Faulty airport card or interference-how to troubleshoot

Knock on wood, my problems from this past spring having the network drops that seem to still be plaguing many are gone. However, I have an almost as annoying problem.
We have moved into a new home and have AT&T Uverse service using a 2Wire 3800HGV-B Gateway. This whole "Uverse" marketing thing is a bit of a black box to me, but I believe this Gateway also handles my digital TV. I have a Lingo VOIP adapter plugged into it as well.
I have 3 Macs in my household, all with airport cards installed: iMac G4 running 10.3.9, iMac Intel 2 Core Duo running 10.5.3, and my beloved MacbookPro Intel Core Duo running 10.4.11.
Unfortunately, my MacbookPro has intermittently doggish internet speeds compared to the other two when I sit at my favorite place at our breakfast bar. When I use an ethernet connection directly to the 2Wire gateway, speeds are comparable with my desktops.
My frustration is that sometimes the MacbookPro is speedy in my breakfast bar location and other times a dog. How do I tease out interference vs. network traffic vs. could it be a bad airport card?

make sure your wireless router is on channel 1
microwaves and other kitchen appliances cause interference if your on channel 6 or 11... after you make the change test it out and see if is still an issue...

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First Gen iMac does not have a airport card installed. How do I install one?

I purxhased a ist Generation iMac G5 on ebay and they don't come with a airport card installed. I would like to add it now. The bracket is there but it doesn't look like anything else is. How do I install an express card in this machine, and how does the antennae look like if there is one there.
Thanks

alleyfromthevalley wrote:
I purxhased a ist Generation iMac G5 on ebay and they don't come with a airport card installed. I would like to add it now.
Presuming you have an iMac G5 model A1058, you might find useful advice here:
http://www.ifixit.com/Guide/Repair/Installing-iMac-G5-17-Inch-Model-A1058-AirPor t-Extreme/966/1

AirPort card has disappeared how to recover on mac os x 10.5.5

Hi all,
suddenly my Airport card has disappeared.... how can I get it back? I tried to restart the mac with opt command R-P but nothing... can some one please help this desperate mac user?? thank you so much.

In addition to running Hardware Test as suggested by Jolly Giant, have you tried reinstalling the 10.5.5 combo update?
As a side issue, is there a particular reason that you have not upgraded to 10.5.8? This might be a good time to do so.

AirPort Card Turned Off/ How's It Turned On?

I've gotten as far as installing the software and hooking up all the wires. When I open the AirPort Utility window the base unit shows at the upper left. That's the only icon showing. When I click the continue button,after a few seconds, a message drops saying AN ERROR OCCURRED JOINING THE SELECTED NETWORK. If I click Manual setup the same thing happens. I have reset and extreme reset the AirPort. When I check the About This MAC list of components and click the AirPort Card the info says it's turned off. Is this the problem? If so hoe do I turn it on?

Hello Milton hoskins. Welcome to the Apple Discussions!
When I check the About This MAC list of components and click the AirPort Card the info says it's turned off. Is this the problem? If so hoe do I turn it on?
The easiest way is via the AirPort icon in the OS X menu bar. Click on the AirPort icon, and then, select the "Turn AirPort On" option.

How to install the driver for Airport card in a mini

In a post regarding trouble with wireless connections some suggested...
cd /System/Library/Extensions
mv IO80211Family.kext IO8021Family.1066
well I did it and now my system is telling me there is no Airport card installed. How can I reload just the Airport drivers? I have my 10.6.3 OS X disk. Can I do it with that?
I tried running Disk Permissions with no change. I have since renamed the file back to what it was. The I started getting pop ups telling me the kernel file was improperly installed.
I just don't want to reinstall my complete OS.

I've already put it back to the original file name of IO80211Family.kext. I've run disk permissions too, in fact I've run it several times.
It keeps repairing a bunch of java stuff but that's all.
I've set the permission on the file to what I believe they were before I ran the mv command.
It was after I restored the file name, that I got the popup saying it was installed incorrectly, but, it's not saying it now.
And I have rebooted too, still no Airport.
Oh, I never replaced anything with earlier version, I just renamed and renamed back.

Original Airport Card: Intermittent connection to internet

I have a wireless (netgear router) home network that has been running fine for over a year. Two dell laptops and Two iMac computers connect wirelessly w/o problems. Last week the iMac (original G4 FlatPanel) with airport card located in the basement start dropping the network (no network detected). All other machines still work fine. The laptop taken into the basement work fine.
The original iMac shows the airport power "on" but no network to connect to? Laptop show network and good signal strength. Next time I check the iMac, its connected with excellent signal. Next time....gone! This has been ongoing on for over a week now. As of late it's see no networks (there's 3 in my neighborhoos - mine and 2 others)
Is it interference? Faulty Airport card? Gremlins?
Any suggestions? Thanks!

If you move the G4, having the problem, to another location nearer your router does it still exhibit these problems? You mentioned that if you tried with one of your Dell laptops, at the same location as the G4, it's working fine...correct?
I'm leaning toward your AirPort card in the G4 is failing vs. interference as the cause of your intermittent connections.

"airport card not installed" and can't open network preferences

I was earlier having the problem of no ip address and not connecting to the Internet and self assigning an ip address. I tried everything to fix that and on my last attempt I turned off the airport and shut down but now it says I dont have an airport card installed. How do I fix this?

Your running snow leopard which may be the case. Probably not but i recommend doing a clean install of snow leopard if the problem perrsists.
Also I suggest going to the apple store anyways. I personally enjoy finding help on the forums but sometimes if you book in advance going to the apple is a whole lot simpler.
You might also want to try upgrading your operating system to Lion or Mountain Lion which may fix the problem.
Yet another option would be to open up the laptop (Voids your warranty) and check is the airpot card is loose and maybe not being recognized.
https://encrypted-tbn2.google.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcR0HqbOHmgrl2qyu1kRZuMgFxgpt 0drL59Wz6IIiNGqKrh157p7vQ
^Picture of airport card^
Hope this helps,
-FRSH

My airport randomly said 'airport card not installed'

my airport has been working fine for as long as i had it, then yesterday i turned my laptop on and it says 'airport card not installed' how do i fix this?

This Airport Card suddenly not available happened to me at the begining of 2012. It always worked since I bought my computer. I am researching this problem. Have you any suggestions for me from what you've learned? Thanks.

Wrong settings or faulty AirPort Extreme?

Hi - I've just joined PlusNet and have a BT Voyager 2091 router which I use to access the internet with an ethernet connection. For some reason I can't connect wirelessly.
PlusNet have kind of passed the buck and said I may have a faulty AirPort card but I think I've just got something set up wrong. It shows up in System Profiler okay with the router details shown.
In system preferences I can get AirPort to connect to the router by putting in a manual IP address - otherwise it comes up with a self assigned address that doesn't match the router - but I can't get any further than this.
Can anyone help - I haven't got a clue what I'm doing here - I thought when I got the ethernet connection working it would be straight forward but I'm clearly missing something!
Thanks

Hello Stoufferoo. Welcome to the Apple Discussions!
Let's double-check your AirPort settings ...
System Preferences > Network > AirPort
o Location: Automatic
o In the left column, verify that an AirPort option exists. If it does not, click "+" to create one. (Note: If you are unable to create an AirPort configuration, the AirPort card in your computer either doesn't exist or it is not recognized.)
o Verify that AirPort is "On." Click "Turn AirPort On" button if not.
o Ask to join new networks: (enabled)
o Show AirPort status in menu bar: (enabled)
Systems Preferences > Network > AirPort > Advanced
AirPort tab
o Remember any network this computer has joined: (enabled)
o Disconnect from wireless networks when logging out: (enabled)
o Require Administrator password to control AirPort: (disabled)
TCP/IP tab
o Configure IPv4: Using DHCP
o Configure IPv6: Off
DNS tab
o DNS Servers: <if required, add your desired DNS server IP address(es) here>
o Search Domains: <if required, add your desired DNS Search Domain(s) here>
WINS tab
o Enter desired WINS info or leave the defaults
AppleTalk tab
o Make AppleTalk Active: (disabled)
802.11X tab
o Enter desired 802.11X info or leave the defaults
Proxies tab
o Enter the desired Proxies info or leave the defaults

New Macbook Pro: Airport Card Malfunctioning?

Hello-
I just bought a refurbished MacBook Pro from the Apple Store, and am having some problems with my Airport connection. Diagnostics show that the connection to my Linksys wireless router is working properly, but it is behaving as if I am out of range of the router. If pages in my browser load at all, it takes them a VERY long time. Around the house, the status bar never shows above 3 bars of signal. In fact, even if I place the computer directly alongside the router, signal still shows 3 bars strength. Page load times improve the closer I get to the router, however. And, if I connect via ethernet cable, internet behavior is normal. Did my 'new' refurbished MacBook Pro arrive with a faulty Airport card? Is there a way to test? Both my Powerbook G4 and my wife's Windows laptop are showing full signal strength in all parts of the house with no connection problems, whatsoever.
Not sure if these are clues, but upon receiving this new computer, I elected to transfer all of my files and applications automatically from my older Titanium Powerbook G4 when I was first getting it set up. I did have to change my manually-assigned IP for the new machine so as not to 'compete' with the older machine when accessing my wireless router, but that was the only thing I thought I'd have to do.
Thanks in advance for any help! I hope I didn't buy a lemon.

Just wanted to update with what appears to be my solution to this problem. Bought a new router yesterday (a Netgear Dualband wireless N), and have been up and running fine since. No more hanging, and signal strength is full from anywhere in the house.

MacBook says no airport card install suddenly

My MacBook suddenly lost wifi connection and says that no airport card installed. How can I reinstall the card?

There are a couple of things you can try to get your AirPort card working again.
Reset the Parameter RAM - http://support.apple.com/kb/PH11243
Reset the System Management Controller - http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3964
If neither of those works, you probably have a dead AirPort.
Contact Apple using www.apple.com/support/contact if you are in a country that supports it or call the appropriate phone number on this page. Alternatively carry the MacBook in to an Apple retail store or service provider to ask for an estimate.
Best of luck.

What's your Airport Card Country code?

I live in Brazil, and bought my 17" MBP from Canada in June, and my airport Country Code right now is ZW (Zimbabwe). When i'm at college, it jumps to US. And at home, it changes to ZW. This is a problem as in some countries some frequencies are now allowed. I have the 10.6.1 SL.
It's seems that either I have a faulty Airport Card, or Snow Leopard changes the card locale depending which routers are available for connection.
So, I wanted to know if anyone is seeing somethig weird as I am in the Airport Country Code.
Here's what I see in my info. The problem is that I can't use Wireless N in this country code.
Software Versions:
Menu Extra: 6.0 (600.22)
configd plug-in: 6.0 (600.27)
System Profiler: 6.0 (600.9)
Network Preference: 6.0 (600.22)
AirPort Utility: 5.4.2 (542.23)
IO80211 Family: 3.0 (300.20)
Interfaces:
en1:
Card Type: AirPort Extreme (0x14E4, 0x8D)
Firmware Version: Broadcom BCM43xx 1.0 (5.10.91.19)
Locale: FCC
Country Code: ZW
Supported PHY Modes: 802.11 a/b/g
Supported Channels: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13
Wake On Wireless: Supported
Status: Connected
To check this out, it's under
About This Mac/
More Info.../
Airport/

Hey there. Definitely something up with Snow Leopard, country codes and airport wireless N 5GHz. I have 3 macs and 3 airport routers across the house, which have been working for years without issue wirelessly. Since the upgrade to Snow Leopard, my Macbook, and only my Macbook started not being able to connect or see the 5GHz network. My Macbook Pro and Mac Pro have no issues connecting or seeing the 5GHz network. It's not related to weak signal as I've tested the Macbook sitting next to the Airport Extreme. Interestingly there was no problem with 2.4GHz.
So I thought it might have been a coincidental breakdown of the 5GHz N antenna on the airport card in the Macbook post Snow Leopard upgrade.
Then I noticed a few posts on the net about Country Codes, Airport and Snow Leopard. This has never been an issue for me before. The Country Code is set at FR on my Macbook which is incorrect. Apparently this is set by Snow Leopard in response to routers available.
As you are aware some channels are not usable in some countries.
So I changed my Airport Extreme channel from Automatic to a fixed channel (36), and instantly the problem has been solved.
So something has changed with Snow Leopard, Country Codes and Airport, which only affects some Macs. Ugh
At least my problem was solved, hope this helps

How can I tell if my airport card is working?

My slot loading imac has had an airport card functioning well for years. Currently is it on a wireless network via Airport Express shared with an airport connected ibook.
The ibook is connecting easily to the network. For two days the imac will not connect. When I go to the System Profiler on the imac , the airport card is recognized with Type, Locale, and Firmware Version, but the "current wireless network:" is listed as "wireless network is not available."
The Ibook's "current wireless network:" lists the correct name of my wireless network. Proximity is not the issue, I have the two computers sitting side by side.
I suspect this mean the wireless card is not functioning. I suppose it could also be a problem with the Imac's antenna. Are there other possible hardware or software problems? How would I troubleshoot the differences before buying a new airport card fot the Imac?
I am running 0S X 10.3.3 on both of the computers.
slot loading imac (tangerine) Mac OS X (10.3.3)

Is the iMac connected to the wireless network? In
your menu bar, are the signal lines grayed out or are
they black. Click on your airport icon as make sure
you have you network selected.
Give that a try.
P.S. I would recommend updating to 10.3.9 as well.
The wireless signal is grayed out.
What do I get additionally with 10.3.9? What harware do I need to manage 10.3.9 on this older Imac?

How to setup a network with airport cards

I have an unusual lapse in figuring out how to set up a network with an iMac and iBook both with 10.4.7. I have an Airport card in both machines after my Airport base stopped working properly. I have Comast DSL.
The iMac is working fine and connects to the 'net but the iBook does not and also does not connect to the network. I cannot seem to grasp the many variations of the network options; I'm not a novice user but the network aspects fly over my head.
Is there any resource available that can explain thoroughly how to set up the network, or perhaps give me a "recipe" for setting up the Network and Sharing options? I've tried to find this info to no avail. Right now I cannot join the iBook and I know there must be an easy way to do this.
Thanks in advance.

The following may be helpful:
Airport Support
Networks and Sharing
Connect to the Internet, troubleshoot your Internet connection, and set up a small network
Sharing an internet connection can be found in Mac Help from the Finder's Help menu.

I have a Mac G4 (version=3.3) How can I connect it to my BT Broadband. It does not seem to have an AirPort card - do I need one and if so how do I get one? Many thanks

I bought a Power Mac G4 (version=3.3) second hand from my company. It is running Mac OS 10.2.8 and Microsoft Office X. I wish to connect it to my BT broadband hub. However, it does not appear to have an AirPort card and even if it did I was told that the BT hub mainly works with microsoft rather than apple products. Can anyone advise me how I can connect and what products I need to buy?
Many thanks

John Galt wrote:
These are readily available on eBay etc. and are not expensive.
See http://www.airportcardsdirect.com/ these cards are cheap and not sold via DOA-Bay.
John Galt wrote:
The PowerMac3,3 uses the original AirPort 802.11b card. It may also need a card adapter to enable it to mate with the internal connections - I'd have to check on that.
Not true. Those adaptors were intended for the iMac G3 (long outdated) and only the iMac G3. All G4 machines just take AP Cards the way they are.
John Galt wrote:
You should also look into upgrading it to OS X "Tiger" but make sure you get the original retail install CD. It will be black with a large "X". Grey discs are machine specific and will not work.
Actually I HIGHLY recommend upgrading to OS X Leopard. Tiger is no longer supported by hardly anybody (Apple, Adobe, etc) and Leopard is still the minimum for most things nowadays. If you want more life out of this Mac, then I would highly recommend installing Leopard. And as mentioned above you NEED a Retail DVD. (The Leopard DVD has a little Purple in the Center of the DVD and a BLACK X in the center.

Faulty airport card or interference-how to troubleshoot

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