Monday 14 April 2008

Let Windows repair your Wireless Connection



Do you get frustrated when your wireless connection suddenly gets disconnected? Well, have I got the solution for you. Here's how you can get windows to automatically fix the problem if your wi-fi connection disconnects constantly. Remember, your network needs to be in proper working order for this to work. If you want to know how to make your wireless connection better and faster make sure you check out tips on speeding up your network. Only use this tip if you experience problems in your connection once in a blue moon, if you experience problems regularly you might want to take a look at my post on troubleshooting wi-fi problems.

The first thing you want to do is make sure you have a wireless connection icon in your taskbar. The instructions for Windows Vista are a bit different, however if you have Windows Vista laptop or computer you probably have the wireless icon in your taskbar already.
  1. Click Start
  2. Click Network Connections. If you can't see a Network Connections link then alternatively you can click on Control Panel > Network Connections.
  3. Right click on Wireless Network Connections and click on Properties
  4. Then put a check box beside 'Show icon in notification area when connected' and 'Notify me when this connection has limited or no connectivity'.
  5. Click OK.

Once this is done you'll most likely see a computer icon with waves coming out of it on your desktop. Just right click on it and hit repair. Windows will then disable your network adaptor (a.k.a. wireless card), re-enable it and then automatically reconnect you to your wireless network.
If you just want to reconnect to your wireless network or choose a different wireless network simply click 'View Available Wireless Networks' and you can then choose the wireless network you want to connect to. Just keep in mind that using your neighbor's connection is a crime so make sure you know the SSID of your router.




Got a question, tip or comment? Send them to beyondteck+question@gmail.com and we'll try to answer it in a blog post!

3 comments:

  1. Don't know where to go with this problem, can't find an answer anywhere. Whenever I click on the repair that you speak of, it will disable my wireless card, then do nothing else.
    When I go to re-enable it, it says "Connection failed!" It won't reconnect until I turn the computer off then on again. Plus, whenever this happens and I do try to shut down my computer, it completely freezes stuck in a limbo of "shutting down."

    Please help!!!!!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hi Angel,

    Seems like there might be a problem with the drivers pertaining to you wireless card. Sometimes, there are glitches in drivers, and often they are corrected in newer versions of those drivers. So I would check for updates for the wireless driver. The windows update website (or Windows Update application in Vista) might be a good place to start.

    If not you'll have to look into what wireless card you have and the search for its drivers.

    Sometimes, it might also be the case that windows is having problems with the card, which might be fixed by searching for particular card (on the internet of course) and if there are any problems related to it.

    Hope this helps!
    Rishi

    ReplyDelete
  3. The rightclick>Repair option seems to be gone in Vista and Win7. I miss it. Is there an easy option I'm overlooking without digging down to the network adapters section and repairing there?
    -Mike

    ReplyDelete