Windows 10 Wifi Settings Not Showing Up

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When you try to connect to the internet on your laptop but your usual WiFi network is not showing up, it’s very frustrating. But don’t worry; you can fix it. Read on to learn how…

Open network and internet settings. Click on change adapter option. Right click on your wifi (Make sure you're connected to wifi). Then click on properties. Now click on configure, then on advanced. Now at the bottom, there is preferred band option click on that and change your band “No Preference ” to 2.4 GHz. An issue in Windows 10 version 2004 (Windows 10 May 2020 Update) causes some PCs to show an error stating 'No Internet Access.' The bug is odd because it clearly states that a device doesn't have.

Try these fixes

Here are some solutions for you to try. You don’t need to try them all; just try each one in turn until everything’s working again.

Note: The screenshots below come from Windows 10, but the fixes also work on Windows 8 & 7.

Why is my WiFi network not showing up in my computer?

Generally speaking, there are several causes for this issue:

  • The WiFi problem
  • The connecting problem
  • The incorrect WiFi configuration in your WiFi router and your computer
  • The missing or outdated WiFi driver issue

However, the good news is you can easily troubleshoot your problem and solve it. This guideline introduces 6 methods for you to troubleshoot.

Method 1: Enable the WiFi service

The problem happens most likely because your Windows disables the WiFi service. You can’t connect to the WiFi if your Windows disables it. So you can try these steps to enable WiFi service. There are two places you can check.

Way 1: Enable the WiFi service with the WiFi switch

Note: First of all, make sure you are within the WiFi network range while you are following the steps below.

Some laptops, such as HP, Lenovo, Dell, have a switch or a key on your keyboard to turn on/off WiFi (like Fn+F5). Check the switch or keys and turn your WiFi service on.

Way 2: Check your network settings

If you don’t have the WiFi switch on your laptop or computer, you can check it in your system.

1) Right click the Internet icon, and click Open Network and Sharing Center.

2) Click Change adapter settings.

3) Right click WiFi, and click Enable. Note: if it has enabled, you will see Disable when right click on WiFi (also referred to Wireless Network Connection in different computers).

4) Restart your Windows and reconnect to your WiFi again.

Method 2: Turn on WLAN AutoConfig service

WLAN AutoConfig service (also referred to Wireless Configuration in Windows XP) can configure wireless security and connectivity settings. When enabled, WLAN AutoConfig settings apply to all IEEE 802.11 wireless network adapters installed on your computer. Moreover, when the WiFi becomes available, it will automatically connect to a preferred wireless network. You can follow these steps to enable it:

1) On your keyboard, press Windows logo key + R at the same time to invoke the Run box, and type services.msc, then press Enter.

2) Right click Wlan AutoConfig (if you are using Windows XP, right click Wireless Configuration), and click Properties.

3) Select Automatic in Startup type, then click Apply, and click OK

Windows 10 Wifi Settings Not Showing Up Windows 10

4) Restart your PC and reconnect to your WiFi network to see if your WiFi shows up.

Method 3: Update WiFi network driver

Wireless network driver allows your operating system to communicate with your wireless and network adapters. If your wireless network is not showing up on laptop, it is probably due to the missing, outdated, or corrupt drivers.

There are two ways to update drivers:manuallyandautomatically.

Manually update driver– You can manually update the network driver bysearching the correct driverthat is matched with yourWindowsOSon themanufacturer’s website, andinstallit in your computer. This requires the time and computer skills.

Automatically update driver– If you don’t have time or patience to manually update drivers, you can do that automatically with Driver Easy.

Driver Easy will detect the drivers condition in your computer, and install the correct drivers for your PC. More importantly, with Driver Easy, you don’t need to struggle figuring out the Operating System, and you don’t need to worry about making mistakes while processing. That will tremendously save your time and patience.

You can update your drivers automatically with either the FREE or Pro version of Driver Easy. It only takes 2 simple clicks with the Pro version (and you will get full support and a 30-day money back guarantee).

Important: If the Windows can’t access to the Internet, you can download Driver Easy from another computer. Then install it in this computer. Due to theOffline Scan feature provided by Driver Easy, you can download and install network driver even with no Internet.

1) Download and install Driver Easy (at first connect your computer to the Internet via Ethernet cable).

2) Run Driver Easy and click Scan Now. Then Driver Easy will scan your computer and detect any problem drivers

3) Click Update button next to the driver name to download the correct driver (you can do that with the FREE version), then install it in your computer.

Or click Update All to automatically download and install the correct version of all the problem drivers (you can do that with Pro version, and you will be prompted to upgrade when you click Update All).

4) After updating the drivers, restart your computer, then connect to the WiFi network again, and see if your problem solves.

Method 4: Restart your modem and WiFi router

If the problem occurs to your own WiFi network at home, you can also check the WiFi itself to see if it’s your WiFi issue, including the router issue, SSID broadcast and device interference mentioned below.

This problem can be probably caused by the Internet Service Provider (ISP) issue. Restarting your modem and wireless router can help you reconnect to your ISP. Note: anyone who is connecting to the network will be disconnected temporarily while you are doing this.

1) Unplug your wireless router and modem from power source (remove the battery if your modem has a battery backup).

2) Wait for at least 30 seconds.

3) Plug your wireless router and modem back into power source again (put the battery back to the modem).

4) On your PC, reconnect to your WiFi network, then see if it shows up.

What is WiFi Network Frequency

Tips: If it is the first time to connect to the WiFi, you will need to pay attention to the WiFi network frequency. You can’t connect if your computer uses mismatched frequency with your router’s.

Usually WiFi network frequency has 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz. Luckily many routers are dual-band model now, so it both supports 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz band. To check your WiFi network frequency, you can go to the router manufacturer’s website. While you can also check your Windows WiFi network frequency: type netsh wlan show drivers in the Command Prompt and press Enter, then it will show you the supported protocols.

Generally speaking, 802.11a/ac uses the 5 GHz band, 802.11b/g uses the 2.4 GHz band, and 802.11n uses either the 2.4 GHz or 5 GHz band. if they don’t match or include the frequencies of your router, the WiFi network won’t show up on your computer.

Method 5: Enable SSID broadcast for your WiFi

Service Set Identifier (SSID) broadcast is what makes your WiFi network visible to your network adapter. Once you disable SSID broadcast, your WiFi network won’t show up in the list.

Tips: Many people disable SSID broadcast for security concerns. By doing this, they can hide the WiFi network, so the network name won’t be seen by others. But the first time to connect to the WiFi network, you’ll have to configure the profile settings manually, including the network name and security mode. After making the initial connection, devices can remember these settings and will not need to be specially configured again.

You can try the instructions below to enable your SSID broadcast. The specific interface may vary from different computers. Here we take TP-link WiFi router as an example:

1) Go and see the IP address, username and password on your wireless router.

Network not showing up windows 10

2) Open your browser on PC or mobile phone (connect to the Internet via Ethernet cable on your PC or use mobile phone that has internet connection).

3) Type the IP address in your browser, and press Enter.

4) Type your User name and Password, then click Login.

5) Go to Wireless > Wireless Settings. Check the box next to Enable SSID broadcast, and click Save.

7) Restart your PC and reconnect to your WiFi network.

Method 6: Check the device interference

The WiFi signals can be interfered by many household devices, such as your cordless phone, microwave oven, Bluetooth speaker, etc. because they use the same 2.4 GHz or 5 GHz frequencies. Therefore, you can check these devices to see if it’s where the problem lies in.

1) Turn off those devices, and unplug the power source

2) On your PC, try to connect your WiFi again, and see if it shows up.

3) If the problem solves, it seems to result from the devices interference. Then move your modem and wireless router to another place, so they are not in the same light with the household devices.

In addition to the way mentioned above, you can also buy a 5 GHz router or dual band router, because many household devices use the frequency of 2.4GHz. So using a router of 5 GHz can avoid most interference.

Method 7: Switch to ChromeOS

Windows is a very old technology. Sure, Windows 10 is relatively new, but it’s still just the latest iteration of a decades-old operating system, designed for a bygone era (pre-internet).

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Now that we have the internet, fast connection speeds, free cloud storage, and endless web apps (like Gmail, Google Docs, Slack, Facebook, Dropbox and Spotify), the entire Windows way of doing things – with locally installed programs and local file storage – is totally outdated.

Why is that a problem? Because when you’re constantly installing uncontrolled third-party programs, you’re constantly opening the door to viruses and other malware. (And Windows’ insecure permission system compounds this problem.)

Plus the way Windows manages installed software and hardware has always been a problem. If your computer shuts down unexpectedly, or a program installs, uninstalls or updates incorrectly, you can get ‘registry’ corruptions. That’s why Windows PCs always slow down and become unstable over time.

Also because everything’s installed and saved locally, it doesn’t take long before you run out of disk space, and your disk gets fragmented, which makes everything even slower and more unstable.

For most people, the simplest way to solve Windows problems is to ditch Windows altogether, and switch to a faster, more reliable, more secure, easier to use and cheaper operating system…

ChromeOS feels much like Windows, but instead of installing heaps of programs to email, chat, browse the internet, write documents, do school presentations, create spreadsheets, and whatever else you normally do on a computer, you use web apps. You don’t need to install anything at all.

That means you don’t have virus and malware problems, and your computer doesn’t slow down over time, or become unstable.

And that’s just the start of the benefits…

To learn more about the benefits of ChromeOS, and to see comparison videos and demos, visit GoChromeOS.com.

That’s all about it. If it helps, share with us which method that helps. If the WiFi network still doesn’t show up in the network list, and you are not sure how to deal with it, please feel free to leave us a comment below and we will see what more we can do to help.

One of the joys of visiting a café or shopping mall is the public Wi-Fi access we get to enjoy.

But what if after connecting to the network, the login page refuses to show? Thus, you cannot browse the internet. What can you do when you find yourself in such a fix?

Please keep reading to find out how to get a public Wi-Fi login page to appear.

How to Force a Public Wi-Fi Network Login Page to Open

Free and paid public Wi-Fi networks have one thing in common, and that is the captive portal. This is a web page you encounter before internet access can be granted to you. It often requires entering a pre-assigned user ID and password or agreeing to some terms of use.

Imagine the inconvenience when you are away from home. You have a conference to prepare for but can’t connect to a hotel Wi-Fi because the captive portal refuses to appear in the browser of your Windows 10 device.

Can’t see a public Wi-Fi login page? Try these solutions:

  1. Restart your PC
  2. Use a different browser
  3. Disable pop-up blocking
  4. Reset the network connection
  5. Open the router’s default page
  6. Turn off third-party DNS servers
  7. Enable incognito mode
  8. Flush the DNS cache via Command Prompt
  9. Renew the DHCP lease
  10. Disable Firewall temporarily
  11. Update your network adapter driver

Wifi Not Showing Up On Pc

We suggest you try these solutions sequentially as presented. However, you are free to go at it in any order you prefer.

Let’s get right to it, shall we?

Fix 1: Restart Your PC

This workaround could be all that is required to resolve the issue. What you need to do is:

  1. Disconnect from the network and turn off your Wi-Fi.
  2. Log out of the user account on your computer and shut down the system.
  3. Turn the PC back on and log back into your user account.
  4. Turn on your Wi-Fi and connect to the network once again. See if the login page will now appear in your browser.

Fix 2: Use a Different Browser

If the issue persists after you’ve restarted your PC, the next best option is to set another browser, such as Microsoft Edge or Firefox, as your default browser. Perhaps the captive portal will now come up.

You can follow these steps:

  1. Go to the Start menu (press the Windows logo key on your keyboard).
  2. Type ‘Control Panel’ in the search box. The option will appear as Best Match. Click on it.
  3. Select ‘Category’ under the ‘View-by’ drop-down.
  4. Locate ‘Programs’ and click on it.
  5. Now, click on Default Programs.
  6. Click ‘Set your default programs.’
  7. Wait for the page to load. Then Select the browser you wish to use and click the option that says ‘Set this program as default.’
  8. Click OK.

You can go ahead and reconnect to the Wi-Fi network. Launch the new default browser and see if the login page will show up.

Note: You might not necessarily need to set the new browser as default. Simply launch it and try visiting a website. The captive portal could appear.

Fix 3: Disable Pop-Up Blocking

Your browser may be set to block pop-ups so as to save data, load pages faster, and also shield you from seeing annoying ads when you visit a website. However, this could also be stopping the public Wi-Fi login page from appearing.

We’ll now look at how to disable pop-up blocking in Chrome, Microsoft Edge, and Firefox.

Chrome:

  1. Launch the browser and click on the three-dot icon in the top-right corner of the window.
  2. Click on Settings from the context menu.
  3. Scroll down to the bottom of the page and click on the ‘Advanced’ drop-down to access more settings.
  4. Click on ‘Site settings’ and scroll down to ‘Pop-ups and redirects.’
  5. In the page that opens, disable the option ‘Blocked (recommended)’ by clicking the slider on the right-hand side. It will then change to ‘Allowed.’
  6. Close the Settings tab or re-launch your browser.

Microsoft Edge:

  1. Launch the browser.
  2. Click the ‘More’ button (the horizontal ‘three-dot’ icon in the top-right corner of the window).
  3. Click Settings and then click Privacy and Security displayed on the left-hand side.
  4. You’ll find ‘Block pop-ups’ under Security. Click the toggle to turn it off.
  5. Close the Settings tab or re-launch the browser.

Firefox:

  1. Launch the browser.
  2. Click the Menu icon (the horizontal three dots).
  3. Click on Preferences > Content.
  4. Unmark the checkbox for ‘Block pop-up windows.’
  5. Close the Preferences tab or re-launch the browser.

Also, after you’ve disabled the option in your browser settings, make sure to turn off any third-party pop-up blocker that’s active on your PC.

Windows 10 Wifi Not Showing Up In Settings

Fix 4: Reset the Network Connection

Here’s what you have to do:

  1. Click the Wi-Fi icon in the left corner of your taskbar.
  2. Click the Wi-Fi tab to disable it.
  3. Enable the network connection again by clicking on the Wi-Fi icon and the Wi-Fi tab again.
  4. Launch your browser and try visiting ‘Google.com.’ The login page may now appear.

If the issue persists after you’ve tried all the above four fixes, don’t worry. It won’t be long. Move on to the other solutions below.

Fix 5: Open the Router’s Default Page

Follow these easy steps to access the router’s default page:

  1. Connect to the public Wi-Fi network.
  2. Open your browser.
  3. Type any of the following in the URL bar and then press Enter to get on the router’s login page:
  • 0.0.1
  • 168.1.1
  • http://localhost
  • ca
  • it

This should be sufficient in forcing the Wi-Fi login page to appear. But in case it doesn’t work, you will have to manually obtain the IP address of the connected router and type it into the URL bar instead. Then press Enter to open the login page.

Here’s how to obtain the connected router’s IP address:

  1. Open the Run dialog. You can do this by pressing the Windows logo key + R combination on your keyboard.
  2. Type ‘CMD’ in the text field and press Enter or click the Ok button to open the Command Prompt window.
  3. Type ‘ipconfig’ (make sure not to include the inverted commas) and press Enter.
  4. Locate the IPv4 address displayed under ‘Wireless LAN adapter Wi-Fi:’
  5. Now, copy and paste the address in your browser’s URL bar and press Enter. You will then be able to browse the internet without further issue.

Fix 6: Turn Off Third-Party DNS Servers

A third-party DNS (Domain Name System) server, such as Dyn, the Google Public DNS server, and so on, can sometimes restrict a proper connection to a public Wi-Fi.

If this applies in your case, i.e. if you have a third-party DNS server on your computer, you can resolve the problem by turning it off.

Follow the easy steps below to get it done.

Note: We know websites by their human-readable domain names like Google.com. The purpose of the Domain Name System (DNS) is to translate these domain names into IP (Internet Protocol) addresses like 173.194.39.78 so that your browser can load the site. Thus, DNS is often referred to as the phonebook of the internet because it links URLs with their IP addresses.

  1. Press the Windows logo key + I on your keyboard to open the Settings app.
  2. Click on Network and Internet.
  3. Click on ‘Open Network and Sharing Center.’
  4. Click the name of the public Wi-Fi network.
  5. In the tab that opens, click the Properties button.
  6. In the new tab that opens, under ‘This connection uses the following items,’ select ‘Internet Protocol Version 4(TCP/IPv4)’ and click the Properties button.
  7. Enable the following options: ‘Obtain an IP address automatically’ and ‘Obtain DNS server address automatically.’

You can now open your browser and check whether the Wi-Fi’s captive portal will show up.

Fix 7: Enable Incognito Mode

It could be that your browser does not load the login page because it’s trying to use the cached DNS info.

Incognito mode or private browsing forgets your browsing data, including cookies, cache, auto-fill forms, and so on. Thus, it could let the login page load successfully.

Incognito mode is available regardless of the browser you are using, be it Edge, Chrome, Firefox, Opera, or Safari.

So here’s what you have to do:

  1. Launch your browser and open a new incognito window (Click the Menu icon and select ‘New incognito window’). To do this quickly in Chrome, simply press Ctrl + Shift + N on your keyboard.
  2. Go to the URL bar and type the address of a non-HTTPS website (com, for example)and then press Enter.

After you’ve performed these steps, the login page will be forced to appear.

Fix 8: Flush the DNS Cache

The IP address of the public Wi-Fi’s router might have changed recently. And Windows may have stored the old info in its DNS cache. If this is the case, the login page won’t load. So you’ll have to flush the DNS cache via Command Prompt to resolve the issue.

Note: As already explained in Fix 6 above, DNS servers are responsible for converting domain names like www.example.com into numerical IP addresses that can be read by your browser before the website can be loaded.

A DNS cache (sometimes referred to as DNS resolver cache), on the other hand, is a temporary database in which your computer’s operating system records all websites and other internet domains you’ve visited or attempted to visit recently. It is basically a memory of recent DNS lookups that your computer can refer to when trying to determine how to load a website.

Follow these easy steps to flush the DNS cache:

  1. Press the Windows logo key + R combination on your keyboard to open the Run dialog.
  2. Type ‘CMD’ in the text field and press Enter or click OK.
  3. Once done, type ‘ipconfig /flushdns’ and press Enter to clear the DNS cache. Wait for the process to complete.
  4. Close the Command Prompt window and then launch your browser. See if the Wi-Fi’s login page will now appear.

Fix 9: Renew the DHCP Lease

The IP address leased to your computer by the public Wi-Fi’s router might have expired and that is why the captive portal is not coming up.

You’ll have to order your DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol) client to renegotiate another lease with the DHCP server on the router so that your computer can connect. This is done via Command Prompt. Here’s how:

  1. Open the Run dialog by pressing the Windows logo + R combination on your keyboard.
  2. Type ‘CMD’ in the text box and press Enter or click the Ok button.
  3. In the Command Prompt window that opens, type ‘ipconfig /release’ (Do not include the inverted commas) and press Enter to execute it. This releases the current IP configuration. Wait for the process to complete. It might take some time.
  4. Now, type ‘ipconfig /renew’ and press Enter. The DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol) server will assign your computer a new IP address. Wait for the process to complete.
  5. Close the Command Prompt window.
  6. Disconnect from the public Wi-Fi network and then connect to it again.
  7. Launch your browser and see if the login page will now appear.

Fix 10: Disable Firewall Temporarily

Windows Firewall keeps your PC safe from threats by filtering network data transmissions. It blocks malicious communications and programs that initiate them. But it could be the reason why you are unable to access the login page of the public Wi-Fi. Try disabling it to know for sure.

Here’s how:

  1. Press the Windows logo key + R combination on your keyboard to invoke the Run dialog.
  2. Type ‘control firewall.cpl’ in the text field and press Enter or click Ok. This leads you to the Firewall page in Control Panel.
  3. On the left-hand side of the window, you’ll find the option that says ‘Turn Windows Defender Firewall on or off.’ Click on it.
  4. In the new page that opens, go to the Public Network Settings category and select ‘Turn off Windows Defender Firewall (Not recommended)’ and then click the OK button.
  5. Restart your PC, reconnect to the Wi-Fi network and launch your browser. See if the login page will now come up.

Note: To keep your PC safe, ensure that you turn on Windows Firewall again. Follow the same steps above to do so, but instead select ‘Turn on Windows Defender Firewall’ under Public network settings.

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Fix 11: Update Your Network Adapter Driver

If you’ve tried all the above fixes but still can’t use the internet, you have to make sure that your network adapter driver is up to date.

We recommend you use Auslogics Driver Updater to handle it automatically. The tool will read your PC specs and then perform a full scan to detect outdated, missing, incompatible, or corrupt drivers on your PC. Afterwards, once you’ve given it permission, it downloads and installs the latest version of the drivers as recommended by your PC manufacturer.

However, if you are sure that your network adapter driver is already updated and the captive portal still doesn’t appear, uninstalling and reinstalling the driver will help fix any corrupt files.

Follow these easy steps:

Where Is My Wifi Settings Windows 10

  1. Press the Windows logo + R combination on your keyboard to bring up the Run dialog.
  2. Type ‘devmgmt.msc’ in the text box and click Ok or press Enter to open Device Manager.
  3. Now, scroll down to Network Adapters and click the arrow to expand the option.
  4. Right-click on your network adapter and click ‘Uninstall device’ from the context menu.
  5. Reboot your computer. The driver will be reinstalled automatically. But if Windows fails to do this, go back to Device Manager. Click on the Action tab and then click Scan for hardware changes. The driver will then be installed.
  6. Restart your computer, connect to the public Wi-Fi network, launch your browser and then see if the login page will now appear.

If the captive portal still refuses to show after you’ve tried all the above solutions, then it’s likely that the Wi-Fi is down. Ask anyone around you if they are having the same issue. If so, consider reporting it to the management so that they can troubleshoot it from their end. The router may simply need to be restarted.

Windows 10 Wifi Network Not Showing Up

We hope you have succeeded in getting past this issue and are now able to surf the internet using the public Wi-Fi. The solutions we’ve presented here will ensure that you can do that.

If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to share them in the section below.

We’ll like to hear from you.

Cheers!