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Time Capsule WiFi Network Disappears Regularly

I have a older Time Capsule (not sure which generation) running v7.6.4. I am broad casting two networks with it, my primary and a guest network. Every day or two I lose WiFi connection. When I search for a network neither the primary or the guest network shows up. When I open the Airport utility it can not find any base stations. The light on the front of the Time Capsule remains solid green. The only way I have found to fix the issue is to power cycle the Time Capsule. Once I power cycle the TC works for another couple of days and then it fails again. I have tried factory reseting the Time Capsule but that doesn't fix the issue.


Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Posted on Oct 11, 2015 6:06 PM

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6 replies

Oct 11, 2015 9:58 PM in response to BKumfer

There are loads of issues with wireless on all the new OS.. and iOS.


See http://www.iphonehacks.com/2015/09/fix-ios-9-wifi-problems.html for the later.


For Mavericks, Yosemite and El Capo.. try the following.


Start from a factory reset. No files are lost on the hard disk doing this.

Factory reset universal

Power off the TC.. ie pull the power cord or power off at the wall.. wait 10sec.. hold in the reset button.. be gentle.. power on again still holding in reset.. and keep holding it in for another 10sec. You may need some help as it is hard to both hold in reset and apply power. It will show success by rapidly blinking the front led. Release the reset.. and wait a couple of min for the TC to reset and come back with factory settings. If the front LED doesn’t blink rapidly you missed it and simply try again. The reset is fairly fragile in these.. press it so you feel it just click and no more.. I have seen people bend the lever or even break it. I use a toothpick as tool.

N.B. None of your files on the hard disk of the TC are deleted.. this simply clears out the router settings of the TC.


Setup the TC again.


Then redo the setup from the computer with Mavericks--Yosemite--ElCapo. (MYELCAP)

1. Use very short names.. NOT APPLE RECOMMENDED names. No spaces and pure alphanumerics.

eg TCgen5 for basestation and TCwifi wireless name.



If the issue is wireless use TC24ghz and TC5ghz with fixed channels as this also seems to help stop the nonsense. But this can be tried in the second round. ie plan on a first and second round of changes to fix this.. hopefully.. I will point out other steps that can be round2.


2. Use all passwords that also comply with 1. but can be a bit longer. ie 8-20 characters mixed case and numbers.. no non-alphanumerics.


3. If the TC is main router you can skip this point. This is only an issue when the TC is bridged.

Ensure the TC always takes the same IP address.. you will need to do this on the main router using dhcp reservation.. or a bit more complex setup using static IP in the TC. But this is important.. having IP drift all over the place when MYELCAP cannot remember its own name for 5 min after a reboot makes for poor networking.


4. Check your share name on the computer is not changing.. make sure it also complies with the above.. short no spaces and pure alphanumeric.. but this change will mess up your TM backup.. so be prepared to do a new full backup. Sorry.. keep this one for second round if you want to avoid a new backup.


5. Mount the TC disk in the computer manually.


In Finder, Go, Connect to server from the top menu,

Type in SMB://192.168.0.254 (or whatever the TC ip is which you have now made static. As a router by default it is 10.0.1.1 and I encourage people to stick with that unless you know what you are doing).


You can use name.. SMB://TCgen5.local where you replace TCgen5 with your TC name.. local is the default domain of the TC and doesn't change.

However names are not so easy as IP address.. nor as reliable. At least not in Yosemite they aren't. The domain can also be an issue if you are not plugged or wireless directly to the TC.


6. Make sure IPv6 is set to link-local only in the computer. For example wireless open the network preferences, wireless and advanced / TCP/IP.. and fix the IPv6. to link-local only. Do the same for ethernet if you use it.







There is a lot more jiggery pokery you can try but the above is a good start.. if you find it still unreliable.. don't be surprised.



You might need to do some more work on the computer itself. eg Reset the NVRAM/PRAM/SMC.. has helped some people. Clean install of the OS is also helpful if you upgrade installed.


Tell us how you go.

Oct 12, 2015 6:36 AM in response to LaPastenague

LaPastenague,


Thanks for the information. I had already tried the factory reset on the TC to no avail. I should also mention that when the Wi-Fi "disappears" it does so for all my devices - iPhone, Macbook, & even non-Apple devices like my Xbox or SmartTV. I am running El Capitan (10.11) on my macbook and iOS 9.0.2 on my iPhone.


Additionally, another interesting piece of data, after I wrote the post last night it happened again. This time I tried a hard connection via ethernet to the TC and was unable to access the internet. As before with AirPort, if I go to Networks in the Systems menu I do not see the TC under the Ethernet although it does show a self assigned IP address.


Anyway, I've gone through the steps you've outlined above as well and will see if that helps.

Oct 12, 2015 1:23 PM in response to BKumfer

We can continue to pursue the problem .. this is not unusual.


With your extra info the actual TC could be faulty. Gen4 are now 3 or more years old mostly and that is about the life of the unit. From Gen1 which tended to die at 18months we have said to people that they have a service life of around 3years.


The Gen4 can suddenly die.. the exact problem is not clear to me but it seems to be bad soldering because people have had success bringing them back to life using the old reflow solder trick in an oven.


For now.. I need to know the network layout. What modem do you have, make and model?? How is the TC setup in the network?


I do not like 7.6.4 firmware.. and so let me suggest you go back to 7.6.1 which has less issues in some setups.

To downgrade open the summary page as shown below, hold down the option key and click on the version number.. a list of older firmware will appear and you can select what you want.. don't use 7.6.3 (7.6.2 was so bad it was withdrawn quickly) so select 7.6.1..


It is a test and you can easily upgrade again.. but this helps me and I can show by A - B tests everytime I upgrade to 7.6.4 the wireless has issues.

User uploaded file

Oct 12, 2015 3:33 PM in response to LaPastenague

I have probably had the router for 3 years so I will start preparing mentally to purchase a new one if I have to. With regards to my network, it's about as basic as it gets. The TC WAN port is connected via ethernet cable to a Motorola Surfboard SB6141 cable modem less then a foot away. I have 3 devices connected directly the the TC LAN ports and several Wi-Fi connected devices in the home that all connect to the TC. No other routers or switches in the network.


Anyway, I've gone back to 7.6.1 and will see how that works over the next few days.

Oct 12, 2015 5:37 PM in response to BKumfer

Motorola Surfboard SB6141 cable modem

This is a known problematic unit.


You will do better on 7.6.1 firmware but if it doesn't do not buy an apple router unless you also replace the SB model cable modem.


You might want to consider getting a cheap router .. I always recommend ones that take third party.. so TP-Link WR1043ND v2 or the C5 or C7 archer models.. these are all good price units.. and you can bridge the TC and plug it into the router for doing backups and maybe wireless.. but offload the routing.

Time Capsule WiFi Network Disappears Regularly

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