I very rarely talk about some useful programs that relate to the topic of this site and can somehow be useful to visitors, but today is just the case. I stumbled upon a free utility called NetAdapter Repair on the Internet, and I'll tell you about its capabilities today. A simple, small program that doesn't even need to be installed. The main functions of this program are to solve various problems with the network and Internet connection. As well as network diagnostics and viewing the basic information. In separate articles, I talked about how you can clear the hosts file, reset the network settings, clear the DNS cache, register DNS from Google, etc. Ordinary users who do not understand computers can not always apply these solutions even according to the instructions. And in NetAdapter Repair you can do it all with the click of a button.
I think that this instruction will not become popular, as few people are looking for a program that can solve a certain problem with the Internet connection. Basically everyone is looking for instructions on how to solve specific problems and errors. But responding to the comments of visitors, I can leave a link to this article. And I am sure - this program will be useful to many.
To make this article clearer, I will split it into two parts. In the first part I will tell you how to use the network diagnostics functions (it may come in handy for someone), and in the second - how and what functions can be used to solve certain problems with connecting to the Internet in Windows. Also along the way I will leave links to more detailed instructions with solutions, if there are any on this site.
Link to download NetAdapter Repair from the official site - https://sourceforge.net/projects/netadapter/
Network Information and Diagnostics in NetAdapter Repair
Download the program from the link above and run it. There will be different buttons on the left - I don't recommend pressing them yet. Information about the current connection will be displayed on the right. Let's take a look at the main points:
- Public IP Address is our external IP address, which was issued by the Internet provider.
- Computer Host Name - the name of a computer on the local network.
- Network Adapter - this field contains the name of the network adapter through which we are currently connecting to the network and for which information is displayed. We can select another adapter from the list and see information about it. But usually this is not necessary.
- Local IP Address is the IP address assigned to our computer by a Wi-Fi router, or modem. That is, the internal IP address.
- MAC Address - This is the MAC address of the current adapter. By clicking on the "Spof" button, you can change the MAC address.
- Default Gateway is the default gateway.
- DNS Servers - DNS server address.
- DHCP Server - DHCP server address.
- Subnet Mask - subnet mask.
For convenience, I put numbers next to each item (which correspond to the list above).
Two diagnostic tools are available:
- Ping IP - checking the possibility of connecting to the Internet. Sending a ping to the Google website. More precisely, to its IP address.
- Ping DNS - check the connection with Google's public DNS servers.
The diagnostic start button is at the top, and the results are displayed in a separate field at the bottom.
Of course, all this can be done without NetAdapter Repair - via the Windows command line. But you must admit that working with the program is much easier than writing some commands in the command line.
How do I fix my internet connection with NetAdapter Repair?
I will move a little away from the topic of the article, and I will give you a little advice. Make sure that the problem with the Internet connection on your computer, or with the operation of the local network, is not the cause of problems on the side of the router / modem (if any), or the Internet provider (you can call support and find out everything). Check if the Internet is working on other devices through the same connection, connect the Internet directly (without a router), disconnect the router for a few minutes, restart the computer. You should not immediately apply some solutions directly on the computer (so as not to make things even worse) if the cause of the problem is not on the side of your computer.
Let's go back to NetAdapter Repair and look at the functions presented in this program, using which we can solve the problems with the network connection.
At the very top is a large button "Advanced Repair"... By clicking on this button, you can make basic, advanced fixes to the Windows network settings (reset basic settings). After clicking on it, a window will appear where you need to confirm the following actions:
- WinSock / TCP IP Repair - reset TCP / IP settings. How to do it manually, I wrote here (for Windows 7/8/10) and here (for Windows 10).
- Clear all Proxy / VPN Settings - clears proxy and VPN settings. By the way, it is very often because of these settings that sites do not open in browsers. Given that there is an Internet connection. You can also manually check and clear proxy settings.
- Windows Firewall Repair - restore the factory settings of the Windows firewall.
Press Ok to confirm. Further black windows will begin to appear. Then a window with a Restart button and a countdown will appear in the program. Click on this button and wait for the computer to restart.
You may not need to do an advanced reset, but it will be enough to apply certain solutions using the individual buttons below.
Additional tools:
- Release and Renew DHCP Address - updating the IP address. Reconnecting to the DHCP server.
- Clear Hosts File - clearing the hosts file.View - viewing the hosts file. This function can be useful when everything or certain sites stopped opening. This mainly happens after a computer has been infected with viruses or malware.
- Clear Static IP Settings - clearing static IP address settings. A very useful tool. After clicking on this button, automatic acquisition of IP addresses will be set. I wrote more about this in the article Obtaining an IP address automatically in Windows.
- Change to Google DNS - Google DNS servers (which are 8.8.8.8 / 8.8.4.4) will be registered for the current connection. This can be done manually by following the instructions on how to replace DNS with Google Public DNS. But in NetAdapter Repair, this is all done with the click of a button.
- Flush DNS Cache - starts flushing the DNS cache. May solve the "DNS server not responding" error when opening sites in a browser. After that, you can register DNS from Google (see the previous paragraph).
- Clear ARP / Route Table - Performs a complete cleanup of the routing table.
- NetBIOS Reload and Release - restart of the NetBIOS protocol.
- Clear SSL State - SSL cleaning function.
- Enable LAN Adapters - enabling network adapters (network cards).
- Enable Wireless Adapters - enable wireless Wi-Fi adapters. May come in handy: how to enable Wi-Fi in Windows 7, or wireless network - Disabled in Windows 10.
- Reset Internet Options Security / Privacy - reset security and privacy settings of browsers to default values.
- Set Network Windows Services Default - Factory settings for Windows network services.
They can be pressed, and individually perform certain actions, or select the necessary / all items with checkmarks and start the correction by clicking on the button"Run All Selected".
There are many useful tools that are very easy to use. Yes, all this can be done manually, but it is difficult and time-consuming. And with the help of NetAdapter Repair, you can solve the problem with the Internet connection in just a few clicks. At least you can try. Unless, of course, the reason is some kind of Windows network settings.
If you do not understand how to use NetAdapter Repair, ask in the comments. If you tried different options, but the problem persists, describe your case in the comments. I will definitely answer and try to help.
