Ethernet will not connect to internet

Joined
Oct 25, 2020
Messages
11
Reaction score
0
Points
1
How to troubleshoot? I have tried everything I could find online and it is still not working. I bought 3 different adapters - all not working.

10.15.5, latest macbook

It says it is connected and has an ip address, but there is no internet.
 
Joined
Jan 1, 2009
Messages
15,512
Reaction score
3,876
Points
113
Location
Winchester, VA
Your Mac's Specs
MBP 16" 2023 (M3 Pro), iPhone 15 Pro, plus ATVs, AWatch, MacMinis (multiple)
What is the format of the IP address? Is the router you are using connected to the Internet? If not, then nothing connected to it will see the internet either.

IP addresses get assigned by the router to which the Ethernet is connected, using a process referred to as DHCP. If the machine cannot get an IP number it times out and self-assigns an IP number that only points back to itself, which is basically useless for communications but lets the process close out and restore control to you. Normally, the router issues numbers in the range 192.168.X.Y, where the X and Y are assigned by the router. (Sometimes routers use 10.x.y.z, or more rarely 172.16.x.y.) If no connection is made, the self-assigned number is usually 169.254.x.x, where the X and Y are normally 0.

EDIT: And welcome to the forum!
 
OP
E
Joined
Oct 25, 2020
Messages
11
Reaction score
0
Points
1
Hi. Thanks for responding. When I use, "Using DHCP" as opposed to manually entering it in, I get the message, "USB LAN has a self-assigned IP address and will not be able to connect to the Internet." and there is no router number. To manually enter it in, I used router information obtained from wi-fi when that is connected (10.x.y.z).

I am not sure how to know if router is connected to the internet. According to ISP, everything is fine on their end and it should be working.
 
Joined
Jan 1, 2009
Messages
15,512
Reaction score
3,876
Points
113
Location
Winchester, VA
Your Mac's Specs
MBP 16" 2023 (M3 Pro), iPhone 15 Pro, plus ATVs, AWatch, MacMinis (multiple)
That message means the Router is not issuing IP numbers to connect to the router. It may well be that it also cannot see the Internet, if the problem is with the Internet Service Provider. Even if you force a connection to the router, if it's not connected to the ISP network, you don't have a connection to the Internet.

For Background, your ISP provides your local router a true Internet IP number for you to share with all of your locally connected devices. That scheme was built up to allow for the billions of devices world-wide to each have a "unique" number but not overwhelm the system. Your local router assigns numbers, apparently in the 10.x.y.z range, to devices locally attached to it, then maps their outgoing packets onto the number it got from the ISP to put your packets into the broader Internet. Similarly, when an incoming packet arrives at the "real" IP from your ISP, the router then decides which device should get that packet and forwards it to your device at the 10.x.y.z address in your local net. That way there can be thousands of networks, all with 10.x.y.z numbering with 10s of thousands of devices but not nearly as many "real" addresses consumed. I would even expect that your ISP may be using the same scheme going up, that is, they have a master router that is assigning an internal IP to your router but then sharing that traffic with just one, or maybe a couple, of "real" internet IP addresses. The Internet is running, or already has run, out of IPv4 numbers (the #.#.#.# format, and the real internet now uses IPv6, a much more complex numbering system, for the backbone communications. Routers between that backbone and your local devices handle the mapping from your device to the backbone for you.

All of which is to say, you can try rebooting the router, to see if it will get a new working IP from the ISP servers and restart it's own DHCP process to assign you a working number. Don't forget to undo the changes you made to create a static IP as that static IP may cause real issues if there is any contention between it and what the DHCP server creates.
 
OP
E
Joined
Oct 25, 2020
Messages
11
Reaction score
0
Points
1
Ok, I rebooted and reconnected and now it says, "LAN has a self-assigned IP address and will not be able to connect to the Internet." with IP of 169.254.x.y.
 
Joined
Jan 1, 2009
Messages
15,512
Reaction score
3,876
Points
113
Location
Winchester, VA
Your Mac's Specs
MBP 16" 2023 (M3 Pro), iPhone 15 Pro, plus ATVs, AWatch, MacMinis (multiple)
Rebooted what? Router, Mac, what? The message, if it's on your Mac, means it got no IP from the router, which could be a broken router, or a bad Ethernet Cable, or it's disconnected somewhere. In your original post all you gave was "latest MacBook" but what is the actual Mac? If it is a recent MacBook, and doesn't have a true Ethernet port but has to use the USB-C port, it could be whatever converter you have installed there, too. The bottom line is that if that is the report from System Preferences/Network, that's where the issue is. Now, if that error is on the ROUTER itself, that means the ISP is not assigning it an IP number, but that is very unlikely. Is the MacBook the only device attaching to the router? If not, are the other devices working ok?
 
OP
E
Joined
Oct 25, 2020
Messages
11
Reaction score
0
Points
1
I rebooted the router and wifi box, as well as the computer. The router was recently installed by ISP. The ethernet cable is brand new and I am on my 3rd Ethernet adaptor (this time tomtoc). It is a macbook air retina 2020 and is the only device connecting to the router. I guess I will try buying a new cable.
 
Joined
Jan 1, 2009
Messages
15,512
Reaction score
3,876
Points
113
Location
Winchester, VA
Your Mac's Specs
MBP 16" 2023 (M3 Pro), iPhone 15 Pro, plus ATVs, AWatch, MacMinis (multiple)
Just curious, but does the WiFi connect to the router and get a good IP? If so, that almost eliminates the router as the issue, and if you can get to the Internet that way, eliminates the ISP.
 
Joined
Jan 1, 2009
Messages
15,512
Reaction score
3,876
Points
113
Location
Winchester, VA
Your Mac's Specs
MBP 16" 2023 (M3 Pro), iPhone 15 Pro, plus ATVs, AWatch, MacMinis (multiple)
So on WiFi you can get to the internet just fine? If so, that is now pointing to the adapter as the likely problem.
 
OP
E
Joined
Oct 25, 2020
Messages
11
Reaction score
0
Points
1
Ok, I have tried 3 different adapters that claim to work on the model mac I have. Which one should I buy? I tried to stay away from the mac adapter because the reviews were not the greatest.
 
Joined
Jan 1, 2009
Messages
15,512
Reaction score
3,876
Points
113
Location
Winchester, VA
Your Mac's Specs
MBP 16" 2023 (M3 Pro), iPhone 15 Pro, plus ATVs, AWatch, MacMinis (multiple)
Ok, I have tried 3 different adapters that claim to work on the model mac I have. Which one should I buy? I tried to stay away from the mac adapter because the reviews were not the greatest.
I can't make any recommendation because I don't have a USBc port. Maybe somebody can chime in with something other than the Apple adapter for you.
 
Joined
May 21, 2012
Messages
10,747
Reaction score
1,196
Points
113
Location
Rhode Island
Your Mac's Specs
M1 Mac Studio, 11" iPad Pro 3rd Gen, iPhone 13 Pro Max, Watch Series 7, AirPods Pro
Are you sure it is plugged into the correct port on the router?
 
Joined
Jan 1, 2009
Messages
15,512
Reaction score
3,876
Points
113
Location
Winchester, VA
Your Mac's Specs
MBP 16" 2023 (M3 Pro), iPhone 15 Pro, plus ATVs, AWatch, MacMinis (multiple)
Good catch, Bob. There may be more than one Ethernet port on the router and it's worth a try moving to a different one if there is. Although I don't think there is a linking port on most WiFi routers, but it could be.
 
Joined
Jan 1, 2009
Messages
15,512
Reaction score
3,876
Points
113
Location
Winchester, VA
Your Mac's Specs
MBP 16" 2023 (M3 Pro), iPhone 15 Pro, plus ATVs, AWatch, MacMinis (multiple)
OK, that opens up a lot of different things. What is the "it" in the first sentence? The ethernet from the router, or the Mac? I'm imagining that your location is wired for Ethernet, the router is at one location and has a patch cable from it to the wall, or to some junction in the local wiring, then the wires cross the area and get to beside your desk or operating position where the Mac is sitting.

So, if that is correct, do you have other cables to replace the one from the router to the wall and from the wall to the Mac? Have you used that internal wiring ethernet successfully before? What happens if you connect the Mac directly to the router and not use the wall wiring? There are now a lot more things that can be the cause of the issue!
 
OP
E
Joined
Oct 25, 2020
Messages
11
Reaction score
0
Points
1
The router is just a box with lights (all green), no ports that I can see, but I cannot freely take it off the wall the way it was installed to see what is underneath. There is one cable from the router to the wall plugged in "iptv" that will not fit into any other plugs. The computer is plugged directly into the wall labeled "internet" using a cable and ethernet adapter.
 
Last edited:
Joined
Jan 1, 2009
Messages
15,512
Reaction score
3,876
Points
113
Location
Winchester, VA
Your Mac's Specs
MBP 16" 2023 (M3 Pro), iPhone 15 Pro, plus ATVs, AWatch, MacMinis (multiple)
Has Ethernet ever worked for any system before? Who is your ISP (Internet provider)? I'm beginning to suspect you really don't have Ethernet at all.
 
OP
E
Joined
Oct 25, 2020
Messages
11
Reaction score
0
Points
1
I do not know if it has worked before. It may have with old ISP, but it was just switched over to Spectrum and according to them it is working on their end.
 

Shop Amazon


Shop for your Apple, Mac, iPhone and other computer products on Amazon.
We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon and affiliated sites.
Top