Google Chrome won't connect to the local network on macOS
Having trouble getting Google Chrome to connect to local servers, e.g. .local addresses? Here is how to fix it
I’ll admit it: I don’t have a great relationship with Macs. Windows help me not throw them out the window when I have to deal with one.
BUT… sometimes you have to deal with one anyway.
The problem: Google Chrome won’t connect to .local servers, but only on macOS.
Recently a fairly “funny” issue came up: Google Chrome wouldn’t connect to the local network, specifically to a server with a .local extension.
The even funnier part (yes, that’s sarcasm) is that other browsers connected without any problem. Firefox, and Safari too.
Browser configurations all seemed fine, no firewall or antivirus issues.
So? What was the problem. A macOS setting (of course) that, if you don’t know it’s there, you can waste hours trying to find.
The fix
There’s a setting in macOS under “Settings > Privacy & Security > Local Network”. There you’ll find the list of applications with a toggle to allow or deny local network access. And would you look at that, Google Chrome didn’t have permission.
The suggestion
Dear (€€€) Apple, how about a nice little button during setup that opens a little panel for devs saying: “Usually these get turned on at random, want to disable them since you might need to work with them?”.
Just a thought. I know it’s not about design. But damn it…
Happy coding 🙃