“Wi-Fi: No hardware installed”. even after replacing WiFi cable and Airport/WiFi cable

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Level 1

12 points

“Wi-Fi: No hardware installed”. even after replacing WiFi cable and Airport/WiFi cable

The WiFi on my MacBook Pro Unibody Mid 2012 15'' stopped working a few weeks ago and shows "Wi-Fi: no hardware installed".

Now, here is the problem.

When the WiFi stopped working a few weeks ago, the bluetooth also stopped working. So both the WiFi and bluetooth did not work. Then, I ordered a replacement WiFi cable because I thought that the issue could come from there, and then I followed the steps here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tg5gNop2Cos&ab_channel=GRIBSOFT to replace the old WiFi cable. Surprisingly, the Bluetooth started working again, but the WiFi still shows "Wi-Fi: no hardware installed". I then ordered a second WiFi cable from a different seller, and again replaced the cable. But the outcome is still the same, the bluetooth works but the WiFi not.

Then, I ordered a new WiFi/Airport/Bluetooth card, and it came this morning. One hour ago, I replaced the card, but the PROBLEM IS STILL THE SAME. Bluetooth works, but WiFi shows "Wi-FI: No hardware installed"

The weird thing is that the bluetooth works with everything except the original WiFi cable. So it works with the new WiFi cable and both the new and old WiFi/Airport/Bluetooth card. It only doesn't work with the original WiFi cable. On the other hand, the WiFi does not work at all with any cable/card and always shows "Wi-Fi: No hardware installed"

I don't see what else it could possibly be. If I replaced both the WiFi cable and the WiFi/Airport/Bluetooth card, and the bluetooth works but not the WiFi, what else could the problem be ?

MacBook Pro 15″

Posted on Apr 8, 2023 7:45 AM

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Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

HWTech

Level 9

68,444 points

Apr 8, 2023 7:49 PM in response to Switzerlake

Well, you have replaced the WiFi card and cable, there is nothing left in the chain except for the Logic Board. Of course this all assumes the replacement WiFi card and cable are good. The few times I've had hardware issues with WiFi which were not related to liquid damage, the WiFi Card was the problem, but even this is rare in my personal experience.

For you to have a similar issue again a few years later is also very odd.

It is Ok to use some compressed air if you want.

I personally would examine the visible area of the Logic Board especially around the cable connector and the connector itself looking for liquid residue and corrosion. I would also check the the connectors of the original cable & card. Contacts should be shiny gold color, if they are dark or discolored it indicates a problem. You will need to use a magnifier and good strong lighting to look for small bits of corrosion. It can be hard for most people to detect corrosion. I've had to train techs to recognize corrosion on components. It only takes a small drop of liquid at the right place to cause a problem. It is very easy for a bit of liquid to hit something there since it is near the vents so even if liquid was not spilled directly on the laptop, anything could have splattered on a table and a drop entered through the vent. Keep in mind someone could have spilled something nearby without you ever knowing.

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Answer 2

HWTech

Level 9

68,444 points

Apr 8, 2023 11:45 AM in response to Switzerlake

Assuming a good WiFi Card & Cable, the only thing left is the Logic Board. The antenna cables have no bearing on seeing the physical hardware in the System Profiler.

FYI, while supporting our organization's thousands of Macs, I have never had to replace the cable in that model, and only very rarely (if at all) to replace the WiFi Card under normal circumstances. Usually when there is a failure like this I would be looking for possible liquid damage before performing any replacements.

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Answer 3

Switzerlake Author

Level 1

12 points

Apr 8, 2023 11:28 AM in response to Switzerlake

I browsed through similar posts on this website. Someone here WiFi says no hardware installed - Apple Community said to check if the WiFi hardware is visible under System Information -> Network -> WiFi

When I check it on my computer, it is not displayer. Only the software part is shown. So it definitely seems to be a hardware issue if the computer does not even detect the WiFi card

The strange thing is that Bluetooth works flawlessly, and as far as I know the WiFi card is also responsible for Bluetooth

Anyone has any idea what the problem could be ?

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Answer 4

Allan Jones

Level 9

77,762 points

Apr 8, 2023 9:04 AM in response to Switzerlake

Please excuse me if this seems a trivial question, but it is quite pertinent: Did you disconnect the battery before servicing the computer?

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Answer 5

Switzerlake Author

Level 1

12 points

Apr 8, 2023 1:17 PM in response to HWTech

So the issue could come from the logic board ? This seems so strange. I don’t remember having ever spilled any kind of liquid on the computer, the worst that could have got in contact is probably finger fat or dust

In September 2021 (so more than a year ago), I had to replace the keyboard because some keys became unresponsive. So I opened the computer and had to remove and put back several components to gain access to the keyboard. Since then, it has been working fine until three weeks ago

In summer 2018, I already had to replace the WiFi cable. I had the same problem back then, but after replacing the cable, it worked fine again

Is there any risk to spray some compressed air on the connector of the logic board that connects to the WiFi cable ? Maybe there is some dust or finger fat that prevents some pins from working properly ?

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