What is the difference between my local and public IP address?

The local address identifies your device on your own network and is assigned by your router. The public address identifies your network to the wider internet and is assigned by your provider.

Will changing DNS servers speed up my internet?

It can improve name-resolution responsiveness and sometimes resolves specific site failures, but it does not increase the bandwidth your provider delivers.

Why does my Mac say it has a self-assigned IP address?

That generally means the device did not receive an address from the router. Restarting the router, reconnecting to the network or checking for address-pool problems are reasonable next steps.

Is Wi-Fi or Ethernet better for troubleshooting?

For diagnosis, a wired connection removes several variables at once. If a problem disappears on Ethernet, the wireless side deserves attention.

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Blog

Mac Networking: Wi-Fi, DNS, IP Addresses and Connectivity

Networking help for Apple devices — Wi-Fi problems, DNS behaviour, IP addresses, router checks and how to work out whether the fault is your device, your network or the internet.

Updated June 26, 2026

Almost every connectivity complaint reduces to one of three questions: is the device connected to the network, is the network connected to the internet, and is the specific service you want reachable? Answering them in that order turns a vague 'the internet is broken' into something you can fix.

This category covers the fundamentals — Wi-Fi behaviour, IP addressing, DNS, routers and the checks that separate a device problem from a network or provider problem.

We deliberately avoid dramatic resets as opening moves. Forgetting networks and resetting configurations can be useful, but they also clear settings you may need to re-enter, so they belong later in the sequence.

Common troubleshooting pathways

Find your IP address

Knowing your local IP address is the starting point for most home-network diagnosis.

Wi-Fi connects but nothing loads

This pattern usually points at DNS, the router's internet connection, or a captive portal waiting for sign-in.

One site fails, everything else works

Site-specific failures are typically server-side or DNS-related rather than device faults.

Slow or dropping connection

Distance, interference, channel congestion and older hardware all contribute to instability.

Topic clusters

Wi-Fi

Joining and forgetting networks
Signal strength and interference
Bands and channels
Captive portals
Hotspot testing

Addresses and DNS

Local versus public IP addresses
DHCP leases
DNS resolution basics
Changing DNS servers
Self-assigned addresses

Routers and providers

Restarting network equipment safely
Firmware updates
Provider outages
Wired versus wireless testing
Mesh and extender behaviour

Guides in this category

Networking

How to Find Your IP Address on a Mac

A practical guide to finding your private and public IP address on a Mac, using System Settings, Network preferences and Terminal. Includes what the different addresses mean.

July 12, 20266 min

Getting started

1A device can be fully connected to Wi-Fi and still have no internet access. The two are separate conditions.
2Testing on a phone's cellular hotspot is the quickest way to rule your home network in or out.
3Restarting a router takes a minute and is reversible; resetting it to factory defaults is neither.
4Note whether the problem affects every device in the household or only one.

Frequently asked questions

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