Wi-Fi connection Problems on Mac: how to solve them

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Can not connect to the Wi-Fi network with your Mac? The reasons can be many and it is not always easy to find a solution immediately. Precisely for this reason, I thought to show you in this article the various possible solutions to solve the problems of Wi-Fi on Mac. Read on to find out the solution to your problem.

Problems of Wi-Fi connection on Mac: possible solutions

It can happen, especially after updating the macOS operating system, that there are problems with connectivity to the Wi-Fi network with Apple computers. In these cases, you can definitively solve the problem through the solutions that I will show you below.

Remove network configurations and preference files

A first solution is to trash files with network management preferences, in order to restore the connection settings. To do this, all you have to do is follow these steps:

1) Disable the Wi-Fi connection

2) From the Finder, select the “Go” menu, choose the item “Go to the folder” and paste the following path:

/Library/Preferences/SystemConfiguration

3) Click on the “Go” button and move the following files to the trash (do not worry if some of the files indicated are not present):

com.apple.airport.preferences.plist

com.apple.network.identification.plist

com.apple.wifi.message-tracer.plist

NetworkInterfaces.plist

preferences.plist

4) After deleting the files, restart the Mac. When rebooting, re-enable the Wi-Fi connection.In this way, the previously deleted files will be restored. Locate your Wi-Fi network and enter any password to connect.

Check the DNS

If the Wi-Fi connection is active but you can not browse the web, then there may be a problem with the DNS server. It is therefore important to check the DNS and restore them if necessary. To do so, go to the “Network” option in the System Preferences, then in the left section select the “WiFi” item and click on the “Advanced” button. At this point, go to the DNS section and in the column “DNS Server” it shows the following addresses:

8.8.8.8

8.8.4.4

208.67.222.222

208.67.220.220

The addresses in question are services that freely offer their own DNS, allowing the resolution of names in Internet addresses (DNS), automatically resolving the names corresponding to various host addresses typed in the browsers at the first query. Once pasted in the appropriate fields, click on the OK button and close the Network preferences window. The connection may have re-established.

Reset the PRAM settings

An additional solution could be to reset the computer’s PRAM. PRAM (Parameter Random-Access Memory) is a section of computer memory on which certain settings are stored (eg, the designated boot disk, monitor resolution, speaker volume, and other information). If for some reason, the PRAM area is corrupted, you can restore it using this procedure:

  1. turn off the Mac and then turn it on again;
  2. when the Mac is turned on and before the gray screen is displayed, press the following keys immediately on the keyboard: Option, Cmd (or “Apple”), P and R;
  3. hold the keys down until the Mac reboots and hear the startup sound for the second time. At this point you can release the keys and the computer will start normally with the restored PRAM.

Reset the SMC

If the PRAM reset does not work, you can try to reset the SMC, the system management controller. SMC is responsible for many low-level features of Intel-based Macs. These features include: battery management, some sensors, keyboard backlighting and more. The way to reset the system management controller varies according to the computer (if it’s a Mac with removable, non-removable battery or a MacPro, an iMac or a Mac Mini). To do this, follow the following steps:
If the battery is not removable:

  1. Choose Apple menu> Turn Off.
  2. When the Mac has turned off, press Shift-Ctrl-Option on the left side of the integrated keyboard, then press the power button at the same time. Hold these keys and the power button pressed for 10 seconds.
    If you have a MacBook Pro with Touch ID, the Touch ID button is also the power button.
  3. Release all the keys.
  4. Press the power button again to turn on the Mac.

If the battery is removable:

  1. Turn off the Mac.
  2. Remove the battery. If you need help removing the battery, contact an Apple Authorized Service Center or contact an Apple Store.
  3. Press and hold the power button for five seconds.
  4. Reinstall the battery.
  5. Press the power button again to turn on the Mac.

Other solutions

Some users report that they have managed to solve problems of connections to some routers by deactivating Bluetooth; it is an attempt that can be done but it is obviously not a suitable solution for those who need to use Bluetooth devices.

And if the router were the problem?

The connectivity problem could also depend directly on the modem-router. The first attempt to do is switch off and on again the router after about ten seconds. If the problem persists, the problem may depend on the channel used, or on the placement of the router.