Wi-Fi is visible but does not connect. Important notes when choosing a driver for a laptop. If the settings are incorrect, you must

Greetings, dear readers of the blog site. Today there is practically no establishment or apartment without access to wireless Internet. But sometimes the user may face some problems while connecting. And I described further how to deal with them.

Today we will not only look at a very serious issue, but also find the best way out of a situation in which your laptop completely refuses to connect to Wi-Fi.

There are many requests from users on this topic on the Internet, which indicates that the problem is quite common and requires close attention. Well, after reading today’s article, which provides step-by-step solutions to fix this problem, you can get rid of this “headache” forever.

Why doesn't the laptop connect to wifi and what's the problem?

Before you begin to solve this problem, it is worth understanding what is causing the problems.

Important! Many people do not understand that WiFi itself does not provide access to the network. To provide access to global networks, the router connects to the provider.

What follows from this? The first thing you need to do is check your router settings, this will be smart. In addition, there are other nuances that are also worth paying attention to:

the user simply forgot to pay the provider for Internet connection services;
the router has crashed and just needs to be rebooted;
failures in the wireless adapter settings and software.

Is it the router's fault or is it the laptop?

As mentioned above, you should first find the culprit. You should not immediately start making your own adjustments to the equipment settings without first understanding where the problem lies, as you will only aggravate the situation.

Important nuance! If you have an additional desktop computer, tablet or smartphone, you can use this and check the functionality of your router. To do this, you just need to connect it to another device and make sure it works correctly.

I think you understand what's what. This way, you can accurately determine the culprit of the current unpleasant situation, because if the router works properly in conjunction with another device, then the speech is in your laptop, and vice versa.

Checking for drivers

Be sure to look at the icon showing the connection. If you have the same notification as the picture below:

Then it would be advisable to check the functionality of the wifi adapter and the availability of the driver. This is the most common reason why a laptop does not connect to wifi and says limited access.

First, right-click on the “my computer” icon and go to “properties”. In the window that appears, on the left, go to the “Device Manager” tab.

In the window that opens, select “network adapters”. Pay attention to whether there are such Network Adapter devices there (in some cases, the names may be changed). Right-click on it and go to “properties”. In the new window that appears, you should make sure that the device is working properly. This is indicated by the corresponding inscription.

If everything is as in the screenshot, then everything is fine with the drivers. And if the Network Adapter device is not detected, then in this case you should visit the website of your laptop manufacturer and download the appropriate driver, and then install it. As you can see, everything is quite simple.

Important! On the manufacturer’s website we select exactly our equipment model. If you can't find your laptop, use the quick search. Enter your laptop model into the search bar, this will speed up the process.

So, we’ve sorted out the drivers, let’s move on to other pressing issues that are happening.

Maybe you forgot to turn on the router on your laptop?

It sounds quite strange, but this happens. First of all, press the button on the keyboard that is responsible for turning the Internet on and off.

Important! Along with this button, you should also press Fn, as shown in the screenshot below.

Windows Error

We examined the issue when the module is turned off. But what about when the netbook finds the desired network, but when connecting, it displays the message: “failed to connect.”

Click on this icon:

After this, you will see a list of available networks. You need to select the one you need and connect to it.

If your network is protected by a generated password that you came up with yourself, then you should enter it correctly.

Important! Make sure you enter the password correctly. Note the switched keyboard layout language and enabled capitalization.

If you did everything correctly, your Internet will soon be connected via a wireless connection.

Conclusion

The issue of connecting to wifi has been resolved. However, we should not forget about other nuances. If problems arise, you should also pay attention to the following factors:

external visible mechanical damage to the router and laptop;
overloads in power grids;
use of equipment for purposes other than its intended purpose.

These factors can damage the devices. We hope today's material was useful to you and you learned a lot. We are sure that you are able to solve this simple task, you will certainly succeed. Also don't forget change wifi password for safety reasons after setting up.

I hope you learned to solve this problem after studying the article, and if not, then re-read it again -))). All the best.

Sincerely, Galiulin Ruslan.

Wireless technologies will no longer surprise anyone. They have entered so deeply into the life of modern people that it is difficult to imagine life without them. But the usual is not always simple: from time to time everyone faces such a problem when the laptop does not connect to WiFi, but sees the network. This can happen for various reasons: we will look at the most common problems and their solutions.

Common reasons

It is worth understanding that the problem when the computer sees but does not connect to Wi-Fi can be on the side of the PC or the router. Therefore, you should always check your network first. To do this, simply try connecting other devices to the router, such as a smartphone or tablet. If other gadgets connect to the router without problems, then most likely the problem is on the PC side.

Don't forget about the technical specifications. For example, we know that Wi-Fi standards are different and are designated by a letter. There are quite a lot of them, but three main ones are used in everyday life:

802.11b – opened in 1999. The frequency used for broadcasting the signal is 2.4 GHz. The maximum data transfer speed is 11 MBytes.
802.11g – opened in 2003 and operates at a frequency of 2.4 GHz. However, the speed has been increased to 54 MB.
802.11n is the most modern and fastest standard that operates at 5 GHz. The maximum connection speed can reach 300 MBytes

As you can see, the standards operate at different frequencies. Theoretically, 802.11n can operate at a frequency of 2.4 GHz, but various problems often arise. Therefore, ideally, the standards on the distributing and receiving devices should match. Nowadays, the vast majority of routers work with all three modes at once, but not all router models support this. Therefore, it is worth checking the technical specifications.

Sometimes connection problems can be caused by data encryption. That is, if you set a password for your wireless network, then the router encrypts the data according to a certain scheme. Sometimes it happens that the computer simply does not support the type of data encryption that is installed in the router and cannot decode the signal. Therefore, it is worth trying to remove the password for the wireless network in the router settings and check whether the PC will connect to an open network. To do this, log in, go to the “Wi-Fi Security” section and disable the protection here.

If the PC connects to an open network, then the problem is the data encryption or the password itself. Therefore, to protect your network, go back to the router settings and set the encryption type to WPA-PSKWPA2-PSKmixed - almost all devices support this mode.

These were the main parameters. Now let's look at what reasons can cause the problem when a laptop sees a Wi-Fi network, but cannot connect.

Problems on the computer side

If it so happens that an error appears when trying, then first of all you need to diagnose the problems. This will allow you to understand what the problem is and in which direction to dig.

How to connect Wi-Fi on a laptop using troubleshooting:

Find the Wi-Fi icon in the notification area (the so-called system tray in the lower right corner of the desktop).
Right-click on the icon and select “Diagnostics problems”.
Next, carefully read the information on the screen and follow all recommendations. As a result, the system will try to fix the problem. But even if the problem cannot be resolved, at the end of the diagnosis a report will appear indicating the problem.

If diagnosing the problems did not help, then move on to the second method. Here it is worth paying attention to the signal level. If the signal is weak (1-2 sticks), then the PC may not connect to the network. This happens due to too much loss of data packets (the response timeout is exceeded and the connection is disconnected). Therefore, if the signal is weak, move the laptop closer to the access point.

Also, the computer may have various network malfunctions, as a result of which it sees the network, but does not connect to Wi-Fi. This may happen due to a large amount of accumulated cache or as a result of some settings, installation of programs that have access to changing adapter parameters, and so on. All this can be solved in one universal way - resetting network parameters. After the reset, you need to restart your computer.

Problems on the router side

As a rule, if the router does not connect, you need to check the settings. We have already discussed Wi-Fi standards and the type of data encryption above - check these first. It is recommended to set the Wi-Fi mode to 802.11 bgn mixed. The same goes for the encryption type. If everything is fine with these settings, but the router still does not allow devices to connect, then you should reboot it. Unplug it from the outlet for at least 5-7 minutes, and then plug it back in.

If this does not help, you should reset the router to factory settings. This can be done by pressing and holding the special “Reset” button or through the options: “System Tools”> “Factory Resets”.

The Internet and the latest electronic technologies are very closely intertwined in our lives. And sometimes problems with Internet access can ruin all our plans and interfere with our work or leisure. The phone not only helps you stay in touch, but also opens the door from anywhere to the World Wide Web, to the Internet. At the same time, no one is immune from sudden problems, so the question arises: why doesn’t the phone connect to the WiFi router? This information also applies to those users who do not know why the tablet does not connect to WiFi.

Let's look at the typical reasons below. It must be said right away that the solution may lie in simple manipulations with the phone. Therefore, apply all the methods described below, without thinking that this will not help in your situation.

What could be the reasons for WiFi not working on a phone or tablet?

First you need to restart your phone and turn off/on the Wi-Fi network on your phone. Then reboot your router(s). If there is still no network, then the problem is different. Another thing that might help is to remove the battery and connect it again, then restart the phone.

The causes of this problem may be the presence of incorrect network or router security settings, as well as the channel operating mode. What errors can we most often see on our device?

In the connection status we see: “Obtaining an IP address...”, or simply “Connecting...”. But the phone does not connect to the network. That is, you specify the network where you want to connect, but the phone cannot do this.
There is an authentication problem (authentication error), or simply the status “Authentication...” Usually in this case the message “Disconnected” appears, and the phone is not connected to Wi-Fi.
The message in the device is “Saved, WPA\WPA2 protected.”
The phone connects to the router via Wi-Fi, but the Internet does not work and sites do not open in the browser.

What solutions could there be to get your phone or tablet to connect to WiFi?

So, possible solutions to your problem.

Removing WiFi connection

The first thing I could advise you is to delete the connection that is saved on your phone. To do this, select the network through which you accessed the Internet and click on “Delete” or “Delete this network.” Below in the screenshot you can see what it looks like:

After that, try connecting to this network again.

Rebooting the router

Sometimes, if there is a problem connecting not only your phone, but also other devices, you just need to reboot the router. A small note: you don’t just need to unplug and plug in the socket after a second, but unplug the router’s power cord for 10 seconds and only then plug it in again.

You must wait for some time so that there is no power left in the router. Such a circuit is often needed with other devices that are powered by energy. By the way, you can use the button that is on the router itself using the same procedure described above.

Changing the channel in the router

If you haven’t changed any settings and the connection with your router has always been without problems, then you should try changing the Wireless channel. This happens very rarely, but there is a small percentage that this setting can help you.

Where can you change the channel for your Wi-Fi? To do this, you need to go to your router’s settings in the “Wireless” tab and change the channel (Channel), then save the settings, reboot the router and try to connect. If it doesn’t work the first time, repeat the same scheme with other channels.

Check the password you enter when connecting to WiFi

If your phone displays an “Authentication” error, the problem may be an incorrect password or incorrect security settings.

The first step is to check that the password you have set is correct. How to do this, since some users may not be prompted to enter a password? You need to delete your connection and re-enter your password by clicking on your network. Always be careful when entering your password. If you have forgotten your password, you can look it up in the router settings.

Here are articles that will help you with this procedure:

If it's not a password issue, then you need to check your security settings. To do this, set the security type to WPA2. The password must be more than 8 characters and you can try use only numbers.

Saved, WPA\WPA2 protection and changing the password in the router

One of the most common problems is when the phone displays the message “Saved, WPA\WPA2 protected” and at the same time the connection icon may show the presence of a connection, but there is still no Internet in the device.

If the options described above do not help, then you need to check the Wireless operating mode/speed in the router settings, since the phone may not always support the router operating mode. To do this, you need to set the network to automatic or mixed mode instead of b, g or n.

If you couldn't fix the problem and you are still faced with the dilemma of why your phone won't connect to WiFi, try changing the encryption/security type that I already mentioned:

WPA/WPA2
WPA-PSK

These are the settings on my router:

Enter a new password (key) of 8 characters or more. It is advisable to change the password, as you may have forgotten the password and are entering a non-existent one.

Next - the same scheme: save the settings, reboot the router, delete the connection on the phone and connect, entering a new password when prompted. It should be remembered that the new password will need to be specified in other devices that use this router. For example, if you have a laptop or computer at home, you need to reconnect to WiFi by entering the new password that you specified in the router.

Channel width

Change the Channel Width in the router settings. Usually there are several options: Auto, 20MHz and 40MHz. After the change, save and reboot the router.

If there are other options, try using them.

MAC and IP address filter

Make sure the MAC or IP address filter is disabled. If you have activated this function in your router and have not specified which MAC and IP addresses can connect to the routers, then the problem may be in this particular router setting.

Here are the most common reasons why a tablet or phone does not connect to WiFi. I hope one of my tips helps you.

By the way, if you have a problem with WiFi itself, then read the article “”:

Here is an example when a user could not connect to WiFi from an iPad:

Often, after the long-awaited purchase of a new laptop, connecting a router for WiFi distribution, or simply completely reinstalling all the device software, the computer, for some unknown reason, cannot connect to the Wi-Fi network. Every second person finds himself in a situation where the laptop does not connect to the Internet via WiFi, and this, to put it mildly, causes dissatisfaction. The laptop simply refuses to see all kinds of Internet networks, and the special icon itself, which is located on the bottom notification panel of the device, along with the usual little white stripes shows an exclamation point (connection is limited) or, even worse, a red cross (the personal computer does not see networks at all).

Why won't WiFi connect on my laptop?

There are incredibly many reasons for this behavior of your laptop. In most cases, the problem lies in the fact that the special WiFi module cannot be turned on. In this case, the laptop will work and detect all networks, but during connection it will write that the operating system, unfortunately, was unable to connect to this network. How to solve the problem if the laptop sees WiFi, but does not connect? The first step is to make sure that all the necessary drivers are installed on the so-called network adapter.

Oddly enough, this most often happens with laptops running the Windows 7 operating system. As noted earlier, there are many reasons why your laptop cannot connect to a wireless network. Since there are so many reasons, it means there are also a lot of ways to still get a personal computer to connect to the Internet. Is your laptop not connecting to WiFi? Windows may have nothing to do with it!

The laptop is not always at fault!

The problem can be not only in the PC, but also, as practice shows, in the router itself (in other words, the network access point). If the laptop does not connect to the Internet, then first of all you should determine what the problem is: in the PC or in the router. How to do it? There are several ways to confirm or refute the fact that the problem is with the router, the easiest of which is the help of a neighbor. Just visit your neighbor. Ask for the network password to test your laptop. If he can connect, then everything is fine with him, and the problem is hidden in the router. If the laptop does not connect to WiFi and writes the same thing as at home, then the problem is in the laptop.

Most likely difficulties

The most common problems with connecting a laptop or netbook to a wireless network are the following.

WiFi does not turn on on a personal computer. This is one of those problems that is easiest to solve, so if you find yourself in this situation, there is no need to worry - everything will work out!
The device does not detect the network of your personal router, although it sees neighbors and others. This problem is not solved as easily as the first, but still the main thing is what? The main thing is that it is resolved!
The personal computer sees all networks, but cannot connect to any of them, and writes: “Could not connect.” It is possible to solve this problem, because it is the most common. Of course, it’s not a fact that you can fix everything yourself, but it’s worth a try, especially since there won’t be any complicated steps.
The PC quickly connects to WiFi networks, but under no circumstances opens Internet pages in browsers. The problem is also more than common; you can solve it yourself, but, unfortunately, not always. You may have to call a professional to fix it.

Enable WiFi on a laptop

Unfortunately, not all laptop models have default settings, which is why the laptop does not connect to the Internet via WiFi. In some situations, you still have to perform various actions in order for the laptop to connect to one or another wireless network and no longer bother its owner. This method can really help, but only for those users who have not reinstalled the Windows operating system on their computer. If you have already done this, the advice may not help. But it's worth a try!

Key combination, special switch

There are laptop models in which, in order to enable the ability to connect to a wireless network, you need to press the required key combination on the keyboard. In such PCs, the first mandatory button is Fn, and the second is a special hardware key located somewhere from F1 to F12. Most often, these keys are F2, F6 and F10 - this depends on the manufacturer of the personal computer, as well as its model.

If your laptop is not one of those discussed above, then on your laptop model the network is turned on using a small switch. The switch can be located anywhere on your PC - on the back, bottom, side. Finding it will not be so easy, but then you just need to move the slider from “Off” to the opposite side “On”. Attention: special keys will not work if you have reinstalled the operating system. However, try it anyway - it was not. This will solve your problems regarding WiFi not connecting on your laptop.

Turn your laptop's wireless capabilities on or off

It is very important to know that after you have turned on the wireless network adapter using special keys, you may also need to turn it on “from within”, that is, in the laptop operating system itself. There are only 2 options: Windows 7 and Windows 8.

Enabling WiFi in Windows 7

If for some reason your personal laptop does not connect to WiFi, you will have to try to fix it yourself. First of all, go to the PC control panel, select “Network Management” there, then find the “Change network adapter settings” button.

For faster execution, you need to press the Win + R key, and then enter the simple command ncpa.cpl. Pay attention to the network icon; if it simply isn’t there, skip this point. If, however, there is a wireless network icon that is disabled (that is, gray), right-click on the object and select “Enable network” or simply “Enable” from the drop-down menu.

Enabling WiFi in Windows 8

Here everything is a little more complicated. If you don't understand why your laptop won't connect to WiFi, this option is worth trying.

In the right panel, select “Options”, then click on “Change...”, after which you need to find the “Wireless Network” button. Make sure the button is turned on; if not, turn it on yourself.

Now we perform all the same steps as in the Windows 7 operating system. Simply put, you must completely make sure that the special wireless connection on your computer is turned on.

Also, regardless of the OS version, you may need to turn to a program that specializes in wireless networks and WiFi connections. Almost all manufacturing companies have their own programs, the name of which contains the word “Wireless” or “WiFi”.

Drivers

Another reason why a laptop does not connect to WiFi, writes: “Connection limited” or something like that, is hated PC drivers. This happens especially often after the operating system has been reinstalled on a personal computer. You may have been able to reinstall Windows yourself, but you were unable to install the drivers from the official website of the company that created your laptop.

There are also situations when, automatically, after installing a new OS, the computer itself installs the necessary drivers, but the PC itself has never done anything correctly. Even if you installed the drivers using some program, you will still need to go to the company’s official website and download all the necessary drivers there. Only after installing them will you be able to connect to the WiFi network, if that was the case, of course.

Router

It was already mentioned above that the problem may not be in the computer, but in the router itself, which emits the signal. You can check the health of the router in several ways:

Connection limited

Such an inscription quite often pops up on laptop screens, the owners of which do not understand why WiFi on the laptop does not connect. Solving such a problem will not take much time, but you still have to do everything exactly according to the instructions, otherwise you can “make a mess.”

When a person finds himself in a similar situation, panic begins: what to do if WiFi on the laptop does not connect, “Limited” is written, and nothing is clear at all? Don't worry, everything can be fixed. Another thing is that not everything is done independently, but this is not such a big problem.

If you select a network from the list of available ones, then enter the password correctly (if you have one, of course), then wait for the connection... and then a message pops up that everything is connected. But on the network icon some strange exclamation mark icon appears in a yellow triangle. Hover your mouse over this sign and the system will tell you that the connection is limited. No Internet resources will work. What to do if the laptop does not connect to WiFi, or rather, it connects, but there is no Internet?

Providers have certain problems. Reinstalling the OS

The situation is that the problem may not be in the router or even in the laptop. If the connection is limited, one of the options to solve the problem is to call the technical support of the provider. Specialists will try to solve this problem within a day, perhaps a little more, but after that such problems will not arise.

If technical support claims that it is not their problem, but yours, then it is so. In this case, when the laptop does not connect to the WiFi network (or rather, it connects, but does not work), you can repeat some of the tips that are a little higher. However, the easiest way would be to call a private specialist who, for 200-300 rubles, will completely reinstall Windows for you to any kind you want. He will also install all the necessary drivers for everything to work, and if you wish, he can install a good antivirus.

Many more find themselves in a situation where nothing is actually broken, but only a minor glitch in the router. Don’t worry, you won’t have to reconnect anything, you will simply need to completely disconnect the router from cables and wires for 5-10 minutes so that it can “rest” a little. After that, reconnect everything: internet cable and power. And after a couple of minutes, the laptop will automatically connect to the network (if this does not happen, do it yourself), and everything will work perfectly without interruptions.

There is also a situation when there are no problems with anything, but suddenly WiFi stops working. What to do in this case? Either call support or reboot the router. Or the problem may still be in the laptop. There will be nothing complicated in the steps: you just need to first disconnect from the network, and after a couple of minutes connect to it again by entering the password. Everything should work, there should be no more such complaints. We hope you got the answer to the question why your laptop won't connect to WiFi.

I was always a little surprised by questions like this, in which they wrote that when connected to an open (unprotected) Wi-Fi network, the Internet does not work. Or a phone, laptop, tablet and other devices generally refuse to connect to open Wi-Fi. They asked for some advice on what could be done to solve this problem.

And today, I saw on our forum a message that says that the phone catches an unprotected Wi-Fi, connects to it without problems, but the Internet does not work. Then I analyzed the comments on the site a little, and realized that the question was very popular, and I had not yet written an article on this issue. I will correct the situation now :)

Now, we will figure out why problems arise with connecting to other people's, albeit open, wireless networks. We will try to find out if something can be done about this, and if so, what.

I would like to write right away that we will look at problems specifically with the connection and operation of the Internet connection, through other people’s wireless networks that are not password protected and with which a connection can be established.

Any problems that arise when connecting to your own networks are a different story. There will simply be more ways to solve this or that error, since you have access to the settings of the router itself.

No matter how sad it may sound, but if your smartphone, tablet, laptop, etc., does not want to connect to open Wi-Fi, or the Internet does not work after connecting, then most likely there is no way to correct this situation. it will work out. In about 90% of cases, you will have to deal with it. I wrote it somehow sadly :)

Why? Yes, because we don’t know what kind of access point there is, whose it is, how it’s configured, and most importantly, we don’t have access to the settings of this router, because it’s not ours, but a neighbor’s, some store, cafe, etc. etc. I think this is clear and logical.

Here, let’s take for example the question that I wrote about at the beginning of the article:

It was posted on our forum, in this topic: .

It’s a good question, but do you think it’s possible to give something substantive to this question? I also think not. Maybe the Internet is simply not paid for there. There is a connection, but the Internet does not work. Standard situation. Maybe there is some kind of blocking enabled, or the phone didn’t like the channel it’s on.

I would highlight two main problems. We will divide the article into them. It will be easier and clearer this way.

Can't connect to an open Wi-Fi network

This is probably the most popular question. On laptops (and desktop computers), it could be an error " ", or something else.

On mobile devices (phones, tablets), it could be...” (by the way, laptops can also have this “Identification...” problem), " ". There may be other errors.

If you can’t connect, then you need to think about why this network is not protected. Yes, there are people who simply forget to do this, or they don’t need it. They just let everyone use their internet. (this is the case with home access points). But, I am sure that in most cases, there is no password because filtering by MAC addresses is enabled (read). Which protects even better than a password.

What can you try to do?

Typically, when connecting to unsecured networks, the signal strength is not very good. Make sure that the network level is at least two divisions high. Otherwise, connection problems may arise precisely because of a weak signal.

If you are connecting a laptop (regular computer with adapter), then make sure that in the properties of the wireless adapter, in the IPv4 protocol, it is set to receive IP automatically. Like this:

I showed the example of Windows 7. In Windows 8, everything will be exactly the same.

If the problem occurs on mobile devices that run on Android OS or iOS (iPhone, iPad), then I don’t even know what to advise. Except how to monitor the signal level. There don't seem to be any special settings that would interfere with the connection.

Internet does not work when connected to unsecured Wi-Fi

Well, the second problem is when everything is connected, but the Internet does not work.

On a laptop, there will be a status “No Internet access” and a yellow triangle next to the network status (in), but on mobile devices the Internet simply will not work, and the Wi-Fi icon will most likely be gray instead of blue (depends on OS, firmware version, etc.).

How to fix the problem?

If the problem is on the computer, then check the IP settings, as I showed in the screenshot above. Disable antiviruses and firewalls, they may block access to the Internet.

If the problem is on a mobile device, then check whether manual proxy settings are enabled. How to do this, I wrote in the article (after the heading “checking if the proxy server is disabled”).

In other cases, the problem is most likely on the side of the router itself. Or, your device cannot work with the parameters specified in the router settings.

Afterword

As I wrote above, if the phone does not connect to the network, then you are unlikely to be able to do anything. If it connects, but there is no Internet access, then the same thing. The network is not ours, we don’t know what’s wrong with it, we can’t change the settings. Almost all problems that arise with Wi-Fi are to blame for the access points themselves. And, if you try to fix something, then you need to change the settings in them. Provided that your device works normally with other networks.

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