- Joined
- Jan 1, 2009
- Messages
- 15,586
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- Location
- Winchester, VA
- Your Mac's Specs
- MBP 16" 2023 (M3 Pro), iPhone 15 Pro, plus ATVs, AWatch, MacMinis (multiple)
I have an M1 Mac Mini that has a large-ish drive attached that is shared on my local network. The machine it is on is in our Kitchen, and my wife uses it to search recipies as well as to watch movies as she cooks. The name of the machine is "Kitchen" and the network address is "Network.local" for those applications that connect to it over the network, including SMB. It is set up for both WiFI and Ethernet connections.
The issue is that on boot, it throws up an error that there is a conflict on the network for a machine nameed "Kitchen" and it is renaming itself to "Kitchen (2)". The number increments for each boot, or network connect. My local network has had an issue recently and was apparently hit with a "storm" of data because yesterday the name of the Mini was "Kitchen (3811)" which would indicate 3811 conflicts overnight!
So, I sorted out the netework, got the failing device creating the storm of data off and rebooted all of the devices in the net. Kitchen detected the conflict again and renamed itself "Kitchen (2)" automatically. As a result, the other machines in the network failed to establish and sustain the SMB connections to the shared drive because the name changed from "Kitchen.local" to "Kitchen (2).local".
The Mini is connecting both through WiFi and Ethernet, and has two IP numbers, one for each interface, but I have the same setup on two other Macs, one MBP and one MBA, and no such renaming happens with them on boot. Just the Mini. It seems like it is detecting itself and seeing a conflict when it boots, but after renaming, it's content to share the name on both interfaces just fine. i can also go in after it boots and change the name back to "Kitchen" and it makes no complaints about that.
As far as I can determine, my network router doesn't hold the names in cache to re-assign on reconnect. The conflict comes, as far as I can tell, from the survey of the network the Mini does on connection. Also, the conflict doesn't seem to matter once the initial connection is made, as the Mini and network are both happy if I change the name back to eliminate the number. Also, once it renames itself, both the WiFi and Ethernet connections have the same name, with the "(2)" or whatever, which would imply still in conflict. I can't figure out how to turn off WiFi on boot, to let the Ethernet connect, get past the stage where the conflict is detected and then turn WiFi back on to see if that delay would work.
Apple was clueless, suggesting a SafeBoot which did nothing and then suggesting to turn off WiFi or unplug Ethernet. But it works on the other two machines just fine, so why not on the Mini? When I asked the online Genius, I got crickets chirping....
So, wise friends, any suggestions? It is possible to turn off WiFi, or to disconnect Ethernet competely, but I'd prefer to keep both on and active. Is there some setting I'm missing that can tell it to ignore the "conflict" and just keep the name assigned? Can I keep WiFi off on boot and then turn it back on after the boot is completed automatically? I've compared and cannot see any difference between settings on the Mini, MBP, and MBA, so I'm here for suggestions for the more obscure.
The issue is that on boot, it throws up an error that there is a conflict on the network for a machine nameed "Kitchen" and it is renaming itself to "Kitchen (2)". The number increments for each boot, or network connect. My local network has had an issue recently and was apparently hit with a "storm" of data because yesterday the name of the Mini was "Kitchen (3811)" which would indicate 3811 conflicts overnight!
So, I sorted out the netework, got the failing device creating the storm of data off and rebooted all of the devices in the net. Kitchen detected the conflict again and renamed itself "Kitchen (2)" automatically. As a result, the other machines in the network failed to establish and sustain the SMB connections to the shared drive because the name changed from "Kitchen.local" to "Kitchen (2).local".
The Mini is connecting both through WiFi and Ethernet, and has two IP numbers, one for each interface, but I have the same setup on two other Macs, one MBP and one MBA, and no such renaming happens with them on boot. Just the Mini. It seems like it is detecting itself and seeing a conflict when it boots, but after renaming, it's content to share the name on both interfaces just fine. i can also go in after it boots and change the name back to "Kitchen" and it makes no complaints about that.
As far as I can determine, my network router doesn't hold the names in cache to re-assign on reconnect. The conflict comes, as far as I can tell, from the survey of the network the Mini does on connection. Also, the conflict doesn't seem to matter once the initial connection is made, as the Mini and network are both happy if I change the name back to eliminate the number. Also, once it renames itself, both the WiFi and Ethernet connections have the same name, with the "(2)" or whatever, which would imply still in conflict. I can't figure out how to turn off WiFi on boot, to let the Ethernet connect, get past the stage where the conflict is detected and then turn WiFi back on to see if that delay would work.
Apple was clueless, suggesting a SafeBoot which did nothing and then suggesting to turn off WiFi or unplug Ethernet. But it works on the other two machines just fine, so why not on the Mini? When I asked the online Genius, I got crickets chirping....
So, wise friends, any suggestions? It is possible to turn off WiFi, or to disconnect Ethernet competely, but I'd prefer to keep both on and active. Is there some setting I'm missing that can tell it to ignore the "conflict" and just keep the name assigned? Can I keep WiFi off on boot and then turn it back on after the boot is completed automatically? I've compared and cannot see any difference between settings on the Mini, MBP, and MBA, so I'm here for suggestions for the more obscure.
