Airport has a self assigned IP address

Airport has a self assigned IP address is message I am getting when trying to connect new MacBook to my wifi. I can get connected with direct modem to Ethernet but when trying to set up wifi I get the self assigned thing. I have searched the forum for similar problems and have tried all the fixes and nothing works. Currently I have a belkin which is problematic for Mac and am waiting for arrival of my new refurb airport express. Think the new express will solve? I did a clean install from original disks today, did updates and that didn't help. It doesn't matter if I am close or across the room. Ugh. This seems like it would happen to PC not Mac. Been working all day to no avail. My MacBook pro and my phone and tablet all connect easily. Help!!

UPDATE: I spent virtually the entire day on the phone with Apple support and then with 2Wire237 tech support. The fault is neither of theirs of course. After powering up and down the Macbook, going through and setting all the TCI/IP settings, and working with first support tech at apple, he transferred me to his tech supervisor and we did much re-starting, refiguring, Hard Disk/library stuff, rebooting with control/option/shift/powerbutton. Putting back in the install disk, and nothing would get the self-assigned (169.) IP message off. I had explained that my MBP, iphones, ipads, Xoom tablet, blackberry all were receiving the wireless signal. So Apple tech said it could only be one of two things - the Macbook had a faulty airport card, or the problem was with the DSL modem. He asked me to take laptop to another place with wireless to see if the airport could connect to a wireless. So we went downtown and were surrounded by wireless networks and HAD NO PROBLEM CONNECTING WIRELESSLY. So came back home and called 2wire/Century link support and spend lengthly time on phone with. Tech Support said, after much powering down and restarting the modem and laptop, that if the laptop wireless was connecting to a self assigned "169" ip, that it was something wrong with the computer. Hmm, if the computer connects wirelessly at other locations, then it shouldn't be the macbook. If all my other equipment works on the 2wire, then the modem is obviously working correctly. IT IS AN ENIGMA for sure. Anyone else have any thoughts? I have ordered an airport express and it is being shipped, though I'm afraid this will not work. Currently, it is using ethernet/2wire.

Update: Apple said that we could mail in the Macbook for replacement of airport card. (we have not apple store close). Or I could get a new DSL Modem. If modem doesn't work I could always return it. Any thoughts on this option?

if the airport works fine on other wifi networks, it is not the airport card in the laptop that is the problem. it could be a configuration problem with the wireless access point you have (Belkin) or an incompatibility as you stated. the problem is that the laptop is requesting an ip address from the dhcp server but the server is not giving it one. do you have any other computers you can use to test that the access point/router is working correctly?

ANSWER: After 2 days and nights working on this problem I finally figured it out myself. I am ashamed to admit it was operator error - I had my modem password incorrect and kept entering the incorrect one. Once I corrected that, it jumped right on. I never got a message that the password was incorrect though - I just happened to double check (it's a number sequence, not typical password). DUH!! Maybe this stupid operator error will help others that have the self assigned ip problem. Feel so stupid that I made that mistake, but not so stupid that I finally figured it out.

ditto

Hey!

I have done the same thing - I spent days trying to get on to wireless having has to re eneter my wep key. I obviously used an old one although no - you dont get informed that its wrong and airport did seem to connect for a while though not opening any web pages.

Anyway - did a check and yes i was using wrong wepkey - worth checking anyone who is tearing their hair out!!

thanks for posting

I also found the same issue here on Snow Leopard, after bashing my head (the wireless connection worked at public places but quit working at my home getting the wrong IP address), turns out I needed to enter the first WEP key from my router and it liked that one like all my other devices, for some reason none of the other WEP keys shown in Linksys router config seem to work well, only the top one, same if I try to use the friendly password, but I have a rather dated router.

BTW, we should not feel too bad, this is not a friendly error at all, Windows has no trouble letting user know if you entered the wrong WEP key, I would hope this gets resolved in Lion, I've wasted a lot of valuable time on this one but thanks to this post I was able to save the time of calling Apple Care which was going to be my next move...