Why has my iMac's wifi stopped working properly?

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Level 1

8 points

Why has my iMac's wifi stopped working properly?

I have an early 2008 iMac, 2.66 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo. Until a few weeks ago, it was still running Snow Leopard. All was good. Since updating to El Capitan, my Wifi connection is really bad. (I'm on 10.11.3.) It connects fine at first, then drops after 5 minutes, then comes back on and off. If I switch Wifi off and back on, it works perfectly... for a few minutes then cuts out again.

I've followed the Wifi troubleshooter. I've changed my Wifi channel. I've tried a different browser. I've moved my router to the same room as the iMac - it's now less than a metre away. I've deleted my preferences and started over. My MacBook, iPhone, PlayStation and Sky TV are all connecting with no problem. The diagnostic tool says there is no problem. Can anyone help?

iMac, OS X El Capitan (10.11.3)

Posted on Feb 14, 2016 6:55 AM

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Answer 1

Feb 14, 2016 7:17 AM in response to krisc88

If your router is within a meter of the iMac, then our advice would be to connect an Ethernet cable from the router to the iMac and turn off the WiFi on the Mac. A wired connection is always faster and more reliable than wireless, so it would not make much sense to try to connect using WiFi if a wired connection were available as an option.

We handle questions about the AirPort routers here in this forum.......the AirPort Express, AirPort Extreme and AirPort Time Capsule that you see pictured below......and it appears that you have an El Capitan (10.11.3) issue.

You will likely get a much faster answer and more informed response if you post your question over in the El Captian (10.11.3) forum which is linked just below:

OS X El Capitan

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Answer 2

krisc88 Author

Level 1

8 points

Feb 14, 2016 7:18 AM in response to Bob Timmons

Thanks, Bob. I'll head over there.

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