Lost wireless and repeated self assigned IP address

After I updated to OSX 10.5.6 my powerbook started dropping my wireless/internet connection, and adopted a self-assigned IP address. This happened whether I connected to the router via wireless or cable.
I was eventually able to change the system configuration files as suggested in previous posts, and reset my PRMU. This has worked for a wee while, but sometimes on starting up my laptop, the machine self assigns again.
I know the internet is available as I can access it from my iphone.
Then 20min ago, whilst surfing, the internet went down AGAIN, and self-assigned its favourite IP address.
I recently updated to 10.5.7, but the problem remains.
Is this a new problem or has it been going on for a while?
Also, is it a hardware or a software problem?
Any ideas?
Charlie

If you are able to connect initially and then it drops out I would look towards possible sources of interference. While most modern devices avoid this issue fairly well, it is a possibility. Devices such as cordless phones used to cause problems.
If it is dropping out while you are physically connected, I would perhaps check the settings on your router. Most models have a reset function which will allow you to reset it to factory defaults. Then you could reconfigure it and see if the problem persists.
The other possibility is that there is a software service on your macbook that is starting up and causing the network loss. If possible, I would attempt to initialize and reinstall all the software on your macbook. Note that this will wipe everything off, so make sure you make appropriate backups before reinstalling from scratch.
Once you have reinstalled the OS, you can upgrade it to the most recent version and see if the problem persists before installing any other software that may interfere with it.
You really need to go through a process of elimination to find out whether the problem lies with the macbook or the router. However considering your iphone works fine, I would look towards the macbook first.

Similar Messages

Airport and a self-assigned IP address - can't access wireless net

I have a strange issue with Airport picking up a wireless network.
I'm not in my usual location using my MacBook Pro.
There is a wireless network here.
Airport sees it, and asks for the password (provided to me).
Airport looks connected, but, I see the message: "Airport has a self-assigned IP Address and may not be able to connect to the internet".
And in fact, it cannot. I've run through the diagnostics routine twice, and no go.
How do I get Airport to accept an IP address from this wireless configuration?

I am having a nearly identical problem. The solution provided did not work for me.
We have two MacBook laptops, one is mine and the other my wife's. My laptop still works fine. The AirPort communicates well with the wireless router. My wife's laptop just started having this problem about a week ago. The latest Airport software updates helped, but did not solve.
The problem is that I now have to go into network diagnostics everytime to connect my wife's laptop to the wireless router. I have to re-enter the password to the router each time. Once I enter the password, it finds the IP address and connects everything properly. I checked the keychain password and it is there, so I don't know why it keeps losing the IP address.
One thing that I did preceded this problem. I changed my router password to WEP. If anyone knows if this could cause the problem, let me know.

Can't connect wireless due to "self-assigned IP address"

I recently switched from PC to Macbook. I cannot log on to many wifi networks I could previously access with my ThinkPad. The computer successfully finds the network and has a strong signal but will not connect. Under network status, I get a message that says something like "Your Macbook is connected to the wireless network but AirPort has a self-assigned IP address and may not be able to connect to the network."
Ive tried various options but still no luck. This mostly happens in public Wi-Fi networks such as internet cafes, airports and Starbucks' T-Mobile networks. Thanks!

Can you connect to any wireless location? Or does not fail only in certain places? If you can't connect anywhere, it is your problem. If you can connect in some places but not others, it is their problem.
It wouldn't surprise me if there is some new, cheap vendor of wireless access points that doesn't do the network settings correctly and only Windows machines will connect to it.
You were a ThinkPad owner, so you weren't a typical PC user anyway. Most of them use PCs only because they are cheap, cheap, cheap. Is it 3.29 cheaper than a Mac? Buy it! Those people are now making cheap wireless access turnkey solutions. I have seen people like that before. Just because there are hundreds of millions of pounds of equipment depending on the software, or people's lives, doesn't mean they know how to do networking. They may be so incompetent they don't know they are incompetent. Those types typcially would never, ever think to test their product on a Mac.

Self Assigned IP address may not be able to connect to internet

I have been using my Mac laptop for several years now an connect to the internet via both the ethernet cable and wirelessly and never had any problems but today I logged on and couldnt get connected to the internet wirelessly it said Self assigned IP address may not be able to connect to the internet. I can connect via the ethernet but not wirelessly. We have two other computers in the house, one mac and one PC and they arent having any problems but my laptop is, can anyone help me, I have tried resetting PRAM if that makes sense but I can't find anything to help me or sort it out. Can anyone be of assistance, I am not technologically minded at all and usually find the mac very easy to get my head around but this has thrown me completely - if anyone can give any direction I would be greatly appreciated

FashionVIP wrote:
I have been using my Mac laptop for several years now an connect to the internet via both the ethernet cable and wirelessly and never had any problems but today I logged on and couldnt get connected to the internet wirelessly it said Self assigned IP address may not be able to connect to the internet. I can connect via the ethernet but not wirelessly. We have two other computers in the house, one mac and one PC and they arent having any problems but my laptop is,
You might try resetting your connection settings using the steps listed in this message:
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=10695921&start=1
They're not guaranteed to solve the problem, but they'll only take you a minute or so to try.

Airport does not have IP address and Self assigned IP address

Using a 2.66GHz Mac Pro with OS X.6.6 and a Netgear DNG200 wireless and installed Airport Extreme Card and WPA2 security.
In Network click on Airport and 'Turn on Airport' Up comes the message 'Airport dos not have IP address and is unable to connect to the internet'.
Go into advanced and double click 'Network Name'. Supply password even though remember is selected, and message changes to "Airport has Self Assigned IP address 169.254.etc.etc and will not be able to connect to the internet'.
After repeated back to Network Name and double clicking and supplying password eventually connects. Simple to reconnect by selecting Turn Airport On in Menu Bar so long as the machine is not turned off.
Any suggestions please?
Message was edited by: harryb

Hi,
http://osxdaily.com/2009/12/22/mac-wireless-problems-guide-to-troubleshooting-ai rport-wireless-problems-on-your-mac/
Hope it helps.
Cheers.

Self assigned IP Address, wireless doesn't work

After upgrading to Leopard I keep getting "AirPort has a self-assigned IP address and may not be able to connect to the Internet." when I try to connect to the wireless network. Thus, wifi does not work at all. I've researched it best I can and it seems to be a problem with the router assigning an IP address to the mac, but why didn't this happen in Tiger? However if I play around with it for awhile it will randomly start working, but the same method doesn't fix it everytime. It also works fine in bootcamp. If I physically plug into the router, it works fine. This problem didn't exist in Tiger at all.
Message was edited by: SuperDupe453

Follow-up:
On the two laptops, I finally managed to get on line by switching to a different wireless access point, on a different modem. I surmise that the communication between the Macbook DHCP client and the modem/router's DHCP server is less than 100% effective. Looking at the modem/router, I could see that all of the Macs had active connections. But, instead of showing the names of the Macs, the page showed a star (*) for each Mac. I had to compare Mac addresses to verify the connections. The MAC address, of course, is hard-wired into the computer's network interface. It appears that either the DHCP client didn't know what question to ask when it broadcast for an IP address, or it couldn't interpret the answer. Except in the case of the iMac, which worked perfectly.
I upgraded the MacPro last, since it is my primary machine. Same story--connection with self-assigned address, which is useless. However, this time, having nothing left to lose, I restarted the modem/router, which presumably dumped any inactive connections and issued new DHCP leases.
However, I do have a few words for the Apple GENIUSES! The Leopard network preferences page puts me in mind of a maintenance free battery. A few of the older folks will remember when you bought a car battery that had to be filled with distilled water to reconstitute the electrolyte. Then, periodically, you check the level of the liquid in the battery, and added distilled water when required. Adding water was required on occasion because some of the water would boil off under certain conditions. Then, we got the maintenance free battery, which is virtually identical to the older battery design, except that you don't have to perform the maintenance of replenishing the water. It turns out, however, that maintenance free batteries do vent on occasion, and should have water added. But, you can't add water because the battery is sealed. So, the difference between conventional and maintenance free is not that the maintenance free battery doesn't need maintenance, it is that you can't perform the maintenance without voiding the warranty.
The Leopard network preference page won't let you set the parameters that could restore a connection. If the DHCP client doesn't work automatically, you're stuck.

Self assigned Ip address 169.254.233.194 and will not be able to connect to the internet

self assigned IP address and will not be able to connect to the internet. How do I fix this?

Sorry we have no info.. so description of the problem..
Are you using wireless? If so on what? Do you have a TC?
Is this a new TC and failed to setup correctly? Or you have TC or some other wireless router that has been working fine and now failed?
Plug in by ethernet? Does it now work?
Reboot the TC.. Does it now work?
Reboot the whole network.. restart in order.. modem.. router.. TC.. whatever other network equipment.. clients.
Do some clients work and others fail?
Press and hold reset on the TC. Redo the setup.. change the TC setup to fixed channels and SMB names.
We cannot give specific answers to such vague faults.

HT4628 My Mac Air OSX10.8.5 won't connect to the internet as it says it has a self assigned IP address and thus cannot connect to the internet. I can only connect to a network by manually typing in the configuration specs. Please help.

My mac air OSX10.8.5 won't connect to the internet. It says it has a 'self assigned IP address and therefore cannot connect to the internet'. Network diagnostics is unable to the solve the problem. It happened suddenly for no reason and now I cannot connect except by typing in the configuration settings manually. Please help me!

Use the Airport Utility or log into your wireless device via http and ensure the DHCP/NAT service is enabled. If accessing via HTTP, you will need to manually set an ip within your local subnet (eg: 192.168.0.x).

Airport Connects but has Self-Assigned IP address and no internet

All right Apple this is some Bull#@$% I own 3 Apple units One is a MacBook Pro, one is a Macbook and the other is a G5 Dual processor tower. The MacBook and Tower are using OS X 10.5.5 and the MacBook Pro has OS X 10.4.11. Ok here is my problem all of a sudden all 3 units that had been connecting to the same wireless router for the past year started saying (AirPort has a self-assigned IP address and may not be able to connect to the internet) Apple Care suggested replacing the router well I did that and hello I have the same message. Its connecting but not going to the internet. Under network status I have green lights for Airport and Airport settings a yellow light for network settings and red lights for ISP, Internet and Server. I have this problem with both MacBooks both at the library, my friends house and my neighbors house thats 4 different wireless networks that do the same dang thing. I need help!!

I have also encountered this problem and I have been researching it all over the internet all evening and trying everything I could find a suggestion for. Here's what I have: Two G4 Powerbooks, one is a 550MHz 15" Powerbook, the other is a 1.5 GHz 17" Powerbook, they are both running 10.4.11 with all the updates that Software Update has to offer, the 17" is connecting via built in Airport Extreme card, the 15" is connecting via Sonnets Aria Extreme PC card. I have AT&T DSL and I'm using the 2Wire modem/router they provided me with. Neither of the Powerbooks can connect wirelessly to the internet. Furthermore, they cannot even ping the wireless router. 4 days ago, both were connecting without any trouble (and had been able to reliably every day since the beginning of August when I hooked everything up). I have made no changes to my router's settings over the weekend. Nor had I made any changes to the Powerbooks' settings during that time. It just stopped working. If I wire one or both of them to the router with ethernet cables, connection works fine. My Desktop G4 which is normally wired into the router via ethernet, connects fine so I know my internet service is available.
So far, I've restarted both machines numerous times, restarted the router numerous times. Reset the WEP password. Changed the wireless security to WPA. Changed it back to WEP. Trashed the airport plist. deleted every wireless network entry in Keychain. Disabled DHCP and assigned IP numbers manually. Changed the wireless channel (I've tried 1, 6, and 11 with and without interference robustness).
I've been reading posts about this issue on half a dozen web forums (dating back to as early as June 2004). It appears to affect a variety of routers (2Wire, Netgear, Linksys), a variety of machines (Powerbooks, iBooks, MacBookPros, iMacs) a variety of OSes (10.3, 10.4, 10.5).
This thing is really getting me down. Anybody have any other ideas?

Apple Mac wireless self-assigned IP address help

I just got FiOS today. Everything appears to be working fine except for one thing, my Apple Macbook Pro, running 10.5.8 is getting a self-assigned IP address when I connect it to my FiOS wireless router (ActionTec MI424-WR).
The Mac has a physical connection to the wireless router. The "My Network" tab in the wireless router configuration screen shows it as connected, with an assigned IP address of 192.168.1.6. However, the ping test fails, and the Mac's Airport settings show a self-assigned IP address.
I've tried rebooting everything, turning airport on and off, and renewing DHCP, but nothing is working.
I haven't touched any of the default settings on the ActionTec, it's still running WEP.
I did verify that my firewall is turned off on the mac.
What else can I try?
Solved!
Go to Solution.

I have a 6 month old MacBook Pro running the latest version of OS X, so it's affecting newere Macs as well. I found some on-line discussion that it's a problem with only the Macbook Pro.
FWIW, a few hours after finally getting it working it happened all over again. I had wireless connectivity but only got a self-assigned IP address. I tried shutting the airport on and off, deleting the wireless key from key chain, and clearing the wireless network. However nothing worked until I rebooted the Mac.
I then checked the firmware on the ActionTec and found it was 20.8.0 and 20.9.0 was the latest (mind you I just got this router installed today). I updated to the 20.9.0 release and everything has worked for about the last 6 hours. Fingers are crossed. :-)

HT3466 Airport has self assigned IP address 169.254.153.51 and will not be able to connect to the Internet

Cannot connect to internet wirelessly because I get the message "AirPort has the self-assigned IP address 169.254.153.51 and will not be able to connect to the Internet."

I would recommend that you do the following as a minimum:
Power-down the modem, AirPort base station, and computer(s).
Disconnect the AirPort base station from the Internet broadband modem.
While all of the devices are powered-down, perform a "factory default" reset on the base station. This will get it back to its "out-of-the-box" configuration and make setting it up much easier, especially if you use the "Assist me" process within the AirPort Utility. (ref: Resetting an AirPort Base Station or Time Capsule)
After the base station resets, go ahead and power it back down.
Reconnect the AirPort base station to the Internet broadband modem. For the Extreme and Time Capsule, be sure to connect the cable to the base station's WAN (circle-of-dots) port.
Power-up the modem; wait at least 10-15 minutes to allow it adequate time to initialize.
Power-up the AirPort base station; wait at least 5-10 minutes. Note: The AirPort's status light may continue to flash amber after it has intialized. That is because, there may be some additional configuration items necessary, like setting up wireless security, before the overall setup is completed to get a green status.
Power-up your computer(s).
In this basic configuration, the AirPort base station will broadcast an unsecured wireless network with a Network Name (SSID) of Apple Network NNNNNN. Network clients, connected to the base station either by wire or wireless, should now be able to access the Internet through the ISP's modem. Once Internet connectivity has been verified, you can use the AirPort Utility to configure the base station for wireless security and any other desired options. Please post back your results.

MacBook has self assigned ip address and cannot connect to the internet.

Is there an Apple recomended fix for this problem that works? I've looked on this board and have found several similar suggestions but as yet nothing that results with consistent connection every time I restart.

Since there is no exacting way to tell what of several suggestions offered in
these discussion boards, you may have tried, I will offer an Apple Support
article name and web address link; it may be you have tried this:
• Mac OS: How to release and renew a DHCP lease
http://support.apple.com/kb/TS1920
And you can get a similar self-assigned IP address via a wireless network
or a wired local network - with a theoretical connection to the internet. If
the actual connection in software is not set correctly, the default will likely
be something very familiar since the same one appears then.
If the Network system preference panel is set and you have chosen the
mode of connecting to the internet or other connected network, then
you can set the configuration of that choice in a secondary screen. In
order to have a choice to connect via AirPort, for example, you have to
check box the item and also drag it into a position of priority (first.) Or,
if you have to connect via Ethernet to a cable/DSL modem (if not USB)
you can choose to place Ethernet in a position of priority above others.
Then, further the Network configuration's next step to set it up correctly.
The above link does cover the basics adequately, including a reset of
the cable or DSL modem. If there is a cable modem and also a wireless
base station, you may also have to reset each of them in a specific way
in order to get them to start up and work. This may be all it takes.
Good luck & happy computing!

HT1338 my airport is not working getting Wi-Fi has the self-assigned IP address 169.254.5.29 and will not be able to connect to the Internet

my wi fi wont work giving me this Wi-Fi has the self-assigned IP address 169.254.5.29 and will not be able to connect to the Internet whats up with the airport how do i fix it

See this discussion.
Wi-Fi has the self-assigned IP address
Troubleshooting suggestions.
Troubleshooting Wi-Fi issues in OS X
Wireless Connection Problems - Fix
Wireless Connection Problems - Fix (2)
Wireless Connection Problems - Fix (3)
Wireless Connection Problems - Fix (4)
Wireless Diagnostics - About

I getting airport has a self-assigned ip address and may not be able to connect to the internet

I getting airport has a self-assigned ip address and may not be able to connect to the internet

I have got exactly the same message after we re-configured our router. I was connecting using my iMac wirelessly before hand, but now cannot. Our other PCs can connect wirelessly to the router so it's not the router. I have also tried the firewall solution but that doesn't work either.
I did call Apple Support who said that a full troubleshoot would cost £35 as my computer is older than 90 days (well yes it's been working fine that's why it's over 90 days old, it's only now that it isn't!). He said a trouble shoot didn't guarantee success so I declined his offer to charge me an extortionate amount of money for nothing! He did say that the router needs to be giving the Airport an IP address, but it isn't doing it now. His only suggestion was to turn off the router and turn it back on or power down the iMac. Neither of which help.
Anyone else had any success?

Wi-Fi has self-assigned IP address 169.254.9.151 and will not be able to connect to the Internet

In trying to setup my AirPort Extreme, it connects to the Internet on ethernetcables to computer but says it is not on WI-FI. I have configured it with all that I casn think of and yet I get, "Wi-Fi has self-assigned IP address 169.254.9.151 and will not be able to connect to the Internet." Can anyone tell me what is wrong?
I did both a soft reset and a hard reset to no avail. PLEASE someone help!!
Thanks!

I would recommend that you do the following as a minimum:
Power-down the modem, AirPort base station, and computer(s).
Power-up the modem; wait at least 10-15 minutes to allow it adequate time to initialize.
Power-up the AirPort base station; wait at least 5-10 minutes. Note: The AirPort's status light may continue to flash amber after it has intialized. That is because, there may be some additional configuration items necessary, like setting up wireless security, before the overall setup is completed to get a green status.
Power-up your computer(s).
If the above steps do not solve the problem, start over with step 1 above, but then perform the next steps between steps 1 & 2. above.
Disconnect the AirPort base station from the Internet broadband modem.
While all of the devices are powered-down, perform a "factory default" reset on the base station. This will get it back to its "out-of-the-box" configuration and make setting it up much easier, especially if you use the "Assist me" process within the AirPort Utility. (ref: Resetting an AirPort Base Station or Time Capsule)
After the base station resets, go ahead and power it back down.
Reconnect the AirPort base station to the Internet broadband modem. For the Extreme and Time Capsule, be sure to connect the cable to the base station's WAN (circle-of-dots) port.
Continue with step 2 in the first set of steps.
In this basic configuration, the AirPort base station will broadcast an unsecured wireless network with a Network Name (SSID) of Apple Network NNNNNN. Network clients, connected to the base station either by wire or wireless, should now be able to access the Internet through the ISP's modem. Once Internet connectivity has been verified, you can use the AirPort Utility to configure the base station for wireless security and any other desired options. Please post back your results.

Lost wireless and repeated self assigned IP address

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