Can't connect to 2.4G wireless network

Question

Can't connect to 2.4G wireless network

hi

my Telus modem broadcasts both 2.4 and 5G wireless signals. I'm trying to connect my Mac Mini to the 2.4 but I keep getting a message that it can't connect.

Reason I want to connect the Mac to the 2.4 is that I need to be on the same network as my wireless printer, my other devices (iPhone, iPad, printer) can all connect to the 2.4. My wireless printer is not capable of connecting to the 5G that's why I'm trying to connect my Mac to the 2.4.

So all signs point to the Mac Mini as being the problem. BTW, I'm running Sierra because the High Sierra upgrade won't run, but that's another frustrating story.

Any suggestions?

thanks

Dominic

Posted on Nov 12, 2017 11:29 AM

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Answer 1

Eric Root

Level 10

684,039 points

Nov 13, 2017 7:59 AM in response to nick baccante

What does Wireless Diagnostics show?

Wireless Diagnostics

Wi-FI connection drops

Wi-Fi Problems in OS X Yosemite

Wi-Fi Problems in OS X Yosemite (2)

Wi-Fi Problems in OS X Yosemite (3)

WiFi Potential Temporary fix - Yosemite

Also try turning off Bluetooth.

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Answer 2

Tesserax

Level 10

148,453 points

Nov 12, 2017 11:32 AM in response to nick baccante

If you Telus broadcasts on both bands simultaneously, then any wireless device connected to either band should be able to access other devices (like your printer) on another band. Do you use separate SSIDs for each band?

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Answer 3

Nov 12, 2017 2:19 PM in response to Tesserax

just to clarify, the issue here is that my Mac cannot connect to the 2.4 connection, and I need to connect to it because the printer cannot connect to the 5G and both the printer and Mac have to be on the same network to work. They are separate SSIDs for each band, but that's irrelevant to this issue I think.

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Answer 4

Tesserax

Level 10

148,453 points

Nov 13, 2017 9:25 AM in response to nick baccante

just to clarify, the issue here is that my Mac cannot connect to the 2.4 connection, and I need to connect to it because the printer cannot connect to the 5G and both the printer and Mac have to be on the same network to work. They are separate SSIDs for each band, but that's irrelevant to this issue I think.

Ah, but it does. Using separate SSIDs is roughly equivalent to using separate network subnets. Resources on one subnet cannot be "found" by devices running on another subnet ... without some more advanced network settings or capable hardware.

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Answer 5

Nov 13, 2017 9:51 AM in response to Eric Root

Wireless Diagnostics doesn't show anything that I can interpret as a problem,I've pasted the properties of the SSID that I can't connect to down below. I used all the settings suggested by Apple for the router. Also important to remember that all my other devices can connect to the 2.4G broadcast by the router, my Mac Mini is the only device that will not connect to it.

I can't use Wireless Diagnostics to monitor the connection because I can't connect to it. There are a lot of files in the diagnostics report, is there something specific I should be looking at?

Turning bluetooth off has no effect on the wifi connectivity.

'TELUS1472-2.4G' <54454c55 53313437 322d322e 3447>, bssid=70:f1:96:84:cb:a2, channel=[11, width=20], cc=CA, type=11n, rssi=-65, rsn=[mcast=aes_ccm, ucast={ aes_ccm }, auths={ psk }, caps=0xc], wpa=(null), wep=no, ibss=no, ph=no, swap=no, hs20=no, airport=no,

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