MacBook Air (M1) Wi-Fi no internet after macOS 26.3

ikwordhierzonietgoedvan wrote:

Prior to 26.3 upgrade on my Macbook Air (M1 chip) I had no problem with WIFI / connectivity to the Internet. After the upgrade to 26.3 my WIFI says it is connected, however Safari, Edge, Google Chrome and Firefox reports back that I'm not connected to the internet.

My wife is successfully browsing the internet on her Macbook Air (M3 chip) using the same wifi as I have without any problems. Note that she is running MacOS 26.2.

What have I done:

1) Exercised "Forget this Network", reboot and connected to same WIFI (no change)

2) Exercised "Forget this Network", removed various network configuration files from /Library/Preferences/SystemConfiguration, emptied wastebasket, reboot and connected to same WIFI (no change)

3) Compared network settings between 26.3 system and 26.2 system and aligned the 26.3 system with the 26.2 system, exercised forget this Network", removed various network configuration files from /Library/Preferences/SystemConfiguration, emptied wastebasket, reboot and connected to same WIFI (no change)

4) Booted into MacOS recovery and performed an installation of 26.3 and subsequently connected to same WIFI (no change)

5) Booted into MacOS recovery and from there selected "Web Browser" after which I was able to browse the internet. ???

6) Booted into normal mode (no change)

7) Ran Wireless Diagnostics which provided "DNS Resolution Failure" message

8) Checked once more network settings between 26.3 system and 26.2 system (especially the DNS values) and did not found any difference.

Please advice/help for next steps as indications are that issue is not with ISP, nor WIFI infrastructure but more with the 26.3 MacBook Air.

Part 1 of 2

To avoid a game of 20 questions   

Download the Application Etrecheck  ( External Link ) directly from the Developer.

You can download this application on your wife's computer

The Transfer to application to your computer

The run the application and post the report

This is a Diagnostic Tool that makes no changes to the computer.

It makes a coherent and readable inventory of both the Hardware and Software used on the computer 

The application is free or paid for added features. 

The Report will Not Reveal Any Personal Information. 

Post back the Full Report - Share Report >> Copy , then  paste  >>>> using the Additional Text Icon  <<<<

Part 2 of 2



Useless Applications / Services 

There are 4 Categories of Third Party Software / Services that are not needed 

Get rid of them via the Developers Instruction 

In no special order 

1 - Third Party 2 Way Firewalls 

like Lulu and Little Snitch 

2 - Commercial VPNs 

They may not be what one believes they are doing for the computer and what they actually are doing behind the scenes and unbeknownst to the user ( you ) 

They may also reduce your Internet Speeds by upwards of 30% 

https://gist.github.com/joepie91/5a9909939e6ce7d09e29

VPN: What you need to know - Apple Community

3 - Third Party Security Software 

There are no known Windows-like Viruses in the wild that self replicate and affect macOS, because of the underling UNIX  Foundation and Permission Limitation. 

The Operating System resides in a Sealed and Read Only Volume that cannot be opened by the User nor by Third Party Applications.

The Only thing this Antivirus software is protecting is the Bank Account of the Developers and for zero return to the User aside from the problems this software creates.

Security. Built right in

Mac app security enhancements

The Built in Security  is all that is required to protect the computer.

Protecting against malware in macOS

4 - Third Party Disk Cleaners / Optimizer 

Any Third Party Applications that will interfere with the normal operation of the OS,  is an invitation for disaster. 

Certain Applications maybe available on the Apple Apps Store - this only means the Developer is prepared to pay Apple a percentage on each sale. 

What the Application may do to the computer is up to the User to check this out before purchase

To put the Third Party Disk Cleaner / Optimizer in context and the damages it may have or has already done.

This type of applications can or will Muck Up your User Account ( Home Folder ) of this machine.

It does not touch the Operating System itself unless you consider your User Account ( Home Folder ) as part of the Operating System.

The Operating System may be  hosed

I've noticed this or a similar issue as well. Typically it arises when the system is put to sleep and moves to a different network or SSID (work->home). Rebooting certainly helps but I don't think that's really the 'fix'. There seems to be a bug here.

What I've observed is that the Mac does connect to the new network. It gets its new networking posture from DHCP as can be seen in the System Settings -> Network -> <Interface> -> Details.

Pinging IP addresses works. But DNS resolution doesn't properly function when using the macOS resolution tooling (/usr/bin/dscacheutil). Using the ISC tools such as traditional ('host', 'nslookup', 'dig') DOES work but they use their own internal resolution routines which the higher macOS stack does not use. The system as a whole and GUI apps behave as if there's "no internet connection'. Bringing the interface down and back up doesn't change or correct anything.

I'm not running any network filters like LittleSnitch or LuLu. I can't put the blame there on Network Extensions and packet filters. I'll try a 'dscacheutil -flushcache' on the next occurrence to see if that resets anything.

But we shouldn't have to be doing this nor fully rebooting. That's not a fix.

I've tracked my issue to Private Relay being enabled and it becoming active when switching to a "compatible" network from a prior incompatible one.

Good worked 👍 there @ ikwordhierzonietgoedvan on trading down the culprit " LittleSnitch "

Rule # 1 - always check Third Party Softwares before doing any updates or upgrades.

This can minimize the amount of time and effort trouble shooting after the fact.

As for the Etrecheck application

Should you want or need a second pair of eyes to understand the details

By all means, post back the full report and we can have a look at it