Your computer‘s name does not appear on the network

Use these troubleshooting steps to allow others to connect to your Mac OS X computer.

There are three major types of symptom. Find the symptom that matches your computer, then choose the appropriate solution.

1. Your computer name does not appear in the Chooser, Network Browser, or Connect to Server dialog of other computers; but your computer does have access to the Internet or other network services.

2. Your computer name fails to appear in the Chooser, but it does appear in the Network Browser and in the Connect to Server dialog of other Mac OS X computers. Others can connect to your computer by entering its IP address and by using the Network Browser and Connect to Server dialog.

3. In addition to not appearing on the network, you discover that your computer does not have any network or Internet services at all.

Tip: The Connect to Server command is located in the Finder's Go menu in Mac OS X. The Chooser and Network Browser are found on computers with Mac OS 9 or in the Classic environment of Mac OS X. When using Network Browser or Connect to Server, Mac OS X computers appear by default in the Local Services neighborhood.

Though this article does not focus on troubleshooting Mac OS 9, it describes symptoms that you may notice from a computer with Mac OS 9 or earlier.


If your computer has Symptom 1:

This may indicate that file sharing is off.

  1. Choose System Preferences from the Apple menu.
  2. Click the Sharing icon.
  3. If File Sharing is off, click Start.
  4. Check to be sure there is a name in the Computer Name field. You may need to stop and restart file sharing for this change to take affect.



If you have not turned on AppleTalk, your computer will not appear in the Chooser (Symptom 2, described above).

Computers connected to the Internet via telephone modem ("dial-up") or DSL, for example, will not be able to browse by computer name. If you are connecting from remote locations across the Internet you must connect by entering the IP address or DNS name of a computer. Browsing for computer name requires that computers be on either a local area network (LAN) or a wide are network (WAN). The way your network is routed can affect your ability to browse by computer name. Firewalls may be configured to prevent File Sharing with remote locations. You may ask your network administrator or Internet service provider about firewalls and routing.


If your computer has Symptom 2:

This symptom simply indicates that AppleTalk is turned off, or that AppleTalk is active on more than one port (Note 3 below). To make AppleTalk active:

  1. Choose System Preferences from the Apple menu.
  2. Click Network.
  3. Choose the network interface you wish to use from the Show pop-up menu ( "Configure" menu prior to Mac OS X 10.1).
  4. Click the AppleTalk tab.
  5. Click the checkbox to select Make AppleTalk Active.
  6. Click Save.
  7. Click Show All.
  8. Click Sharing.
  9. Click Stop and wait for Sharing to stop.
  10. Click Start and wait for Sharing to start.



If you turn AppleTalk on while Sharing is on, you may need to stop and restart Sharing for your computer to start broadcasting its AppleTalk name.

You may still connect using the computer's IP address when AppleTalk is off.

AppleTalk may not behave as expected if it is active on more than one port (multi-homing). Specific requirements must be met to multi-home with AppleTalk in Mac OS X versions 10.0 to 10.1.5. In Mac OS X 10.2 or later, you may only use AppleTalk on one network interface, or one of several port configurations of the same network interface (if thus configured). For more information, see technical document 106614: "Mac OS X: How to Set Up AppleTalk Multi-Homing"

If your computer has Symptom 3:

  1. Check to ensure that your computer is physically connected to a network. This means checking your phone line, Ethernet cable, or AirPort card for a proper connection. (See Notes below.)
  2. Choose System Preferences from the Apple menu.
  3. Click Network.
  4. Choose the network interface you wish to use from the Configure pop-up menu.
  5. Click the TCP/IP tab.
  6. Check to be sure that your computer has an IP address that is valid for your network. If your Configure menu is set to
  7. Manually, you also need to ensure that the Router and Subnet Mask entries are correct for your network. If you are not sure, check with the network administrator.
  8. Click Show All.
  9. Click Sharing If Sharing is not already on, click Start.




To see instructions for installing an AirPort card and connecting the antenna, you may search the for the phrase "AirPort and install." Select the article that matches your computer.

Computers connected to the Internet via telephone modem ("dial-up") or DSL, for example, will not be able to browse by computer name. If you are connecting from remote locations across the Internet you must connect by entering the IP address or DNS name of a computer. Browsing for computer name requires that computers be on either a local area network (LAN) or a wide are network (WAN). The way your network is routed can affect your ability to browse by computer name. Firewalls may be configured to prevent File Sharing with remote locations. You may ask your network administrator or Internet service provider about firewalls and routing.

Related documents

106262: "Mac OS X 10.0: Connecting to AppleShare or File Sharing Requires TCP/IP"

Important: Wireless Internet access requires an Internet service provider (fees may apply) and AirPort (or AirPort-compatible) wireless Ethernet card and base station. Some Internet service providers are not compatible with AirPort. Read more about AirPort requirements for wireless Internet access.

Published Date: Feb 17, 2012