Fix for Mac OS X Not Remembering Wireless Networks
I recently encountered a strange issue where Mac OS X Lion stopped remembering a specific wireless network, forcing me to manually select the connection and then enter the password each time I wish to connect to that wireless router. This appears to be a common enough issue with wireless connectivity in OS X Lion and it usually occurs when waking from sleep or rebooting a Mac, which is followed up the connection failure. I came across the answer in the comments on a past Lion wi-fi issue article here on OSXDaily, and it resolved the troubles for me.
Before proceeding, I would recommend updating to Mac OS X 10.7.3, which also includes a bug fix to address some Lion Wi-Fi stability issues. That alone may resolve it for you, but continuing with the following solution won’t harm anything either way.
- Open the “Disk Utility” application, found within Applications > Utilities
- Select “Macintosh HD” from the lefthand side menu, then click on the “First Aid” tab on the right
- Click on “Repair Disk Permissions” and let this run, this may take 15 minutes or longer
- Reboot the Mac
- Join the wireless network as usual, checking the “Remember this network” box
You should now be able to sleep and reboot the Mac without connection failures or forgetting the wireless network. This is one of those rare instances where repairing Disk Permissions, an oft referenced generic Mac placebo for many troubleshooting issues, actually does something and resolves the problem. Try it yourself and let us know if it worked for you.
If you continue to have wireless difficulties, check out a lengthy list of tips for fixing wireless problems in OS X Lion.
I ran into this a while ago on OSX 10.7.1 and fixed it by repairing my Keychain. That could be the same process in permissions repair for all I know, but it’s something else to consider if you have a stubborn issue with logins.
Thank you very much! i was searching for this.
love osxdaily!!
also, try to delete your wireless network and add it again with your password…it simply works…enjoy!
I was having the same problem after updating to 10.7.3 but also after updating the firmware on my Router, so I did not know why that was going on. I’m glad to see that I was not the only one. I will try this fix and see if it works.
Thanks!
Same problem on my i5 quad core iMac after the 10.7.3 update. Tried all suggested fixes but the problem is still there.
[...] Via | OSXDaily [...]
Tried it, but now mac takes 3 times longer to boot… Help…
Just try this : http://rys.pixeltards.com/2011/09/04/osx-lion-wifi.html
Downgrade to snow leopard’s driver. The only problem is the AirDrop doesn’t work anymore… but you’ll get your connexion back!!! Anyway you’ll get what you want, using this solution… 2 months nightmare, losing connexion, but now I’m really happy with it.
[...] recently covered how to resolve an issue when Mac OS X doesn’t remember a wireless network, password protected or not, and since then several readers have notified us of another separate [...]
I spent hours searching for a solution without success until I came across this solution. It worked perfectly. Thanks so much for the tip
OK I spoke too soon. Repairing disk permissions lasted a couple of days, but then the problem returned on my 27 inch 2011 iMac. Tried the update suggested by fum007 and this seems to have fixed the problem.
(iMac only) Here is the link where you can download a new update (released on 24th fev) for wifi issue especially for iMac if helps:
http://supportdownload.apple.com/download.info.apple.com/Apple_Support_Area/Apple_Software_Updates/Mac_OS_X/downloads/041-4371.20120224.Aq2We/iMacWi-FiUpdate.dmg
Cheers
Wow!!! I have talked with apple support several times trashing prefs, re-ordering networks, etc and nothing has worked. This finally got me back in action!!
THANK YOU!
Repairing Disk Permissions fixes my wifi problem every time. So is this an Apple bug and do I need to do this everytime I wake my MacBookPro from sleep?