'.

I've confirmed that my macbook now has the "hanging" internet issue as well as the dropped wifi. When Safari stops responding I can't ping the gateway at all.

Do you mean your internet gateway if it's a system other than your Wi-Fi access point, or the Wi-Fi gateway?

When this occurs, do you retain your IP address or has it turned into a self-assigned address (169.254.x.x) because a DHCP renew failed?

My AP is my router, so it's both.

I haven't tested other than pinging the gateway, but I'm pretty sure it retains the IP address. The airport icon shows still connected.

mike

Hi! My Internet connection is currently doing fine, on my iMac but previously it was a pain (after some update in late March), and I was using my PowerBook to have access to Internet. I bought an external disk and copied my personal files to it. Then, let me list you what I have done.

1. Erased the hard-disk and fresh installed 10.6.1 from the original DVDs that shipped with my iMax.

2. Installed iLife09 and Xcode, also from the original DVDs.

3. Installed 10.6.3v1.1 COMBO from the file I had previously downloaded (with my PowerBook) from Apple's support site.

NOW FROM THE SYSTEM UPDATE UTILITY, I INSTALLED EACH ITEM ONE-BY-ONE AND CHECKED HOW THE INTERNET CONNECTION WAS DOING:

4. Installed one-by-one every iLife update.

5. Installed Java 6 update.

6. Installed the iTunes update.

I left the following three updates to the end, because they were the ones that posed higher risk of messing my TCP stack...

7. Installed the Remote Client update.

8. Installed the AirPort Base Station update.

Up until here, the Internet access was doing fine...

9. Finally, I installed the Safari update. After this, it looked like my Internet connection became unstable, but fortunately it was just a fright.

I have a Linksys WRT160Nv2, with WAP personal, G-mode only, on channel 13, as I wanted to keep the settings as simpler as possible (I also have two computers that do G-only).

I have just seen videos in youtube, listen to musics in myspace, checked facebook, and updated Xcode (more than 500 MB download from System Update) flawlessly.

Hope this helps some of you!

Cheers!

I just don't get it... It worked flawlessly for *over a week!* Not a hiccup! Today, can't connect at all. Sometimes it'll connect for a few minutes then (while full bars still showing) pages just stop loading...
This is very frustrating...

RodBauer wrote:
I just don't get it... It worked flawlessly for *over a week!* Not a hiccup! Today, can't connect at all. Sometimes it'll connect for a few minutes then (while full bars still showing) pages just stop loading...
This is very frustrating...

Definitely sounds like interference… some other device was shut off or someone else's router was off or set to another channel for a brief period of time.

Or maybe somebody connected, or attempted to connect, another computer to your router? A very large proportion of the people with this problem have two or more computers on their wireless network. At least one poster noted that things went to **** when a second Mac was turned on. Pure speculation here, but I'm wondering if something gets reset, on the Mac or on the router/access point, when a second machine comes calling.

William Kucharski wrote:

RodBauer wrote:
I just don't get it... It worked flawlessly for *over a week!* Not a hiccup! Today, can't connect at all. Sometimes it'll connect for a few minutes then (while full bars still showing) pages just stop loading...
This is very frustrating...

Definitely sounds like interference… some other device was shut off or someone else's router was off or set to another channel for a brief period of time.

Thank you. It was my thought too, however, my iPod Touch isn't affected by this, nor does my iMac. In fact, my iPod has been so reliable with my wifi it's scary.

Remember that due to differences in Wi-Fi chips, antenna placement, etc. just because one or more devices can connect it does not mean interference is not an issue.

For example, I have several devices throughout my home that can connect via Wi-Fi just fine. However, there are two places in particular where my MacBook Pro does not like the signal (it will connect but at very poor speeds) and the one Windows laptop I have will not connect sitting literally five feet away from my router, yet it will work if I take it to the other side of the house.

William Kucharski wrote:
Remember that due to differences in Wi-Fi chips, antenna placement, etc. just because one or more devices can connect it does not mean interference is not an issue.

Yes, I suspect interference is the root of this problem, or rather, a failure of the device to handle interference gracefully. There's always interference for most urban users. I suppose it could even be a matter of what the competing signals are carrying, not just their strength. Some combination of software, hardware and environment is making the connection crap out for some of us. I suspect the only way Apple can figure it out is to actually send an engineer with adequate network sniffing equipment to a few sites that are experiencing the problem.

lurker412 wrote:

William Kucharski wrote:
Remember that due to differences in Wi-Fi chips, antenna placement, etc. just because one or more devices can connect it does not mean interference is not an issue.

Yes, I suspect interference is the root of this problem, or rather, a failure of the device to handle interference gracefully. There's always interference for most urban users. I suppose it could even be a matter of what the competing signals are carrying, not just their strength. Some combination of software, hardware and environment is making the connection crap out for some of us. I suspect the only way Apple can figure it out is to actually send an engineer with adequate network sniffing equipment to a few sites that are experiencing the problem.

Yes, for sure not a given reality to 'learn to live with', we know Apple better then that.
That two devices are handling the very same environment flawlessly, means that the third one has some 'learning' to do.

The big question is 'why?'. Why is my Macbook (in my case) can't handle normal interference, (where other machines are not even bothered by it).
And why (my own ignorance) is it so hard to diagnose? (I wish System Log would tell me more).

My problems range from not logging automatically (even though it 'see' my network), asking for password when choosing my network manually (then failing to connect anyway), exclamation mark, or self IP address without internet.
Can I even tell what is the actual interference?

RodBauer wrote:
The big question is 'why?'. Why is my Macbook (in my case) can't handle normal interference, (where other machines are not even bothered by it).

Wireless design is an art, just not a science.

Why do my Macs all perform flawlessly on my Wi-Fi network but trying to keep my Acer laptop running Windows is like pulling teeth? I've given up on it and use a cord whenever I have to download the 4,321,116 Windows updates released daily.

And why (my own ignorance) is it so hard to diagnose? (I wish System Log would tell me more).

Because RF interference actually changes from minute to minute depending on propagation conditions, other devices, etc.

If a baby monitor operating on the 2.4 GHz band is carried from room to room, that creates havoc. A neighbor microwaving a muffin may create interfence for the 30 seconds it's on. And so forth.

My problems range from not logging automatically (even though it 'see' my network), asking for password when choosing my network manually (then failing to connect anyway), exclamation mark, or self IP address without internet.

Which may each be different problems, believe it or not.

Can I even tell what is the actual interference?

Not without a spectrum analyzer and someone who knows how to read the signature of various emissions on the band.