I've updated from Yosemite to 10.11.1 on my mid 2014 macbook pro a few days ago. I've got a WLAN in my apartment (for other gadgets), but since the signal is a bit weak at my desk, I have connected the macbook to the router using a LAN cable and a thunderbolt-ethernet adapter and switched WLAN off on the macbook. All was well on Yosemite, but El Capitan insists on switching on WLAN during most boots. Is there any way to prevent this without removing admin rights from my user and without removing the WLAN network from the list of known networks?
I'm concerned about the potential security issues (in case it might connect to open networks when I'm traveling). It's also a nuisance because WLAN seems to take priority over the ethernet connection, which means I have a slow and unstable connection until I remember to switch WLAN off again.
I guess I could create a new user without admin rights. Since I made sure that admin rights are necessary to activate WLAN that should prevent the issue, but I would prefer to avoid this "solution".
Best Answer
Your question touches upon a few different areas so I will aim to address these individually:
Disabling a network service
You did not mention how you were disabling the Wi-Fi (i.e. WLAN) service, however there are generally two ways to do so from
System Preferences
in OS X:System Preferences
, thenNetwork
Wi-Fi
or the custom-named service from the service list on the leftTurn Wi-Fi off
, then close theSystem Preferences
windowAlternatively:
System Preferences
, thenNetwork
Wi-Fi
or the custom-named service from the service list on the leftMake service inactive
, then clickApply
Both methods should persist through a reboot or shutdown. Neither method requires removing any known networks, as you were concerned about, and both should result in the service being disabled until turned on again using the same method.
It is important to note that if you click
Turn Wi-Fi off
in the method above, it is necessary to close theSystem Preferences
window. If you reboot or shutdown without doing so, the option will not persist. Similarly, if you disable Wi-Fi from the menu bar icon (top-right of screen) the setting will not survive a reboot or shutdown.If, as you mention, the service is activated again after following one of the methods above, I would suggest removing the service completely (by selecting it from the service list and clicking the delete or
—
icon) then recreating it using the same settings, perhaps under a different name (e.g.WLAN Test
).Note: You can always
Revert
any changes you make beforeApply
ing them in Network preferences. Be careful not to lose any details that you otherwise don't have written down.Protecting against open networks
As you suggested, it's wise to be concerned about the potential risks associated with open Wi-Fi networks, and you can at least opt out of joining these automatically:
System Preferences
, thenNetwork
Wi-Fi
or the custom-named service from the service list on the leftAsk to join networks
checkbox:As described, known networks will be joined automatically. If no known networks are available a selection dialog will appear on-screen, giving you the option to join any available, but unknown, Wi-Fi network.
For additional protection you can require the administrator password when changing networks:
Advanced...
then enable theChange networks
checkbox under the headingRequire administrator authorization to:
Adjusting network service order
It's generally advisable to prioritise your network services by their reliability, from most to least reliable, to give you the best experience when using multiple connections. In your case — since WLAN traffic appears to be taking priority over other traffic — this means giving the wired thunderbolt-to-ethernet service priority over your WLAN :
System Preferences
, thenNetwork
Set Service Order...
as shown belowOK
, thenApply
The system will attempt to utilise services in the order that you specified above. If a service is not available (e.g. cable disconnected, no network available) it will fall back to the next service, if any, until a valid service is found, or alternatively all services fail.