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Background: I am trying to connect my MacBook Pro to a business grade network where I do not have access to reboot the server, switches, or router.

Problem: The MacBook Pro (running Snow Leopard upgraded from Leopard) will not obtain an IP address via DHCP and repeatedly self-assigns a 169.xx IP address. I have tried restarting the computer, changing network ports and using different cables. Each time the computer has the same issue. I am able to connect to the same network via a wireless access point with no issue and other PCs (new to the network) are able to obtain an IP address without issue.

Question: Why won't my MacBook Pro obtain an IP address via the ethernet connection? Any suggestions?

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  • To be sure the ethernet port on the MBP isn't hosed - are you able to get an IP on other networks (eg. your home network)
    – Chealion
    Sep 17, 2009 at 17:01
  • I just set up a test network with a TFTPd DHCP server setup. Then connected the MacBook to my Lenovo x200 via a 10/100/1000 switch and activated the DHCP server (TFTPd). I then manually requested an IP address from the MacBook and saw the request show up on the Lenovo; however, no IP address was assigned on the Mac (the Lenovo said it had assigned 192.168.1.3 to the Mac).
    – BlueDevil
    Sep 17, 2009 at 17:10
  • So, by today did you get a solution for this? I'm having a similar issue where my mac sometimes won't get DHCP correctly, in two different networks. Anything else works fine, and static IP also makes the mac work.
    – cregox
    Apr 23, 2010 at 20:40

10 Answers 10

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If you're running a Snow Leopard Server, you'll need to go to Server Preferences and disable the security firewall so that the computer can access the DHCP on the router. Once that happens, you'll be assigned the correct IP address.

This took me several days and hours to figure this out. It's so frustrating since I don't know if this security feature is overkill if you're behind a NAT router.

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Does that business even use DHCP? If it is a "business grade" network, they may have specific network settings, MAC authentication, or other security measures along with DHCP. They do this to keep their machines on the network and others off of it. I assume you are authorized to use this network? You may have to obtain permission to add/use another computer on thier network.

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  • 1
    Good point -- BlueDevil, you said you upgraded from Leopard. Was this laptop working on this wired network before the upgrade? Sep 17, 2009 at 16:28
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    Yes, they use DHCP with no other specific network settings. I have tried several other computers not native to the network and they all obtain IP addresses without issue including Linux and Windows OSs running in VMs.
    – BlueDevil
    Sep 17, 2009 at 16:28
  • Yes. The laptop had no issues previous to the upgrade.
    – BlueDevil
    Sep 17, 2009 at 16:29
  • 2
    Does the MBP connect to other DHCP networks just fine or is this one the only problem?
    – Troggy
    Sep 17, 2009 at 16:31
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    Hmm, after reading your comment above, I am starting to wonder if the drivers or something isn't working right on the OS end. You might have to reinstall SL if you have no luck with anything else. Does the wireless connectivity connect to things ok?
    – Troggy
    Sep 17, 2009 at 17:39
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Obvious answer: Have you confirmed that the ethernet port is configured to get IP address via DHCP?

If DHCP is already set for this network inteface, go to the "advanced..." window and click "Renew DHCP Lease". Does this help?

Ugly hack workaround: Delete the ethernet network interface (select it and click the "-" button at the bottom). Create a new ethernet network interface.

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  • 1
    I have already tried all of these solutions including restarting the computer, deleting the ethernet connection, and manually renewing the IP address. The laptop is still self-assigning IPs. Thanks for the suggestions.
    – BlueDevil
    Sep 17, 2009 at 16:31
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Have you tried repairing disk permissions and repairing the disk via disk utility from a bootable OS cd? A lot of times flakey permissions can cause all kinds of weird problems, especially after an upgrade.

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By running the following command on the MAC while attempting to DHCP one may provide more information (possibly than desired)

sudo tcpdump -vv -ien0 port 67 and port 68
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  • Probably not going to solve the problem because the test DHCP server shows assignment (2nd comment in question).
    – benc
    Dec 21, 2009 at 18:30
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On my unibody MacBook Pro 17" running Snow Leopard, the DHCP problem turned out to be fixed by switching from WEP to WPA2 security on the WiFi network. I had no problem using it with WEP on an iPad, two iPhones, and another MacBook Pro (unibody 13"). In fact, both MBP's are running 10.6.8 so I'm still not sure why one worked and one didn't, but after switching to WPA2 everybody's happy!

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I had the same issue after upgrading from Leopard to Snow Leopard. Upgrading SL from 10.6 to 10.6.1 resolved it for me, but YMMV

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My answer to this other question (for Wifi, but still applicable to your issue) will clear out your network preferences, which will be much easier than reinstalling the OS.

Problem with Macbook air automatically not acquiring free wifi network dns or router address

When I wrote that 10.6.2 wasn't out, but again reinstalling the 10.6.2 combo updater would be a great step to take before an OS reinstall.

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We had a similar problem on our office network after we upgraded the DHCP (Debian Linux) host. Turned out the default /etc/hosts file on that box had a wrong entry for its own IP:

127.0.1.1 ns.ournetwork.nl ns

This IP was returned in the BOOTP/DHCP request, and Mac clients refuse this reply! Changing the IP:

192.168.1.6 ns.ournetwork.nl ns

and restarting dhcpd3 fixed the problem :-)

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If you're running ipfw, then add this line:

allow udp from 192.168.178.0/24 67,68 to any 67,68 in keep-state

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