I decided to prepare a separate article with solutions to the problem when the Wi-Fi indicator on the laptop does not light up, which signals the operation of the wireless module on the laptop. It doesn't matter how you got this problem. Immediately after buying a laptop, reinstalling Windows, or the Wi-Fi indicator suddenly stopped burning. I think the tips in this article will help you fix this problem. We will consider solutions using the example of Windows 10. But if you have Windows 7, or Windows 8, then you can apply all the solutions for yourself. Likewise with a laptop. Tips are suitable for different manufacturers: ASUS, HP, Lenovo, Acer, Packard Bell, etc.
First you need to find out what specific case you have:
- Most often, when the Wi-Fi indicator on a laptop is off, then, accordingly, Wi-Fi does not work. And this is quite logical. We will consider solutions of this particular case below in the article.
- It also happens when a laptop connects to wireless networks without any problems, everything works, but the light that indicates the operation of the wireless network does not shine. In this case, I advise you to just ignore it. Works well. But if you still want to fix this, then start by reinstalling the drivers.
The indicator of wireless networks itself can be located anywhere on the laptop case. It all depends on the specific model. It is often built into a button that is responsible for enabling / disabling wireless modules. On my ASUS laptop, this indicator is on the front panel.
In the photo above, the indicator is off just because I turned on airplane mode in Windows 10. It is turned on by a keyboard shortcut on my laptop. And in Windows 7, it was the Wi-Fi module that was controlled. After installing the appropriate drivers and utilities. Also, this light will most likely not light up if the wireless adapter driver is not installed on the laptop at all. But first things first.
If you have such problems with Wi-Fi after reinstalling Windows, then you can immediately skip to the part of the article where I will talk about problems with drivers and their installation.
If Wi-Fi stops working suddenly, then try to remember what you did before. What could be the reason.
A few articles that you may also find useful:
- Wi-Fi does not work on the laptop. What to do? - a very detailed guide with many solutions.
- How to enable and connect Wi-Fi on an ASUS laptop
- Laptop does not have Wi-Fi wireless network connection
- No connections available in Windows 7. Wi-Fi is missing, network with a red cross
- How to turn on Wi-Fi in Windows 10 when there is no Wi-Fi button and the error "Could not find wireless devices on this computer"
Turn on the Wi-Fi indicator with the keys on the laptop
Yes, not to go straight into the jungle, let's try a simple way. Almost every laptop has a key combination that is responsible for enabling and disabling wireless modules. Sometimes, this is a separate switch on the case.
Combinations for different manufacturers:
- ASUS - FN + F2
- HP - Fn + F12
- Lenovo - Fn + F5
- Acer - Fn + F3
- Samsung is the keys Fn + F12, or Fn + F9
- DEL – Fn + F2 or Fn + F12.
For example, on my ASUS laptop:
As you can see, the F2 key has the same icon as near the indicator. We press the combination of these keys and see if the light is on, and if the Wi-Fi is working. As I wrote above, I have Windows 10 installed, and the combination of these keys simply turns on and off airplane mode. When airplane mode is on, the indicator is off.
But most likely this is because I have not installed the utility from ASUS, which is responsible for the operation of the function keys. And if I had Windows 7 installed, the combination of these keys would not work at all without installing a special utility from the manufacturer. Each manufacturer has a different name for this utility. Look for them on the manufacturer's website, in the download section for your laptop.
Checking the status of the wireless adapter. Turn on programmatically
We need to go to "Network Connections" and check if the adapter is "Wireless" or "Wireless Network Connection". To do this, we do this:
Then right-click on "Wireless Network" and select "Enable". If there is such an option.
After that, the wireless network on the laptop should work.
Here is another detailed instruction using the example of Windows 7 - https://help-wifi.com/nastrojka-wi-fi-na-pc-noutbuke/kak-vklyuchit-wi-fi-na-noutbuke-s-windows-7/
An important point! If in the "Network Connections" window you do not find the "Wireless Network" or "Wireless Network Connection" adapter, then the problem is most likely that you do not have the Wi-Fi adapter driver installed, and you need to install it.
We continue to understand.
Wireless driver and indicator
You need to open the device manager and see if there is an adapter there that is responsible for the operation of the Wi-Fi connection.
Press the Win + R keyboard shortcut, type (copy) the command mmc devmgmt.msc and click Ok. Or start the device manager in another way convenient for you.
We immediately open the "Network adapters" tab, and see if there is an adapter in the name of which is "Wireless", "Wi-Fi", "WLAN" Most likely, you will not see it there. I have this adapter, and it looks like this (the name and manufacturer may be different):
But there will be at least one unknown device with a yellow icon in Device Manager.
This means that you need to install the Wireless adapter driver. This driver can be downloaded from the manufacturer's website, required for your laptop model and Windows version. Or install it from disk if it came with your laptop.
After installing the driver, Wi-Fi should work, and the indicator will be on.
I will not describe in detail the process of installing the drivers, as there are already detailed instructions:
- What driver do you need for Wi-Fi to work on a laptop?
- How to install drivers on a Wi-Fi adapter in Windows 7?
- Updating (installing) the driver on Wi-Fi in Windows 10.
- Instructions for installing the Wi-Fi adapter driver on an ASUS laptop.
I think this information will be enough to solve the problem with the Wi-Fi network indicator on your laptop. If something did not work out, or if you have questions, then leave them in the comments.
