I get the spinning wheel when I try to open Network Preferences on freezes and in force quit under System Preferences I see com.apple.preferences.network.remoteserv in red.

Seriously, are you still running Leopard 10.5.1????

Restart in the Recovery Partition and reinstall OS X.

Launch the Console application in any of the following ways:

☞ Enter the first few letters of its name into a Spotlight search. Select it in the results (it should be at the top.)

☞ In the Finder, select Go ▹ Utilities from the menu bar, or press the key combination shift-command-U. The application is in the folder that opens.

☞ Open LaunchPad and start typing the name.

The title of the Console window should be All Messages. If it isn't, select

SYSTEM LOG QUERIES ▹ All Messages

from the log list on the left. If you don't see that list, select

View ▹ Show Log List

from the menu bar at the top of the screen.

Click the Clear Display icon in the toolbar. Then try to open the preference pane. Select any messages that appear in the Console window. Copy them to the Clipboard by pressing the key combination command-C. Paste into a reply to this message by pressing command-V.

The log contains a vast amount of information, almost all of which is irrelevant to solving any particular problem. When posting a log extract, be selective. A few dozen lines are almost always more than enough.

Please don't indiscriminately dump thousands of lines from the log into this discussion.

Please don't post screenshots of log messages—post the text.

Some private information, such as your name or email address, may appear in the log. Anonymize before posting.

Please read this whole message before doing anything.

This procedure is a diagnostic test. It’s unlikely to solve your problem. Don’t be disappointed when you find that nothing has changed after you complete it.

The purpose of the test is to determine whether the problem is caused by third-party software that loads automatically at startup or login, by a peripheral device, by a font conflict, or by corruption of the file system or of certain system caches.

Disconnect all wired peripherals except those needed for the test, and remove all aftermarket expansion cards, if applicable. Start up in safe mode and log in to the account with the problem. You must hold down the shift key twice: once when you turn on the computer, and again when you log in.

Note: If FileVault is enabled in OS X 10.9 or earlier, or if a firmware password is set, or if the startup volume is a software RAID, you can’t do this. Ask for further instructions.

Safe mode is much slower to start up and run than normal, with limited graphics performance, and some things won’t work at all, including sound output and Wi-Fi on certain models. The next normal startup may also be somewhat slow.

The login screen appears even if you usually login 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. Same problem?

After testing, restart as usual (not in safe mode) and verify that you still have the problem. Post the results of the test.

under System Preferences I see com.apple.preferences.network.remoteserv in red.

There is nothing in SP that would show that file. Please post a screen shot.

That file is actually located in 2 places:

Machintosh HD>System>Library>PreferencePanes>Network.prefPane>Contents>XPCServices>com.app le.preferences.network.remoteserve.xpc>Contents>MacOS>com.apple.preference.network.remoteservice

Machintosh HD>System>Library>PreferencePanes>Network.prefPane>Contents>XPCServices>com.apple.preferences.network.remoteserve.xpc

This procedure will erase all your settings in the Network preference pane. Back up all data before you begin, and recreate the settings afterwards.

Triple-click the line below on this page to select it:

/Library/Preferences/SystemConfiguration

Right-click or control-click the highlighted line and select

Services ▹ Reveal

from the contextual menu.* A folder should open with an item named "SystemConfiguration" selected. Move the selected item to the Trash. You may be prompted for your administrator password.

Restart the computer and empty the Trash. Test.

*If you don't see the contextual menu item, copy the selected text to the Clipboard by pressing the key combination command-C. In the Finder, select

Go ▹ Go to Folder...

from the menu bar and paste into the box that opens by pressing command-V. You won't see what you pasted because a line break is included. Press return.

Linc- my appreciation for your help+ network prefs are once again OK

I have the same problem. When following the advise and opening the folder "SystemConfiguration" I'm not sure which item should be selected to delete. The entire folder cannot me removed ("cannot be deleted or renamed because it is required by OS X"). What can I do?

Worked a treat . thank you !! 😀