MacOS – Lion won’t give out DHCP addresses with Internet Sharing

internet-sharingmacosNetwork

Lion doesn't seem to be giving out DHCP addresses when I turn on Internet Sharing. My firewall is off, I create a shared network with no security sharing ethernet->wifi. In Network Preferences the Wifi connection shows as yellow, with a self-assigned IP, and any device I try to connect (e.g., iPad) doesn't get an address. Help!

Best Answer

I finally figured it out.

  • You said your Firewall is off. You should double-check. This will definitely cause Internet Sharing to not work. System Preferences -> Security & Privacy -> Firewall.
  • In the "Sharing" panel, change your Computer Name to something simple. Instead of "Elliot's MacBook Pro", use "MBP".
    • Turn off Internet Sharing (if it's on). Make sure you have set "Share your connection from:" to "Ethernet", and "To computers using:" to "Wi-Fi". Change the "Wi-Fi Options..." and save.
  • If that didn't work: Turn off Wi-Fi on your Lion Mac. Make sure you have internet access from Ethernet, and that it works (test a site in a browser).
  • For your Wi-Fi connection, set "Configure IPv4" to "Using DHCP". In the "DNS" tab, delete any existing entries.

Hope this helps!

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