I have had an ongoing issue with my macbook regarding the airport and the seemingly out-of-the-blue stone-walling of my requests. It’ll drop my ‘home’ airport connection, and when I try and reconnect, it says “connection timeout”. Rinse, repeat, rinse, repeat, ad naseum.
All my other computers/iPhone are still able to connect to my router via wired and wireless means, so this is a macbook only (hopefully) software issue.
But tonight, and after hours of googling it (tethering my iPhone connection to my macbook – sssshhhh!!), and there are SO many people who have this or a similar problem that I hope that at least 50% of my money for snow leopard is being spent on airport refinements, I think I finally got it. Or at least, it’s a suggestion for people who may stumble upon this to try.
Turn off Little Snitch – just to connect, then you can turn it back on.
I don’t know how many people use this app, but I do as I want to know what software is making remote connections to what server, and then deem them necessary/surplus to my requirements by a stringent process of looking the server name up and down looking for the words like “hax” or “gonnatakeyouronlinebankingdetails.net/sendstuff”, etc.
Anyway, I came to this juncture when I realised that when I looked at my “Network” system configurations on my lil mac mini that my mum uses, that the preferences for the connection are constantly changing. All the time. I don’t know how that occurs, but my reckoning was that because the airport on my macbook was hooked up to little snitch and it was trying to monitor it, and due to it not making a proper connection, settings were being changed on the network whenever little snitch was scanning.
That, I realise….is a terrible explanation, and if anyone could set me straight, I’d love to know. Cheers.
If you’re having Airport problems, here are few suggestions that seem to have worked for me in the past.
Suggestions
- Reset your router/modem
- com.apple.systempreferences – move it out of the folder to see if it helps you at all. It’s in your HD/Library/Preferences root, so try that. Can’t hurt to try anything with “Airport” in the name too. Then restart your computer and go from square one.
- Reset your router/modem
- Renew your DHCP lease. Worked a few times
- Reset your router/modem
- Alter your router security system (Generally, although more convenient-and more secure – WPA is more troublesome than WEP)
- Reset your router/modem
- Delete your “Preferred Networks” in Advanced preferences
- Reset your router/modem
- Complain to apple
Frankly, this kind of seemingly prevalent issue is tarnishing the great opinion the public has of apple products in general, and getting down and dirty with settings/console commands/whatever doesn’t fit with the efficient, straight-edge performance of almost every product they care to release.
