How to troubleshoot Windows network problems

Diagnosing and Fixing a Windows Network Connection

Wondering how to troubleshoot Windows network problems? Whether you have a wired Ethernet connection or a wireless Wi-Fi connection, access to email, social media, the Web, and even Windows updates and apps doesn’t work without network access. And Microsoft has put a lot of time and effort into making networking issues easy to recognize, diagnose, and fix as part of how Windows works.

To start troubleshooting your Windows network connection, you can right-click on the network symbol in the notification area of the Task Bar, or on the network icon in the system tray, and then select “Diagnose network problems”. Windows 11 also offers a new, simplified way to troubleshoot network problems, which we’ll come to in a moment. But first, here’s how to use the older method to diagnose and fix network problems in Windows 10, 9, 8, and even 7.

How to troubleshoot network problems in Windows

To troubleshoot your Windows network connection, you can right-click on the following:

• In Windows 11, you can right-click on the Wi-Fi (or Ethernet) symbol and select “Diagnose network problems”. In Windows 10, you can right-click on the active network symbol and select “Troubleshoot problems”. In older versions of Windows 11, you can click on Start, go to Settings, enter “Trouble” into the search box, and click on the “Troubleshoot Other problems” item.

The troubleshooters for Windows networking focus on two kinds of networks: wired Ethernet and wireless Wi-Fi. In Windows 10 and earlier versions, they check local network access, Internet gateway access, and actual Internet access through a series of reachability checks.

If the network is having problems, you’ll typically see a diagnostic page that lists the kinds of issues that are causing problems. In many cases, you can simply click “Next” and then start working through the solutions.

You can also use the PING command to test network access by pinging loopback, localhost, the nearest router or gateway, and a known working Internet address like Microsoft.com.

Network troubleshooting tips

Here are some other tips for troubleshooting network connections in Windows:

• Restart your modem, router, or access point. The boundary device that connects to your ISP’s network often has its own software that can get confused or overloaded, and restarting it will clear these temporary glitches. Restarting your PC will also clear any issues that may be causing problems with the network connection.
• Network issues can also arise from hardware problems, TCP/IP protocol issues, or issues with the protocols used to support Internet services. The Windows network troubleshooter checks all of these aspects during its tests.
• If your PC is still disconnected from the network or the Internet, you can check issues such as IP configuration, DNS settings, and having an extra network interface as backup.
• Checking the ipconfig command can ensure that your PC has a valid network address scheme and configuration. DNS issues can cause Internet access problems, so checking the DNS information for the network adapter is important. And finally, keeping an extra network interface on hand, such as a USB to Ethernet adapter or a USB Wi-Fi adapter, can be useful for troubleshooting network interface issues.