ethernet connectivity using Belkin Express Dock

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My issue:

I am using a Belkin Thunderbolt Express Dock and was unable to get the ethernet port to work. I spent hours on the phone with Belkin support but ultimately solved the problem on my own. When asked, I was told that Belkin support staff doesn't have any Apple computers, nor can they send or receive eMails. Enough Belkin support bashing for now, I do like some of their products.

After connecting the Thunderbolt Express Dock to my laptop, all ports were working except I was unable to get my ethernet working. I could use wireless connectivity, but being old school, I prefer a physical connections. The solution is simple once you know it.

I disconnected everything from my laptop, went into System Preferences / Network. Depending on your location (top pull down), there are various interface options that appear on the left side. Typically an active interface is indicated by a green dot to the left of the interface. A red dot indicates an interface that is inactive. I started with a new location with no interfaces. Clicking the "+" at the bottom left of the window, you get a list of available interfaces. For a Retina MacBook Pro, you get the following selection:

When I pluged the Apple Thunderbolt to Ethernet adaptor into one of my Thunderbolt ports, the list of choices expands to include "Thunderbolt Ethernet". In other words the list is dynamic based on what the hardware configuration is. One of the reasons I bought the Belkin Express dock was to eliminate the need for the Apple Thunderbolt to Ethernet adaptor, but I wanted to go slowly and see what changed as I connected devices back to my laptop.

I then removed the Apple adaptor and connected the Belkin Thunderbolt Express Dock to my laptop, hit the "+" and got the following list:

Notice both "Thunderbolt FireWire" and "Broadcom NetXtreme Gigabit Ethernet Controller". I selected the very poorly labeled Broadcom NetXtreme Gigabit Ethernet Controller as my interface and everything worked perfectly. I think also added in the other interfaces that I am likely to use and saves this configuration as my new "Location". All is good now.

The point of the story for Belkin Thunderbolt Express Dock users is that the ethernet interface is very poorly labeled as Broadcom NetXtreme.

The point of the story for anyone having internet connectivity issues it that you might want to try comparing what possible interfaces your computer allows if nothing is connected to the computer and then again after you connect a device capable of providing connectivity.

I hope this helps!!

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