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I am curious about this behavior. 2016 tbMBP with Sierra 10.12.6. Incidentally it also has Bootcamp/W10.
If I start the screen saver, the WiFi icon in the Menu bar goes back to being solid. I have no issues with connectivity to the outside world.
MacBook Pro, OS X El Capitan (10.11.4), ( - 2013, 2012, 2010, 2008)
It is varying between single and multiple bars, like searching for a WiFi signal.
... and that is exactly what it is doing.
Typically, once a SSID is chosen, the WiFi icon on the Menu bar is supposed to be solid...
In theory, yes, but it is not always the case, especially if there is any form of Wi-Fi interference present in the nearby area. Also, if you happen to have multiple wireless access points in your current network configuration, your MBP may be attempting to roam to a base station with a stronger signal. iOS clients have a similar experience with roaming.
...but the adapter continues searching for better APs or a better signal as shown with the Alt+Click where it varies between 'WiFi:Looking for Networks' and 'WiFi: On' . This is what I have normally seen for years.
Yep, and we have seen this to be more of the "standard" with the later versions of OS X or macOS.
You can do a bit more "investigating" to see just how stable your Wi-Fi network is from the perspective of your MBP by using its built-in Wireless Diagnostics utility. I will get to that in a moment, but I want to take a look at your Wi-Fi values that you posted first to get some clues.
DFS: This is telling us that your connecting to a Wi-Fi network that is using Dynamic Frequency Selection so that it can co-operate with Wx or military radar. That means it may change frequencies when it "senses" a conflict.
Ok, back to using Wireless Diagnostics. What we would be interested in is the SNR value over time. Specifically we would want it to not vary much. As you know, you can access this utility via Option-clicking on the Wi-Fi icon on the OS X menu bar. We would want to use the Performance tab. If there is significant amount of variation, the culprit can either be Wi-Fi interference or a faulty base station.
It is varying between single and multiple bars, like searching for a WiFi signal.
... and that is exactly what it is doing.
Typically, once a SSID is chosen, the WiFi icon on the Menu bar is supposed to be solid...
In theory, yes, but it is not always the case, especially if there is any form of Wi-Fi interference present in the nearby area. Also, if you happen to have multiple wireless access points in your current network configuration, your MBP may be attempting to roam to a base station with a stronger signal. iOS clients have a similar experience with roaming.
...but the adapter continues searching for better APs or a better signal as shown with the Alt+Click where it varies between 'WiFi:Looking for Networks' and 'WiFi: On' . This is what I have normally seen for years.
Yep, and we have seen this to be more of the "standard" with the later versions of OS X or macOS.
You can do a bit more "investigating" to see just how stable your Wi-Fi network is from the perspective of your MBP by using its built-in Wireless Diagnostics utility. I will get to that in a moment, but I want to take a look at your Wi-Fi values that you posted first to get some clues.
DFS: This is telling us that your connecting to a Wi-Fi network that is using Dynamic Frequency Selection so that it can co-operate with Wx or military radar. That means it may change frequencies when it "senses" a conflict.
Ok, back to using Wireless Diagnostics. What we would be interested in is the SNR value over time. Specifically we would want it to not vary much. As you know, you can access this utility via Option-clicking on the Wi-Fi icon on the OS X menu bar. We would want to use the Performance tab. If there is significant amount of variation, the culprit can either be Wi-Fi interference or a faulty base station.
I have watched the Performance screen fairly closely for the last couple of days now. The SNR does not vary much over time. Signal is about -60, while Noise is about -90. I have a roaming network with APs using Ethernet in bridge-mode.
The behavior has not occurred again after the initial anomaly. I will keep an eye and monitor for a couple of more days.
It is varying between single and multiple bars, like searching for a WiFi signal. Typically, once a SSID is chosen, the WiFi icon on the Menu bar is supposed to be solid, but the adapter continues searching for better APs or a better signal as shown with the Alt+Click where it varies between 'WiFi:Looking for Networks' and 'WiFi: On' . This is what I have normally seen for years.
Two RF performance graphs for your review.
It sounds simple and stupid but have you tried resetting your Mac and your router at the same time?
Yes, and this happens at multiple locations - at home and at work on multiple APs. I have yet to try a SMC Reset or NVRAM Reset.
I rebooted the Mac for another installation, and now it is solid. I will keep an eye out for the changes.
Just so I understand, is the whole Wi-Fi icon in the menu bar blinking or is it varying between a single to multiple bars?
Signal quality (SNR) looks pretty consistent on both sets of charts holding between 33-35 dB. Also, no large fluctuations in the Noise levels either for both. So far, so good.
I will post some more snippets of the RF scans at different times during the day but they are very similar.
Blinking WiFi icon in menu bar
