The curse of Apple MobileMe's "Connection Failed"

While flying from SFO to Newark last weekend, I repeatedly ran into a Mac OS X system pop-up telling me that the "Connection Failed." The cursed box repeatedly interrupted applications, including the QuickTime movies we were using to distract our toddler from flipping out on the six-hour flight.

After five days of punishment, I finally found the root cause: MobileMe.

If you are not a MobileMe user (I'm not), then you may/may not know that your credentials are stored in two different places: the MobileMe control panel and your user account.

During my trouble-shooting process, I fixed permissions, deleted old server connections, and deleted libraries. But nothing fixed the problem. Then I finally noticed that I had an iDisk icon on my sidebar (but nowhere else). When I tried to drag it to the trash, my laptop went into an endless loop and I had to finally reboot.

Having never used the iDisk and not having any applications that I was aware of using an iDisk, I started searching and figured out that it might be part of MobileMe. But when I checked the MobileMe control panel, the information was blank. Back to square one.

I started going through every control panel item, and in my user account, I somehow had a username/password combo in my Account profile. Now, this username/password combo was neither correct nor active but somehow it was attempting to connect to the service without my permission AND without leaving a trace in the console. A very Windows-like behavior I would say.

After removing the MobileMe username and password from my user accounts the "Connection Failed" dialog box has finally stopped interrupting me. My biggest grievances?

1. That the system would attempt to connect to a service without my permission.
2. That the error message didn't provide a single detail as to what it was trying to connect to.
3. That Apple has the audacity to put that damned iDisk icon on my sidebar.

It's totally possible that I am the only person who has experienced this issue, but I highly doubt it.

[Goodbye Helicopter]

having idisk in the side bar is in Finder's preferences. as is having it on the desktop.
the only way you ever got the mobileme preference pane filled out was by your own volition.
you have probably been clicking on it and not realizing it.
who knows what else you've got on your computer that you have set and don't have a clue about....

[daverosenberg]

iDisk was set by default. I've never used it

[BNUX]

Xiiii!!! Do you know how to work with a computer? If iDisk just mount it self is because you just add it on your computer. Probably you should do an simple eject (unmount) if it is just a mount point to mobileme iDisk.

I only have iDisk mount point on my OS X if I add it. I am just a Trial user of mobileme. But until I create an account and mount the iDisk it does not ever once mount by magic. Check if you have any strange software on your computer doing strange things that you not aware of it.

Cheers!

[rapier1]

One of the things that always struck me about many Mac users is that when you tell them you are having a problem they often retort "well you just don't know what you are doing, you idiot." For example, I don't like iPhoto or iTunes. The problem, according to many Mac aficionados isn't that there is a problem with either application but that there must be something deeply wrong with my personal makeup not to see to inherent genius and beauty of these apps. Another time, the drive controller on my first powerbook was failing and causing massive errors and hangs. I had multiple people say "Well, you're doing something wrong then". The attitude of other users was incredibly frustrating and almost turned me away from Macs in general.

[terrycoolidge]

Too bad you weren't aware of Spotlight's integration with the System Preferences window. No need to search through every control panel. Simply type "iDisk" in the search field provided in the System Preferences pane and Spotlight will literally shine a spotlight on the relevant control panels. This doesn't address what caused the problem or necessarily mean you would have figured out the solution any quicker, but it would have saved you some needless poking around through unrelated control panels.

The Genius Bar at an Apple Store probably would have solved the problem in less than five days. Is there a reason why you didn't avail yourself of that no-cost service?

[gt1948]

Before we play we should read the instructions.......

[brightstarbeing]

I agree with Helicopter. It was probably your fault, or someone else that got into your computer, that your computer was even looking for MobileMe. It is definitely not Apple's fault because by default, MobileMe is completely deactivated. In fact it is SO deactivated that even after you activate it, you have to manually set it up to sync to MobileMe, which is turned off by default. iDisk showing up in your sidebar is meant to be a convenience if you activate MobileMe, not something Apple had the "audacity" to push on you. I agree that the error message was not very helpful, but other than that, I completely disagree with your conclusion to this problem.

[cmfnyc]

Does this really merit a blog post? I'm so sick of the endless blog posts by CNET 's blog network who feel like every small blip in their user experience is vital news or who spend five minutes using Microsoft (Vista) or Apple (MobileMe) software and spend the next few hours stinking up the blogosphere with their "perspective."

Did you think to look at Apple's support site or discussion boards? Something like 95% of my problems can be solved or at least understood within a few searches on the boards.

It could have saved you a headache and the blogosphere a nonpost.

[Perry_Clease]

You might try a positive approach to solving problems

[joshsc]

"If you are not a MobileMe user (I'm not) than you may/may not know that your credentials are stored in two different places, the MobileMe control panel and your user account."

If you're going to be doing professional blog post such as this, using correct grammar would be great. It is not THAN but rather THEN.

Oh, sorry for your MobileMe problem- this thing hasn't worked properly since it was released. One of Apple's biggest public failures. But of course Fanboys don't see it.

[protagonistic]

Well, it is rather hard to see a problem that I have never had. MobileMe has worked just fine for me. But then you Windows fanboys always seem to take unusual glee whenever someone else using a different OS has a problem.

[davidwb]

I've read and reread the article and I cannot figure out what you are talking about. The iDisk icon appears in the sidebar whether or not you have an account just as it appears in the Go menu of the Finder. If you haven't set up an account selecting the iDisk will result in a dialog box requesting your account name and password.

What you are describing indicates that you MUST have created a .Mac account (Mobile Me before it changed names) or that you used someone else's account to connect to .Mac at some time. The .Mac / Me data is store in the Mobile Me account not in the User Account data.

So what we have here is a user complaining about his own mistake and then blaming Apple. Then again, this is exactly the sort of thing I've come to expect from CNET.

[Macbrewer]

MobileMe rocks for hosting, integration with iPhoto, iCal, iMovie are worth every penny. iDisk works far better than the other WebDAV storage I have tried.

You turned this on, probably by checking out the free demo.

One thing you are right about, when a computer is doing something behind your back, being obtuse, that is very 'Windows-like'. You got that part right.

[jarturof]

Apple dream is to become the big brother, that was shown in 1984 campaign of apple, they didn't want to be the liberation girl, they want to be the oppressing giant head.

[setgo]

That's stupid.

[jcantwell]

I am a .Mac user who was force-migrated to "im-MobileMe". While I have not experienced the problem Dave writes about, I have had MobileMe automatically reset preferences behind the scenes without any prompting or my knowledge.

During an iWeb software update my account preferences were reset to the "@me.com" address Apple automatically assigned all .Mac customers. This wiped out my entire saved blog library produced and hosted under my .Mac name. Apple's website and boards had no mention of this issue and the "Genius" at the Genius Bar did not know anything about it. In fact, when I showed him what had changed in iWeb he told me (incorrectly) that my .Mac name was no longer available and that I had to use [e-mail] from now on. Even the manager of the store had no clue about iWeb and MobileMe yet he refused to put me in touch with anyone at Apple who oversaw the products.

Apple's final solution for retrieving my blog file library? Go the website where my now old blog is published and copy and paste every word and picture into the new @me account in iWeb, manually reformat every posting and republish it all to a new site with the .me.com URL. That is VERY Windows-like bahavior!

[KillersDad]

You don't archive your iWeb files locally on your computer? Hmmmm.

[ikramerica--2008]

More troubling:

If all networks are turned off, you will not "repeatedly" get connection failed. Mac OS X is generally smart enough not to look for a connection with no networks attached.

What does this mean? This means that this "professional" flew transcon with Airport turned on. You are not supposed to do this. It's against the rules of every airline that doesn't specifically have a wifi network inside the aircraft, which right now is only in beta on a few aircraft at a few airlines.

So not only does this guy not know how to use his computer, he ignores the inflight approved electronics rules. And then blogs about it. Nice?

[mingdube]

"A man's got to know his limitations."

[jujujeep]

wow! it didn't take five days for me to create a user account with CNET.
May I have job here?

[the Otter]

terrycoolidge, not everyone lives near an Apple Store. My parents are within an hour of eight or nine of them, but my wife and I live within an hour of zero. Not everybody has five or six consecutive hours to spend driving there, waiting for a Genius (even with an appointment), getting the problem fixed, and driving home.

[terrycoolidge]

Dear "the Otter"

I was making a suggestion specifically to the author of this blog. He appears to operate out of San Francisco where there are a number of Apple Stores. I realize not every has the luxury of popping into an Apple Store. This guy seems to, so I wondered if he had considered it.

[Clues]

Just another clueless blowhard with a chip on his shoulder bigger than his brain and ability.

[KillersDad]

You get PAID to write this?

You turned on MobileMe, probably inadvertantly, but still it's a USER-ERROR. An incompetent user who wasn't paying attention to what you were doing. Then you complain that the GREATEST CUSTOMER SERVICE ORIENTED TECHNOLOGY COMPANY IN THE WORLD left you out when you didn't avail yourself of the Knowledge Database, Mobile Me website or a MacGenius.

And I have to ask again, YOU GET PAID TO WRITE THIS?

[nordstrl]

This guy gave nuclear secrets to the USSR and now he's complaining about problems he easily could have avoided if he just spent a day learning the OS? Christ.

[bluehairmail]

give the guy a break. All i here from just about everybody here is that this guy caused the problem, and that is being said with hatred. Wow i am amazed at the hate coming from these comments. This hatred has displayed something about people who use macs. They are normal people who really like there investment. also, most if not all of the errors with a windows system are created by the user. By saying that this guy caused the problem, then you are equating your wonderful OSX with windows. I just bring simple logic. Lets all be nice whether or not this is user error. there is no reason why we should not help solve a problem. Peace man, good witting, and thanks for your work.

[nordstrl]

What work? He's being PAID to write about his own stuipidity! A good analogy would be a systems analyst who makes an inefficient bottleneck all on his own and then gets a big check reporting his own problem that he's already fixed anyway.