– MacBook Pro, High Sierra 10.13.3 – Goobay USB 2.0 10/100MB Ethernet Adapter. Like shown in the tutorial, if you connect an adapter with an ASIX chip inside it should show up under About this Mac - Hardware - USB. In my case I had to install AX88772B, also available from the ASIX website. How to create a bootable macOS High Sierra installer drive Put the macOS High Sierra installer on an external USB thumb drive or hard drive and use it to install the operating system on a Mac. If you’re using a network, cable modem, or DSL connection, you need to set Ethernet preferences. Configuring Mac OS X Snow Leopard to use an Ethernet connection is easy, once you collect the necessary information from your Internet Service Provider. To set up your Ethernet connection manually, follow these steps: Click the System Preferences icon. Mar 03, 2017 This is where to find the latest drivers for the AmazonBasics USB 3.0 Gigabit Ethernet Adapter which support Mac’s Sierra (10.12.x) OS (and beyond). A good alternative for Apple’s own Gigabit Ethernet Adapter which consumes a Thunderbolt port — or the USB 2.0 device which only goes up to 100 Mbit/s. Installation of 'USB 2.0 10/100M Ethernet Adapter' (model QTS1081B 9700) (Corechip RD9700) in Apple macOS High Sierra. Installation guide for an inexpensive ($2 on eBay, shipped) unbranded 'USB 2.0 10/100M Ethernet Adapter' model QTS1081B 9700 (RD9700 chip by Corechip) in Apple macOS High Sierra (10.13.6) (tested in 2017 Macbook Air).Included driver files were provided on the installation CD.
When I purchased the new Macbook Pro last year, one big issue was the lack of widely used interface ports. In order not to purchase many dongles (and spend too much on the Apple Store) I had a look on the usual sites and found a nice one from Cable Matters (no, sadly I have no sponsorship from them) which had them all: ethernet, USB-A, VGA and HDMI. Fantastic!
Coming from Linux, where 99% of the drivers are already provided in the kernel, the first odd thing I had to do is install the drivers for these ports! Even if I manage Windows computers daily, I wasn’t used anymore on my laptop!
Luckily drivers are not hard to find:
- USB-A port uses ASM1153 chipset (55aa:174c), but works out of the box
- Ethernet uses AX88179 from Asix (1790:0b95)
When I first installed the drivers I was using Sierra, and no problems arise. Now that I reinstalled with High Sierra the ethernet driver wasn’t working. Why? User-Approved Kernel Extension Loading.
User-Approved Kernel Extension Loading is a feature (released broken) which should enhance system security, from preventing unknown sources extensions from loading into the kernel.
So when I was prompted to load a kernel extension from developer WEI LU SU I instantly said NO. Just later I found out that it’s the extension which manages the USB Ethernet AX88179!
So if, like me, you missed or misinterpreted that prompt you can go to System Preferences > Security & Privacy > General in the window bottom you can see System software from developer “WEI LU SU” was blocked from loading. Right next to it a button will allow you to Allow the extension from loading, and the USB Ethernet port should work right after.
If anyone is still having problems seeing a USB to Ethernet connection in Network settings, here's what worked for me.
1. I'm using the Apple dongle, USB to Ethernet. OS is High Sierra 13.13.4
2. Could not see the connection in network settings.
3. When you plug in the dongle, go to the menu bar, and click on About this Mac. Choose System Report. Scroll down to the USB section. You should see AX88772 (it's important that the dongle is plugged into the USB port on the MB). I think that's what the dongle wants in terms of the driver, which for some reason seems to have been broken in this iteration of OS.
4. Go to the ASIX website and download the driver for AX88772. I used the latest version 2.6.0
5. Install the package. The machine may give you a message saying your security preferences are blocking it. Just go to security preferences and tell it to allow installation.
6. The machine will ask to restart. Restart it.
7. Go to network settings. You should now see the option for the USB to Ethernet connection. Connect your Ethernet cable to the dongle, and you should be in business.
Usb Ethernet For Mac High Sierra 10.13
Mac El Capitan
Hope this helps. Just wasted 5 hours of my life over a few days trying to figure this out, and add in two hours with the ever polite, but in this case unhelpful Apple support people.
Mac High Sierra Download
MacBook Pro, macOS High Sierra (10.13.4), USB to Ethernet Issues
Mac Ethernet Driver
Posted on May 2, 2018 8:33 AM