Airport Client Update 2009-001 (ver 1.0) broke Wi-Fi connectivity.

[sirozha]

I have two Macbooks at home (Aluminum 2.4 GHz late fall 2008 and 1st-generation Macbook Air). I downloaded several updates, among which were Airport Client Update 2009-001 and Airport Utility Software Update 5.4.1 on my Aluminum Macbook. After the laptop restarted, I got a message saying that my system clock was incorrect and was set to before 2001. It is currently set to December 31, 2000. The time was incorrect as well. The Macbook is configured to use NTP, but the Wi-Fi connection wasn't working. I started investigating the issue and realized that the Airport Client Update 2009-001 broke Wi-Fi on my Macbook. My Macbook Air is still connecting fine. The Access Point is a Cisco 1140 access point that supports concurrent 802.11g and 802.11a. My home network is on 802.11a. I also have a wireless print server on 802.11a, which is also connected fine.

I looked at the Console logs, and saw the following:
"WLC_E_COUNTRY_CODE_CHANGED"
en1: 80211d country code set to 'X0'

On the Apple support forums site there are a few threads describing a similar issue after this update was downloaded, except most people use Time Capsule or Airport Extreme as the access point. It seems that if you are using the 5 GHz range (802.11a or 802.11n), and the SSID is hidden, the Airport Client Update 2009-001 breaks the connectivity.

My Cisco access point is reporting the following in the log:
Mar 11 22:14:42.227: %DOT11-7-AUTH_FAILED: Station 0023.1257.XXXX Authentication failedConnection closed by foreign host.

I even re-did the Wi-Fi network configuration on the Aluminum Macbook to make sure that my previous settings were not corrupted. When I try to associate to the Cisco access point, the Macbook seems to connect for just a couple seconds and then it disconnects.

Word of caution, do not install this update. It definitely has a bug.

 

[sirozha]

I had to start advertising the SSID on the Cisco access point's 5 GHz band in order to get the Macbook to associate with the access point. The network had to be reconfigured on the Macbook, which required re-entering the WPA password. It also required a couple restarts before the setting would stick.

This update is a disaster, so don't install it. Advertising SSID is not a good practice, so this is a temporary fix. I have a scheduled call with Apple tomorrow to address it. I would prefer rolling back this update, if possible.

 

[sirozha]

I spoke to a "subject matter expert" at Apple on this issue yesterday, and I believe he is going to forward my ticket to developers, and hopefully, this will be filed as a bug.

 

[Marz45]

I have the exact same problem. Isn't there a way to uninstall the update?

 

[sirozha]

I have the exact same problem. Isn't there a way to uninstall the update?

That update flashed the firmware on the Airport card installed in the Mac. According to Apple support, the only way to uninstall it is to flash it with the previous firmware release, which Apple would not provide. So, to answer your question, there's no officially supported way to uninstall it.

 

[interconnect]

Advertising SSID is not a good practice, so this is a temporary fix.

you do realize that your SSID can be discovered in a matter of seconds. hiding your SSID does not matter to people who have the technically ability to crack your network, therefore hiding it is useless and can be a pain in the ass if you have guests. you might as well leave it broadcasting.

 

[sirozha]

you do realize that your SSID can be discovered in a matter of seconds. hiding your SSID does not matter to people who have the technically ability to crack your network, therefore hiding it is useless and can be a pain in the ass if you have guests. you might as well leave it broadcasting.

So, this gives Big Brother the right to tell us what's good for us and how we should be computing? This argument is moot and beside the point. Hiding SSID should be a valid feature. Apple has killed it for no reason.