Q: Mac Mini won't connect at gigabit connection speeds via ethernet port
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Jul 16, 2011 6:02 AMby mooblie,I use ordinary Cat5e patch cables (c.2m long) to a Netgear Gigabit switch from both my 2007 and 2009 minis - and both connect reliably at 1Gbps. So it can be done, even on older hardware. Maybe the 2011 mini is not so good in this respect?
Your network cables aren't going parallel (and very close) to any mains cables?
Presumeably Sys Prefs: Network: Ethernet: Advanced: Ethernet is set to "Auto" configure? or manual Speed = 1000baseT ?
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Jul 16, 2011 12:26 PMby dotjuice,Thanks for your input and can confirm that my network cable are not running close to or parallel to any mains cables. Secondly, I've tried forcing the speed manually in the preference panel but it show that the "cable is disconnected"
I've installed Windows 7 today and will install an updated driver for the Broadcom network controller I found in one of the forums I read earlier and report back. Apparently this worked for some owners and will eliminate a hardware fault and allow me to blame Apple drivers ;-)
I'm hoping that an Apple engineer has some useful advice.
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Jul 17, 2011 10:47 AMby dotjuice,Both cables (Cat5e and Cat6) that I used was tested with my WD live hub and worked at 1 Gbps. The Cat5e is not shielded and I'm fairly confident the Cat 6 cable is unshielded as well. I should mention at this point that I've made my own network patch leads for over 10 years now and my networking career started out using coax cables. I would say that I know what I'm doing and can concluded with 100% certainty that it is not the cables.
After installing Windows 7 through Bootcamp there is not even an option in the network adapter setting to set the speed any faster than 100 Mbps.
After going to my local Apple store (30 Km away in London!) the genius I spoke with suggested I book a slot and bring it in for them to test to determine if a new logic board should be ordered. I must be honest, I thought however I spoke with would treat me like an idiot and try and blame anything but the mac but she listened and agreed with my assessment and suggested I bring it it for a test.
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Aug 25, 2011 2:18 PMby akoosik,i'm having the same problem. 2011 mac mini i5 with radeon gpu. stock. have known good network cables that connect at 1gbps to a dell laptop. both windows 7 and speedtest.net reflect speeds in excess of 100mbps. when i plug the same cable into the mini, i get 100mbps indicated by windows 7 and speedtest.net gives me scores in the 90's. I have very fast internet.
when i force the mac mini to 1gbps, it won't connect.
when i force the port on my router to 1gbps and the mac mini to auto, it connects at 100mbps
when i force the port on my router and the mac mini to 1000mbps, the mac mini won't connect.
running latest os 10.7.1
any suggestions appreciated.
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Aug 27, 2011 12:30 PMby akoosik,update: i got it working, sporadically. i tried plugging the mini into another gigabit router i had lying around, and i connected at 1gbps. after plugging it back into my main internet router, it connected at 1gbps. unplugging it and plugging it back in 10 seconds later...100mbps. same thing...1gbps.
currently at 1gbps. not rebooting or unplugging again!
maybe the broadcom nic in the mini is more picky than other hardware. in all cases, i used the same cables, the only difference was the switch hardware on the other end (i used a linksys wrt 160n v2 to initially get the mini connected at 1gbps). in all cases, my dell 6420 NIC consistently connected at 1gbps. that nic is an intel one.
...go figure
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Sep 3, 2011 10:53 AMby dotjuice,Just a quick update on my progress. I had my Mac mini's logic board replace under warranty and the problem still persisted so today I went out and bought an Apple Airport Extreme and it worked first time. I now have a fast reliable wireless network and the Mini connects at 1000baseT reliabily.
I must be honest asn say that I'm not really impressed about having to buy aditional hardware to get it to work but considering a custom built HTPC would have cost far more and not look as nice, I still feel like a winner!
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Apr 14, 2012 6:54 AMby SwampFoetus,My problem is similar;
Mac Mini (late 2009) connects to Time Capsule (3rd gen) at 100TX.
My new MBP connects to the TC at 1000T.
If I connect the Mini and the MBP direct I get 1000T.
So all kit is perfectly capable of 1000T but the Mini won't talk to the TC at 1000T.
Weird. Just wish someone had an answer. It's even more annoying that all my hardware is Apple.
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Feb 27, 2016 12:38 AMby BeijingPablo,I can see this is an old thread but I just encountered this problem and found an answer - at least for my case. I used bootcamp to install Windows and then installed the Broadcom Card Management Software (which is sadly only available on Windows) and ran the diagnostics - what I found was that one of the four wire pairs was showing as 'Short' i.e. short circuited. Then I ran the diagnostic again with the cable disconnected - same again for that pair (4the pair). The other three showed the correct info each time - Good when connected and not connected when the cable was pulled out. So it seems my Gigabit ports issue is down to poor manufacturing quality like they didn't bother to test Gigabit functionality before shipping ... not really very impressed for Apple to be honest. My Mac was even bought in the US. Seems my only option is to buy a USB to Gigabit adapter - which won't get that great performance but hopefully better than 100Mb.
