Airport crashes computer running off battery

Question

This issue has been moved from "Wireless Internet stops working"
Posts: 11
Registered: May 25, 2007
Re: Wireless Internet stops working
Posted: Jun 22, 2007 7:26 AM in response to: squirrelofsnooze Reply Email
I'm having similar issue after upgrade to 10.4.10. My mbp is practically new, only a few weeks old. Originally thought it was Safari and flash problem but it also happens in Firefox. Went to genius bar, in log they saw problem with airport. they said it was problem at my home wireless since computer seemed to work ok in store, though we did not have it connected to internet very long in the store and store is open net, not closed.
when i got home and started browsing, my computer crashed twice, in both Safari and Firefox. It would have connection for a few minutes and then crash. (screen slowly turning gray and then prompt to restart). I ran internet connect diagnostic and it said i was not connected even though i had strong signal on icon. i could see internet connect icon in dock switching from ethernet to wireless (no ethernet cable connected). I did the diagnostic wizard thing and got a prompt that my WEP was not in the keychain and if i would always allow it to connect for diagnostic. I entered always and entered wep for keychain. I have not had a crash since but admittedly I have not had time to really put it to a test. Also, I have been helping it along by launching internet connect along with whatever browser in an effort to wake up both the airport card and the wireless router. I don't think you should have to launch internet connect to start or keep a connection going, but it seems to be working for me so far.
I'm open to more suggestions myself since i'm not so sure the issue is solved yet.
jim
MPB c2d, 2.33/2g Mac OS X (10.4.10)
jawood
Posts: 1
From: CA
Registered: Jun 22, 2007
Re: Wireless Internet stops working
Posted: Jun 22, 2007 8:43 AM in response to: jmitro Reply Email
My MBP has been running like a champ since I bought it in March. However, I started having the same exact problem after I updated yesterday.
I find that if I am on battery power I can only maintain a wireless connection for 2-5 minutes. AirPort shows that I am connected, but I cannot access webpages or email. If I turn off AirPort and turn it back on sometimes I get reconnected to the internet. The other times my computer crashes and I get the slow gray screen that tells me to reboot.
Strangely, if I stay plugged in to power I have none of these problems. I would therefore assume that yesterday's update somehow effected the power settings for my wireless card. However, all of the settings I can find look good to me. I am a Mac "newbie." Is there any way to go back to remove an update or go back to a previous system set up? I live about an hour from the nearest Apple store, so I am hoping to avoid a trip to the Genius Bar. Suggestions?
Joe
MacBookPro Mac OS X (10.4.10)
jmitro
Posts: 11
Registered: May 25, 2007
Re: Wireless Internet stops working
Posted: Jun 22, 2007 8:54 AM in response to: jawood Reply Email
joe,
thanks for the heads up on the power supply. that could have had more to do with my own solution than the wep and the launching of internet connect. my battery was running low and i did plug it in about the same time i was working on the connection. when i get a chance, i'll see if i can duplicate what you've experienced re power supply. we may have the same issue and maybe we'll be able to narrow it down. i'm close to an apple store and it's easy for me to drop in after work on the way home. i may be able to save you a trip. i'll report back later next week as i'll be out of town over the weekend.
jim
MPB C2D, 2.33/2g Mac OS X (10.4.10)
Joe,
I have duplicated what you reported about computer working fine plugged in but crashes when running off battery. I will try to get in to the Apple store on Monday or Tuesday. In meantime I guess we need to stay plugged in.
jim
17 MBP C2D 2.33Ghz 2G   Mac OS X (10.4.10)  

Answer 1

I drove over to my nearest Apple store today and naturally the problem wouldn't appear while I was in the store. The Genius took a look at my error logs and could see the problem I was having, but he didn't really have a fix for me. He did suggest rebooting from the CDs that came with my computer to reinstall the operating system if I kept having kernal panics.
Of course, when I got home the problem reappeared when I was running on battery power...my computer also had another kernal panic. Part of me started to wonder if it is a problem with my wireless router. However, I also have a MacBook still running 10.4.9 and it isn't having any problems nor is my PC laptop.
I finally gave up and plugged in the power supply. Since no one at the Apple store seems to be able to fix my problem I am hoping the "software update gods" find the error with this week's update and release a fix. Otherwise, I am going to have to dig out those CDs. How hard is it to reinstall the operating system? It sounds daunting.