This page is fully dedicated to the TP-Link TL-WN722N Wi-Fi adapter. A very popular model that has been successfully sold for a long time. An excellent adapter for connecting to a Wi-Fi network of stationary computers or laptops. There is an external antenna, which is undoubtedly a big plus. Thanks to it, the adapter picks up the Wi-Fi signal better. Also from the pros, I would single out a simple setting. No problem with drivers (well, almost none). Works stably in Windows 10, Windows 8, Windows 7 and Windows XP. There are problems when the computer cannot see the adapter, or the TL-WN722N cannot see the Wi-Fi network. But this, as a rule, is easily solved and usually occurs due to the settings of the operating system. Well, or through the fault and inexperience of the user himself. In this article, we will look at the most popular problems.
At the time of this writing, I have been using the TP-Link TL-WN722N V 1.0 Wi-Fi adapter for several weeks. I have a laptop, I used to connect via the built-in Wi-Fi module. But I had to move the laptop away and put it on the shelf under the table. And Wi-Fi started to catch very badly (1-2 divisions). I had to connect this adapter through a small USB extension cable. On Windows 10, I did not configure anything at all, I just connected it and the system installed the drivers itself. However, in the device manager, it appears as "Atheros AR9271 Wireless Network Adapter". But everything works well.
There are two hardware versions of the TP-Link TL-WN722N adapter (there is a V3 on the official website, but there is a driver only for MAC, at the time of this writing). The hardware version V1 runs on the Atheros AR9271 chipset, and V2 on the REALTEK RTL8188EUS. The official site has drivers for both Windows, MAC and Linux. The characteristics will not be described, they can be viewed on any site. Wi-Fi network speed up to 150 Mbps.
Another important point. Through the TL-WN722N adapter, you can not only connect to wireless networks, but also distribute the Internet via Wi-Fi networks. It can work as an access point (SoftAP). You can customize the distribution both using Windows tools and through a proprietary utility. Below I will write about this in more detail, and give the necessary links.
Driver Installation on TP-Link TL-WN722N
The whole process of setting up almost any Wi-Fi adapter comes down to installing drivers. Of course, you first need to connect the adapter itself to your computer or laptop.
Just plug it into a USB port.
Advice: if you have Windows 10, then do not rush to install drivers from the disk, or from the site. Most likely, the system will select and install the driver itself. A message will appear whether the device is installed or not. And the adapter itself should appear in the device manager. Well, the Wi-Fi connection icon on the notification bar. If Windows 10 cannot install the adapter by itself, or it does not work well (disconnect, low speed, ping), then install the driver from the disk or TP-Link website.
For the second hardware version (ver. 2), the driver is available for all versions of Windows, including Windows 10. For the first hardware version (ver. 1), there are no drivers for TL-WN722N under Windows 10. But, as I wrote above, everything worked for me automatically. On the Internet they also write that drivers from Windows 8.1 are suitable, or from a disk.
Advice: to find out the hardware version of your adapter, look at the sticker on the adapter itself.
If the hardware version is not listed there, then it is V1.
The set includes a CD with drivers and a utility. You can install everything from there. Just start the disc and follow the instructions.
Advice: as a rule, a utility for managing the adapter is installed from the disk. You can also download it from the official website. There is no particular need for this utility. So I advise you not to install it. During the installation from disk, you can cancel the installation of the utility.
To download the driver, follow the link http://www.tp-linkru.com/download/TL-WN722N_V1.html, select its hardware version, go to the "Driver" tab and load the first file in the list for Windows.
Installation:
Windows 10 and Adapter Hardware V1
If everything is not automatically installed, then you can try to install the driver from the disk, or from Windows 8.1. Like this:
- Download the archive with drivers for V1.
- Extract the folders from the archive.
- Go to the "Windows 8.1 64bit" (or 32bit) folder, right-click on the fileathuwbx.inf and select "Install".
You may need to restart your computer after this.
You may need to restart your computer after this.Or use the method described above.
Possible problems and solutions
Let's consider the most popular problems that users encounter most often.
- The computer does not see TP-Link TL-WN722N. If you plugged the adapter into the USB port of your computer and Wi-Fi does not appear, then most likely you just need to install the drivers. I wrote about this above. Go to Device Manager and check. If the computer does not react at all to the connection of the adapter, nothing appears in the device manager, then try connecting it to a different USB port. Do not use a USB extension cable. Check on another computer or laptop.
- If TL-WN722N does not see Wi-Fi network. No connections available. Most popular problem. Everything seems to work, but the list of wireless networks available for connection is not displayed. But other devices see the available networks. Most often, this happens due to the disabled WLAN autoconfiguration service in Windows. You need to check, and if it is disabled, then start it.
In the article WLAN Autoconfiguration Service. What it is, and how to enable it in Window, I wrote about it in more detail. Also, make sure there is a wireless signal in the place where the adapter is installed. Check if the antenna is screwed on well. - Low speed, connection drops. First of all, prohibit turning off the Wi-Fi adapter to save energy. How to do it - wrote here. Reinstall the driver. Try installing from disk. If you have Windows 10, then try the solutions from the article: Wi-Fi turns off in Windows 10.
In the article WLAN Autoconfiguration Service. What it is, and how to enable it in Window, I wrote about it in more detail. Also, make sure there is a wireless signal in the place where the adapter is installed. Check if the antenna is screwed on well.If you encounter any other problems, then write about them in the comments. Especially if you know the solutions 🙂
TL-WN722N as an access point (we share Wi-Fi)
Through the TP-Link TL-WN722N adapter, you can share Wi-Fi from a computer, sharing the Internet with other devices. You can configure the access point through the proprietary TP-Link utility. It is enough to enable the "SoftAP" mode and set the necessary parameters (network name, password).
But I recommend setting up Wi-Fi distribution using Windows according to my instructions. You can use this guide: How to Share Internet via Wi-Fi Adapter on Windows 10 PC.
Or more detailed instructions:
- Setting up an access point in Windows 7.
- Sharing Wi-Fi in Windows 10.
- Configuring SoftAP on Windows 10 via Mobile Hotspot.
Everything is described in great detail and shown there. You will succeed!
All questions, additions, remarks, "Thank you" leave in the comments. Transfer money to the card 🙂 All the best!
