[balthasar]

i look at my router and the light the iMac is plugged in on is not showing up. now i plug it in to my laptop and the light turns on

Whats wrong with my mac?

[John A]

Probably has something to do with your ethernet cable -- is it a straight-through or a crossover cable? Newer Macs can automatically do the cross/uncross the signal themselves if necessary, but I don't believe older Macs do. If you don't know whether you're using a straight through or crossover cable, look at the clear plastic connectors at both ends: the order of the colored wires will be the same on both ends if it's a straight-through cable.

And of course, it never hurts to give the cable a good wiggle at both ends after it's been plugged in.

[balthasar]

Originally Posted by John A

Probably has something to do with your ethernet cable -- is it a straight-through or a crossover cable? Newer Macs can automatically do the cross/uncross the signal themselves if necessary, but I don't believe older Macs do. If you don't know whether you're using a straight through or crossover cable, look at the clear plastic connectors at both ends: the order of the colored wires will be the same on both ends if it's a straight-through cable.

And of course, it never hurts to give the cable a good wiggle at both ends after it's been plugged in.

its straight through. but i thought the router did that as well?

[Serge_N_Gin]

Have you turned the router off for about 20 secs then retried the iMac to see if the light comes on?

I'd suggest ringing your ISP's support as they will be able to tell you how to troubleshoot the issue to determine where the problem lies.