Windows 10 is one of the easiest operating systems to use as you are likely to encounter fewer issues with it when compared to its predecessors. There are however instances when you will experience some problems when using your computer such as going online on your Wi-Fi network. If you are experiencing this particular issue then you have come to the right place as we will be providing the detailed troubleshooting steps for this problem.
Fix Problem With Wireless Adapter Or Access Point On Windows 10
Things to do first
If you can’t go online on a Wi-Fi network then the first thing you will need to do is to check if the Wi-Fi switch of your device is turned on. Click on Start then select Settings – Network & Internet – Wi‑Fi. Under the Wi-Fi heading, the toggle should be switched to On. It should also say that Wi-Fi is connected. If it isn’t then click on Show available networks, and if your network is available then select it, and then click on Connect.
In case you are unable to connect to the network then try the following steps.
- Make sure that airplane mode is turned off.
- Try moving closer to the router or access point.
- Restart your modem and wireless router. Unplug the power cable for the router from the power source then unplug the power cable for the modem from the power source. Wait for at least a minute. Plug the modem back into the power source. The lights on the modem will blink. Wait for them to stop blinking. Plug your router back into the power source.
Make sure that your other devices can connect to the wireless network then check if your windows 10 computer can connect to it.
Troubleshooting the computer
There are cases when the problem is caused by issues with your Windows 10 computer. Listed below are the recommended troubleshooting steps you need to do.
Use the network troubleshooter. This is one of the best tolls that you can use to fix connectivity related problems. Click the Start button then go to Settings > Network & Internet > Status. Under Change your network settings, select Network troubleshooter. Follow the steps in the troubleshooter and check if that fixes the problem.
If the issue still remains then open a command prompt as an administrator. In the search box on the taskbar, type Command prompt. The Command Prompt button will appear. To the right of it, select Run as administrator > Yes.
Run the following commands.
- Type netsh winsock reset and select Enter. (This will reset the TCP/IP stack)
- Type netsh int ip reset and select Enter. (This will reset the TCP/IP stack)
- Type ipconfig /release and select Enter. (This will release the IP address)
- Type ipconfig /renew and select Enter. (This will renew the IP address)
- Type ipconfig /flushdns and select Enter. (This will Flush and reset the DNS client resolver cache)
Try rolling back the network adapter driver
If the problem occured after you recently downloaded a new network adapter driver then you should try rolling back the driver to the previous version.
- Type Device Manager on the search box taskbar, and then select Device Manager from the list of results.
- Expand Network adapters, and locate the network adapter for your device.
- Select the network adapter, and then select Properties.
- In Properties, select the Driver tab, select Roll Back Driver
Restart the computer then check if this fixes the problem.
Additional troubleshooting steps that you can perform to fix the problem
- Try turning off the firewall as this might be preventing your computer from connecting to the Internet.
- Temporarily turn off any antivirus or malware prevention program.
- Perform a network reset. Click on the Start button then select Settings > Network & Internet > Status > Network reset. On the Network reset screen, select Reset now > then Yes to confirm. Check if the problem still occurs once the device restarts.