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Windows 10/11 can’t find Wi-Fi adapter: 7 quick fixes to use
5 min. read
Updated onOctober 4, 2023
updated onOctober 4, 2023
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AWi-Fi adapteris a device that adds wirelessconnectivity to your laptop or PC, and can be available as an externalUSB, PCI or PCI express card, which you plug into aUSBport or empty slot on your computer’s motherboard.
The adapter lets you connect to a wireless network whether you’re at home, at the office, or in a public place.
You can use the connection from aWi-Fiadapter for fast and high quality internet connections, or to access shared files on a network, devices, and documents.
Here are the solutions you can use whenWindows 10can’t findWi-Fiadapter.
FIX: Windows 10 can’t find Wi-Fi adapter
1. Troubleshoot Network Adapter
This is an automated, built-in Windows tool that finds and fixes common Network Adapter settings issues on your computer. It also checks if adapter’sdriversare updated or not, and give clues on the hardware failures related to it.
Take these steps to run the troubleshooting on Network Adapter and see if it identifies the issue:
If that didn’t work, try the next solution.
2. Update network adapter driver
When your network adapterdriveris incompatible or outdated, thenWindows 10cannot findWi-Fiadapter. A recentWindows 10upgradedrivercould have been designed for a previous version of Windows.
Update the adapterdriverusing these steps:
If your computer cannot connect to the internet, download adriverfrom a different computer, save it to a USB flash drive, then manually install it on your own computer.
How to manually install the network adapterdriver
Depending on the file you downloaded from the manufacturer’s website, do the following:
After installing the updateddriver, clickStart>Power>Restart
3. Roll back the network adapter driver
If you were previously connected to the internet and installed a new network adapterdriver, try to roll it back to a previous version and check if it helps.
Here’s how to do this:
If your computer cannot connect to the internet, download adriverfrom a different computer, save it to a USB flash drive, then manually install it on your own computer.
4. Temporarily turn off firewalls and any antivirus or malware prevention software
A firewall, antivirus oranti-malware program, may at times prevent you from finding yourWi-Fiadapter. If this is the cause of the issue, turn either of the three off temporarily then try to connect again.
Ensure you turn these programs back on immediately after you’re done to prevent hackers, viruses and worms from damaging your system.
5. Uninstall the network adapter driver then restart
This approach works if your connection was interfered with after a recent update or upgrade. Before uninstalling, ensure you havedriversavailable as a backup, then visit your PC manufacturer’s website for the latestdriver. You need to know the manufacturer, and model name or number to do this.
Here are the steps to take:
After your computer restarts, Windows will automatically search for and install the network adapterdriver. If it doesn’t, try installing the backupdriveryou saved prior to uninstalling.
6. Reinstall network devices
This should be used as a final resort, and can helpsolve connection problems after an upgrade to Windows 10, plus fix issues where you can connect to the internet but not to shared network drives.
Do the following to use network reset and reinstall network devices:
Wait for your computer to restart and check if it fixes the problem.
Let us know if any of the solutions we shared worked for you.
More about the topics:Wi-Fi issues,windows 10 fix
Milan Stanojevic
Windows Toubleshooting Expert
Milan has been enthusiastic about technology ever since his childhood days, and this led him to take interest in all PC-related technologies. He’s a PC enthusiast and he spends most of his time learning about computers and technology.
Before joining WindowsReport, he worked as a front-end web developer. Now, he’s one of the Troubleshooting experts in our worldwide team, specializing in Windows errors & software issues.
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Milan Stanojevic
Windows Toubleshooting Expert
Before joining WindowsReport, he worked as a front-end web developer. Now, he’s specialized in Windows errors & software issues.
