How to enable wireless communication on a laptop: step-by-step instructions. How to turn on Wi-Fi wireless network on a laptop The wireless switch is turned off, how to turn it on

Laptop owners usually use it to access the Internet wireless connection, fortunately, a Wi-Fi adapter is available on all laptop models without exception. However, to use it, sometimes you have to figure out how to turn on wifi on a laptop.

Hotkeys or hardware switch

The first step is to physically turn on the Wi-Fi adapter. On different models laptops, this procedure is slightly different, but its meaning is the same: you need to find a hardware switch or use function keys. Let's look at a few examples:

You can continue the options for turning on Wi-Fi for a long time, citing methods for MSI, Acer, Samsung and other brands. Even different series from the same manufacturer have different ways of activating the wireless module, therefore:

Inspect the laptop case for a hardware switch or Wi-Fi power button.
Examine the keyboard - one of the keys in the F1-F12 row should be marked with a wireless connection icon. If you press it together with the Fn button, the adapter will turn on or off.

If you have a laptop Sony series Vaio, then there may be neither a hardware key nor an Fn button on its keyboard. For Wi-Fi work in this case, a special VAIO Smart Network utility is required, which can be found on the manufacturer’s official website.

Fn button doesn't work

What to do if the Fn button does not work? How to turn on the adapter in this case? First you need to figure out why the key does not work. Fn operates under BIOS control and has its own utility, without which the key does not function. Therefore, if the button does not work, you first need to find the specific model laptop utility for enabling hot keys (the name should contain the word “HotKey”).

If installing the utility did not help or the key is physically damaged, you will have to use alternative method turning on the adapter. On Windows 8 and Windows 10, to turn on the adapter, just click on the Wi-Fi icon in the notification panel and move the “Wireless network” slider to the active position. If the adapter drivers are installed correctly, then the icon must be there.

There is no such function in Windows 7, but you can try to enable the wireless connection through the window for changing adapter settings (this is discussed below). If this method does not help, then you will have to look for an external keyboard with work key Fn and then do not turn off the Wi-Fi module again.

Setting up Wi-Fi on different versions of Windows

You will figure out how to physically turn on the module quite quickly. Sometimes on this Wi-Fi setup ends: the system performs the remaining necessary actions independently, displaying a list of available wireless points. But sometimes you have to establish the connection manually.

Regardless Windows versions, first you need to check that the Wi-Fi module drivers were installed without errors:

To be sure, it’s better to go to the official website of the laptop manufacturer and find latest version wireless network module drivers for your model. Also, click on the adapter right click and select “Enable” (if its operation is stopped).

Windows XP

In theory, Windows XP should have been discontinued a long time ago, but on some older Dell models and other laptops, the legendary system still continues to perform its functions. Wi-Fi in Windows environment XP is configured as follows:

There should be a Wireless Network Connection icon in the File Explorer window. Its presence demonstrates that the Wi-Fi module is working correctly. Right-click the icon and select Enable. Further:

If the list of available points does not include the network that your router distributes, click “Update list”. Then select the desired point by name and click “Connect”. If the network is password protected, you will be prompted to enter an access code, after which a connection will be established.

Windows 7

On Windows 7, the procedure for connecting to a wireless network has changed slightly, becoming a little easier. Now all available networks are displayed after clicking on the Wi-Fi icon in the system tray. But if there is no icon, then:

Go to Network and Sharing Center.
Click "Change adapter settings."
Find your wireless connection and make sure it is turned on.

After turning on the wireless connection, the following message will appear in the tray: wifi icon. Click on it to see a list of available points, select the network and click “Connect”.

Windows 8

On Windows 8, the procedure for connecting to Wi-Fi remains the same, but an Airplane mode has been added, which you need to know how to work with. If the adapter driver is installed and the wireless connection is working correctly, then on the notification panel you will see a Wi-Fi icon, when you click on it a list appears available networks.

If there is no icon, follow the same steps as on Windows 7 - open the “Change adapter settings” window and turn on the wireless connection. If there is no wireless connection itself, check the drivers and the status of the module - everything should be turned on and installed.

If the adapter is turned on, the drivers are installed, but no available networks are detected, check that the Airplane mode icon is not hanging on the notification panel. If it is, you need to disable this mode. To do this, click on the icon and move the slider to the “Disabled” state.

Windows 10

On Windows 10, everything remains the same with a few minor changes, so you'll quickly figure out how to connect your laptop to Wi-Fi:

Click on the wireless connection icon in the tray.
Select the desired network.
Click "Connect" and enter your password.

If the access point does not appear, try adjusting your network settings. Click on the link of the same name - the “Network and Internet” section will open Windows settings 10.

There are two tabs of interest here:

Wi-Fi - Make sure your wireless network is turned on.
Airplane mode - make sure the mode is turned off.

You can go to the section for changing adapter settings and enable the wireless connection. Simply put, on Windows 10 you have several equivalent options - you just need to choose the more convenient method for yourself.

Oddly enough, this is precisely the problem that often arises among users of new laptop models. After a short period of use, for some unknown reason, Wi-Fi turns off. But this was done to reduce battery power consumption. Today I will tell you how to quickly turn on wireless network or Wi-Fi adapter on laptops: HP, Lenova, ACER, etc.

Diagnostics

To quickly fix the problem, simply find your network connection in the lower right corner. And it doesn’t matter what kind of operating room you have Windows system 7, 8, 10 or XP. Find the wave icon and right-click on it. After that, select diagnostics.

operating room Windows system She herself must find the problem and solve it programmatically. After this, you should see a message that the adapter has been disabled and the operating system has reactivated it.

But sometimes you can see this message: “Wireless disabled - Not fixed (With a red cross).” But you shouldn’t be scared, it’s just that the system itself couldn’t turn on the transmitter on the laptop, and we’ll do it manually.

Using buttons

On 50% of laptops you can find a separate button or switch that turns the Wi-Fi network on and off. For starters, I'd look at the extra buttons next to the main keyboard. You need to find a button that will show: an antenna, a computer - with waves emanating from them.

If there is no such button, then you can look for it on the side of the laptop. Sometimes laptop companies put power buttons there. But as I wrote earlier, not all laptops have such a button. But you can enable it in another way; to do this, you need to find a similar icon on the main keyboard in the row of F keys.

To activate, you must simultaneously press the auxiliary key “Fn” and this key. On my laptop this is the combination “Fn+F2”, but sometimes the keys F3, F5, F9, F12 are used.

If nothing happens when you press it, it means that you do not have the drivers installed on your machine that are responsible for these buttons, so we will turn it on differently.

Enable via control center

Press the Win (May look like a window) and R keys simultaneously. You already know how to do this.

After this you will see a window like this. You need to enter the command ncpa.cpl in one field and click on the button below “OK”.

Find the wireless connection with the ladder icon, right-click on it and select “Enable.”

Windows 8 and 10

If you have an eight and a ten, then you may have Airplane mode turned on. Then you will not be able to turn on WiFi while it is working.

You need to go to “All parameters”.

Next, enter the section with the planet icon.

Click on the airplane and turn off the mode. You can also move the bottom sliders to “On” mode. Then, even if you have Airplane mode enabled, the wireless network and Bluetooth will not be disabled.

Check driver

Press Win+R;

We write the command devmgmt.msc;

Go to the "Network Devices" section. Now look carefully to see if there is an icon with an arrow down. If it is there, then right-click on it and then select “Engage”.

Checking the WLAN function

I’ll say right away that this function automatically controls all network devices and in theory it should be turned on. But sometimes when installing some programs or due to damage from viruses, the setting may fail.

Win+R;

services.msc;

The list will arrange the data in alphabetical order. So just scroll down to the bottom to the “WLAN AutoConfig Service” section. After that, select the properties of this section.

In the line “Startup type:” set automatic startup. Then click “Apply” and “OK”.

Installing drivers

If I were you, I would reinstall the drivers for your WiFi adapter. They should be downloaded from the official website of your laptop company.

To do this, connect your laptop to your router via a wire into any free LAN port. Or you can find where else you can use the Internet.

After that, open any search engine and enter the company name. I have an Acer laptop, so that's what I'm entering.

Choose your product. Select the operating system version and then download the drivers for your wireless adapter.

If you did not find the necessary firewood on the site or are simply confused, then you can download the whole pack from the site - https://drp.su/ru/foradmin. You need to download "DriverPack Offline Network". After installing the driver, do not forget to restart the device.

What to do on the computer?

Unfortunately, manufacturers of ordinary stationary personal computers do not install a built-in wireless network module. But it can be purchased separately. It looks like a regular flash drive. Sometimes an antenna is also installed in it to improve communication. Such external modules cost from 800 to 1800 rubles in any computer store. Drivers are quickly installed offline the first time you connect to the Internet.

When all the components for connecting to the Internet have already been purchased, you can begin connecting. So, setting up a wireless wi-fi network depends on the main device, represented by a personal computer or laptop. Setting up the World Wide Web directly depends on the operating system of the personal computer.

Any wi-fi camera for Windows also starts working, after taking into account the features of the provided equipment. The system selected by the user must have a window in which a special control point is displayed network connections.

If you need to establish a wireless connection in Windows xp, then you should consider the difference between the current product computer companies And previous versions.

Setting up a wireless wi-fi network in Windows xp is considered more complex than in windows 7.

Windows xp. First, the user must select the "Network Connections" option from the Control Panel's Start menu. Then find “wireless connection” and click on it. After enabling this command, communication is established, but you should view the available wireless networks by selecting the appropriate item.

In order for the main device to work in a given direction, “Change the order of network preference” is required. When a new window appears, you can already put a marker near “ Using Windows to configure the network" and click on "Advanced". Next, you will again have to return to “Change the order of network preferences” and remove the checkbox from “The key is provided automatically.” The network details are then entered and OK is pressed to confirm.

Wireless network access for Windows 7

Setting up a wireless wi-fi network in Windows 7 begins with the “Control Panel”, in which you select “Advanced system settings”.

Then go to the “Computer Name” tab and click the “Change” option.
After this action, a window appears on the monitor with the names of the computer or domain. The personal work device itself must have a unique name. If this name had to be changed, a computer restart is required.

Setting parameters for Internet connection in Windows 7

Next, click on the wired connection icon, which is located in the lower right side of the monitor. This is where the “Network and Sharing Center” appears. It must be selected by pressing the confirmation key. From the list that appears, select the “Add” option and create a “Computer-to-computer” network. To continue click “Next”.

In the fields with names and network parameters, enter data as necessary. Then confirm the actions and turn on general access Internet connection. Wireless network wifi windows 7 will start working immediately after clicking “Close”.

Connecting Windows 8 to wi-fi

Initially set settings to personal computers or laptops do not always allow you to connect to a wireless network without problems. After all, the Windows 8 operating system may not see the wireless adapter, although it is definitely present.

Setting up a wireless wi-fi network in Windows 8 usually starts by clicking the star icon. After this, a list of proposed wireless networks appears on the monitor. One of them must be selected by typing the required security code. Confirm the above action with the “Next” button.

When it comes to home network, then it is better to choose public access. When the connection is normal, the asterisk next to the division icon disappears and the signal reception level begins to be displayed.

Implementation of wireless communication reception by the tenth version

Operating system Windows 10 different from previous versions additional settings, which involve the use touch screens. The necessary drivers are also automatically updated here. Because of this additional feature, setting up a wireless wi-fi network in Windows 10 is not particularly difficult. The user just needs to click on the icon in the lower right corner of the monitor and determine the available network.

Connecting wi-fi on Windows 10

It is also possible to automatically select a connection by checking the box next to the appropriate item. If wifi adapter is not connected, then on the marker in question with divisions there is a cross instead of an asterisk. This can be easily fixed by pressing a specific button.

Most often, the wireless network is protected by a password, which must be entered into the window that appears when connecting and confirmed.

On modern computers And laptops already have a built-in special radio receiver, which is responsible for sending and receiving information at a distance without the use of wires. For this reason the settings wi-fi connections occur without much difficulty.

A wireless network has long become a common thing for many owners of computers and laptops. It is easy and convenient to use. You can access the Internet anywhere in your apartment or office, but at the same time, kilometers of wires will not get tangled under your feet. You can access the Internet not only from a laptop, but also from a tablet or smartphone.

However, most users do not know how to solve even simple router-related problems and do not understand how to enable wireless communication on a laptop. When access to the Internet is lost, you do not need to immediately call technical support provider. First you need to figure out what caused the Internet outage: the computer or the service provider.

Some models, such as the MSI GT780, have a touchpad located above the keyboard, which allows you to turn the wireless network on or off with one touch.

How to enable wireless communication on a laptop through Network and Sharing Center

There are cases when the Wi-Fi receiver is disabled by software and it is impossible to activate it using a button or keyboard shortcut. How to enable wireless communication on a laptop (Lenovo, Asus or Acer - not so important) in such cases?

The user will need to right-click on the Network icon on the taskbar. Next, select “Network and Sharing Center” from the list. In the window that opens, go to the page where you can change the adapter settings. Select a wireless network from the list provided and turn it on.

The connection will change from gray to color, and after a while a connection to the Internet will be established.

Enabling wireless communication through Device Manager

Programmatically activate network adapter You can also use Device Manager. As a rule, such shutdowns occur rarely, mainly during operating system failures.

To enable the Wi-Fi adapter through Device Manager, you must:

Open the “Control Panel” tab.
Select "Hardware and Sound" from the list.
In the "Devices and Printers" group, click on "Device Manager".
Expand the list of network adapters.
Right-click on anything that contains the word Wireless and click Enable.

This way you can enable the wireless network either hardware or software.

The question of turning on Wi-Fi on a laptop interests many. Difficulties may arise due to the fact that each model has its own recommendations and instructions. Sometimes a key combination is enough, in other cases a mechanical switch is used.

Turn on Wi-Fi on laptops

Turn on Wi-Fi on a laptop using the Fn+F5 keys

Typically, the keys responsible for connecting to the Network have a stylized image of an antenna. It doesn’t matter which laptop – Acer or HP. You can always find such a button. But different combinations are created with it.

Fn+F2 – working combination for WiFi model range Asus.
Fn+F12 should be pressed by those who purchased an HP laptop. Or there is a separate button that shows a wireless network.
Fn+F3 – combination to enable WiFi communication on MSI models.
For Samsung, there are two options: Fn+F12, or Fn+F9.
Lenovo is different from HP or Acer. To establish the connection, mechanical switches are more often used in this model range. But the Fn+F5 keys also work.
F8+Fn – keys that allow you to establish communication on any Toshiba laptop.
The presence of a mechanical switch is also typical for the Sony Vaio model range.

You can look for a button that acts as a switch at the end of the device if Fn is missing. You managed to connect WiFi on your laptop, but something else is not working? Perhaps the problem lies in WiFi settings Windows operating system.

What about software enablement?

Sometimes it is necessary to use special software in order to enable the adapter on the laptop. For Samsung models, the Easy Settings utility is responsible for this function. Intel PROSet is a program installed on almost any laptop from Intel. This must be taken into account if you cannot find a mechanical switch when the combinations indicated above do not work.

Establishing communication in the Windows operating system

Sometimes the adapter is built into the operating system from the very beginning, at the software level. Then turning on Wi-Fi is as easy as shelling pears, without additional steps.

Open the desired item on the control panel, as our picture shows. We need a button that offers to change the adapter and its parameters.

A list will appear in which there will be more than one adapter. We need one that has the postscript Wireless or “Wireless Network”. This is the Wi-Fi adapter itself, we need to connect it.

Users may encounter two situations in this case.

Gray icon when the adapter is turned off.
The adapter is colored, but there is a red cross on it.

What about the second situation?

The device was connected, but the Wi-Fi network was not turned on.

Sometimes this happens due to the operating mode "in flight". In other situations, disabling occurs in additional parameters. Just right-click on the Wi-Fi icon to enable communication.
A separate window will pop up, where we need to select the function to turn on “Wi-Fi”. Or a wireless network. Once everything is turned on, a list of available Wi-Fi networks will appear that you can work with. All that remains is to connect.

Checking the drivers. Are there any problems with them?

Sometimes it is not possible to set up a Wi-Fi network due to missing drivers. Either when they are accidentally deleted by the user, or when they are not installed at all.

First, open the device manager. It's in the panel Windows management, in the "Hardware and Sound" section.
We need to see if there is any equipment near which the fire is burning. Exclamation point, yellow or red. This especially applies to elements responsible for WiFi reception.

If there are problems, you will need to install WiFi drivers.

About some connection settings

Incorrect location of the router is a mistake that many users make. Because of this, WiFi does not work as fast and stable as we would like. Even on high-quality Acer models. It is recommended to install routers at some distance from the electronic household appliances. This is due to the devices operating at the same frequency as WiFi – 2.4 GHz. Because of this, the WiFi speed on the laptop decreases, even if you managed to turn on everything according to the instructions.

Setting up WiFi for a local network

We connect the computer and router via cable. Before trying to configure or enable anything, make sure that the connection has been established. If everything is in order, a corresponding image will appear next to the clock. This scheme of operation is equally suitable for Acer models. HP and others.

In the connection properties, you must enter a specific set of data.

IP address: 192.168.0.2 Subnet mask: 255.255.255.0 Default gateway: 192.168.0.1 DNS: 192.168.0.1

Some model manuals may provide different information. We insert exactly what is said in the accompanying documentation. Open the command line to explore other options. You can set up WiFi through the Start menu, just write “cmd” in the search. In the opened command line dial the combination ping 192.168.0.1. In response, packets will be received from this address if everything went well. You need to find out what IP address the router accepts on the internal interface if a message appears that “wait limit exceeded.” Otherwise, you will not be able to configure and enable WiFi.

You can configure WiFi by changing the last two digits if the limit message continues to appear.
1. 1.2
2. 1.1
3. 0.2

Go to the Wireles Settings section to configure Wi-Fi. After this, we need to give a name to our own Wi-Fi network. This is done in the Name (Ssid) line. In the Channel item, select the Auto function and find your region from the list. Thanks to this solution, you can configure your Wi-Fi router so that it automatically searches for channels with the least amount of interference. Click on the Apply button to save what we managed to configure.

How to enable WiFi in Windows 8?

Set up WiFi on this operating system no more difficult than others.

Select Start, and then go to Control Panel.
Click on switch to classic view. We find the center responsible for managing network connections. Here we will see a section with wireless connection WiFi.
Right-click on the utility. And select the item with WiFi properties. There should be a line here that automatically obtains an IP address. Click OK when there is a check mark.
We return to the folder with network connection management. Again you will need a wireless network section WiFi connections. Right-click on it and select “connect-disconnect”.
All you have to do is select and connect to the desired network WiFi.

The corresponding icons usually appear on the screen in the right corner, at the bottom. If everything is done correctly, the WiFi image will always be active. If everything is in order with the network itself, you will always be able to connect to it.