Why does my Windows 11 laptop disconnect from one Wi-Fi network every few minutes?
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MellowCedar42
My HP laptop running Windows 11 stays connected to my home Wi-Fi for about 4–5 minutes, then disconnects for roughly 2 minutes before reconnecting. The cycle repeats continuously. Other devices work normally on the same router, and the laptop has no trouble connecting to other Wi-Fi networks. I've already restarted both the laptop and the router, so I'm trying to figure out whether this is caused by the laptop's Wi-Fi driver, saved network settings, or compatibility with the router. What troubleshooting steps should I try?
Answers
Forget the home network in Windows and connect to it again. Go to Settings > Network & Internet > Wi-Fi > Manage known networks, select the router’s network, and choose Forget. You’ll need to enter the Wi-Fi password again afterward. If the router has separate 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz network names, try each band since one may be more stable.
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Try updating the laptop’s Wi-Fi adapter driver first. A driver problem can cause repeated disconnects with a particular router, even when the adapter works normally on other networks.
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Check Windows’ wireless diagnostics to see what happens at the exact time of each disconnect. Open Command Prompt and run `netsh wlan show wlanreport`. Windows will create an HTML report showing connection events, errors, and adapter details. The report can help identify whether the issue is authentication, driver-related, signal-related, or caused by the router.
MellowCedar42: That sounds useful, especially since the disconnects happen on a predictable cycle. I’ll generate the report after the next few failures.
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MellowCedar42: I’ll try forgetting the network and reconnecting first. I’ll also test the two bands separately if they’re available.