MacBook Pro WiFi Goes Off & Won't Come Back On

Question

Level 1

5 points

MacBook Pro WiFi Goes Off & Won't Come Back On

Hi,

I have a MacBook Pro, 15", model A1286. I am running OS X Yosemite version 10.10.3.

Whenever I turn it on, the WiFi works fine for 2-5 minutes and then goes off.

It shows that it is still "on" from the menu bar icon (i.e. all bars full), but when you click on it it appears that it is off because it has the menu option to "Turn WiFi On."

So then if you go into System Preferences > Network, it also shows that WiFi is off, and if you click the button nothing happens.

I have tried to "Make Service Inactive" on WiFi, then remove it, and then try to add it again, however, my computer freezes and eventually crashes after trying to do so.

Interestingly, if I close the lid, leave it, and come back it shows now that WiFi is on (blank bars like unconnected in the menu bar), however it shows that there aren't any networks to connect to. I can then turn WiFi off, then turn it back on, and it will reconnect to my network, but then again will stop working after 2-5 minutes, but it will still say it is on. I can turn it off, and then can't turn it back on.

And just for everyone's information, I have plugged in my laptop directly with an ethernet cable, and it works just fine, so it definitely is something with the WiFi.

Is my WiFi card bad? Or is it something I can easily fix?

Thanks!

Spencer

Posted on Jul 21, 2015 4:12 PM

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Answer 1

Linc Davis

Level 10

209,547 points

Jul 21, 2015 4:45 PM in response to sperry101

Start up in Recovery mode. In the OS X Utilities screen, select Get Help Online. A clean copy of Safari will launch. No plugins, such as Flash, will be available.

Test. After testing, restart as usual and post the results.

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Answer 2

sperry101 Author

Level 1

5 points

Jul 21, 2015 5:10 PM in response to Linc Davis

I tried this.

In recovery mode, the internet worked for a few minutes, then stopped, but WiFi still showed it was connected. I clicked on the icon, and it showed it was not connected to any networks (it actually didn't show any networks available). I turned off WiFi, then turned it back on and there were no networks to connect to.

I then restarted by computer and it was the same way as before. Network would work for a few minutes and then stop.

Any other ideas?

Thanks!

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Answer 3

Linc Davis

Level 10

209,547 points

Jul 21, 2015 5:15 PM in response to sperry101

Have you tried to connect to any other networks, and if so, was it the same?

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Answer 4

daighi

Level 1

0 points

Sep 4, 2015 4:04 PM in response to sperry101

For the last week I have been having the exact same problem with my 2012 Macbook Pro (Yosemite 10.10.5). I dual boot with linux (openSUSE) on this machine and the same problem appears in OSX and linux. Because of this, I don't think it is a software problem... rather, something is probably wrong with the hardware or my router. I'm going to try connecting it to some different networks to see if I can rule out the router.

Have you managed to solve the problem on your machine?

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Answer 5

sperry101 Author

Level 1

5 points

Sep 13, 2015 7:27 PM in response to daighi

Sorry for the late reply, but yes I got it to work without having to take it into the store.

I took off the bottom panel, unhooked the batter, and then disconnected and reconnected the WiFi/Bluetooth card, then reconnected the battery, but the bottom case back on, and turned it back on and it worked. Maybe it was a loose cable?

I basically followed this guide through step 9:

https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/MacBook+Pro+15-Inch+Unibody+Late+2011+AirPort-Bluet ooth+Board+Replacement/7509

And then just went backwards to put it all back together.

Let me know if it works for you!

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