Help for those who have a specific problem with any type of technology.
Firewall + Mac = Blocked news sites?
I've also posted this in the community I own, /ITTalk. We are stumped, so I'm hoping one of you has an idea about this.
The equipment:
Sonicwall TZ300 Various windows machines, all running the latest operating system A Windows phone (not sure what model) A 2010 Macbook Pro running El Capitan An iPad2 running the latest OS An iPhone 7+ running the latest OS
The firewall has all the "nanny" settings unchecked, with the exception of the box that says "block malware." That one is still checked.
The firewall does not seem to prevent the windows machines and phone from accessing any websites.
The Apple devices cannot reach certain websites AT ALL while going through the firewall. Ethernet or wifi, doesn't make a difference. URL directly cut and pasted into address bar, or reached via a link clicked from the parent website, email, or Facebook, doesn't make a difference. Full URL link or branded shortlink, doesn't make a difference. There is no official "blocked for your protection" message. The request just times out.
The Apple devices can, however, access the exact same content via a cellular connection with no problem.
Example of problem websites: azcentral.com (the website of the Arizona Republic.) That one NEVER works through the firewall, but always works via cellular. Also, wsj.com, the website of the Wall Street Journal. UPDATE: When a windows machine is looking at a WSJ article, the Mac was able to see it too, using Chrome. However, the next day, the Mac was not able to connect to any WSJ articles, using any browser.
Browsers involved: Firefox, Chrome, Safari, Edge, and whatever Windows phones use.
What is causing this blocking? Remember that the Windows machines get right through. It's the Mac devices that can't connect.




Is there any setting in the mac that stops it connecting? Remember, Apple are very secure and may block certain ports or IP addresses because they think they are unsafe
If there were such a setting, it would work all the time, not just when run through a firewall.