My custom-built Windows 11 PC suddenly stopped accessing the internet this week. Windows shows the Wi-Fi connection as secured and connected, but Discord cannot update, Steam will not open, and websites do not load. The same network works normally on my PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switches, and other devices. I have already tried the usual command-line fixes, reset the network settings several times, rebooted the router, and even tested a USB Wi-Fi adapter, but nothing helped. The system uses a Ryzen 9 7950X, GeForce RTX 3080, MSI MPG X670E Carbon WiFi motherboard, and 32 GB of RAM. Could this be a motherboard failure, or is there another Windows or network setting I should check?
3 Answers
Check whether the network is marked as Public or Private and make sure Windows Firewall or another security program is not blocking network access. Switching the connection to Private and temporarily testing with third-party firewall software disabled can help identify whether the problem is filtering traffic rather than the Wi-Fi hardware.
This sounds like a DNS problem, especially since the PC reports a successful Wi-Fi connection but no applications or websites can reach anything. Try manually setting the adapter’s DNS servers to a reliable public pair such as 1.1.1.1 and 8.8.8.8, then reconnect or restart the PC. You can also test by opening a site through its IP address to help distinguish DNS failure from a broader connection issue.
Because another Wi-Fi adapter has the same problem while the rest of the network works, the motherboard is probably not the first suspect. That points more toward Windows networking, DNS, a firewall, or a recently changed driver. Verify that the router has been restarted, then check the adapter’s IP address, default gateway, and DNS entries; a missing gateway or an address beginning with 169.254 usually means the PC is not receiving a proper address from the router.
I had a similar symptom and DNS was the cause. Changing the DNS servers fixed it, so that would be one of the first things I’d test.