Cannot connect via hotel wifi

Question

Level 2

165 points

Cannot connect via hotel wifi

Hi.

I'm trying to use hotel-based wifi, which requires a network password. According to one other thread in this discussion group, that would appear to be impossible with AppleTV because it has no browser.

But it shouldn't require a browser -- I should be able to manually enter a network password whether ATV is aware one is needed or not. Correct?

I tried creating an "other" network setup, but it didn't want to connect at all. At least with the automatic configuration it acquired a DHCP address.

Anyone else get this sort of connection to work?

Thanks,
ALF

iMac 27" Core i5 2.8Ghz, Mac OS X (10.6.5)

Posted on Nov 19, 2010 12:02 AM

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Answer 1

Nov 19, 2010 5:05 AM in response to Alfarmer

Many public wifi networks require you to log in through a special log in screen, which does require a browser.

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Answer 2

Nov 19, 2010 7:44 AM in response to Alfarmer

do you have a computer with you at the hotel?
What logon hoops do you have to go though on the computer? If any of them require browser / purchase of a temporary pass then none of this is going to be possible form the ATV2.

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Answer 3

Ziatron

Level 5

4,186 points

Nov 19, 2010 10:00 AM in response to Alfarmer

Anyone else get this sort of connection to work?

I never could, I now just bring a small DVD player. Zero Hassles.

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Answer 4

Alfarmer Author

Level 2

165 points

Nov 24, 2010 1:00 AM in response to Des Collins

Bummer. Yes it's web form authentication.

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Answer 5

newagemac

Level 2

245 points

Nov 24, 2010 8:19 AM in response to Alfarmer

There is a way to resolve this issue but it requires a portable router like an Airport Express. What you do is connect the Airport Express to the hotel's internet and let it extend it to your Apple TV and a computer or mobile device. Then authenticate with your computer or mobile device. That will give your Apple TV access to the internet as well.

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Answer 6

SWL

Level 1

110 points

Dec 11, 2010 10:12 AM in response to Alfarmer

Simply connect to the hotel's wifi network through your laptop. Connect the apple tv to laptop via Ethernet cable, and enable connection sharing on the ethnet port in network preferences on the laptop. Voila.

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Answer 7

Dec 11, 2010 11:28 AM in response to Alfarmer

IF you have difficulty connecting you Mac laptop, iPad, iPod Touch, or iPhone it is a protocal problem...... i have had it and here's the fix: just cal the admin/help (Lodgenet is the most common one I encounter) and give them the mac # of the devioce and they will manually enter your device and .... viola"

Hope this helps.

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Answer 8

Dec 7, 2012 12:23 AM in response to Alfarmer

The answer is YES, YOU CAN CONNECT YOUR APPLE TV TO HOTEL WI-FI!

There are two main things you have to know:

1. What is the MAC address of the Apple TV that you own. Though pronounced the same as Mac, it refers to an industry standard of identinfying a specific device. It stands for Media Access Control.

2. Who is the provider that the hotel is using.

TO FIND THE MAC ADDRESS:

This can be done before you pack your Apple TV and leave your house.

1. Connect your Apple TV to the TV... turn both on... blah blah blah... Apple TV is displayed on the TV

2. Go to Settings > General > About

3. The MAC address is labeled as "Wi-Fi Address" in this situation (SEE PHOTO BELOW). It will be a set of 6 pairs of alphanumeric characters, each pair separated by a colon. For example... 00:11:22:cc:bb:aa (they'll look more random than this, but I didn't want to take a chance on posting someone's real MAC address)

4. Write down that address. This is NOT CASE SENSITIVE.

THE HOTEL'S SERVICE PROVIDER

The service provider's information will typicaly be right in the hotel room because there is no reason for hotel staff to have to troubleshoot this stuff for us.

1. Call the support number and follow their prompts to get to a support agent.

2. Say, "Hello! I have an Apple TV, and I understand I can connect to your service by registering the MAC address with your service."

3. They will ask you several questions to verify that you are staying at one of the hotels they service.

4. Follow their instructions for registering the MAC address

5. On your Apple TV, go to Settings > General > Network > Wi-Fi, and select the hotel's Wi-Fi.

6. Voila! CONNECTED and Ready to Go!!!

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Answer 9

elf55

Level 1

28 points

Jan 4, 2013 6:20 PM in response to Alfarmer

What I do in this case is to spoof the mac address on my AppleTV using my laptop. Write down the WiFi MAC address of your AppleTV, then open terminal on the Mac and type:

Airport -z

sudo ifconfig en1 ether 00.00.00.00.00.00

where you would substitute your AppleTV MAC address for the 00.00.00.00.00.00

Then connect the laptop to the hotel WiFi network and use your browser to sign in.

Turn off WiFi on the laptop and turn on the AppleTV.

The apple TV should connect to WiFi now, assuming that the hotel doesn't require a new browser sign in every time you connect.

On your Mac, set the mac address back to your original MAC address (or just reboot).

Done.

Does anyone know how to do this same method using an iPhone or iPad?

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Answer 10

Ffelrod

Level 1

0 points

Jan 14, 2013 8:04 PM in response to elf55

So, I have an iPad mini and considering buying an Apple TV to take on the road when I travel. I'm a bit confused by the above posts. Can I use the iPad to sign in to the hotel network (or a friend's security enabled network) and then use Air Play to stream/game or mirror the iPad?

Are there issues with using the Apple TV with a security enabled network? Everyone I know uses a security enabled network.

Maybe this isn't going to fit my needs?

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Answer 11

Ffelrod

Level 1

0 points

Jan 14, 2013 8:09 PM in response to Ffelrod

Is the iPad to HDMI connector a better option? It would require it to be wired, but I think it would work. (But what a pain!)

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Answer 12

Jan 8, 2014 8:05 AM in response to elf55

This worked for me however the modifications to the command noted below are required on Mac OS X Mavericks, notably the en1 should be en0 on OS X 10.9. This was a very easy and wonderful trick that I would otherwise be unable to use my Apple TV on a network that uses a web browser to connect to the network. Please note if the wifi times out after a period of time you'll have to do this every time. Fortunately my network kept me logged in.

To spoof the mac address on my AppleTV using my laptop - Write down the WiFi MAC address of your AppleTV, then open terminal on the Mac and type:

Airport -z

sudo ifconfig en0 ether 00.00.00.00.00.00

where you would substitute your AppleTV MAC address for the 00.00.00.00.00.00

Then connect the laptop to the hotel WiFi network and use your browser to sign in.

Turn off WiFi on the laptop and turn on the AppleTV.

The apple TV should connect to WiFi now, assuming that the hotel doesn't require a new browser sign in every time you connect.

On your Mac, set the mac address back to your original MAC address (or just reboot).

Done.

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Answer 13

Tsuma

Level 1

4 points

Jan 15, 2014 12:36 PM in response to Bryan Brindeiro

In Mountain Lion and Mavericks, you have to create a symbolic link to the airport library first. From this post,

First create a symbolic link to the library

sudo ln -s /System/Library/PrivateFrameworks/Apple80211.framework/Versions/Current/Resourc es/airport /usr/sbin/airport

Then you can use the

sudo airport -z

command to dissassociate from any connected network.

Finally,

sudo ifconfig en0 ether aa.bb.cc.dd.ee.ff

replacing the aa:bb:... with your ATV MAC address.

To check if it worked, use

ifconfig en0 | grep ether

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