Can a healthy but very old MBP (5,5) with 10.6 OS be configured to operate on a Mesh wifi network?

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Can a healthy but very old MBP (5,5) with 10.6 OS be configured to operate on a Mesh wifi network?

I was given the subject MBP by an old friend who is forced to liquidate his gear and enter an elder care facility. I'm wondering if this device could be dusted off and put to some good use in his new place, but I can't get it to network via my home wifi. So, no email or other network-dependent functionality.

There seems to be an issue with WEP vs. WPA security, an area that I have no working knowledge of. Could anyone give me guidance on this. My network is WPA2, and the old Airport card in the MBP seems to prefer WEP, as I read the problem via the computer's network diagnostics. Is this a fatal incompatibility? I have no idea what the wifi characteristics will be at his new place, but anticipate that if I can't make it work here, it won't work there.

Thanks.

Earlier Mac models

Posted on Mar 21, 2025 9:01 PM

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Answer 1

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John Galt

Level 10

149,838 points

Mar 22, 2025 12:11 PM in response to Jerrold Green1

To augment the other replies, no one likes to keep Macs in service more than I do, and in fact I have an iMac a litte older than that MBP. I'm using it now. It runs El Capitan, and is as fast as it's ever been.

However... its version of Safari is just too old to cope with most websites. So, on this Mac I use use Firefox almost exclusively since it is much newer than Safari for El Cap, and still works with every website I can think of:

But then it gets worse. Mozilla recently stopped supporting those older OS X versions, so it has already arrived at a dead end.

Even worse. Its version of Mail stopped being able to communicate with Microsoft Exchange email servers a long time ago. Even iCloud Mail stopped functioning as recently as a few weeks ago. That leaves very few options for using Mail, and I'm not even certain I can suggest any.

Summary: No, there are no fatal show-stoppers, but in my opinion it's just not worth trying to squeeze any more life out of that Mac. Yes you can make it work, but your old friend is almost certain to encounter many frustrations that will only get worse.

Options: You can buy a recently manufactured certified refurbished MacBook Air from Apple for considerably less than $700: https://www.apple.com/shop/refurbished/mac/imac-macbook-air

I'd seriously consider that.

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Answer 2

g_wolfman

Level 4

2,854 points

Mar 22, 2025 8:14 AM in response to Jerrold Green1

A MacBook Pro5,5 can connect to WPA2 secured networks, even running 10.6. But you say you have a home mesh network - are you sure it isn't using WPA3 security? 10.6 cannot connect to a WPA3 network (but if you can upgrade to 10.11 El Capitan as Grant Bennet-Alder suggests, then you can because 10.11 can properly fall back to WPA2 on a WPA3 network).

When you go to join a network, you should get a dialog like this (except the name of the network will be filled in):

When you click on the Security selector, you should get a drop-down menu like this:

Do you get this and can you select WPA2 Personal?

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Answer 3

Mar 22, 2025 7:33 AM in response to Jerrold Green1

that appears to be a 2009 model with a built-in Ethernet port. It accepts up to 8GB of RAM and is capable of running up to MacOS 10.11 El Capitan. You can arm-wave the Wi-Fi issues by plugging in an Ethernet cable to any one of your many access points.

If it has a working MacOS, DO NOT Erase it unless/until you have another way of installing MacOS -- That computer does NOT have Recovery tools in its ROM.

it should be upgraded to MacOS 10.11 El Capitan to be able to see any modern web sites, and we can talk about how to do that.

What is the EXACT status showing in System Preferences > Networks > Wi-FI ?

In 2015, researchers discovered that Secure Socket Layer (SSL) Internet encryption was not nearly as secure as was thought, and needed to be replaced. Internet encryption quickly moved to Transport Layer Security (TLS) which was rapidly deployed across the Internet. Over time, sites tightened requirements for what was acceptable for encryption.

Apple issued Safari version 9 in 10.11 El Capitan version of MacOS, which included TLS encryption. It was later provided by Security Update into the two previous versions of MacOS. 10.10 Yosemite and 10.9 Mavericks, PROVIDED you applied all available software updates.

MacOS versions older than those can not make a lot of secure [httpS:] connections on the Internet, because by todays standards, your proffered SSL encryption is considered inadequate.

that Mac:

https://everymac.com/systems/apple/macbook_pro/specs/macbook-pro-core-2-duo-2.26-aluminum-13-mid-2009-sd-firewire-800-unibody-specs.html

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Answer 4

Jerrold Green1 Author

Level 7

30,253 points

Mar 22, 2025 5:27 PM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

Grant - Thanks for taking the time to reply and dig up the link to the everyman article.

Your first paragraph's ethernet cable suggestion is the direction I had decided to go in while I was awaiting replies. I have a wifi extender with ethernet cable port in order to give that route a try.

Yes, I understand that getting a connection to the internet is the key to any efforts. I have know of no way to upgrade the operating system if I can't connect to Apple's servers, and no reason to delete the current OS prior to that. Oddly, clicking on Software Update in "About this Mac" can be misleading because I would think that would reveal connection problems, but it just comes back with "Your software is up to date."

In System Preferences, Network, I see that AirPort is Connected, and it shows an IP address. Clicking Advanced gives me tabs to all the TCP/IP, DNS, WINS, 802.1x, Proxies and Ethernet settings pages. It's a lot to repeat here, but it that would help, I will do my best. If you could narrow it down a bit that would help.

Yours and the other two responses I have at this time are very helpful and respectful in that I value your opinion and I know this is a long shot, and you're not chiding me for trying. I don't need this computer, and I'm not sure my friend does, but my friend is attached to it. Odd considering how little use it got. 88 battery cycles and still showing good battery health.

I will report back if I have any luck with an ethernet connection. And, I will relay any additional settings info you can point me to.

Thanks,

Jerry

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Answer 5

Jerrold Green1 Author

Level 7

30,253 points

Mar 22, 2025 5:39 PM in response to g_wolfman

G_,

Thanks for your reply. With this computer's OS, the "Find and Join a WiFi network" dialog doesn't include a Security Selector line. I select my EERO network's name and fill in the password, and it shows a connection, but there is no internet connectivity on this computer. All my other devices do have internet conveyed by this network.

In another dialog, which I can't really recall how I got to, I'm told that I have no internet connection and that I have the incorrect security. This is where I'm really out of my depth.

As I responded to Grant, I'll give an ethernet cable a try, and if that works I'll attempt a software upgrade.

Best,

Jerry

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Answer 6

Jerrold Green1 Author

Level 7

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Mar 22, 2025 5:46 PM in response to John Galt

John,

I guess a functional but unsupported Firefox is better than nothing, assuming I can still get a download. Thanks for your suggestion of a reconditioned MB Air.

I told my friend this is a long shot, and that I would give it a good try.

Thanks for your reply,

Jerry

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Can a healthy but very old MBP (5,5) with 10.6 OS be configured to operate on a Mesh wifi network?