Internet connection issues

[philbrown]

I'm trying to troubleshoot an internet issue I've been having for months now on my main studio computer- a Mac Pro 4,1 running 10.9.5. I use Dropbox a lot for work and do large uploads and downloads. Dropbox pushed an 'upgrade' onto my Mac without asking or permission and I assumed my internet issues were because of that. Around the same time we bought a new Netgear R6250 wireless router and a Motorola Surfboard SB6141 modem. It now seems Dropbox was not the issue. Every time I do any kind of sizable up or download, any other internet connection drops out completely- browser hung, email stalled, etc on this computer. I've checked wireless strength and internet speeds, and all seems good and up to spec. I've googled like crazy and tried various solutions that have not helped even slightly. I understand doing a large download will slow other internet uses, but I've never had it completely hose my connection until now, even on slower computers. I'll also mention, since this started I have installed a new SSD boot drive and am re-installing everything fresh from the ground up, yet the problem persists. Does anyone here have any ideas about this?

TIA,
Phil

[philbrown]

I didn't think it would reach, but I (surprisingly) managed to stretch a 50' ethernet cable from the router to my studio computer for a direct connection. Voila! Problem solved! Except- I can't leave an ethernet cable strung out of the den, down the hallway, round the corner, etc. and I don't see any other direct-wired solutions that are practical. So I'm still open for suggestions, and hopefully this info is helpful.


More info- this router creates 2 wireless networks, one of which is 5G. Would this make a difference? Maybe I should turn one off and just use the other one?

[mikehalloran]

Multiple wireless routers in close proximity can cause confusion on your network. Without knowing enough detail, this is where you should look. Someone who knows how to troubleshoot the various protocols is what you need.

[philbrown]

Someone who knows how to troubleshoot the various protocols is what you need.

Don't I know it! I live just down the road from the middle of nowhere with not a lot of help in that dept. My internet is blazing the fastest ever through Ethernet at the moment, and I do a lot of large uploads and downloads, so I think I'm going to relocate the router and drill a couple of holes so my studio MP is hard wired. It looks like wild guess 30-50% faster (maybe more) than wireless 5G in this case. You never know where these things will lead...

[mikehalloran]

Sometimes, with the MP, the antennae for your wireless card may be the issue. This link tells you how to install the card with pictures. Take a look and see that your wires are where they should be:

http://www.tweaking4all.com/hardware/ap ... 2008-2012/

[mikehalloran]

The two-band wifi shouldn't be the issue ... unless it's not set up correctly, that is.

Nomally, your Mac should be set up to look for 5K whenever possible. 2.5K exists for when it is not and for older devices that connect over 802.11a/b/g that require it.

The reason this exists is that the slowest device on 802.11a/b/g/n slows down the entire network to that protocol. 802.11n can connect over 5K leaving the slower devices on their own network. Check your Mac to make sure it is looking for 5K and not 2.5K.

The new 802.11ac protocol doesn't seem to behave that way. We have a Time Capsule that supports it as does my wife's 2013 MacBook Air. That and my daughter's 2008 MBP share the same wifi without my wife's Air slowing down.

There are cards that can upgrade your MP to 802.11ac. You also need a compatible router of which there are now a few besides the current Air Port and Time Capsule. 802.11ac is rated 1.3x faster than 1000 ethernet and I have proved to myself around here that it is faster as long as you don't have major interference between your Mac and the server like, say a water heater, refrigerator or electrical panel.

http://www.xlr8yourmac.com/feedback/802 ... pters.html

[philbrown]

Thanks for all the good advice, Mike. I found a long-lost cable connection in the back of the top shelf of my studio closet and was able to re-locate the modem and router to a better location and also hook up my studio computer via ethernet without drilling any holes. Yay!

[mikehalloran]

Thanks for all the good advice, Mike. I found a long-lost cable connection in the back of the top shelf of my studio closet and was able to re-locate the modem and router to a better location and also hook up my studio computer via ethernet without drilling any holes. Yay!

Great that it was that simple!

Unless you have 802.11ac, 1000T Ethernet is always a lot faster.

Oh yea, wifi routers like to be up high–often makes a huge difference.

[philbrown]

Thanks for all the good advice, Mike. I found a long-lost cable connection in the back of the top shelf of my studio closet and was able to re-locate the modem and router to a better location and also hook up my studio computer via ethernet without drilling any holes. Yay!

Great that it was that simple!

Unless you have 802.11ac, 1000T Ethernet is always a lot faster.

Oh yea, wifi routers like to be up high–often makes a huge difference.

I agree on the height. Makes sense with all the furniture, wiring etc that's mostly lower.

[MIDI Life Crisis]

Not totally off topic... I was having graphics issues when I called Applecare. We found the solution for that but in the process the tech asked to share my screen - which I allowed. As soon as we installed that app on my machine, the new Mac Pro took about a full minute to access the internet via ethernet and wireless and it has remained that way since.

His troubleshooting involved creating a new partition and booting in from that partition. At that point the access was back to normal, but he couldn't find a way to clear whatever was added to my system to cause this. He insisted that is could not have been the screen sharing that created the problem. I remain unconvinced.

His suggestion is to do a complete clean install (which I can't do for a few weeks) and make sure only current software and drivers, etc., are present on the system. He is blaming "legacy" software for the problem.

Again, I remain unconvinced. The move to this machine has been the most difficult transition since going from OS 9 to OS X. I'm not at all sorry I bought it, but I do wish the transition could have gone a little smoother.

[philbrown]

Not totally off topic... I was having graphics issues when I called Applecare. We found the solution for that but in the process the tech asked to share my screen - which I allowed. As soon as we installed that app on my machine, the new Mac Pro took about a full minute to access the internet via ethernet and wireless and it has remained that way since.

His troubleshooting involved creating a new partition and booting in from that partition. At that point the access was back to normal, but he couldn't find a way to clear whatever was added to my system to cause this. He insisted that is could not have been the screen sharing that created the problem. I remain unconvinced.

His suggestion is to do a complete clean install (which I can't do for a few weeks) and make sure only current software and drivers, etc., are present on the system. He is blaming "legacy" software for the problem.

Again, I remain unconvinced. The move to this machine has been the most difficult transition since going from OS 9 to OS X. I'm not at all sorry I bought it, but I do wish the transition could have gone a little smoother.

I feel your pain (kinda). I was getting kernel panics and other badness with my system, but I had time to transition. It's been a couple of hours a day for weeks and still not done fully transitioning yet to this fresh install, but getting close and it's usable for work.

Keep the faith! and take deep breaths

[mikehalloran]

He insisted that is could not have been the screen sharing that created the problem. I remain unconvinced.

Oh yea, definitely.

I have had a number of issues where the tech just didn't know or was only half right... Sometimes, you have to call back and get a second opinion.

I would try an Option Boot and see if you have more than one user account. There are ways to clear such things but they sometimes require Terminal commands when booted into the Restore partition. Others can be cleared only when logged into Root.

[philbrown]

A followup to anyone reading this- getting the wireless router up near the ceiling has given us better whole house coverage than ever. Your situation may differ, but if you think about furniture, cabinets, desks, electrical appliances etc etc etc are mostly waist or chest height or below. Getting the router well above that at least bypasses some physical (and probably electrical) interference. Anyway it's worth a try if you're having issues along this line.

More info: i was testing my wireless signal strength with an Android app that seemed to work pretty well (and I thought it was a cool idea). It showed my wireless signal to be good around my studio computer and yet all the evidence after the fact points too a weak signal as near as I can tell. Maybe there are other factors beside signal strength? Anyway the app was misleading and kept leading me away from a solution rather than helping, so just a heads up on that. Maybe it's just a lousy app.

[MIDI Life Crisis]

UPDATE: While working with the Apple tech guy, I had removed Little Snitch from the Login items. When I went to add it back in it said a component was missing and I ignored it until I had time to deal with the issue. I reinstalled LS and now the connection is instant at startup again.