Mac's IP Address 169.254...trouble connecting to internet

[Sierra93]

Hi, I'm having a lot of trouble. I'm no techie so let me list everything that might help.

I have a Mac and a MacBook. The Mac connects to the internet through a Netgear router via a WPA Personal password.
It was working fine for months but now the IP address reads 169.254.xxx.xxx which I've read is bad. The internet connects sometimes but often needs refreshing, turning the airport on and off repeatedly, etc.

I tried to connect my new MacBook to the internet via the same router. It says it's connected, shows all the bars, but WILL NOT load any pages.

Can I get a new, working IP address? Or any other suggestions? Thanks so much!

 

[r0k]

Hi, I'm having a lot of trouble. I'm no techie so let me list everything that might help.

I have a Mac and a MacBook. The Mac connects to the internet through a Netgear router via a WPA Personal password.
It was working fine for months but now the IP address reads 169.254.xxx.xxx which I've read is bad. The internet connects sometimes but often needs refreshing, turning the airport on and off repeatedly, etc.

I tried to connect my new MacBook to the internet via the same router. It says it's connected, shows all the bars, but WILL NOT load any pages.

Can I get a new, working IP address? Or any other suggestions? Thanks so much!

The 169.254... is a "fake" ip address that your Mac "guesses" when it can't find one from your router. It allows two machines to connect to a hub and exchange files without needing a "dhcp server" to tell them what IP to use.

The netgear router includes a "DHCP server" and if it is working properly, you will never see the 169.254... ip address. I suggest you verify the connection to the router. You will have to connect to the router to change any settings so perhaps you should turn off airport and use an ethernet cable. Once you have a valid ip address, 192.something, use a web browser to go check the settings in the router. You can find out the ip of the router by viewing your network settings in system preferences after you have been able to connect. Once you are connected to the router, see if the router is on the internet or not. It could be the router isn't getting a good internet connection.

So in short you are trying to debug 2 things at the same time and one or both could be broken: your connection to the router, the router's connection to the internet.

All the ip's on the left side are "private" and look like 192.something.
The ip on the right is "public" and depends on your internet provider.

Your Mac <-your ip---router ip->Router<-public or "wan" ip----->Internet
Other Mac<-other ip---router ip->Router

hope this helps.

 

[miles01110]

Reset the router. Usually this involves holding the power button for 30 seconds.