mvbmac Posted September 18 CID Share Posted September 18 I have a 2023 MacBook Pro M3 Max with 1 TB storage and 128GB Ram. Internet connection is wi-fi to an Xfinity Gateway. The gateway consistently delivers 1.2 Gbps download, and the computer has consistently hit 800-1000 Mbps (through several walls). However, since installing the new Mac OS X 15.0 ("Sequoia"), every few hours the download speed to the computer drops mysteriously to 150-250 Mbps or so. Restoration of performance seems to be accomplished by one or more of (1) turning wi-fi off then back on, (2) "forgetting" my wi-fi network then reconnecting, (3) restarting the computer, and/or (4) restarting the Xfinity Gateway. I got a suggestion on a Reddit forum to turn Bluetooth off, but that hasn't impacted the situation. Anybody got a diagnosis and fix? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CA3LE Posted September 18 CID Share Posted September 18 I'm looking at your results. Drops to a fairly consistent 200 Mbps level. Maybe... the newer software is for some reason connecting you to the 2.4 GHz wifi (intermittently) but then when you restart wifi or the computer you're getting connected to 5 GHz? Check the network details next time it's running weird. Hold [Option] + click the wifi icon and it will show you details. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mvbmac Posted September 18 Author CID Share Posted September 18 Thank you! I should know this, but how does one "force" it to stick with 5GHZ, and is there anything wrong with doing that? Best as always CA3LE! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CA3LE Posted September 18 CID Share Posted September 18 I'll keep searching for a solution. When I try to run the command I would need to use, I get this... ca3le@Damons-2020-iMac js % sudo /System/Library/PrivateFrameworks/Apple80211.framework/Versions/Current/Resources/airport scan WARNING: The airport command line tool is deprecated and will be removed in a future release. For diagnosing Wi-Fi related issues, use the Wireless Diagnostics app or wdutil command line tool. The best solution would be to have the 2.4 and 5 GHz networks on separate SSIDs. Then just don't add the 2.4 GHz network to your laptop. But that's not always possible. Like with my Netgear Orbi. It's always dual band and gives me no control. Total garbage. But that's what we have to work with sometimes. There has to be a new solution! Let's make sure that's the case first. That just rang the bell as a possibility due to the symptoms. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mvbmac Posted September 18 Author CID Share Posted September 18 Here's what somebody suggested in a post about this on Reddit. " "Try turning off private/rotating IP address, if it is on. They added rotating IP addresses with Sequoia. I thought mine was completely off but "Private IP Address" was turned on so I turned it off again. I can understand new defaults and new features, but I don't like it when Apple changes existing settings, which is what appears to have happened." When I try the suggestion and switch the feature off, there is a warning window that turning it off will allow my computer to be "identified and tracked across wi-fi networks." Should I be concerned about that? It's not clear to me what that means. My home wi-fi network is passworded. I do connect to wi-fi in other locations sometimes, but I'm not sure what harm there is in somebody seeing the name of my computer as a connected device - if that's what this warning means. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mvbmac Posted September 22 Author CID Share Posted September 22 I tried turning off the new private/rotating IP address option in Mac OS X Sequoia, and it seems to have solved the problem. Apple also added the same option to the new iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 and it caused the same problem. Turning it off seems to have fixed it there, too. From what I've read, if I'm on a non-personal wi-fi network, all this means is that others connected can see my MAC address. Seems like this isn't a security threat but I stand to be corrected. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CA3LE Posted September 22 CID Share Posted September 22 Glad to hear it's working better for you now. Sorry, I thought I responded after your post on Wednesday. It's not rotating the IP address, it's rotating the MAC address. A fixed address could be used to track or ID you between multiple networks. If you're concerned about that, when you leave your house turn the address to "rotating". When you're on a network you trust, like your home, turn it on fixed. Although, I'm trying to figure out how the MAC address changing would at all correlate with speed degradation. Why would that have any bearing on your speed? ... unless there are specific MAC based rules on the router that alter the speed limits for different addresses. Has the issue stayed resolved since changing the address to "Fixed" the other day? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mvbmac Posted September 22 Author CID Share Posted September 22 Unfortunately I spoke too soon. Since my last post, the speed has dropped down again to 25% of norm. Same on my iOS mobile devices. Maybe it's something else with Sequoia, and/or something about the Xfinity Gateway, either alone or in combination. I tested the Gateway when this first started happening, and the Xfinity app always reports that the Gateway continues to hit above the promised 1.2 Gbps. I re-started the Gateway, and speeds to the devices returned to normal. But then before long, it dropped again. Turning device wi-fi off and then back on also continues to fix the problem, for a brief time. But then after a while, speed to the device drops again from the historical 800-1000 mbps down to 200-300. So turning off the "private/rotating" not a fix after all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CA3LE Posted September 22 CID Share Posted September 22 The search continues... Did you happen to notice if it's 2.4 or 5 GHz when this happens? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CA3LE Posted September 22 CID Share Posted September 22 Another thing you might check is the login items. Search System Settings for Login Items & Network Extensions then click Network Extensions. One that's known to cause intermittent connection issues with Mac OS Sequoia 15.0 is Microsoft Defender network extension. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mvbmac Posted September 22 Author CID Share Posted September 22 It's on Channel 5, 6GHz when working properly. See image. I'll see what it looks like when the speed drops. There doesn't seem to be any MS Defender network extension on my system, unless that mysterious "Microsoft Corporation" login item is the Defender extension. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CA3LE Posted September 23 CID Share Posted September 23 Hummm... if you don't know what that item is, I would disable it. It's not under network extensions (like I was reading) may not have anything to do with the issue... but it might. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mvbmac Posted October 2 Author CID Share Posted October 2 Well it's been a number of days now, and the problem has not reoccurred. Been hitting 800-1000 Mbps consistently. From a diagnostic standpoint, events suggest that your idea to turn off that mysterious "Microsoft Corporation" login item was the solution. It may be that turning off the private/rotating IP address option had an impact, but I haven't tested that theory by turning it back on, and the speed degradation did occur with it off, though at longer intervals. So a warm thank-you for your usual expertise and generosity with help time! I'm going to continue to watch the speed more frequently than I generally have for another week or so, and if things remain as is, I'll be marking your suggestion as Solution! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CA3LE Posted October 2 CID Share Posted October 2 Very glad to hear that! I've found over the years, the most reliable indicator whether something can be trusted or not, ask the question, "is it at all related to Bill Gates?" Thank you for following up. Looking forward to it staying fixed for you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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