MBA 2013 Wi-fi Issues

DrJohnZoidberg

DrJohnZoidberg

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Ran the newest update last night on my Macbook Air and today my wifi is completely buggered.

Latency to local hosts sitting in the 100s and dropping packets :(

Code: 
PING 192.168.40.1 (192.168.40.1): 56 data bytes
64 bytes from 192.168.40.1: icmp_seq=0 ttl=64 time=83.044 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.1: icmp_seq=1 ttl=64 time=2.773 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.1: icmp_seq=2 ttl=64 time=20.965 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.1: icmp_seq=3 ttl=64 time=43.821 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.1: icmp_seq=4 ttl=64 time=66.520 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.1: icmp_seq=5 ttl=64 time=42.103 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.1: icmp_seq=6 ttl=64 time=9.777 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.1: icmp_seq=7 ttl=64 time=36.910 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.1: icmp_seq=8 ttl=64 time=59.105 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.1: icmp_seq=9 ttl=64 time=81.063 ms

I had no issues whatsoever before yesterday. Looks like I'm going to have to a re-install to see if that fixes it.

I see there lots of complaints about wifi issues: https://discussions.apple.com/thread/5100655?start=1695&tstart=0

Is anyone here seeing similar issues?
 
No issues this end. Many complaints around 10.8.5 and Mavericks.

Before a reinstall, recommend you delete the WIFi connection in Network (System Preferences), reboot and then test again.
 
[)roi(];11349557 said:
No issues this end. Many complaints around 10.8.5 and Mavericks.

Before a reinstall, recommend you delete the WIFi connection in Network (System Preferences), reboot and then test again.
Click to expand...

Thanks, I'll try that. Although I have tested with three different routers now and all of them do the same thing.

Busy backing up, if recreating the connections doesn't help I am going to do a clean restore.
 
Nothing worked :(

Issue is that that update was a firmware update so restoring the OS didn't affect it whatsoever. I do however have a squeaky clean desktop again.

Tested pings on a friends MBP Retina and there are similar issues but not as bad as with mine. Are all Macbook's wireless just inherently bad?

Can you guys post some ping stats to a machine or router on your local network when working over wifi.

Mine (to our pfSense router box):

Code: 
PING 192.168.40.5 (192.168.40.5): 56 data bytes
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=0 ttl=64 time=1.088 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=1 ttl=64 time=1.112 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=2 ttl=64 time=2.156 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=3 ttl=64 time=0.985 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=4 ttl=64 time=11.717 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=5 ttl=64 time=8.144 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=6 ttl=64 time=1.055 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=7 ttl=64 time=20.323 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=8 ttl=64 time=1.141 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=9 ttl=64 time=1.276 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=10 ttl=64 time=1.328 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=11 ttl=64 time=1.717 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=12 ttl=64 time=9.340 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=13 ttl=64 time=1.237 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=14 ttl=64 time=145.221 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=15 ttl=64 time=22.037 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=16 ttl=64 time=8.125 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=17 ttl=64 time=2.266 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=18 ttl=64 time=1.019 ms
ç64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=19 ttl=64 time=4.931 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=20 ttl=64 time=25.886 ms
^C
--- 192.168.40.5 ping statistics ---
21 packets transmitted, 21 packets received, 0.0% packet loss
round-trip min/avg/max/stddev = 0.985/12.957/145.221/30.502 ms

And here pings from a wired machine (just to show that there isn't an issue with the router itself):

Code: 
PING 192.168.40.5 (192.168.40.5) 56(84) bytes of data.
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=1 ttl=64 time=0.171 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=2 ttl=64 time=0.153 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=3 ttl=64 time=0.140 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=4 ttl=64 time=0.134 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=5 ttl=64 time=0.202 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=6 ttl=64 time=0.134 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=7 ttl=64 time=0.147 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=8 ttl=64 time=0.143 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=9 ttl=64 time=0.138 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=10 ttl=64 time=0.160 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=11 ttl=64 time=0.137 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=12 ttl=64 time=0.145 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=13 ttl=64 time=0.148 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=14 ttl=64 time=0.140 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=15 ttl=64 time=0.135 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=16 ttl=64 time=0.144 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=17 ttl=64 time=0.142 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=18 ttl=64 time=0.135 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=19 ttl=64 time=0.138 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=20 ttl=64 time=0.138 ms
^C
--- 192.168.40.5 ping statistics ---
20 packets transmitted, 20 received, 0% packet loss, time 19714ms
rtt min/avg/max/mdev = 0.134/0.146/0.202/0.017 ms
 
DrJohnZoidberg said:
Nothing worked :(

Issue is that that update was a firmware update so restoring the OS didn't affect it whatsoever. I do however have a squeaky clean desktop again.

Tested pings on a friends MBP Retina and there are similar issues but not as bad as with mine. Are all Macbook's wireless just inherently bad?

Can you guys post some ping stats to a machine or router on your local network when working over wifi.

Mine (to our pfSense router box):

Code: 
PING 192.168.40.5 (192.168.40.5): 56 data bytes
...
--- 192.168.40.5 ping statistics ---
21 packets transmitted, 21 packets received, 0.0% packet loss
round-trip min/avg/max/stddev = 0.985/12.957/145.221/30.502 ms

And here pings from a wired machine (just to show that there isn't an issue with the router itself):

Code: 
PING 192.168.40.5 (192.168.40.5) 56(84) bytes of data.
...
^C
--- 192.168.40.5 ping statistics ---
20 packets transmitted, 20 received, 0% packet loss, time 19714ms
rtt min/avg/max/mdev = 0.134/0.146/0.202/0.017 ms
Click to expand...
My pings tend to be sub 10ms.

Most of your pings don't seem to be an issues, yet I agree the 100ms ones look strange. Btw the ethernet vs WIFI tests with your router don't necessarily isolate the problem to the MBA.

Could you add some more details:
1. Describe your network setup? Specifically the WIFI part.
2. What in detail are some of the problems you've experienced (let's ignore for now the inconsistent pings)?

BTW: I don't generally find the public Apple forums to be of much help, as they typically represent a mix mash of issues, most of which are not related. I'd recommend you only believe the complaints if the problem description is an exact match for your situation (clearly the thread you referenced is not).

I rather recommend you log a very detailed bug report here, unless of course you have a developer account, which would allow you more direct access to Apple's engineering via http://bugreporter.apple.com
 
Last edited:
[)roi(];11356093 said:
My pings tend to be sub 10ms.
Most of your pings don't seem to be an issues, yet agree the 100ms ones look strange. Btw the ethernet vs WIFI tests with your router don't necessarily isolate the problem to the MBA.

Could you add some more details:
1. Describe your network setup? Specifically the WIFI part.
2. What specifically are some of the problems you've experienced (let's ignore for now the inconsistent pings)?
Click to expand...

That example I posted there was a good one, this is one I ran now again:

Code: 
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=0 ttl=64 time=153.095 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=1 ttl=64 time=175.894 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=2 ttl=64 time=198.784 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=3 ttl=64 time=16.814 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=4 ttl=64 time=2.167 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=5 ttl=64 time=62.598 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=6 ttl=64 time=85.428 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=7 ttl=64 time=108.179 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=8 ttl=64 time=1.336 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=9 ttl=64 time=1.227 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=10 ttl=64 time=1.245 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=11 ttl=64 time=11.232 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=12 ttl=64 time=1.335 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=13 ttl=64 time=23.741 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=14 ttl=64 time=2.098 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.40.5: icmp_seq=15 ttl=64 time=36.077 ms

It is a very big issue, especially for latency sensitive applications.

The network setup is a wifi AP connected to a pfSense based firewall box. Pings are the same if I ping the AP's IP directly too.

Here are pings from my phone to the same address:

Screenshot_2013-10-16-18-57-28.png


This is a phone, I would expect a premium laptop to have a far superior wifi chipset.
 
Set up a new user account and see if the problems persist.
 
[)roi(];11356539 said:
Certainly not good.

Have you tried to downgrade to an earlier WIFI kext : https://discussions.apple.com/message/22965279#22965279

Ps. Recommend you back up your current kext just in case something goes wrong.
Click to expand...

DrJohnZoidberg said:
Thanks for this link, I was looking for something like this to try. I'll let you know how it goes.
Click to expand...

You are the man (or woman?)! The driver rollback in the link you provided worked perfectly :D

Pings are back to sub 10ms and mainly sub 5ms.

Code: 
PING 192.168.1.2 (192.168.1.2): 56 data bytes
64 bytes from 192.168.1.2: icmp_seq=0 ttl=64 time=2.152 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.2: icmp_seq=1 ttl=64 time=4.071 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.2: icmp_seq=2 ttl=64 time=3.266 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.2: icmp_seq=3 ttl=64 time=3.727 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.2: icmp_seq=4 ttl=64 time=3.116 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.2: icmp_seq=5 ttl=64 time=3.188 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.2: icmp_seq=6 ttl=64 time=3.189 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.2: icmp_seq=7 ttl=64 time=3.277 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.2: icmp_seq=8 ttl=64 time=3.251 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.2: icmp_seq=9 ttl=64 time=3.247 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.2: icmp_seq=10 ttl=64 time=5.928 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.2: icmp_seq=11 ttl=64 time=1.288 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.2: icmp_seq=12 ttl=64 time=3.240 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.2: icmp_seq=13 ttl=64 time=3.151 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.2: icmp_seq=14 ttl=64 time=3.142 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.2: icmp_seq=15 ttl=64 time=3.876 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.2: icmp_seq=16 ttl=64 time=3.260 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.2: icmp_seq=17 ttl=64 time=3.206 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.2: icmp_seq=18 ttl=64 time=3.209 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.2: icmp_seq=19 ttl=64 time=3.279 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.2: icmp_seq=20 ttl=64 time=3.179 ms
^C
--- 192.168.1.2 ping statistics ---
21 packets transmitted, 21 packets received, 0.0% packet loss
round-trip min/avg/max/stddev = 1.288/3.297/5.928/0.803 ms
 
Macbooks have wifi issues. My rMBP retina as well as my previous MBP 15 give Wifi connectivity issues with both Netgear and Airport Extreme routers. Funnily enough Windows 8 Wifi works OK on PCs.
 
Try changing your MTU for the wireless.

I've found many access points and MacBooks don't agree on MTU values which causes this kind if stuff.
 
SauRoNZA said:
Try changing your MTU for the wireless.

I've found many access points and MacBooks don't agree on MTU values which causes this kind if stuff.
Click to expand...

My issue is that sometimes my Wifi just dies. There is signal but websites don't load. Nothing. I have to disable and enable Wifi again on the macbook and things work again for a while. This happens on both the bands, even if I set a seperate 5GHz network. This problem plagued both my current rMBP 15 and my previous MBP 15. It occurred under Snow Leopard and Mountain Lion.


My other issue is that both my Netgear and my Airport Extreme have terrible range in my house. This problem is separate from the other problem. My signal can be good - right now I get 217Mb/sec connection speed - but less than 10meters away and not through a wall, I get dropped signal. Boosting signal to 100% power and changing AEBS orientation does not help. Right now, through ONE wall and 6-7m from the AEBS I get a 13dB/14dB signal for the two bands.

My MTU is at 1500, configured "automatically". What would you set it as?
 
I have had some issues with my MBPR and Time Capsule.....found an article saying iCloud issues....
Try: System Prefs> iCloud, un-tick "Back to my Mac" .....do a restart and see?
Good Luck
 
D tj said:
I have had some issues with my MBPR and Time Capsule.....found an article saying iCloud issues....
Try: System Prefs> iCloud, un-tick "Back to my Mac" .....do a restart and see?
Good Luck
Click to expand...

Hi. Ta for reply.

I don't use a Tme Capsule and my Icloud, Back to my Mac is disabled. I don't even have my username/password entered there.
 
Sorry about that, try searching CNET> MacFixit, or post a question there, other place possibly try is MacRumors, or Apple Support Communities.
I don't know if applicable in your case, but check if an update in Airport Utilities....Applications> Utilities> Airport Utilities>update...???
 
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