Yosemite killed my wifi

Question

Level 1

34 points

Yosemite killed my wifi

Upgraded to Yosemite this evening on my mid 2011 Mac mini and now I don't have wifi. The wifi menubar icon has an "x" on it and when I click on it, it says, "Wi-Fi: not configured." The only option is to Open Network Preferences.

When I open Network Prefs, there's no wifi option on the left, only ethernet, Thunderbolt, firewire and bluetooth. I try to add a wifi network via the "+" sign, but nothing gets added. My wifi network is working fine as my wife and kids' computers (on Mavericks) as well as all of our iOS devices connect to it fine as usual.

Luckily, my Mac mini is normally connected to the internet via ethernet cable, but I need to figure this wifi issue out.

When I go through whatever diagnostics, it sees my wifi network and allows me to enter my password, but then it won't connect. But, it only shows my wifi network via these diagnostics - not from the wifi dropdown on the menubar and not in Network Prefs.

Any thoughts?

Thanks.

Posted on Oct 16, 2014 8:40 PM

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Answer 1

pinkoos Author

Level 1

34 points

Oct 16, 2014 8:47 PM in response to pinkoos

Also forgot to mention that when I upgraded to Yosemite, my wifi was OFF (b/c I normally connect to the internet via ethernet).

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Answer 2

pinkoos Author

Level 1

34 points

Oct 16, 2014 9:08 PM in response to pinkoos

From another forum, this solution worked for me:

If all else fails, remove the /Library/Preferences/SystemConfiguration folder and reboot. This will clear all of your network settings, so it's last resort for frequent travelers with a laptop that has a lot of WiFi and VPN settings to worry about, but for a desktop Mac is probably not too onerous.

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Answer 3

Oct 17, 2014 12:24 PM in response to pinkoos

Try turning off Bluetooth.

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Answer 4

Eric Root

Level 10

685,293 points

Oct 17, 2014 12:45 PM in response to pinkoos

Troubleshooting Wi-Fi issues in OS X

Wireless Connection Problems - Fix

Wireless Connection Problems - Fix (2)

Wireless Connection Problems - Fix (3)

Wireless Connection Problems - Fix (4)

Wireless Diagnostics - About

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Answer 5

pinkoos Author

Level 1

34 points

Oct 17, 2014 12:46 PM in response to Eric Root

Thank you all for the replies. As noted above, though, my problem was fixed as outlined in my post.

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Answer 6

Oct 17, 2014 6:38 PM in response to pinkoos

This worked for me as well . . . though, honestly, I have no idea what other effects removing the /SystemConfiguration folder might have.

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Answer 7

pinkoos Author

Level 1

34 points

Oct 17, 2014 6:48 PM in response to words_and_music

It shouldn't have much effect if all your network configuration (in the Network System Preference) is set as "automatic."

Once you remove that folder and reboot, it just recreates the folder in the same location, but with a fresh configuration.

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Answer 8

Oct 17, 2014 6:55 PM in response to pinkoos

Didn't work for me. Wifi is connected but internet is not. Can't access anything.

Any idea?

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Answer 9

mattspc

Level 1

10 points

Oct 18, 2014 6:01 AM in response to pinkoos

10.10 broke my wifi too...

i7 MBP Mid 2012 connecting to a time capsule. If i keep switching between 2.4 and 5ghz it seems to work, but not for long. Coming out of sleep seems to trigger the issue often.

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Answer 10

Oct 18, 2014 2:56 PM in response to keithng99

Launch Terminal (you can get to it via the Spotlight icon at the top right. Copy and paste these lines below.

Enter:

sudo launchctl unload -w /System/Library/LaunchDaemons/com.apple.discoveryd.plist

(and hit return and enter your account password)

Now enter:

sudo launchctl load -w /System/Library/LaunchDaemons/com.apple.discoveryd.plist

(and hit return)

Now check Safari.

My brother just had this problem on a Mac that has been upgraded and upgraded time and time again.

I saw this problem on my older Mac with the Yosemite betas. discoverd is the new name resolver process and it seems it's still buggy.

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Answer 11

sttmkran

Level 1

10 points

Oct 18, 2014 3:42 PM in response to Andrew-ACT-ACSA

Hey guys,

I desperately need to say that both solutions did not solve my problem. Although I thought deleting the SystemConfiguration folder helped, the same problem appeared after about 5 to 10 minutes. AirPort doesn't find my AirPort Extreme anymore.

I mean how can things like that happen? I even reported this incident during beta and nothing happened. I can't even use the hotspot of my iPhone as Bluetooth doesn't work reliably as well...

I always loved apple because it just works, but this is just too frustrating!

I try to upload a photo, although it will be written in German, I guess the message will be familar to you.

Thanks for your help!

Edit: Sorry, wasn't able to upload with iPhone. Please see Dropbox link

https://www.dropbox.com/s/s5xikne4lrgtcot/Foto%2019.10.14%2000%2040%2025.jpg?dl= 0

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Answer 12

Oct 19, 2014 9:30 AM in response to pinkoos

Same problem here. Cannot connect to 5 GHz WiFi network on TimeMachine. Can connect to 2.4 GHz network on Bell Canada 2-Wire 2701HG-G router, but it is slow despite apparent 54 Mbits/s transmission speed. iOS 8 on iPhone and iPad works fine on both WiFi networks. MacBook Pro 15", Mid 2012. Do warn others not to upgrade to Yosemite until Apple gets this fixed!

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Answer 13

iMacdiva

Level 1

0 points

Oct 19, 2014 12:40 PM in response to Macromagnon

Same problem with my late 2012 iMac desktop. My wireless will connect and stay connected for 5 minutes then it will disconnect automatically. I have had to resort to finding an ethernet cable and hard docking for internet connectivity. This is a great upgrade but very disappointed that it hosed my wireless adapter driver. I have tried all the "fixes listed above with no improvement. Please advise.

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Answer 14

Oct 20, 2014 10:28 AM in response to iMacdiva

Using a 5 GHz channel below 149 has now solved the problem for me.

Macbook Pro non-retina 15-inch mid-2012 would not connect to 5 GHz WiFi network on Time Capsule after upgrade to Yosemite, whereas MackBook Pro with Mavericks and iOS 8 devices still worked perfectly. Only 2.4 GHz WiFi was accessible after Yosemite (but with unusually slow connection speed). Advice on Bluetooth did not help, but changing the 5 GHz WiFi on my Time Capsule to a channel below 149 (in my case channel 48) worked perfectly. That advice was found on the Macrumors blog on this issue.

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Answer 15

Oct 20, 2014 11:57 AM in response to pinkoos

Since I upgraded my wifi broadband box to dual band the issues started then I went back to single band and every thing is ok again so there must be a conflict with duel band I live in the uk and use Virgin Media.....I am now using the Virgin Media box as a modem and using my old router as the router...

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