Connection with Time Capsule dropping out constantly

Hello everyone,
I have a MBP with retina display running on the last version of OSX. I bought two weeks ago a Time Capsule 2TB. The intend of this last buy was to improve the strengh of my wireless connection. This did not happen as I found myself with a WIFI network slower than the one provided by my old modem, which was acquired from my DSL provider two years ago! Anyway, I was not too unhappy with having my TC as it meant that I could access it from anywhere and use it to back my MBP. I also use it to store my iTunes library. However, the wireless connection between my MBP and Time Capsule keeps dropping out. Listening to music is almost impossible and very frustating! Backing up takes forever! I would be happy to blame the distance between my MBP and the TC but that absolutely does not make any sense to me: I run FileBrowser on my IPAD2 and it plays music perfectly well from the same exact same distance. It seems a bit ridiculous to me!
Has anyone encountered the same problem? I am statring my MBP with retina display that I have already brought back to the apple store once!
Thank you for your help!

Question,...
Could my issue with connection dropping be because the MBP is trying to swap between 2.4 and 5 ?
Yes, they are designed to switch to the better band automagically.. voodoo black arts .. it does lead to issues.
The TC itself will swap channels automagically if there is interference.. so you have two items.. using voodoo to find the best channel and best band.
If you live in apartment building for instance surrounded by wireless.. the TC could be swapping constantly.
So there is no point.. turn off the auto swapping channels.. and change the 5ghz name to swap band swapping. At least to test.
Locking the TC channels,..do you mean channel 1, 2,3 ?
2.4 ghz has only 3 channels that do not overlap.. so it is useless testing 1,2,3 -- 11.
Test channel 1, 6, 11 pick the best of these.
Using 5ghz there are a greater number of bands.. it has poor range even though it suffers less interference.. so pick a channel near to 40.. I think that is a default.. and pick a high channel like 158.. exactly which doesn't matter.
So your TC is setup.. new name.. TC
Name for 2.4ghz wireless TC24ghz
Name for 5ghz wireless TC5ghz
(hard disk name should also have no spaces.. this is important for later OS like ML).
Set the wireless for each band to a channel.
wpa2 security.
See how it goes.
The fact is the TC could still be faulty or your MBPr.. but it is more likely setup is wrong. Or you live in an area of overwhelming wifi interference.

Similar Messages

My MacBook Pro (new 13") losses connection with Time Capsule.

My new Pro 13" will lose connection with Time Capsule every day. I also back up a MacBook Air (about 1 year old) that maintains connection. If I reboot Time Capsule the Pro will connect and backup to it but will lose the connection the next day. Does anyone have any idea how to address this?

You may want to take your question to the Time Capsule forum - while all of us here use MacBook Pros, the real Time Capsule experts hang out on that forum.
Good luck,
Clinton

Devices (iPad, iPhone) no longer can maintain wifi connectivity with time capsule

My iPad and iPhone can no longer maintain wifi connectivity with time capsule. Time capsule has connectivity to internet via Macbook, but not other devices. This started after upgrade of devices to s/w 6.0. Does anyone know if that could impact connectivity?

Yes, this is often reported with iOS 6.. there are definitely more wireless problems.
I recommend you reset the TC in the following ways.
1. Change all names to SMB type.. ie short, no spaces and pure alphanumeric.. that includes the TC itself, wireless and hard disk. I recommend a different name for 5ghz so you can force clients to that band without auto voodoo affecting it.
2. Use WPA2 Personal security only.. 8-12 character pure alphanumeric passkey.
3. Lock the wireless channels.. particularly for 2.4ghz.. pick one of the channels, out of 1, 6, 11 as these are the only ones that do not overlap.. test each in turn for the best and most stable. TC should pick the best itself but that is voodoo and I am preferring to run the system without black arts.

Inconsistent connectivity with time capsule

wifi connection with time capsule inconsistent. Works for a while then stops, minute later I can connect. wifi signals at work and other locations works fine no interruptions. i work usually very close to router

There is a ton of wireless interference on the 2.4 GHz wireless channels....cordless phones, other wireless networks, electronics, wireless camera/security systems....the list goes on and on.
Hold down the option key on your Mac and click on the fan shaped AirPort icon at the top of your screen. Check to see what Channel you are connecting to. If it is a channel between 1 and 11, you are trying to use the over crowded, interference plagued, 2.4 GHz band.
The 5 GHz band has far fewer networks and might be worth a shot if you are trying to use the 2.4 GHz band now. Or, if you are using the 2.4 GHz band now....and you have a cordless phone anywhere near your Time Capsule or computer, move it as far away as possible.
Post back on your results of your channel test and we'll discuss some possible options.

Dropping connection with Time Capsule?

So, now that we have a new router - is anyone still have the connection drop out on them like AirPort Extreme was causing that plagued a lot of users? I haven't seen any comments on any of the usual mac boards that would suggest that random drop outs having been fixed somehow with Time Capsule.

Time Capsule has been one giant headache for me. It worked well with my MBP, but not my iMac. I'm constantly getting network drops, making the initial backup take forever. I got it friday morning and now it's Sat night and it still has not completed the initial backup (given it is about 200gigs of backup). It got quite a bit backed up at first and then dropped the connection. It kept what it had originally backed up, but since then, it doesn't seem to want to remember the progress it's making between each network drop. Also once I was moving a simple 5mb file from one computer to another and it took nearly 10-15mins. It hasn't done that since, thankfully. I was so excited about this product and now I'm severally let down. Apple needs to fix this network stability problems for their iMac C2Ds. It's getting frustrating, especially since I've ripped my DVD collection to an external HD and trying to use it as a media server to play off my PS (but obviously this won't work if the network keeps dropping out on me). I've used iStumbler and the network is always between 75-80% with less than 15% noise too, so the signal is fine. It's just for some reason iMac don't seem to want to hold on to their signal. I've even switched to keep a constant Channel vs using the Automatic setting, and I'm still getting drops (although much less frequently). I think I'm going to keep Time Capsule and giver it a while to see if the issues get worked out, but I may take it back if I can't get my stuff backed up and the network stable within the return period.

I want to backup an external hard drive connected with time capsule

What to do? I want a macbook air but realise that the storage is limited. I want to have en external HDD connected through time capsule or similar to access storage "wirelessly". I want everything backed up automatically through time capsule. I understand time capsule does not back up connected external HDDs unfortunately. If it did my problem would be solved. How should I do? Can a two time capsule solution be possible where one is used för storage and the other for time machine also backing up time capsule nr 1?
I do not want to loose all my photos! They won´t fit a macbook air... I have tried "crash plan" wich is one of many ckoud solutions to try and take care of all my hundreds of GBs but it doesn´t work well. Takes forever to backup and it keeps loosing contact with the external HDD i have connected through the time capsule.
This must be a very common need but I find no good solutions?!
Thanks!

You are right.. there is no decent solution from Apple..
You need a proper NAS.. not a backup target for TM.. which is what the TC is.
Look at Synology and QNAP.. they are not cheap but will work fine with Macs, TM even although it can be messy setting up. But the real NAS will auto backup to a USB drive.. plus the raid system offers protection against a dead drive.
Some people use a Mac Mini as a server.. (you don't need server version OS on it).. but the disk expansion is going to cost you as much as the true NAS.

Clear net connectivity with time capsule/home network

So Chicago has a new ISP - Clear. It is a wireless provider that boasts download speeds up to 12mbps. I have been using ATT DSL elite pro with time capsule as my wireless hub. I have extended my network via airport express and have two that power speakers/home entertainment system.
I have it up and running and connected directly from their router to my iMac. I would like to attach the motorola wireless router to my current home network that runs between the timecapsule and two airport expresses.
Any help would be appreciated. As well your opinions on choice of wireless ISPs vs home dsl line.
Thanks
Jenn

From your description, it sounds like you could swap the Clear modem and the AT&T modem/router. Power down your entire network for a moment. Then start the Clear modem first and let it run for 3-4 minutes, then start the Time Capsule, then Expresses and computers.
If you get a blinking amber light on the Time Capsule, check your settings as follows using AirPort Utility. It's located as follows: Hard Drive > Applications > Utilities > AirPort Utility
Click Manual Setup and then click the Internet icon at top of the setup page
At the bottom of the next page, look for the Connection Sharing setting. If I understand the Clear info correctly, you would set this to "Share a public IP address"
I notice that Clear has online tech support, so you make need to refer to them as well. Please post back on your progress.

Adsl connection with time capsule

Hi all, I want to know if feasible connect my time capsule to Internet thru ADSL modem, seems is not capable to recognise my USB modem (ZTEMF180)...how can i do to fix this trouble?
Rgds, Jorge

The Time Capsule can only connect to a modem using an Ethernet connection. Connect from the modem to the WAN port on the Time Capsule using a standard Ethernet cable of any length that you want.

Issues with Time Capsule- Dropping connection daily

I own a 1TB Time Capsule and use it to store backups and my iTunes library. I have a large library, and I wanted to have a dedicated drive to store all of my songs so they could be accessed by both my PC and MacBook, so I was pointing in this direction at the Apple Store.
When trying to move files over to the TC from my Macbook, my Macbook will often freeze, and the TC can no longer be found, along with my wireless network. The light remains green, but it is unusable unless it is unplugged from the wall and plugged back in. This has happened daily for the past few weeks, but today has happened 5 times in the past hour.
It most commonly happens when I am adding songs to my iTunes Library, both from CDs and from files. It should be noted that, when the TC goes down, I also can't access the internet on my PC, which has an ethernet cord from my TC plugged in.
I'd appreciate any help whatsoever - this is starting to get very irritating.
Thanks!

Hi I had similar problems. I moved houses got my own cable modem and tried to use the TC as my wireless, as i had it in my other home. The connection would drop constantly and i was unable to use the TC as a wireless device, it would also freeze my computer (mac book Pro). After asking everyone for help i found that when i moved the TC next to the cable modem in the garage it all worked. Apparently the ethernet cable that ran from the garage to the living room was only using 4 of the 8 pins and thus was dropping the connection. i am now connected directly from the modem to the tc and it has not failed yet (cross my fingers). After all this was suppose to be wireless and thus i don't need to have it right next to my computer. The signal is strong and it has not caused any problems. I didn't mess with the settings after i did a hard reset on the TC. So far so good. hopes this helps.

SOLVED: Dropped connections with Time Capsule and cable modem/router

I've been dealing with random dropped connections for quite a while and I thought that it would be useful to share what I've found.
I was having a very puzzling problem where my internet connection would drop randomly on wireless devices. On my laptop, webpages would suddenly become unresponsive for a minute or two, Mail would have connection problems and complain, etc...but incredibly randomly and definitely not repeatable or in any pattern that I noticed.
I also have 2 Nest thermostats in the house which connect via wi-fi. I noticed that they would randomly show Offline very often when viewed from a webpage or iPhone app, but the Nest front panels showed that they were connected with a strong signal.
As I said, the dropped connections were very sporadic. Most of the time, everything worked, but every once in a while...bam.
I worked with the level 3 tech support guys at Nest for over a week to figure out what was going on. We went through settings on my router and Time Capsule and everything seemed proper and okay. I even replaced the Nests with new ones but still had the same problem. We were all completely stumped.
Yesterday, my laptop dropped it's connection at the same time my wife's laptop dropped hers. At this point, I wondered if something was wrong with the Time Capsule or maybe my internet provider.
I called AppleCare to see if they could help with debugging the problem. They passed me up to a senior wi-fi tech and he asked me many questions about the configuration of my network. My home network looked like this yesterday (see crappy diagram below)
                                                     Motorola Cable modem/router
                                                                             |
                                                       Netgear multiport switch
                                                      |          |         |         |          |
                                                     hardwired Macs,            TimeCapsule (bridge mode)
                                                     laser printers,                   |   |   |   |   |
                                                      Apple TVs                       laptops, Nest, iphones
This configuration seemed correct to me. The Time Capsule in bridge mode would mean that the cable modem/router would be handling DHCP so all the devices would be on the same network and I could print from a laptop to one of my printers and the laptops could connect to the hardwired Macs, etc..
The AppleCare technician said he thought that bridge mode was the problem. He mentioned that there was a known issue that in this configuration, the IP addresses could get lost between the cable modem/router and the Time Capsule. He said it would be best if the Time Capsule was in DHCP/NAT mode and the first device before the switch, this way the Time Capsule was the only device passing out IP addresses.
So I repatched my network like this:
                                                   Motorola Cable modem/router
                                                                             |
                                                   TimeCapsule (DHCP/NAT mode)
                                                            |                                       |   |   |   |   |
                                    Netgear multipart switch                      laptops, Nest, iphones
                                         |         |         |        |
                                           hardwired Macs,
                                             laser printers,
                                               Apple TVs
I can tell you that in the past 24 hours, I haven't seen anything lose a connection. Not even the Nests which seemed be on and off all the time. And, in this configuration, all the devices are on the same network and able to speak to each other.
I hope that helps someone.

So you're saying that Bridge Mode not functioning properly is a well known issue?
Not to me.. I have not had issues with the TC in bridge. And it is my prefered setup. I think it is better as a wireless AP and network hard disk than a router any day of the week.. but there are other ways to skin the cat if it is proving unreliable. I am at the moment using a wireless bridge from the Gen4 TC to a Gen4 AE upstairs for TV internet streaming.. it started off very reliable.. but of late I guess I need to reboot it every few days. And it has required a full reset two or three times.. although I probably need to take some of the blame for those. I am not over worried.. i do not believe in wireless bridges except for the most interim of arrangements.. it will be wired in ethernet ASAP.
Wireless should always be used in a way that respects its status as voodoo.. not stable technology. NOT SCIENCE.. it is more a bag of beads and rattles.
Is there a way to change the cable modem/router to avoid the double NAT problem?
The answer to this may depend on your ISP. Did they provide the modem? If so they may lock it down so you have no control. But normally a Motorola cable modem will not have a bridge mode as such but will have a method of turning off NAT.. (and wireless).. this amounts to the same thing.
Once you turn off NAT.. you need to power cycle the modem so the TC gets the public IP in router mode. The power cycle time might be 5min or 20min or overnight.. it again depends on your ISP.. but you need to stop the modem capturing the public IP so it can be passed to the modem.
Depending on where you are in the world.. US is most concentration of cable network.. you can go out and buy your own modem. Pick one on your ISP list and steer clear of SB.. at least with the apple routers they are problematic.
It also can be a case that the cable modem is SB model and therefore more problematic. Sorry I have forgotten the recommendation for what to buy. There are a number of posts here about it but search is terrible now. (or I am too old to figure it out). I will get Bob to poke his nose in and tell you what works for him.

Losing connection with Time Capsule

I have two Macs, one two year old MacBook and one 4 months MacBook Air, both connected with WiFi to my new TC 2 Tb.
Both computers loses connection with TC quite often, but not necessarely at the same time. If I shut down airport and turn it back on everything works again.
When connection drops I can't access the TC with the Airport program and we also can't find any networks at all when moving the cursor over the airport symbol in the menu bar. The airport symbol however states that I 'm still connected to my TC. BUT I can't connect with the TC through finder when this happens...
In the network diagnosis the bottom three test are marked as red, (internet supplier, internet, server) but the top three are markes as green,
I know this is not a major problem since I don't have to do any reboots, but it annays the **** out of me. Is the problem related to my Time Capsule or is it a problem with the Airport software?
I run Snow Leopard on the Macbook and Lion on the Macbook air.

I have two Macs, one two year old MacBook and one 4 months MacBook Air, both connected with WiFi to my new TC 2 Tb.
Both computers loses connection with TC quite often, but not necessarely at the same time. If I shut down airport and turn it back on everything works again.
When connection drops I can't access the TC with the Airport program and we also can't find any networks at all when moving the cursor over the airport symbol in the menu bar. The airport symbol however states that I 'm still connected to my TC. BUT I can't connect with the TC through finder when this happens...
In the network diagnosis the bottom three test are marked as red, (internet supplier, internet, server) but the top three are markes as green,
I know this is not a major problem since I don't have to do any reboots, but it annays the **** out of me. Is the problem related to my Time Capsule or is it a problem with the Airport software?
I run Snow Leopard on the Macbook and Lion on the Macbook air.

Lost connection with Time Capsule (Office for Mac programmes run down)

My colleague and I work at the office with 2 Macbooks. Both are connected wirelessly to the Time Capsule, which we use as a shared hard disk. We use Office 2008 for Mac. Now Word and Excel run down often after of little things like doing a search or cutting and pasting. I get the spinning ball can only do a forced quit to end the program. This is frustrating and time consuming!
A friend told me to change my UID, cause my colleague and I both have the same UID (501) at our Macbooks. He downloaded Server Admin Tools to change my UID into 1001 with Work Group Manager. But when I arrived at the office this morning I didn't have a connection with the Time Capsule. To be able to work I changed the UID back to 501 again (but now I can't open excel document inless I drag them to the hard disk of my Macbook).
The friend is not a Apple professional so he doens’t know how to help me anymore. Does anyone else have a suggestion?

Temporarily, try connecting an Ethenret cable from your Mac to one of the LAN <-> ports on the Time Capsule
Open AirPort Utility and Click Manual Setup
Click on the word "Status" (2nd Line) and a window will open to with information about why the light is flashing amber

Can't establish internet connection with Time Capsule

I currently have a wireless Linksys router and have switch over to TC. I've connected my cable modem internet connection to the internet connection of the Time Capsule, however, with the Airport Utility it states that I do not have a valid IP Address. I've check under the Manual setting for Internet and ensured that the connection says "share a public IP address", but that does not work. Any ideas?

Did you remember to completely reset your cable modem and power cycle the network?
Push the reset button on the modem (if present)
Power the modem down
Pull the batttery (if easily accessible)
Power down every device on the network....order is not important
Wait at least 15-20 minutes
Make sure that you have the Ethernet cable from the modem connected to the WAN port (world icon) on the Time Capsule, and re-install the battery if it was pulled in the steps above
Power up the modem and let it run for 4-5 minutes by itself
Power up the Time Capsule the same way
Continue powering up devices one at a time about a minute apart until the network is powered back up
Check network operation

Super slow internet connection with time capsule.

Time Capsule wireless internate speed is insanely slow its super anoying, i have 15mb from comcast, and speedtest its scoring under 3.5mb down and 0.06mb up with a ping of 1025ms yees 1025ms this is unacceptable its almost impossible to use the internet please i need some help.

How can I get my time capsule to work like it used to?
Your TC is too old.. the power supply is on the edge of dying. The hard disk is probably also on its last legs..
The wireless card itself might be nearing EOL.. it is now 4years old.. or a bit more.. most stuff now is really not made to last more than 3years.. and the early TC tended to die in droves at 2years.
If you are prepared for some DIY.. you can fix it.
https://sites.google.com/site/lapastenague/a-deconstruction-of-routers-and-modem s/apple-time-capsule-repair/repair-type3
I have several suggestions. At various prices and difficulty.
I would replace the hard drive.. it is out of warranty and has run in a super hot environment that is outside its spec.. and still it refused to die.. at the very least run a full pass erase from the disk utility, and see if error come up or the drive is slow. It might be weak read areas of the drive.
Frankly .. unless you like the challenge, it is simply time for a new one.

Airport extreme losing wireless connection with Time Capsule

I have a 1st gen Time Capsule acting as my home wireless network base station which is configured to allow the wireless network to be extended. It is also the sole DHCP server. I have a 4th gen Airport Extreme in Extend a Wireless network mode. Everything was running ok for several months. However, since I upgraded both devices to Version 7.6, the Airport extreme keeps losing its connection with the network every few hours, requiring a daily reboot. Since the problem occured, I have disabled MAC address Access Control on the Time Capsule, and allocated a reserved DHCP IP address for the Airport Extreme - but this has not solved the problem.
Does anyone have any ideas?

I had exactly the same problem. I also think it's a bug in 7.6. It seemed solved by downgrading my Time Capsule (TC) and my Airport Extreme (AE) to 7.5.2. To do so start the Airport Utility (in your /Applications/Utilities folder). Double click on the TC or AE. In the Menu at the top on your screen go to "Base Station" --> "Upload Firmware..." and the select 7.5.2. After rebooting your device, downgrade the other. Hopefully your problem is solved as well!

Connection with Time Capsule dropping out constantly

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