My HP Victus 15 fa2000-series laptop connects to Wi-Fi normally for a short while, but then the Wi-Fi option disappears completely. Shutting down and powering it back on only helps temporarily, while restarting often leaves it unable to connect at all. I have already tried restarting the laptop and updating the drivers. In Device Manager, the built-in Realtek 8852BE wireless adapter is listed, but it becomes greyed out after the Wi-Fi disappears. The problem began yesterday, even though Wi-Fi worked normally before then. Phone-based network tethering still works, and I have never used an Ethernet cable with this laptop. What should I check next, and is this more likely to be a driver problem or failing hardware?
2 Answers
Since phone tethering works, the laptop's general networking functions are probably okay and the issue seems isolated to the internal wireless adapter. In Device Manager, check the adapter's properties and event history, then uninstall the device and remove its driver before installing the latest driver from HP's support page. Also check the adapter's power-management settings and disable the option that allows Windows to turn it off to save power.
The adapter disappearing and becoming greyed out in Device Manager points more toward the wireless card or its connection failing than a normal Wi-Fi setting. If you are comfortable opening the laptop, reseating or replacing the internal card may help. Some people choose an Intel replacement because the Realtek 8852BE has had similar reliability complaints, but compatibility should be checked for this specific model first. A USB Wi-Fi adapter is the simpler workaround if you do not want to open the laptop.
I would try a clean driver removal and reinstall before buying a replacement. If the adapter still vanishes after that, especially on a fresh boot, hardware becomes much more likely.
The fact that it worked normally until yesterday and now disappears entirely is important. If reinstalling the HP driver and changing power settings does not help, I would contact HP support or have the card tested rather than repeatedly resetting Windows.