Preferred network list...

Hi there - I have had a new MacBook Pro for a few weeks now and it is great! - a god improvement over my ageing PowerbookG4.
anway - I have wireless 'b' network at home in use by various macs and PC's - the MBP was fine and registered my home wifi network as a preferred network, but in the past two days it has decided it doesn't want to have it as a preferred network and always asks me if I want to connect manually. this is getting annoying as everytime I shut the lid or logout or whatever, it drops off the network and asks me if I want to connect on reopeneing.
How do I go about putting it back on the prefferred list?
I have opened network options in the system pref - and the advanced tab - the network SSID is listed there - but still it doesn't want to connect by default.
my networ kit is a Linksys router (cable broadband conection) with an airport express downstairs to use airtunes. The network is secured using 128bit WEP.
thanks for any help as this is doing my head in!!

Thats just it - I don't have the option to click a "by default join.." button anywhere. the MBP is running OSX 10.5.1 - I think this is one of the 'new' things in leopard a I am sure I had that option on my powerbook
thanks,
Graham

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Location-specific preferred networks lists

I would like to have a different list of preferred networks, depending on my location. I think it worked this way in 10.6.
Now, in 10.8, the networks I've listed in Location A still show up in the list for Location B.
Do I need to reset something, or is this how it works now?
Thanks.

In all honesty Apple messed up on iCloud from the very start and now can't fix it.
There might be a setting but if iCloud is like everything else Apple has done they don't give the User many setting options. Apple's way or no way.
I personally don't use it as I found it severly lacking in function. You have just pointed out another.
TechAddict wrote:
All devices are synced and using iCloud Keychain. I think that's where the networks have copied across from because when I go to remove them it says they will be deleted from the keychain for all devices. The MBP is listing every network now that my mobile devices have ever connected too. 95% of those are in different countries so it's not an 'in the area of' issue.
Going to have a rummage to see if there are any iCloud Keychain settings anywhere. You'd think theere would be an option that shows the networks that THIS computer has connected to (as the settings screen actually states) and an option to show (or copy across) all the networks that EVERY device you own have ever connected to. They are disticntly different. My MBP have NEVER connected to most of them.

802.11: "Preferred networks" vs. "A specific network"

I've got a new MacBook Pro and it appears that -- at least in my opinion -- has eliminiated one of the key advantages OS X networking has over Win XP.
With my G4 PowerBook, I can create a one-to-one relationship between locations and network access points. For me this is critical, as my work location has multiple access points -- some on our corporate network and some open to the internet. For the corporate nets, I have a static IP address and need various proxy configurations to be stored, whereas for the public nets, its DHCP and no proxy info needs to be stored.
On the MacBook Pro, it appears to me that I can't force network settings to access one and only one access point per location setting. Worse, I can't even change the prioirties of access per location.
This causes unpredictable behavior when my truly preferred access point is momentarily out of range. It appears that the MBP is grabbing another access point automatically. When this happens, my network settings are incorrect, and my connection is broken.
Am I missing something obvious? 'Cause this is the exact problem I've had with XP for years -- and something that has always been a ton better on Mac.
17 in MacBook Pro Mac OS X (10.4.6)
various Mac OS X (10.4.6)

Thanks for the suggestion, but the behavior described in the article is the actually the issue. Here's the problem: in my work environment, there are three VLANs with three APs, all three are always visible from my desk. According to what I'm doing, I need to shift between them a couple time per day.
Physical Location: Work
Access Points Available:
- "Internet" (closed SSID, DHCP, no proxies)
- "Corporate" (closed SSID, DHCP, proxies)
- "Development" (closed SSID, static IP, no proxies)
Location "Outside Network"
- Preferred Airport: "Intenet"
- DHCP
- no proxies
Location "Inside Network"
- Preferred Airport: "Corporate"
- DHCP
- appropriate proxy settings
Location "Development Network"
- Preferred Airport: "Development"
- static IP
- no proxies
So the "Preferred network" option would work (though less than optimum) if I could change the order based on location. It would be optimum (and better than the 10.6.4 PowerPC version) if I could change the order and add/delete netwoks according to location. Unfortunately, there seems to be only one preferred network list that is global for all locations. And that causes the unpredictability that I tried to describe.

Deleted preferred networks reappear

Upon installing Mavericks, and turning on iCloud keychain, I noticed that all wifi networks I had ever connected to appeared in the preferred network list on my Macbook.
There were quite a few I naturally wanted to delete, so I removed them. Also my devices were trying to connect to networks I thought I had removed.
It didn't take me long to notice that my Macbook was trying to connect to some of these old networks again, and upon looking at the list - all deleted entries had reappeared.
Another symptom seems to be that if I tell my iPhone not to auto-connect to a public hotspot (BT WIFI for example), if my Mac ever comes near that hotspot it auto connects - as will my iPhone subsequently.
I have tried editing the com.apple.airport.preferences.plist file manually, deleting the Mac's WiFi service and recreating, and resetting network settings on all my Apple devices.
I have even looked at the Keychain app on my Mac, but it doesn't seem to be storing my wireless networks from what I can see.
From my Google-ing, it doesn't sound like anyone else is having this issue..
Any ideas?
Thanks!

Back up all data. Open the iCloud preference pane and uncheck the Keychain box. You'll be prompted to delete the local iCloud keychain. Confirm. Also disable it on the other devices. Delete the unwanted preferred networks from all devices. Then follow one of the procedures described in this support article to set up iCloud Keychain.

AirPort - Preferred Network Order

I have a MacBook Pro running Leopard (10.5.2). Here's the situation:
I'm a university student, and I connect to one of several wireless networks, depending on where I am. Usually, Leopard connects to the proper network because there's only one available. However, when I am on campus there are two separate wireless networks. When I am in class, I connect to one (we'll call this network "class"), and when I am at work, I connect to the other (we'll call this one "work"). The "class" network SSID is broadcast, but the "work" network SSID is not. Neither network requires a password to join.
I have set my network preferences as follows: "Ask to join new networks" is checked in the Network Preferences pane when I click on "AirPort". When I click the "Advanced" button, I have the "work" network at the top of the list of preferred networks. "Remember any network this computer has joined" is checked, but "Disconnect from wireless networks when logging out" and "Require Administrator password to control AirPort" are not.
The "work" network is faster, so I want to connect to it whenever possible. However, it has a limited range compared to the "class" network, so most of the time I connect to the "class" network.
I have placed the "work" network at the top of the "Preferred Networks" list, but the problem is that after a couple of days it drops all the way to the bottom of the list. It appears to me like Leopard is re-ordering the preferred networks based on usage, which is totally not what I want. Is there a way to force Leopard to leave my preferred networks list alone?
Message was edited by: sworisbreathing
Message was edited by: sworisbreathing

I have a MacBook Pro running Leopard (10.5.2). Here's the situation:
I'm a university student, and I connect to one of several wireless networks, depending on where I am. Usually, Leopard connects to the proper network because there's only one available. However, when I am on campus there are two separate wireless networks. When I am in class, I connect to one (we'll call this network "class"), and when I am at work, I connect to the other (we'll call this one "work"). The "class" network SSID is broadcast, but the "work" network SSID is not. Neither network requires a password to join.
I have set my network preferences as follows: "Ask to join new networks" is checked in the Network Preferences pane when I click on "AirPort". When I click the "Advanced" button, I have the "work" network at the top of the list of preferred networks. "Remember any network this computer has joined" is checked, but "Disconnect from wireless networks when logging out" and "Require Administrator password to control AirPort" are not.
The "work" network is faster, so I want to connect to it whenever possible. However, it has a limited range compared to the "class" network, so most of the time I connect to the "class" network.
I have placed the "work" network at the top of the "Preferred Networks" list, but the problem is that after a couple of days it drops all the way to the bottom of the list. It appears to me like Leopard is re-ordering the preferred networks based on usage, which is totally not what I want. Is there a way to force Leopard to leave my preferred networks list alone?
Message was edited by: sworisbreathing
Message was edited by: sworisbreathing

How do I stop the None of your preferred networks are available dialogue?

I'm using my macBook in 2 places - one where I connect to the internet with an ethernet cable and one where I use a wireless network. It works fine, except that when I start up with the ethernet cable, I get a message from airport saying "None of your preferred networks are available".
I'd like to get rid of that message. Preferably entirely, but at least when I'm already connected via Ethernet (I've already tried putting Ethernet above Airport in the preferred order list which didn't help)

Eight wrote:
I am having this problem "None of your preferred networks are available" when only one network is available, ie. my own.
Still the computer will not join to it automatically whether the box is ticked or not.
I STILL HAVE TO MANUALLY CHOOSE! I just want it to connect automatically after I wake up!
Can anybody help.
I too have been frustrated by this for a month now. Tonight I finally got frustrated enough to find a workaround. Go to network preferences, click on the airport item, then on the advanced button. Under the wireless settings, add a second instance of your network to the 'preferred networks' list. I now have two entries with the exact same network name and password as the first and second 'preferred networks' and my laptop now wakes up connected to my network!
By the way...one possible outcome when you finally hit the 'Apply' button is that your entire machine will freeze and your only recourse is to restart. This is possibly the most annoying OS X upgrade in the last 5 years.

OS X 10.5.3 not connecting to preferred networks.

I'm having a problem with the preferred networks connection on my system (Macbook Pro CoreDuo 2ghz), so when the network sometimes drops out, or I move to a location where the network is different (but still on the preferred network list) I have to reconnect manually.
I have checked, and unchecked the ask for the preferred network box a couple of times, and it still gives the same screen.
It happened from fresh install of 10.5 and still happens now I have updated to 10.5.3. It is getting a little annoying with this, because if the area is where the network is a little flakey then I keep getting the connect screen, instead of just letting the machine connect itself.

Thanks for the welcome!
Well, the network router is not the issue, as I have been and placed the machine next to one of the APs and then started it up. What I am getting is the dialogue box saying "Unable to find any of your preferred networks, please select from list below." And then the machine is has to be attached manually, even though the preferred network is saved in the configuration.
What I am trying to do is to make the machine connect automatically instead of having to select the networks every time I want to connect. It is just a little annoying, especially when it was possible to remember, and auto connect without fault in 10.4. As the option seems to be available in the sytems preferences, I am starting to think that it may be a configuration issue on my machine.

Editing list of preferred networks

Is it possible to edit the list of preferred networks in System Preference > Network > Wifi > Advanced?
I travel a lot and have hundreds of saved networks with passwords. There are some in my hometown that I want to get rid of, but I can't find a way to delete them. It would be great if you could search for networks by name to find any delete them also since manually scrolling through a list of hundreds is cumbersome. By default OS X seems to prefer open networks, which is really annoying because most open networks require authentication, while there are other encrypted networks nearby that OS X knows the password to.
I realize it's possible to drag them in to a different order, but with hundreds this would take a long time.
Thanks in advance,
Mike

What happens if you select the Wi-Fi network and click the minus sign? Deletes it for me.

Why does Safari ask me this every time I open my Macbook? "NONE OF YOUR PREFERRED NETWORKS ARE AVAILABLE. CHOOSE THE WI-FE NETWORK YOU WANT TO JOIN FROM THE LIST BELOW. "

Why does Safari ask me this every time I open my Macbook? "NONE OF YOUR PREFERRED NETWORKS ARE AVAILABLE. CHOOSE THE WI-FI NETWORK YOU WANT TO JOIN FROM THE LIST BELOW. "

Open System Preferences > Netwwork then click Advanced then select the Wi-Fi tab.
Under Preferred Networks, if you see more than one network name listed, click and drag yours to the top then click OK.
Quit and relaunch Safari.

Macbook Pro no longer auto-connects to preferred network

The title says it.
While my computer connects automatically to some (maybe all but one) of my preferred networks, it now does not connect, annoyingly, to the one I use the most often (let's call it NET).
I've triple checked that it's preferred and should connect automatically, and the computer remembers the password, so that if I manually select NET, it connects no problem. But:
a) It won't auto-connect to NET, and
b) If I turn my computer on, when it presents the list of networks to me, I have to wait for it to reload the list, cause if I click on NET originally, it doesn't connect, and I have to refresh the list and try again.
c) Figured that might mean that it's just taking longer to load the networks and is showing me a list before it's actually picked up on the networks, but waiting forever doesn't make it autoconnect; it just refreshes the list.
Any ideas? This is a huge pain.

No idea. You could try deleting the file
/Library/Preferences/SystemConfiguration/com.apple.airport.preferences.plist
... and restart your Mac.
To find that file quickly, select the above path (triple-click the line), control-click to bring up the contextual menu, and select Services > Reveal. Drag that file to the Desktop, or directly to the Trash.
This will completely erase your AirPort network preferences, requiring that you select your Wi-Fi network and authenticate again.
What OS X version are you using, and are you using an Apple AirPort Base Station, or a third party product?

OS 10.8.5 Wi-Fi doesn't find "Preferred Network"

We installed a new modem provided by Comcast that has built in wireless. After naming and establishing the password for the network, I successfully connected via my MacBook Pro, which detected it. Once connected I accessed the "Advanced Settings" screen in the Network control panel.
Under the first "Wi-Fi" tab I dragged the new network to the top of the list of "Preferred Networks." I also confirmed that the "Remember networks this computer has joined" check-box was selected.
Yet each time the computer wakes from sleep or is restarted the Wi-Fi utility scans for networks and doesn't connect to any. When I click on the control bar icon for Wi-Fi the network appears -- usually at the bottom of the list -- and when I click on it the computer connects immediately.
Obviously this defeats the point of remembering preferred networks and is a nagging time-suck at the start of each work session. Has anyone else experienced this problem and discovered a solution?
Thanks!!
Joseph
Washington, DC

Hello Joseph_DC
If you are having issues with it not connecting after waking from sleep, the check out the article below to troubleshoot the issue further. Check in the section Symptom: The network connection drops unexpectedly and there will be a solution just for that issue and will continue with going into Keychain Access the
iPhone: Troubleshooting No Service
http://support.apple.com/kb/ts4429
Regards,
-Norm G.

Hi, how do i stop my macbook pro not to automatically connect to a wifi connection that is not my preferred network? i want to automatically connect my macbook to my preferred network everytime i turn on my laptop. thank you.

hi, how do i stop my macbook pro not to automatically connect to a wifi connection that is not my preferred network? i want to automatically connect my macbook to my preferred network everytime i turn on my laptop. thank you.

System Preferences > Network > WiFi
To give a network the highest priority, drag the name of the network to the top of the list. This is the network your computer will attempt to join first.
http://support.apple.com/kb/PH13797

Extra networks listed but don't exist

If I go to the System Preferences/Network/Location Automatic/Show AirPort....I see By default, join "A specific network" as my only option. Then in the Network listing there are two extra networks listed but they are phantom and don't exist. In the upper right in the Show Airport status the 2 networks also appear.
How do I get rid of the extra phantom networks listed? Stumped......

The +/- boxes are available in the By default, join: Preferred networks but not in the Automatic mode. If I select the + button and use the pull-down for Network Name they appear again. They also appear in my Show AirPort status in menu bar. Can't seem to get rid of them......any thoughts?

Preferred Networks by Location in Mavericks

Back in Snow Leopard, preferred WiFi networks were stored separately, in different lists according to the location chosen.
That worked great because I have 2 routers at home, one for my ISP and one for my VPN.
When connected trough the ISP router, the DNS Servers are chosen automatically.
If I want to connect trough the VPN router, I must specify the DNS Servers, for example OpenDNS.
So I had 2 locations, one for each router.
When I chose either one of the locations, it automatically connected me to its respective router.
It also worked for assigning Static IP addresses for the computer, a different one for each router.
The problem with Mavericks is that all Preferred Networks are listed together, and not grouped by Location as it was in OSX 10.6
Now It's a mess. I have to manually choose my desired network.
The problem is that if the other network comes out first in the list, the computer will connect to it.
If it doesn't match my chosen location, I will then have incompatible IP and DNS settings for that router.oes
Does someone else have this problem?
Is there a way to revert to the way Snow Leopard handled Preferred Networks?
Thanx!

I wish I would have taken a screenshot. The "kind" option is back after a reboot. Grrr.

None of your preferred networks are available

Hi,
I'm still having this problem. Whenever I turn my Leopard running iMac on, as soon as the Desktop loads a message pops up saying:
"None of your preferred networks are available"
The SSID name of my home WiFi network is visible in the list of available networks, but when I try to join it I get the message:
"Connecting to network"
and then
"Connection timeout"
This problem isn't exclusive to my Tiger upgraded to Leopard iMac. It's exactly the same on a brand new late 2007 MacBook with Leopard pre-installed!
WiFi used to work flawlessly with Tiger. But with Leopard it's very unreliable to the point of being unusable. When are Apple going to sort it out? Nothing has changed with my Netgear DG834PN Router. It's setup exactly the same way it was with Tiger.
Any help would be appreciated.

Reuben,
You're not alone. I have the same problem, and literally tons of other people do too. After running my search on apple discussions for "preferred networks" (my results url is: http://discussions.apple.com/search.jspa?forumID=599&threadID=&q=preferrednetworkproblem&objID=c235&dateRange=all&userID=&numResults=30&rankBy=10001 ) and finding 236 responses, it seems patently clear that the problem is a bug in Leopard.
I filed a bug report at bugreport.apple.com, and was given the "Problem ID" of: 5692458. My description, following Apple's requested protocol, may be found at https://bugreport.apple.com/cgi-bin/WebObjects/RadarWeb.woa/27/wo/ZC6cutwkbBEtt3 M1MEp67M/7.21
and other posters have recommended that as many others as possible do the same.

Preferred network list...

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