Losing Wireless Signal

For the last few weeks I have been having trouble with my wireless signal. I will lose internet on my Macbook or iPhones even though the signal strength will show that it's there. I have to unplug my Airport Extreme (802.11g) and let it sit for a few seconds before restarting it. It then works okay for a bit. Then it cuts out again. All through this, the airport indicator shows that it's connected and at full strength. Even the network preferences show it being there at full strength. When I try to log back in with my login and password, it can't connect. The only thing that works is unplugging.
Help!

Welcome to the discussions!
Signal strength is only half of the story when you are looking for a good quality connection. Noise is the other half. For example, you could have very strong signal strength, but also have high noise on your network. You would have a poor, intermittent connection as a result.
It's also possible to have just fair signal strength with very low noise. This will yield a much more stable and reliable connection.
So, the "bars" at the top of the screen are there pretty much for show. They usually display a stronger signal than you really have and they tell you nothing about the noise on your network.
To see if this might be the case, I suggest that you download a utility like iStumbler. Be sure to scroll down the page to find the correct version for your operating system.
Once you have it installed open iStumbler to display your network and other nearby networks. If you have a "good" signal, you'll see your network as a green graph. Yellow is marginal, red is very weak. You may be surprised to find that the "full" signal strength that you thought you had is actually quite a bit less than you might have imagined. Check the noise figures as well.
Look for any other wireless networks that may be using the same channel or a close adjacent channel as your wireless. If that's the case, change the channel on your wireless network to a setting that is as far away as possible from other networks. That may give you some "clear airspace" and help your signal.
If you have any cordless phones there, turn them all off for a period to see if your signal strength improves and noise goes down. Even a cordless phone at the neighbors can cause problems, which might explain the intermittent issues that you have there. Or, there may be a new wireless network nearby that's interfering with your network at times. These are hard to isolate, and iStumbler may not display all of the them because it displays "visible" networks. It won't display a "hidden" network if the user has enabled that option on his/her network.

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I assume you are running OS X 10.5.5. Try these simple maintenance routines:
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First check the direct connection from your modem, connect a computer straight to the modem and see if you have a stable connection...If you have stable connection from your modem then you need to upgrade your router's firmware...
Download the firmware from here
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B.

how many wireless computers are you using?
if there are more than one wireless computers and
only one is having a problem then you may also need to update
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are all the wireless computers experiencing the same issue?
try to check the firmware version of your router :
first determine the default gateway
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     for Vista :
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HP Officejet Pro 8600 Plus losing wireless connectivity, cannot scan to computer

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Hi rtaw,
Welcome to the HP Forums!
I understand that you cannot scan to computer, and that you are losing wireless connectivity, with your HP Officejet pro 8600 Plus. I am happy to help you with this issue!
Please take a look through this wireless guide. Printer Does Not Maintain Wireless Connection.
For the scanning, please see this guide. A 'Connection Error' or 'No Computer Detected' Error Message Displays during Scanning.
Hope this information helps you, and let me know if you have any more issues!
RnRMusicMan
I work on behalf of HP
Please click “Accept as Solution ” if you feel my post solved your issue, it will help others find the solution.
Click the “Kudos Thumbs Up" to say “Thanks” for helping!

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Hi
I've had a similar problem - see http://discussions.apple.com/message.jspa?messageID=7278377#7278377 . Things continued to get worse, so that sometimes I was losing the signal for several hours at a time: meanwhile my nearby G4 iMac continued to connect with never a hiccup.
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Download and upgrade your router's firmware, reset and then re-configure it...
Follow these steps to upgrade the firmware on the device : -
Open an Internet Explorer browser page on a computer hard wired to the router...
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Click on the 'Administration' tab- Then click on the 'Firmware Upgrade' sub tab- Here click on 'Browse' and browse the .bin firmware file and click on "Upgrade"...
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Now reset your router :
Press and hold the reset button for 30 seconds...Release the reset button...Unplug the power cable from your router, wait for 30 seconds and re-connect the power cable...Now re-configure your router...
If your Internet Service Providor is Cable follow this link
If your Internet Service Providor is DSL follow this link

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I've been experiencing this issue for at least a month now and it is driving me up the wall. Occasionally, my wireless signal will drop and I'll either be unable to connect to websites, or when I do it takes a very long time. And the only cure I find for this is to go to the menu bar and 'Turn Airport Off', wait a sec, then 'Turn Airport On'. This is a pain and I'm sick of doing it.
The drop occurs intermittently, some times once a day, sometimes 10 times in as many minutes. Most of the time I can see the signal indicator in the menu bar drop from 4 bars to 3. Also, it isn't a matter of signal strength as I am sitting 10 feet from the router.
I know it's not an issue with my ISP (Verizon Fios) or their router, because wired hosts dont have this problem and the wireless Windows hosts in my house dont have the problem.
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So is this an authoritative answer? I have seen exactly the same problem. My wife's MacBook Pro keeps losing its connection, but my iMac G4 and my Powerbook G4 work fine. We are all talking to the same Dlink DI-524 WAP, but only her MacBook Pro has this problem.
The workaround I have been using is to renew her dhcp lease every time she loses contact. This works, but it's a PIA as you say.
If I were to want to go back to 10.4.8, how on earth does one do that? Does Apple have any official opinion on this problem, or better yet, a fix?
Thansk
Jusitn Harlow

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http://www6.nohold.net/Cisco2/ukp.aspx?vw=1&docid=172c1dae41534ddd818c560b60c7c230_4029.xml&pid=80&r....

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What may be wrong?

Well, I reset the TimeCapsule to factory settings and configured it again for my home network and all works like a charm again.

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Lately I've been losing my wireless signal from my powerbook G4 to my airport express. The light on my airport express still shows as green, so I was wondering if the trouble lied in wither the airport express or my mac? I'm running on the 6.2 version that mac had offered as an update for the express.
The signal returns if I shut down my mac, and then turn it back on, as well as unplugging the airport express and replugging it in as well. This is starting to occur now once a day at least.
I keep my powerbook in the same room as the airport express, and it is usually in fact sitting on my desk above it...so range isn't really an issue.
This is getting tedious, and would like to know how to nip this in the bud.
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Lately I've been losing my wireless signal from my
powerbook G4 to my airport express. The light on my
airport express still shows as green, so I was
wondering if the trouble lied in wither the airport
express or my mac? I'm running on the 6.2 version
that mac had offered as an update for the express.
The signal returns if I shut down my mac, and then
turn it back on, as well as unplugging the airport
express and replugging it in as well. This is
starting to occur now once a day at least.
I am also experiencing the same problem, also only since recently updating my AE firmware. I will provide a bit more information so that maybe someone will be able to offer some suggestions.
I have one AE connected to a BT Broadband modem. My iMac is down the hall, connected to the AE for internet and for Airtunes. What I experience is that I will lose connectivity to the airport itself. In fact, sometimes I can actually watch as my airport signal indicator in my menu bar jumps up and down repeatedly (although sometimes the airport signal just disappears altogether and then when I go looking for it in my Airport menubar, my network is no longer listed). The green light on my AE always stays constant when this happens (even when the airport signal goes away completely). The BT modem seems to be fine.
AE basestation firmware is V6.3.
I am connected to my AE using WPA Personal (anyone know what the Group Key Timeout option does? Mine is set at 60 minutes by default... no idea if that is connected to my issue, but I didn't want to play with it since I don't know what it does).
Channel: Automatic, Closed Network. Access Control is enabled so that only my iMac can access the network. Airtunes is enabled.
Under wireless options, multicast rate is 1, interference robustness is not enabled, and transmitter power is 100%.
Anyone have any ideas about what the problem is and what I can do to try and fix it?
Thanks.
G4 iMac 800 MHz Mac OS X (10.4.4) 1 GB RAM

Wireless Signal confined to 1 room

My powerbook used to connect to my wireless router [Belkin Cable/DSL Gateway Router 2.4GHz 802.11g] all over my house/office. However, recently the signal drps as soon as I leave my office. I get no connectivity in the next room, less than 10 feet from the router...
Anyone have any ideas as to what could cause this?

I need to know if you have found a solution to your problem which sounds like my problem.
I am one of those that updates when advised and it would appear that one of the updates has played havoc with Airport.
At home, I could roam up to 100' away from my base station with no problem. Then one day I could not even get out of my computer room without losing the signal.
With summer and holidays I have not been on this 100% but now I am terribly frustrated. I just finished a trip across the USA from Seattle to Washington DC and been around lots of other laptop users, even one on an Apple iBook. All of them have been able to pick up signals in airports, cafes, motels and hotels. This was my case 4 months ago, now unless I am sitting on the hub I get nothing.
Yesterday I was in a conference room with another guy who was using an apple laptop. I asked if he was on the wifi and with what strength and he indicated yes and with great signal. I sat beside him and was not able to even raise a signal.
I have had my computer tested with supposedly no problems present. I have a Powerbook 17" with airport extreme.
Thanks in advance for any insight.

NEED HELP TO SET UP SMALL NETWORK - WIRELESS SIGNAL FROM NOVATEL U760 USB

Hello -
I need help setting up a small network in my new home in Florida, which has no wired broadband capability - not cable, not dsl. My options are satellite (which I'd like to avoid) or wireless broadband via Millenicom (or now Virgin Mobile) using their Novatel U760 USB stick.
Here are the network components - someone please tell me how to set this up:
PC #1 (has wireless card, but I've connected it by ethernet to the router)
PC #2 (no wireless card; connected via ethernet to router)
MACBOOK, 1 1/2 years old (2.1 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo, 4 gigs RAM), running OS 10.58, connected wirelessly to router.
AIRPORT EXTREME BASE STATION, Model A1143.
I'm not thrilled about using a wireless 3G signal as my primary one, (sprint network, claims 600 - 1400 kbps speed), but it costs 1/2 to 1/3 of what a slightly faster satellite signal would.
I have not ordered this service yet. Before I do, I'd like a clear understanding that I can, in fact, set up my simple network, which I'd probably do the same as it's now configured with cable broadband - both PC's plug via
ethernet into the Airport Extreme router, the MacBook connects wirelessly - AND,
my question is this:
Can I plug the wireless card - a Novatel U760 USB-stick device - straight into that USB slot in the Airport Extreme base station and will it automatically recognize that device?
Or, do I have to plug it into the MacBook and somehow share that wireless signal between the 2 PC's (only 1 of which has a wireless card, so I'd have to get a card for PC #2)?
And help anyone can provide will be much appreciated!
Thanks,
Em

from the Airport FAQ #14:
"Question: Can I connect my Soundsticks or other USB speakers to AirPort Express?
Answer: No. The USB port is for connecting a printer, not for other devices."
Im assuming other devices include USB modems.
So, I would say your cheaper route would be to get a second wireless card and just share your internet connection from one of your PC.

I just got my cable company to switch my wireless router to a wired one considering now I have the wireless airport device (the newest one) but now I can't get a wireless signal. The router works when directlyplugged in,the aiport wireless device is green

I just got my cable company to switch my wireless router to a wired one considering now I have the wireless airport device (the newest one) but now I can't get a wireless signal. The router works when directlyplugged in,the aiport wireless device is green. I've tried going through my new MacBook Pro settings and it the diagnostics check, it says network changes detected, I tell it that it "yes" does connect to a cable modem, it tells me to restart it, after I do it asks if there are any other devices hooked up ( firewall) and when I say no it tells me that it can't fix the problem.
Now I know that I probably have a new IP address because of the cable company switching the boxes but it was working fine with the other box, now there isn't a signal to be had on it!
Please anybody out there that can help!!!??

Any time you change networking hardware it is always a good idea to perform a complete power recycle with the new equipment. Check out the following AirPort User Tip. Please post back your results.

Powerbook G4 Can't See Wireless Signal

My brother gave me his old Powerbook G4 which has Airport installed (10.4.x). It picked up a neighbor's unprotected wireless signal in his apartment, then picked up the wireless signal in the Atlanta airport -- no problem.
But when I returned home the G4's Airport won't pick up the wireless router's signal in my house (with the router just a few feet away).
I have Time Warner's Wideband service and the cable modem that comes with the service is both a modem and a router with dual antennas. My Mac Mini picks up the wireless signal from that router with no problem.
But the G4 doesn't "see" the signal. The Airport wireless icon in the menu bar is grayed out when the G4 is running. But the network name shows up in the Airport icon's drop down menu. But when I try to connect to the wireless network -- nothing, in spite of it having connected on two different networks as I mentioned above.
Question: Is this G4 too old to connect to a "newer" wireless router like the one Time Warner installed? Any other ideas what the connection problem could be?
Thanks,
WK

CRMDVM -- Thanks for the helpful info -- you are probably right on both counts:
The apartments where I picked up a signal is in an "old folks" apt. complex, meaning the router I was picking up was probably old -- compatible with the G4 lineage. And the Atlanta airport probably has a wireless system to allow the vast number of old and new computers that people carry to connect.
My Mac Mini connects via WPA2 Personal security code, and I set the G4 to the same security (in the Network preference pane) but still nothing. The Airport wireless icon in the menu bar is still grayed out -- it isn't the "blank" icon as when Airport is turned off. It has the wireless wave lines in the icon, but just grayed out.
Maybe the G4 is just too old to "see" the newer wireless signal from the new modem/router.
Thanks again for your help -- you definitely provided more than I knew. (btw, I'm just above you in Union County in Stallings).
WK

Losing Wireless Signal

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