iOS 6 WiFi isn’t responding? Here’s how to Fix WiFi Outage issues

Many users, after installing iOS 6 on iPhone, iPad or iPod touch, are complaining that their WiFi isn’t responding and doesn’t allowing them to access network. Instead it takes them to an apple page in safari. There’s also a lively Apple Support forum discussion on the topic.

Yes, there appears to be a problem in iOS 6 with the way Safari handles URL redirection on Apple’s end, but the good news is that the problem is being fixed. One of the users LugorIV complained:

So I just upgraded the iPad to iOS6.  I connect to my wifi network, it connects, pulls up the Apple page (the one that usually pops and disappears, I guess it’s checking something on that page to verify network connection).  Instead of going away, it’s displaying Apple’s ‘Page Not Found’ and on the top bar it says ‘www.apple.com’ and ‘Log in’.  I have no log in for my router, I’m clearly online as I can browse Apple’s entire website, yet the ONLY option I have is click ‘cancel’.  I used to remember you can tell it not to do a network check; I can’t even turn that off.

Any one else seeing this?

According to developer Steve Streza, it’s Apple’s “captive network detection page 404ing” in iOS 6 which is causing the issue. In simple terms, iOS devices are programmed in such a way that it ping a test URL while connecting to a Wi-Fi network – just to find if it’s protected by a “captive portal.” Unfortunately, the test page has been down all afternoon.

Here’s more on that from Errata Security:

“When an Apple iOS device (iPhone, iPad, iPod) connects to a WiFi network, the first thing it does is make a request to the URL http://www.apple.com/library/test/success.html.

The purpose of this request is to discover if there is a “captive portal” in the way. A captive portal is when, after connecting to the WiFi, any web request you makes gets redirected to a login/ToS page. In order to continue, you must either login with a username/password (or sign up, then login), and/or access the Terms of Service.”

In order to remedy and troubleshoot temporary WiFi connectivity problems on iOS 6.0, you can try the following tips:

• Toggle your Wi-Fi off and on – Settings app > Wi-Fi OR
• Set your device’s HTTP Proxy to Auto – Settings app > Wi-Fi > Blue icon next to the network you’re connecting to > Scroll to the bottom

Are you experiencing Wifi problems after installing iOS 6? Let us know in the comments section below.