[krx]

I'm going around in circles here. Trying to get 2 iBookG4s to talk to each other over an Airport Extreme network. Both use the same base as their access to the internet but can't seem to find each other. I've tried everything I know to do. Can someone just walk me through the steps of setting up a home network between two iBooks? I must be missing something...

[krx]

Okay so I'm not quite as much of a bonehead as I thought... The problem isn't the setup. I've got some kind of Firewall operating on one of the iBook's i'm trying to network that's not allowing the other one to connect. The one iBook (w/out the Firewall problem) can "see" the other one, in the sense that it appears in the Network finder window. But when I hit "connect" the pinwheel spins and eventually it says it can't connect. I've narrowed the problem down as likely to be a firewall issue after 2 hours plus on the Apple tech line going through every other conceivable possibility. Also, when I hit the Firewall tab in Sharing preferences it says this, and I quote: "Other Firewall software is running on your computer. To change the Apple Firewall settings, turn off the other Firewall."

The problem is I don't know of any other Firewall software that's still running. I turned off Virex and threw out Norton (and of course restarted and doublechecked and restarted and...). There wasn't anything suspicious in the Activity Monitor. I'm going to check my receipts and do an exhaustive review of all 465 items that just came up in a search for applications. But if anyone has any idea what might be causing this, I'm all ears...

[krx]

Check this thread if you're interested in seeing how this problem was solved.

[ghporter]

Just to cut to the meat of the issue, in this thread on MacRumors: Forums, the solution was

2 solutions:

1) Hit the Terminal, type: sudo ipfw flush
Enter your admin password when prompted. Go to your precious GUI and see if you can control it now.

If that fails:

2) Delete /Library/Preferences/com.apple.sharing.firewall.plist and reboot.

I had the same problem after my Panther install. Option #2 above was the solution to my problem.

Very interesting, and very curious-making; what caused this problem in the first place seems to be a deep mystery.

Thanks for letting us know what helped, krx. Now if someone can just help explain WHY it happened, I'd sleep a bit better...

[krx]

Originally Posted by ghporter

Now if someone can just help explain WHY it happened, I'd sleep a bit better...

You and me both!

I would also rest easier knowing what the item I deleted (viz.: /Library/Preferences/com.apple.sharing.firewall.plist) was, where it came from, or what it did - besides cause me endless problems for awhile. Mostly I am just pleased to have the problem resolved.

[krx]

An update (just in case anyone is actually following this thread):

The item in question (/Library/Preferences/com.apple.sharing.firewall.plist) was recreated in the Preferences file when I turned the Firewall back on in the Sharing preferences window. Also, turning the Firewall on basically made my home network a "closed" system (just like the option in Airport Extreme). That is, prior to turning on the FW, I could see the other computer in my Network volume in the Finder window. I just opened it, typed in my password, and was connected. Now it doesn't show up. I have to go to Connect To Server, in the Go menu in the Finder, and enter the IP address of the other computer in order to connect. So the FW adds an extra step, along with an added level of security.

So far no other problems - but I still don't know why it went haywire in the first place. Oh well...