iMessages suddenly borked:- can't see network

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ttreen1950 Author

Level 2

269 points

iMessages suddenly borked:- can't see network

Good morning, Experts.

2009 MacPro, (MacPro4,1) 12GB RAM, 4 x 1TB, 10.8.4

I have a problem with Messages: all of a sudden it has refused to log in to iMessages;-

When opened, it logs into Jabber OK, but presents me with the login window for Accounts which shows iMessages for my Apple ID is inactive.

I try to log in and the little cogwheel goes round, then a dialogue box opens saying:-

Could not sign in to iMessage.

Could not sign in. Please check your network connection and try again.

This is when I'm on the 'net, using "Mail", logged into iCloud with the same AppleID, logged in on Apple Forums (all with the same AppleID).

I used Pacifist to extract and reinstall Messages from the Mountain Lion installer, but that installs 7.0 which won't run (missing library), so on to the next step.

I have downloaded the 10.8.4 Combo update and applied that, I have tried rebooting into safe mode, I have switched ID to my wife's account and tried logging in using her AppleID - all to no avail. I have tried logging in using my alternative "xxxxx@me.com" as applied.apple.com tells me - my regular email shows as verified on that page.

I have removed Little Snitch and MenuMeters just in case in some obscure way they were the cause - although they had happily co-existed with Messages since I'd updated to Mountain Lion a week after its release.

I have tried temporarily turning off the Firewall in System Prefs - that made no difference

Within Keychain (Keychain Access) there is an Apple ID Authentication for both my regular email address and my @me.com address. There are also two entries:-

"iMessage_temporary: xxxxx@btinternet.com" and "iMessage_temporary: xxxxx@me.com". both, when inspected, show my correct (if complex) password. Keychain repar reports no problems.

My iPhone 5 (iOS 6.1.4) is still happily using my AppleID for iMessage (regular email address)

Why would Messages suddenly, out of the blue, start being unable to realise there IS communication via the network?

I REALLY don't want to go through the Archive & Re-install Mountain Lion process - so I am seeking any assistance from all you experts.

Thanks in advance

Ted

MacPro 2009,, Mac OS X (10.7), 12GB, 640Mb, 3 x 1TB, Radeon 4870, NEC EA231WMI-BK and Dell 19"

Posted on Aug 7, 2013 3:26 AM

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Answer 1

ttreen1950 Author

Level 2

269 points

Aug 7, 2013 4:04 AM in response to ttreen1950

That's "appleid.apple.com" of course, not what the &^@$! autocorrect changed it to without my noticing...

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Answer 2

Linc Davis

Level 10

209,547 points

Aug 7, 2013 10:51 AM in response to ttreen1950

This could be a complicated problem to solve, as there are many possible causes for it. Test after taking each of the following steps that you haven't already tried. Back up all data before making any changes.

Before proceeding, test on another network, if possible. That could be a public Wi-Fi hotspot, if your computer is portable, or a cellular network if you have a mobile device that can share its Internet connection. If you find that iMessage works on the other network, the problem is in your network or at your ISP, not in your computer.

Step 1

Check the status of the service. If the service is down, wait tor it to come back up. There may be a localized outage, even if the status indicator is green.

Step 2

Restart your broadband device and your router, if different. You may have to skip this step if you don't control those devices.

Step 3

From the menu bar, select

 ▹ About This Mac

Below the "OS X" legend in the window that opens, the OS version appears. Click the version line twice to display the serial number. If the number is missing or obviously invalid, take the machine to an Apple Store or other authorized service center to have the problem corrected.

Step 4

Back up all data, then take the steps suggested in this support article.

There are five steps in that article. Please take all of them. If you don't understand some of the steps or can't carry them out, ask for guidance.

Step 5

From the menu bar, select

 ▹ System Preferences ▹ Network

If the preference pane is locked, click the lock icon in the lower left corner and enter your password to unlock it. Then click the Advanced button and select the Proxies tab. If any proxy options are selected, make a note of them and then deselect them. You don’t need to change the bypass or FTP settings. Click OK and then Apply. Test. The result may be that you can't connect to any web server. Restore the previous settings if that happens.

Step 6

Select from the menu bar

 ▹ System Preferences… ▹ Flash Player ▹ Storage

and click

Block all sites from storing information on this computer

Close the preference pane.

Step 7

Enable guest logins* and log in as Guest. Don't use the Safari-only “Guest User” login created by “Find My Mac.”

While logged in as Guest, you won’t have access to any of your personal files or settings. Applications will behave as if you were running them for the first time. Don’t be alarmed by this; it’s normal. If you need any passwords or other personal data in order to complete the test, memorize, print, or write them down before you begin.

Test while logged in as Guest. After testing, log out of the guest account and, in your own account, disable it if you wish. Any files you created in the guest account will be deleted automatically when you log out of it.

*Note: If you’ve activated “Find My Mac” or FileVault, then you can’t enable the Guest account. The “Guest User” login created by “Find My Mac” is not the same. Create a new account in which to test, and delete it, including its home folder, after testing.

If iMessage worked in the guest account, stop here and post your results.

Step 8

Boot in safe mode and log in. Note: If FileVault is enabled on some models, or if a firmware password is set, or if the boot volume is a software RAID, you can’t do this. Ask for further instructions.

Safe mode is much slower to boot and run than normal, and some things won’t work at all, including Wi-Fi on certain iMacs. The next normal boot may also be somewhat slow.

The login screen appears even if you usually log in automatically. You must know your login password in order to log in. If you’ve forgotten the password, you will need to reset it before you begin.

Test while in safe mode. After testing, reboot as usual (i.e., not in safe mode) and test again.

If iMessage worked in safe mode, but didn't work when you booted out of safe mode, stop here and post your results.

Step 9

Reset theNVRAM.

Step 10

Reinstall OS X.

Step 11

If none of the above steps resolves the issue, make a "Genius" appointment at an Apple Store, or contact Apple Support.

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Answer 3

Aug 9, 2013 2:39 PM in response to ttreen1950

HI,

Pacifist if used at all on this should have extracted the OS 10.8.4 Update (or actually you should have used the OS 10.8.2 to get the 7.0.1 version)

I also don't feel this gets all the parts that are needed.

There are associated bits all over the place (older Users Tips for iChat Reinstall)

Your Alert message is not the one that benefits for Quitting IMAgent in the Activity Monitor.

I think you have miss-matched parts and need a reinstall (Linc's Step 10)

10:39 pm Friday; August 9, 2013

 iMac 2.5Ghz 5i 2011 (Mountain Lion 10.8.4)
 G4/1GhzDual MDD (Leopard 10.5.8)
 MacBookPro 2Gb (Snow Leopard 10.6.8)
 Mac OS X (10.6.8),
 Couple of iPhones and an iPad
"Limit the Logs to the Bits above Binary Images."  No, Seriously

Reply

Answer 4

ttreen1950 Author

Level 2

269 points

Aug 10, 2013 11:43 AM in response to Linc Davis

Hi,

Thanks for your reply. Every option listed has been tried (and retried, where appropriate) - other than:-

1) Taking Mac to AppleCentre. It's a MacPro tower, and there is no way I'm going to drag this baby some 25 miles to the centre of Birmingham (UK). I'd just as soon hold out until Mavericks is available.

2) Reinstalling OSX as a clean install (archive & install).

I will try the second after starting from the recovery drive and then see what happens with Messages & Facetime as both return the same message upon attempting to sign in, although iTunes logs in fine.

These are with manually entered passwords.

I have tried enabling "Personal Hotspot" on my iPhone 5, and whilst that works for Net connection, Messages & Facetime on the Mac still give the same message.

iMessage & Facetime as iOS apps on my iPhone work fine.

I'll come back post-reinstall.

If nothing works, then I'll just wait for Mavericks. :-)

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Answer 5

ttreen1950 Author

Level 2

269 points

Aug 10, 2013 3:22 PM in response to ttreen1950

Hi Linc & Ralph,

Reinstalled from recovery disk (shame Mountain Lion doesn't have the old "Archive & Install" routine that was so useful at times like this).:-

Still the same problem.

iMessage -

Could not sign in to iMessage.

Could not sign in. Please check your network connection and try again.

FaceTime:-

iMessage -

Could not sign in.

Could not sign in. Please check your network connection and try again.

iTunes:-

Signs in happily and lets me check my account details.

I guess I'm completely bamboozled. The only two devices associated with my AppleID are my MacPro & my iPhone5, and iMessage & FaceTime (iOS) work quite OK on my iPhone.

Just one last attempt - I will fully back up one of the HDs in my Mac, and from the recovery disk I will erase it and install 10.8.4 completely from scratch on the erased drive.

If - when booted from the completely new installation on the erased drive - it still gives the same result, then I suppose I'll just have to wait for Mavericks...

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Answer 6

ttreen1950 Author

Level 2

269 points

Aug 11, 2013 2:35 AM in response to ttreen1950

Well,

I booted from another internal drive's Rescue partition (HD2). This was a Carbon Copy Cloner created clone of my main HD. I erased my HD2 from the Rescue partition and installed OSX from there;

Two hours or so later, I was able to boot from HD2 and go through the iCloud setup etc., using my Apple ID without a problem.

Tried Messages - same ****** result:-

Could not sign in to iMessage.

Could not sign in. Please check your network connection and try again.

Tried FaceTime - same ****** result:-

Could not sign in.

Could not sign in. Please check your network connection and try again.

Yet net connection, iTunes, signing into Support Communities - all accepted my Apple ID without a problem.

This indicates to me (although I could be wrong) that there is some problem at Apple's end - I can't see any hardware fault affecting just two applications.

Every other network connection works as it should.

When a completely new install on a freshly-erased drive returns the same error, I can't visualise the problem being anywhere bit at Apple's end.

This is driving me nuts - it's either talk to support, wait for Mavericks or hope that one of you guys (or girls) has experienced this - or knows about this - and can make some new suggestion(s).😟

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Answer 7

DSNYC

Level 1

0 points

Aug 11, 2013 5:24 AM in response to ttreen1950

I'm having the exact same problem. First noticed it yesterday.

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Answer 8

Linc Davis

Level 10

209,547 points

Aug 11, 2013 9:52 AM in response to ttreen1950

If you've really taken all the steps I suggested a few days ago (except Step 11), I don't know of anything else you can do.

Reply

Answer 9

Aug 11, 2013 11:56 AM in response to ttreen1950

Hi,

As Messages and FaceTime use different Servers to Apple's ID Server or the iCloud Server or the Mail server it could be a DNS issue.

The System Preferences > Network > Advanced Button > DNS tab should show the DNS Server numbers the routers sees and display them in a greyed out form (the System is using them but cannot alter them).

Some routers do not allow the "broadcast" of the DNS numbers it sees and you see the IP address of the router itself for it's LAN based DNS functions it has (such as 192.168.x.x).

It may pay to add a couple of Public DNS servers

One List Another

7:56 pm Sunday; August 11, 2013

 iMac 2.5Ghz 5i 2011 (Mountain Lion 10.8.4)
 G4/1GhzDual MDD (Leopard 10.5.8)
 MacBookPro 2Gb (Snow Leopard 10.6.8)
 Mac OS X (10.6.8),
 Couple of iPhones and an iPad
"Limit the Logs to the Bits above Binary Images."  No, Seriously

Reply

Answer 10

Aug 11, 2013 11:59 AM in response to DSNYC

HI,

And what have you tried so far ?

7:59 pm Sunday; August 11, 2013

 iMac 2.5Ghz 5i 2011 (Mountain Lion 10.8.4)
 G4/1GhzDual MDD (Leopard 10.5.8)
 MacBookPro 2Gb (Snow Leopard 10.6.8)
 Mac OS X (10.6.8),
 Couple of iPhones and an iPad
"Limit the Logs to the Bits above Binary Images."  No, Seriously

Reply

Answer 11

ttreen1950 Author

Level 2

269 points

Aug 11, 2013 1:20 PM in response to Ralph-Johns-UK

Hi Ralph,

I thought that too, and first I added Google's DNS servers at

8.8.8.8
8.8.4.4

- still the same - and those screwed up Safari - page grey and darkened so I removed them. The remaining one address is my BT Router, 192.168.1.254

Tried OpenDNS,

208.67.222.222
208.67.220.220

Still the same with Messages & Facetime.

Used LittleSnithch (Facetime & Messages set to "Allow ANY connection") and the monitoring windows shows the following information.

I hope that's legible, and you can tell me if servers are missing from the list. It's surely indicative of something (but I'm not quite sure what) that Messages attempoted to contact four servers, but with only 1 successful, although Little Snitch does report that none were blocked...

I have also re-erased my HD2, and installed 10.8.0 just to see if Messages 7.0 would connect.

No luck, I'm afraid.

Thanks,

Ted

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Answer 12

Aug 11, 2013 1:23 PM in response to ttreen1950

Hi,

Have you tried adding the BT router's DNS servers Manually to the Network Settings ?

I had to do this with Sky.

I have also added the Google 8.8.8.8 and 8.8.4.4 with no issues.

Is Little Snitch allowing IMAgent Stuff ?

You can see I also grabbed the Yahoo option just below that (and the iMessages Login connection)

Edit

Check you are on British Summer Time in the Router and on the Mac.

9:20 pm Sunday; August 11, 2013

 iMac 2.5Ghz 5i 2011 (Mountain Lion 10.8.4)
 G4/1GhzDual MDD (Leopard 10.5.8)
 MacBookPro 2Gb (Snow Leopard 10.6.8)
 Mac OS X (10.6.8),
 Couple of iPhones and an iPad
"Limit the Logs to the Bits above Binary Images."  No, Seriously

Message was edited by: Ralph Johns (UK)

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Answer 13

ttreen1950 Author

Level 2

269 points

Aug 11, 2013 2:02 PM in response to Ralph-Johns-UK

Hi Ralph

As you can see, IMAgent is allowed any outgoing connection.

I've added BT's primary, secondary and tertiary DNS servers manually to the list in the Network PrefPane.

From below, I note Little Snitch reports what seems like loads of UDP Ports from 49152 to 65533, but it reports

Connects: 0 successful 0 blocked.

This does not sound good - but I confess I don't really know it's significance - if any.

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Answer 14

Aug 11, 2013 2:19 PM in response to ttreen1950

Hi,

mDNS is Bonjour.

Computer to Computer this is on port 5353 (Makes other MAcs appear in the Shares in Finder window (if you display Shares).

For Text and File Sharing Bonjour in iChat or Messages uses port 5297 and 5298 (the later on TCP as well)

For Video and Audio only chats it should use port 5678 to send an invite and then the SIP process uses 16402 as first choice (if unavailable it counts down one at a time to 16393)

If you do Screen Sharing in Bonjour chats it will use a random port for the VNC bit.

Outgoing TCP on port 5223 is a Jabber connection using SSL (GoogleTalk is SSL as are most Jabber severs)

The outgoing one to domain.apple is likely to be the login to Apple by iChat 6 or Messages to enable the checking of Apple IDs used and valid AIM names which in turns allows AIM to "read" the password.

In the first pic the 17.154.xxx.xxx IP address look more like the iMessages servers.

Nothing in your latest pic suggests that you are connected to the iMessages servers.

It is late where I am and it may be a while before I post back.

10:19 pm Sunday; August 11, 2013

 iMac 2.5Ghz 5i 2011 (Mountain Lion 10.8.4)
 G4/1GhzDual MDD (Leopard 10.5.8)
 MacBookPro 2Gb (Snow Leopard 10.6.8)
 Mac OS X (10.6.8),
 Couple of iPhones and an iPad
"Limit the Logs to the Bits above Binary Images."  No, Seriously

Reply

Answer 15

ttreen1950 Author

Level 2

269 points

Aug 14, 2013 6:40 AM in response to ttreen1950

This problem has been solved.

I must admit that it was stretched out by my own idiocy (😟) in not fully reading the suggestions from Linc & Ralph.

I was too anxious to get down the list to find out what I should do, that I just rapidly parsed the item re opening "About this Mac" and it would seem I parsed it too rapidly.

Sincere apologies to those two gentlemen.

The problem was that my system serial number was missing:- my Mac was bought as an Apple refurb so I now assume it had had a new mobo fitted and the techie omitted to flash the serial no. back to the mobo. I now gather that this is a not uncommon happening.

It appears that Apple changed their iMessage & FaceTime servers around the start of this year, and also if you had previously been logged in (with iMessage Beta), unless you actually logged out you would remain logged in. Once you had logged out, any attempt to log in again was "under new rules" and login is only permitted from a device with a valid serial no. I had in fact forgotten that my Mac had no "burnt in" serial - I used the serial from the case to monitor my Applecare, and that as far as I was aware, there wasn't any software - certainly none that I was using - that made use of this info.

Once the serial no. was restored to the system, bingo! everything logs in as it should.

Many thanks to Linc & Ralph, and I would advise anyone else reading this thread that when high-level forum members take the trouble to respond - READ IT THOROUGHLY!. My skimming through it really prolonged my grief!

🙂

PS - I know the details below say 10.7 - I've tried to update my products to show 10.8.4, but after changing it, and hitting the "update" key, all I get is Apple's "We're busy updating..." page and the amend never sticks. Wierd, but (relatively) unimpostant.

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