Member Avatar for coolstorybro

Background info: I can no longer connect to my wireless internet after having virtually no problems. I do still have internet, just not wifi.

So the problem is, according to system preferences on my macbook pro, my router's ip address starts with 172.... but when I put in said router address in my browser it does not work. What is the problem here? I have tried every default router address I have found on the internet to no avail. Help?

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  • Latest Post Latest Post by JorgeM

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Generated

A compact diagnostic checklist that builds on and without repeating their main points.

First, confirm which device actually owns that 172.x address and whether the router answers on any web port. From macOS Terminal:

# list hardware ports to find the Wi‑Fi interface name
networksetup -listallhardwareports

# get the Mac's IP on that interface (replace en0 if needed)
ipconfig getifaddr en0

# show the gateway the Mac is using
route get default | grep gateway

# quick ARP lookup to see the gateway MAC (helps identify the device vendor)
arp -a | grep <gateway-ip>

# test whether web ports are reachable (80, 443, 8080, 8443)
nc -vz <gateway-ip> 80 443 8080 8443

# fetch HTTP headers if a port is open
curl -I http://<gateway-ip>
curl -I https://<gateway-ip>

Interpreting results and next checks:

  • If route reports a gateway but nc/curl show no web service, the admin UI may be on an alternate port, served only over HTTPS, or disabled by the ISP/vendor. Try common alternate ports (8080, 8443) and https://<ip>.
  • If ARP shows a MAC OUI that doesn’t match the expected router brand, or traceroute shows an upstream hop before the gateway, the visible 172.x address may belong to a modem/ISP device (double NAT / upstream gateway).
  • If ping/traceroute fails entirely, there may be VLANs, an AP in client/bridge mode, or firewall rules blocking local admin access.

Practical recovery steps (non-destructive first):

  • Try another device (phone/tablet) on the same network and test wired Ethernet to the router if possible.
  • Check macOS Network -> Advanced -> Proxies and /etc/hosts for local redirects that could interfere with accessing an IP.
  • As a last resort, factory-reset the router only after documenting current settings (ISP credentials, static routes, Wi‑Fi keys). If the gateway looks like ISP-managed equipment, contact the ISP before resetting.

These checks will show whether the issue is local (browser/proxy/VLAN), an upstream device, or an admin interface that’s simply not listening on normal ports.

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Member Avatar for phoenix_2000

it seems the IP you gave is the external IP for your router (the IP anyone on the outside would use to connect with it), but you can't connect to your router's external IP while you are on the same network as that router.
(some professional routers do have that capability, but i doubt you have it).
every router also has an internal IP, usually starting with 192.168.
in most cases, the router's IP is 192.168.0.0 or 192.168.0.1, unless your admin changed that.

and if you can't get on the router, try and see if your router has a reset button. in some cases it's a smal hole in the back through which you'll have to push a needle for a few seconds.

Member Avatar for JorgeM

Your router's IP address is going to be the default gateway IP address that you can find in the TCP/IP configuration of your client.

If you open a web browser and type http://172.x.x.x, that will get you to the login page. If it doesnt, its because the router may be listening on a port other than port 80, such as 8080 for example. You would then type

These ranges are all internal private ranges:
10.x.x.x./8
172.16.0.x-172.31.255.255/16
192.168.x.x/24

In any case, before you reset the router to defaults, take a look at the router's documentation.

Edited by JorgeM
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