Mac: Block the connection to the wrong WiFi network

Do you connect to too many different WiFi networks within the week? At home, in the office, in cafes and restaurants. If you live and work in a densely populated area, you may find that some of these networks are so close to each other that your Mac sees them all at once.

This is great, except when the Mac is connected to a remote, weak, slow WiFi network while a faster one is much closer.

Fortunately, there is a way to control which networks your Mac is connected to.

To do this, go to Network Preferences. You can have access in System Preferences, by tapping on Network or WiFi in the System menu and selecting Open Network Preferences.

When you reach this screen, you will be presented with information about your connection.

Note: Make sure WiFi is selected in the column on the left side of the window.

One of the most important things about controlling the networks you are connecting to is the "Automatically connect to this network" box. This works exactly as you would imagine and offers an easy way to choose which networks you want to you are logged in.

While this screen offers a little control over the WiFi connection, to get to normal settings, tap Advanced.

Here you have access in enough information.

If you have the choice “Remember the networks this computer has joined” active, the list of preferred networks will be filled in with each network you are connected to, old or new, current or not. This list is growing relatively fast, especially if you are traveling. It is advisable to clean the list frequently from random networks such as cafes to keep it neat.

To delete a network, select it, and then press "-" at the bottom of the list.

This list can also help control the networks to which the Mac connects by checking the priority of the networks. You change your priority by tapping on the network and dragging it up and down the list of preferred networks. The higher a network is in the list, the higher its priority. Move the high priority networks to the top of the list and leave the rest low.

The fewer networks you have in the list, the easier it is to check them.

You can also choose which networks to automatically connect to the Mac by selecting the box next to the name.

Remember to press OK to confirm your changes or Cancel to cancel any changes you have made.