How To Restart The Wi-Fi Driver In Windows 10/11

Are you experiencing Wi-Fi issues on your Windows 10/11 PC? Want to fix Wi-Fi problems without reinstalling the wireless adapter’s driver? This guide will show you how to restart the Wi-Fi driver and fix common Wi-Fi issues.

Most of the Wi-Fi issues can be resolved by restarting the Wi-Fi driver, restarting the Wi-Fi service, or running the Network troubleshooter.

Complete the directions given below to restart the Wi-Fi driver in Windows 10/11.

Restart the Wi-Fi driver in Windows 10/11

Step 1: Perform right-click on the Start button on the taskbar and then click the Device Manager option.

Step 2: Look for Network adapters in the Device Manager window and expand the same by clicking on the arrow icon next to it.

Step 3: Once the Network adapters list is expanded, you will see the Wi-Fi adapter’s entry. Note that many entries usually appear under the Network adapters. However, identifying the Wi-Fi adapter’s entry is relatively easy as the entry usually includes the model name and number. In my case, Intel dual bank Wireless-AC 8265 is the adapter.

Perform a right-click on the Wi-Fi adapter’s entry and then click the Disable device option.

Step 4: Windows will not immediately disable the Wi-Fi adapter. Instead, it will throw a confirmation prompt. Click the Yes button to disable the Wi-Fi adapter.

NOTE: When the Wi-Fi adapter is disabled, Wi-Fi does not work on your computer, and if connected to an internet connection via Wi-Fi, it will be disconnected.

Step 5: Next, you need to enable the wireless adapter to restart the Wi-Fi driver. To enable, right-click on the Wi-Fi adapter’s entry in the Network adapters list and then click the Enable device option. That’s it!

Restart the Wi-Fi service in Windows 10/11

If you are looking to restart the Wi-Fi service, here is how to perform it in Windows 10/11.

Step 1: Type services.msc in the Start/taskbar search and press the Enter key.

Step 2: In the services list, scroll down to see WLAN AutoConfig.

Step 3: Right-click on WLAN AutoConfig and then click the Restart option to restart the Wi-Fi service.

Reinstall the Wi-Fi driver

If the issue persists, you can consider reinstalling the Wi-Fi driver. Since we have already discussed this in detail, please refer to how to reinstall the Wi-Fi driver in Windows 10 or how to reinstall the Wi-Fi driver in Windows 11 guide.