Resolution

 

Question

What can I do if my Wi-Fi (wireless) isn't working in Windows 10?

Answer

Skip this and contact a professional

If you'd like to skip this guide and contact a professional, CLICK HERE.

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Note: This article applies to Windows 10. Please see our other articles for information on Windows 8 or Windows 7

To fix a Wi-Fi (or wireless) problem, we'll consider tips to optimize wireless signals. Once that's done, we'll ensure that Wi-Fi is enabled and that, if there's a physical switch, it is in the 'on' position. Next, we'll check if there's a problem between the laptop and the router. If that doesn't fix the problem, we'll consider the software (or driver) on the computer. If the driver doesn't solve the problem, we'll move on to checking the system of the laptop. As a last resort, we'll perform a system recovery if needed.

Consider tips to optimize wireless signal

The first thing you should do is consider these tips to optimize wireless signal.

Walls, floor, and other large, solid objects can cause signal degradation if they're between your computer and your router. Try to minimize the number of walls, floors, and pieces of furniture between the two devices.

A router's signal stability and strength can degrade as it gets older. If it's been a long time since you've installed your router, consider replacing it.

Routers can operate on different channels. If there are a lot of devices on one channel, there can be interference that causes the signal to be weaker. Conside changing the channel on which the router is broadcasting to one with less usage. This is usually for advanced users. To find out how to do this on your router, consult your router's owner's manual, contact the router's manufacturer, or contact your Internet service provider if your ISP provided your router.

Enable Wi-Fi (or wireless), also called turning on the Wi-Fi switch

To begin, we'll start with the simplest and quickest solution - ensuring that it's enabled.

On most laptops that come with Windows 10, you can toggle the Wi-Fi by pressing F8 or holding FN and pressing F8. This varies by model, so you might want to try both.

On some laptops, you might need to use F12 or FN+F12.

If turning on the wireless doesn't fix the problem, move on to the next section.

Check the Router

Next we'll check the router to ensure the computer can connect correctly. If you don't have access to the router (for example, you might be using a public Wi-Fi network), you can skip this section.

Locate your physical Wi-Fi router.

Unplug the router's power cord.

Wait 5 minutes.

Reconnect the router's power cord.

Wait 5 minutes for the router to establish its connection to the Internet.

Test your Wi-Fi again.

If you still can't connect, try removing any security on the Wi-Fi network. If this is your home network but you don't know how to do this, try contacting your Internet service provider.

If this fixes it, try using a different type of security if you wish to use a secured network.

Previously we ensured the Wi-Fi was enabled. In this section, we checked the router. If the computer still won't connect, we'll continue to check the software on the computer.

Computer Software (Driver)

In this section, we will see if the software on the computer that controls the Wi-Fi, called the Wi-Fi driver, might have a problem.

System Restore

Try using System Restore to restore your computer to an earlier point in time when you could connect to Wi-Fi networks. If you were never able to connect to wireless networks in Windows 10, continue to the next section. For more information on this, see the following article:

How do I perform a system restore in Windows 10?

Once the System Restore is completed, test the Wi-Fi again. If it still doesn't work, continue to the next step.

Check System Information

We'll now check which version of Windows the computer is using.

Hold the Windows key and press the 'x' key to open the administrative menu in the lower-left. Select "System."

Next to "System type," note whether it says 64-bit or 32-bit.

We'll now check which Wi-Fi card your system contains.

Hold the Windows key and press the 'x' key again to open the administrative menu in the lower-left. Select "Device Manager."

Expand "Network adapters."

Make note of the name of the wireless adapter. It's most likely the one with "Wireless" in the name and will likely contain either the word "Intel," "Realtek," "Broadcom," or "Atheros." 

Check Power Management

Now we'll ensure that the computer doesn't turn off the wireless adapter to save power.

Right-click the wireless adapter you identified previously.

Select "Properties."

Select the "Power Management" tab.

Uncheck the box next to "Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power."

Press "OK."

Download New Driver

Now, download the latest driver for that Wi-Fi card from the support site.

Click here to learn how to find downloads on the support site.

Remember to select the version corresponding to the information you previously obtained from "System Information" and that contains the name of the network adapter obtained from "Device Manager."

Install the downloaded driver.

If this doesn't fix the Wi-Fi, run Windows Update and ensure you have all updates installed.

If the Wi-Fi still doesn't work, we can assume it isn't a software (or driver) problem. Because we already checked that Wi-Fi is turned on and the router is okay, we'll move on to checking the system.

System Settings

In this section, we're going to perform a power cycle first to discharge any power in the computer. Don't worry; this will not cause you to lose any data on the computer. Then we'll reset the UEFI system settings. This is are basic settings that contribute to how the computer functions. Both of these tasks are very easy to do.

• - Open the Start menu.
• - Select the power icon.
• - Hold the SHIFT key and select "Restart."
• - At the "Choose an option" screen, select "Troubleshoot," then "Advanced options," then "UEFI Firmware Settings," and then "Restart."
• - Press the key listed in the UEFI to reset the UEFI to default settings. This is usually F9.
• - Save the changes and exit. This is usually done by pressing F10.
• - Test the Wi-Fi again.

Contact a professional or perform a system reset

Lastly, you might want to return your computer to factory default conditions. This is sometimes called a system reset or a system recovery. Note that this will remove all of your software and data that you added including applications, documents, photos, etc.

If you don't want to reset your computer and you'd like to contact a professional, CLICK HERE.

If you do want to proceed with a system reset, the system reset will return your computer to factory defaults. For more information, see one the following article:

What recovery options are available in Windows 10?

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