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Netgear WiFi Adapter not Working: 6 Ways to Get it to Work
Tweaking your power settings should solve this issue quickly
6 min. read
Updated onOctober 4, 2023
updated onOctober 4, 2023
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Users report that Netgear wireless adapter works fine when they start their computer, but after a while, the internet cuts off, and theadapter stops working.
This makes their network unreliable and, even worse, requires frequent reconnection to get going again. If you are also troubled by this issue, we will show you how to fix it and restore normal service in this guide.
Why is my Netgear WiFi adapter not working?
Several factors can cause the Netgear WiFi adapter to stop working. Below are some of the notable ones:
What can I do if the Netgear WiFi adapter is not working?
1. Download and install the latest Netgear drivers
In most cases, the Netgear N300 wireless WiFi USB adapter WNA3100 stops working because of generic drivers installed by Windows update.
You must install the latest drivers from the Netgear website to fix this.
Alternatively, you can use theOutbyte Driver Updatertool to update your drivers toavoid permanently damaging your computer by manually downloading the wrong driver versions.
This incredible program looks for new hardware drivers and automatically downloads updates.
It scans your system and lists all existing and possibly missing drivers. The tool also detects if there is already a new version for current records. If necessary, these can be updated directly via Outbyte Driver Updater.
⇒Get Outbyte Driver Updater
2. Change power settings
One of the power management features of your PC is the ability to suspend your USB settings. Unfortunately, this can cause the Netgear WiFi adapter to stop working. Disabling the feature should help restore normalcy.
Another power-saving option that can cause the Netgear WiFi adapter to stop working is the ability to turn off your USB hubs. Unfortunately, this can cause any device connected to the USB port to stop working temporarily.
Various power settings commonly hidden within the system are vital for the performance of the Netgear adapter.
Some of these are related to USB power reduction, while others are there to tend to wireless adapters. Both of these are valuable if you want to preserve the battery life.
The power-related settings are enabled by default, and what we need to do is to disable them.
3. Change channel settings
For the best overall WiFi performance, we advise you to stick to 20 MHz of channel width and channels 1, 6, or 11. This is because those are rarely crowded by non-Wi-Fi devices that use similar frequencies.
After doing this, check if the Netgear WiFi adapter is now working.
4. Check the equipment
Make sure that everything is working as intended hardware-wise. For example, try multiple USB ports and use the Netgear adapter on a different computer.
If everything works as it should, the problem lies in your PC rather than the Netgear adapter. That should point you toward the other solutions we provided in this article.
Note that it’s essential to know that USB 3.0 works properly on the 5 GHz bands. For 2.4 GHz, make sure to stick with USB 2.0.
5. Uninstall network adapter drivers
If you still can’t get your Netgear WiFi adapter to work, you might need to uninstall and reinstall the driver. Aside from scanning for hardware changes, you can install the latest drivers from the official website.
6. Disable the Block Internet Connection Sharing option
Antivirus software comes with a Firewall, and sometimes it can cause problems, so you might want to turn it off.
For example, Bitdefender has the Block Internet Connection Sharing option in its advanced settings, so to resolve this issue, it’s highly recommended that you turn it off.
That’s about it. You should now be able to fix the Netgear WiFi adapter not working issue with the solutions in this guide.
Ifno USB WiFi adapter works on your PC, check our detailed guide to fix it quickly.
Feel free to let us know the solution that helped you solve the problem in the comments below.
More about the topics:Netgear,windows 10 fix
Ivan Jenic
Windows Hardware Expert
Passionate about all elements related to Windows and combined with his innate curiosity, Ivan has delved deep into understanding this operating system, with a specialization in drivers and driver troubleshooting.
When he’s not tackling diverse driver-related problems, Ivan enjoys watching good movies and spending time hiking with his family and friends.
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Ivan Jenic
Windows Hardware Expert
Ivan has delved deep into understanding the Windows OS, with a specialization in drivers and driver troubleshooting.
