Airport Signal Varies

Sometimes my airport (snow) signal being used with a G4 Powerbook varies to the point where I lose contact to the internet. Can anyone tell me what causes that to happen? And is there anything I can do to prevent this from occurring?
Betty
Powerbook G4 Mac OS X (10.2.x)

I am having what I think is a similar problem, although my problem is more related to a complete loss of signal. I am starting to think, from what I am reading in other posts here, that it is something related to 10.4.3, as the problem I am experiencing began after installing the 10.4.3 update. Do you know if the PowerBook has 10.4.3? Also, do you have and/or are you using something prior to 10.4.3 on possibly any other, unaffected machines? You can read the post about my problems at the following 2 links:
From Apple's AirPort Discussion Forums (here):
Topic: HELP! AirPort Signal "Suddenly" Sporadic on iMac G4
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=264690&tstart=0
From the Mac OS X Hints Forums:
http://forums.macosxhints.com/showthread.php?t=48498
Please let me know the problem you have is similar to the one I have, and if you have 10.4.3 on the PowerBook. In advance, thank you.

Similar Messages

Airport signal strength varies a lot

On my Mac Mini the Airport signal strength goes up and down. Sometimes I have 4 bars, sometimes 0. Also I often lose the connection when I restart or wake up the computer and then I have to do something manually to connect, either turn off and on airport or go into airport preferences and click apply or manually reconnect by typing in the network name and password.
I have a closed/invisible Airport network with WPA2 Personal encryption. I have an Airport Extreme on the ground floor and extend the network by an Airport Express on the first floor. The Mac Mini is situated about half a meter from the Express.
I don't have this problem with any of my other 4 Macs. The other Macs are usually on the ground floor but when I take my laptop up to the living room where the Mini and Express are I also get good signal strength even though I'm further away from the Express than the Mini is.

So the problem is that you're not getting/staying connected now, when you had no problems with 10.5.6 before?
There was an update for AirPort and AirPort Extreme and Time Capsule firmware in mid-2009 --> http://support.apple.com/kb/dl849
There was also a March 2009 update for AirPort Client on 10.5.6, but I would assume that you got that one already.
The 'bars' on the menubar AirPort icon may not be most reliable method of judging your wireless connection. When you have AirPort turned on, click on Option + the AirPort icon to see the RSSI
There are specialized programs that provide far more complete information, including channel, signal strength, and noise level of wireless routers in the vicinity.
www.koingosw.com offers a 15-day free trial of AirRadar. I'm a licensed user of AirRadar 1.2.9. It gives a better picture of a wireless connection.

Imac 24-Why does my airport signal keep changing??

my airport signal keeps changing??
right next to my imac i have my powerbook 17
and it's signal is full...where my IMac signal is not??
signal on my imac is 2 bars from full most of the time!!
is this a IMAC thing or what??

No real help but this is a common problem for c2d machines it seems. They have the new "n" protocol wireless card in which willl be faster and further than the g with the new apple extreme base station. It will also be very good for streaming video (iTV). This is just consolation for an iffy wireless link. These boards have many threads on this topic (eg macbook pro area). Do a search any you will find the others with the problem and maybe a solution.
Cheers

When iBook G4 wakes up, it drops Airport signal temporarily

My wife and I both have iBook G4s and we share the same Airport Extreme network. We have the most current software updates. When her iBook wakes up after being asleep, it temporarily drops the Airport signal. The signal reappears within a few seconds, but it takes 10-15 seconds to actually be able to access a website. Until then it comes up as "unavailable," which suggests the computer is logging into the network every time it wakes up, and that's the delay.
My laptop doesn't have this problem. It keeps the signal when it falls asleep. What might be causing this problem with hers?

Thanks for the link. When I started working through the process, I remembered that I had changed the "by default join" setting from "Automatic" to "Preferred Networks" a while back. I was having trouble with my laptop joining networks I didn't want it to. So I did some research and shifted to "Preferred Networks" and removed the networks I was unintentionally joining. My guess is it is this change, and not the 10.4.11 upgrade that caused my issue.
When I realized this, I didn't finish the steps on the link. I just changed back to "Automatic" and that seems to have taken care of it. If I find I'm having trouble with the Automatic setting, I'll try removing my encrypted network and then adding it back in, as suggested in the article.
Thanks so much.
kabing

Ibook drops airport signal, have to reboot iBook to get AE signal back,

my powerbook is working fine and the AE light is always green, but my iBook drops the AE signal whenever it goes to sleep. upon wakeup the airport is on but no signal and I have to reboot the computer to get the signal back strong even though it's fine on the powerbook. all updates, firmware etc. done. any ideas?

You might want to try resetting the PMU. It has some control over sleep and wake issues.
Read about the nightly maintenance routines that run if a Mac running OS X is not shut down or allowed to sleep in this Apple Knowledge Base article:
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=107388
If you set the iBook (in Energy Saver Preferences) to just sleep the display (and leave it plugged in at night and open), these routines can run and she won't lose the AirPort signal, either.
I only close mine when I'm going to put it in its bag and take it somewhere (in that case, it would lose the AirPort signal anyway).
Maybe the PMU reset will do the trick for you and she won't have to use it the way I use mine (if she doesn't want to).

Airport Signal stays low on imac g5 isight,even with new card.

I am a fairly new user in the mac world & until now have had no problems.
However the problem I have is a poor Airport signal mainly two bar droping to one,occassionally the signal gets stronger,this has only just started during the last couple of months.I really noticed the problem when downloading podcasts,as it began to download,then froze & ultimately lead to the internet connection timing out.I contacted the local store who have always helped me before they took the imac in,tried everything finaly putting in a new card,this worked fine in their shop but again didn't at home.My son has a imac g3 next to mine also on the wireless network & his signal is full strength.My machine is back at the shop where they are now going to try a new antenna.As you can see from my post I am not very technical but has anyone had any similar problems & found any different answers.

I did not see resetting PRAM mentioned yet, so if not done already, do that
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1379
plus this procedure to reset SMU (power management)
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1767
Be sure to follow it precisely. When you reconnect the power cord, if you are using a crowded or old power strip, connect it directly to a wall outlet for this test. Power it up with nothing connected except power cord and once it starts up, connect only your keyboard/mouse (no other USB/FireWire peripherals). Try using it that way to see if the problem still recurs.
The only other suggestion I have is, if you have a external FireWire drive that you can erase (or create a small partition on), install a fresh Leopard installation on it. Start up from it and see if this problem still recurs.
Alternately, back up your data, erase (re-partition and reformat) the interal drive, and reinstall Leopard on the internal drive, then give it a try. If you clone (using Carbon Copy Cloner or SuperDuper) to an external FireWire drive as your backup, you can still boot from your current installation (on the external drive). If the fresh installation test does NOT work, you can clone your clone back to the internal drive. If it does work with a fresh installation, you can keep using it and transfer just your user data back from the clone.

Weak Airport signal strength after MacBook upgrade to OS 10.5

Today, I finally upgraded my 13-inch 2.16 GHz Core 2 Duo MacBook (2 gig RAM, 160 gig HD) to OS 10.5 from OS 10.4.11. After using install and archive to install the new system, I noticed the Airport signal was down to three bars from the usual four. After completing all the system updates to bring it up to 10.5.8, its still receiving only three bars. We're using a 2Wire wireless DSL modem for Internet service. I was getting the full four bars before the system upgrade, and my wife's 14" G4 iBook is still getting four bars.
What's going on here? Is there an available fix for this? Or am I doomed to going back to OS 10.4.11?
Roger

rmatile wrote:
Today, I finally upgraded my 13-inch 2.16 GHz Core 2 Duo MacBook (2 gig RAM, 160 gig HD) to OS 10.5 from OS 10.4.11. After using install and archive to install the new system, I noticed the Airport signal was down to three bars from the usual four. After completing all the system updates to bring it up to 10.5.8, its still receiving only three bars. We're using a 2Wire wireless DSL modem for Internet service. I was getting the full four bars before the system upgrade, and my wife's 14" G4 iBook is still getting four bars.
Those bars are only an approximation of Wi-Fi signal strength. In Mac OS X 10.5 if you pull down the AirPort menu bar item while holding down an option key you'll see a value "RSSI", which is the actual signal strength. If you were using an AirPort base station, you could use AirPort Utility to see actual signal and noise levels.
In Mac OS X 10.4 I don't think that option key trick works, but you should be able to use the AirPort command-line utility, as describe in the electronic book "Take Control of Your 802.11n AirPort Network" (http://www.takecontrolbooks.com/airport-n):
- Launch Terminal
- Type this command:
cd /System/Library/PrivateFrameworks/\
Apple80211.framework/Versions/Current/Resources/
- Type this command:
./airport -s
You'll see the "RSSI" value in one of the columns. If you compare the "RSSI" values for both OS versions, you may find the "RSSI" values more similar than the AirPort menu bar arcs suggest.
I have no financial connection to Take Control Books.

Airport signal becomes MUCH worse after 10.4.7 update?

Airport signal in 10.4.7 is 50% of what it was in 10.4.6. It also now cuts in and out. What changed?
And how can one go back to the good signals and stable reception under 10.4.6?
Mac OS X (10.4.7)

Yes, I'm noticing the same. It first hits 4 bars,
but then goes down to 2 after a minute or so. Then
it drops in and out consistently.
Am trying to find a solution before I kick something.
I switched my settings on internet to 802.11b, and now I have great connection on all my computers...b ... not g/b or g.It has been steady for a month now. Cheers

Airport signal good with no internet???

So my airport signal is full as a guest user at school. My firewall is off and system says I'm connected to the internet - but the page never loads... I never had a problem, then one day it just stopped working! I have to log on to Aruba while on campus, so I contacted them and they said my computer is the problem, not the network. No Norton installed here...what is the problem!! Please help me!

Nope it wasn't the kerberos stuff... my OS version is uptodate - 10.5.8... but this post is the answer for me - towards the bottom of the post- search for adhoc....
http://discussions.apple.com/message.jspa?messageID=8879400
the answer in that my configd was signed by "adhoc"... I replaced the configd from a time machine backup, like suggested, now it is signed proper and so far so good...
And yes this is less than half year old macbook... apples aren't supposed to have this trouble BUT I've learned not to panic and spend too much time... not reloading OS's etc... just do the 15 minute search and try things and overall not bad relative to my old windows experiences...

Airport signal blinking and others WIFI problems

I have a serious problem with my MacBook Pro. The WIFI signal is pretty weak compared to my old iBook or PowerMac G5, and sometimes, the Airport signal is lost and the Airport signal goes from 5 bars to 0, like a blinking.
I have this message in the Console " Feb 2 21:57:27 ordinateur-de- /System/Library/PrivateFrameworks/Apple80211.framework/Resources/airport: Error: WirelessAssociate2() = 88001006 for network Airport. The operation timed out. "
I have no problem with the iBook or the PM G5 on the same WIFI network.
What can I do ?

if you are having a reception issue, you may be having some sort of environmental interference.
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=58543
also, you can organize your network ports to have airport as your primary. this may help
open system preferences > network
- change the Show: to network port configuration
- drag airport to the top of the list
- click apply now , in bottom right
- restart
hope this helps

HT201974 What Key combo is used to see extended info regarding my airport signal?

Can someone tell me the key combinations used to allow me to see extended info regarding my airport signal when I click on airport icon in menubar? things like security key, transmit rate, etc.
I remmeber it being a combination of keys using command button and then left clicking on the aiport icon in the menubar.
Thanks
RezF

Hold down the option key on your Mac while you click on the AirPort icon at the top of the screen.

Airport signal strength for 2008 mac pro

Hello everyone,
So, I have a 2008 Mac Pro 3.0Ghz. I read on some of the threads that the airport signal is kind of weak due to the aluminum case. Is this true on all the mac pros, or only on some? I plan to get rid of the USB wireless adapter and use the internal airport option.
Thanks,

The internal airport is way better, you'll be a lot happier. I had problems recently when I updated from 10.5.5 to 5.7, but after upgrading my wireless router firmware, I've actually got a stronger signal than before~
People having issues, should check with their router as well. It's not always the card, even if a different computer is getting a great connection. I think it's a case by case kinda thing.
Anyway Highly recommended

Poor Airport Signal

I have a macbook pro with Mac OS 10.4.11, and I have noticed extremely low airport signals on my laptop. I thought maybe that it was always the routers I was using, because my laptop is in perfect condition, and i had not changed anything on it. But I know that it is my Laptop because I have a router in the room next to me, and the signal strength bars remain at 2-3, when they should be full. Also, I am a university student, and in my classrooms I can see other people on their Mac AND windows laptops, and they are all browsing the web easily, while my laptop wont even pick up a signal, and if it does it will be for 2-3 seconds.
The range is supposed to be 150 feet for my airport, and i am no more than 15 feet away from my router with a 3/4 full signal strength. pitiful.
can anyone help? I know others have been having the same problem as me. Will Apple do anything about this if my warranty is expired?

Hi eraserface, and a warm welcome to the forums!
First thing to do is check for a loose or frayed Antenn, or loose card.
There are some USB options that'd be cheaper than a repair though...
http://www.afterthemac.com/product.php?id=Mac%20USB%20Wireless%20G54SL
http://eshop.macsales.com/Item_XLR8YourMac.cfm?ID=8862&Item=ASUWL167G

When I answer my vonage voip phone I loose my Airport signal.

Since I've installed Snow Leopard OS, everytime I answer my home phone which is Vonage Voip, I loose my Airport signal on my MacBook. It has to be related to the OS, because my other laptop which is PC works fine with the phone in use and the same Airport network.
Has anyone else encountered this issue?

This is strange. Your Vonage phone using a small Vonage router with an Ethernet and an RJ11 port that connects a phone cable to a regular phone. All voip on the net is UDP, not TCP/IP.
I am trying to understand how you network is set up. Is it from some kind of modem (cable, DSL or something else) to a wireless router. What router is that router? Then you have the Vonage router connect to an Ethernet port on the wireless router. Then the phone connects to the Vonage router's phone port. Is this correct?
I am just wondering if your wireless router is trumping all traffic for that UDP traffic generate by the Vonage router.

Macbook - Constant Poor Airport Signal

Hi guys,
I've had my macbook for about 5 years now, and in the last 3-4 months i've been having some annoying issues with my airport connectivity, i've finally decided to try and sort this out! The problem is that my macbook has become terrible at picking up airport signal... whereas other computers, ipads, xbox 360 and such can pick up the signal absolutely fine, I have to move very close to the hub to get any signal at all. Now for example I am sitting about 3-4 meters away from the hub and I am getting 1-2 bars! ***!!
Its not anything to do with the network as I have tried in several different locations and with the same results... no signal unless I have literally right next the the airport sender box thingy (hub). Could it be something to do with the software? Or perhaps the airport card is playing up? If so can I get a new card?
Any help would be greatly appreciated....
I guess a system spec would also be helpful so I have:
Processor: 2GHz Intel Core Duo
Memory: 2 GB 667MHz DDR2 SDRAM
Operating System: 10.4.11
Airport Card Info:
Card type: Airport Extreme (0x168C, 0x86)
Wireless Card Locale: Worldwide
Wireless Card Firmware Version: 1.4.4

Hi Dillweed
Here are some options that might help:
- Restarting the router
- Creating a new location (see below)
At 5 years old, it's possible your AirPort card is on its way out. If you can't afford to change it then you could try:
- Connecting with an Ethernet cable (always gives the best connections and faster speeds!)
- Buying a USB wireless dongle.
Bob
PS: Creating a new "Location":
System Preferences > Network
Select the AirPort from the left hand side
Click on the Locations combo box and select Edit Locations...
Click on + to add a new location, call it "Home" (or anything else you prefer)
Click on Advanced
Select the AirPort tab and enter your network name
Select TCP/IP tab.
Configure IPv4 Using DHCP
Now click on Renew DHCP Lease. After a few seconds you should get an IP address (probably 192.168.x.x)
Click on Proxies tab.
Select Auto Proxy Discovery and Use Passive FTP
Click on OK and Apply, etc.

Airport Signal Varies

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