Sudden wifi issue - can't connect to regular wifi only hotspots

Emma H 0 Reputation points
2026-09-05T00:19:29.34+00:00

I’m having an issue with an older Windows laptop (Acer Swift 1 SF114-32) and could use some advice.

The laptop was working fine for 5+ years and it was my daily driver. I got a new machine and put this one in a cupboard for a year or so and I've recently had to use it again. It was fine the first few days but today the wifi suddenly stopped working. It remained connected to the network but showed “No internet, secured” and there was no actual internet access on my end. I immediately switched to my phone's hotspot and that worked. I checked and the same wifi works perfectly fine on other devices (a Mac and an iPhone), so I don’t think the router is the issue. It’s a Huawei WiFi WS5200 router.

I’ve tried:

  • Restarting the laptop
  • Updating Windows
  • Running Windows network troubleshooters
  • Resetting anything and everything that could be reset and turned off and on per the troubleshooting instructions
  • Updating the wireless driver
  • Completely shutting down and unplugging the laptop
  • Splitting the router into separate 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz networks and trying 2.4 GHz
  • Uninstalling and reinstalling the driver

After uninstalling/reinstalling the driver, things actually got worse: now the laptop can’t connect to the any wifi at all EXCEPT the hotspot (so not working with the neighbor's wifi or a public wifi, checked both and it all says "Can't connect"). Bluetooth works normally.

The adapter is an Intel(R) Wireless-AC 9560 160MHz. I've checked the event viewer and I have hundreds of errors for today, it's 5005, 5007, 5010, etc. all related to the adapter/driver.

Could the card be failing? The fact that it can still connect to a hotspot is really confusing to me ngl.

I’m also hesitant to start changing anything in the BIOS because of an issue I had years ago and I can't afford this laptop not being able to boot properly.

Any ideas what could be causing this or what I should try next?

Windows for home | Other | Internet and connectivity
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  1. Clary-N 15,730 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator
    2026-09-05T07:15:05.6933333+00:00

    Hi Emma H,

    Thank you for the detailed information. Since the laptop can connect to your phone’s hotspot but not other Wi-Fi networks, this may be related to the current wireless driver or adapter rather than the router alone.

    Could you please press Windows key + R, type winver and share the Windows version and OS build shown?

    If possible, please also connect the laptop directly to the router using an Ethernet cable and check whether the internet works. If the laptop does not have an Ethernet port, you would need a USB-to-Ethernet adapter. This can help determine whether the issue is limited to the wireless connection.

    While connected through Ethernet or your hotspot, visit the Acer support website and download the wireless LAN driver specifically for the Acer Swift 1 SF114-32 and your Windows version. I recommend using Acer’s driver rather than relying only on the driver selected automatically by Windows.

    I would avoid changing the BIOS for now. Please let me know the winver information, whether Ethernet works and the version of the wireless driver currently shown in Device Manager.

    I hope this helps narrow down the cause.

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  2. AI answer

    2026-09-05T00:20:00.5566667+00:00

    The symptoms fit two Windows-side scenarios from the troubleshooting guidance:

    • Connection or authentication fails: Windows can see networks but fails during association or authentication.
    • Issue started after an update or resume / driver change: the problem became worse after the adapter driver was removed and reinstalled.

    The hotspot detail does not rule out an adapter or driver problem. The guidance specifically says to compare the current driver and firmware versions with the versions recommended by the device or adapter manufacturer, especially when behavior changes after driver work.

    Recommended next steps:

    1. Check whether the adapter is present and enabled
      • Open Device Manager and confirm the Intel(R) Wireless-AC 9560 160MHz adapter is present and not disabled.
      • If Wi‑Fi controls are missing, the troubleshooting guidance says to confirm the adapter is present and enabled and that the WLAN AutoConfig (WlanSvc) service is running.
    2. Verify WLAN AutoConfig is running
      • The advanced troubleshooting guide notes that if WlanSvc is stopped, the Wi‑Fi control can be hidden and netsh wlan commands report that the service is not running.
      • If Wi‑Fi appears unstable or missing, this is a key check.
    3. Collect basic wireless state before making more changes
      • Run these commands in Command Prompt:
        • netsh wlan show drivers
        • netsh wlan show interfaces
        • netsh wlan show networks mode=bssid
      • For this symptom set, the troubleshooting guide lists these as the main evidence to collect.
      • This helps determine whether the adapter is reporting supported bands correctly, whether radio state is normal, and whether Windows can fully enumerate nearby networks.
    4. Check for recent changes and compare driver versions
      • Since the issue worsened after reinstalling the driver, compare the currently installed Wi‑Fi driver version with the version recommended by the laptop or adapter manufacturer.
      • The guidance explicitly recommends reviewing the device manufacturer’s support information for wireless driver, firmware, and BIOS updates or known compatibility issues.
      • Avoid repeated uninstall/reinstall cycles until the current baseline is recorded, because the troubleshooting guide warns that removing the adapter or driver can remove evidence or temporarily change behavior.
    5. Test whether expected networks are being displayed correctly
      • The troubleshooting guide says that when expected networks are not displayed, check:
        • hardware and software radio state
        • WLAN AutoConfig service state
        • supported bands
        • whether other clients can see the same network
      • In this case, other devices can see and use the same Wi‑Fi, so the remaining focus is the laptop’s radio/driver state.
    6. Try the standard setup-side checks again only where they still apply
      • Since already tried password, 2.4 GHz split, and other networks, the remaining supported checks are:
        • move closer to the router/access point
        • try the other frequency band if both are available
        • try a different trusted Wi‑Fi network
        • use Ethernet if the device can be connected that way, or with a USB-to-Ethernet adapter
        • if available, use cellular or hotspot temporarily
      • Ethernet is especially useful here because it separates “Wi‑Fi path is broken” from “general internet stack is broken.”
    7. If no Wi‑Fi networks appear or the adapter state looks wrong, reinstall the Wi‑Fi adapter driver carefully
      • The setup guidance says that if no Wi‑Fi networks are listed and an error appears, download the necessary Wi‑Fi adapter drivers on another device, copy them to a USB flash drive, and make sure the .inf file is in the root of the flash drive.
      • This is the supported recovery path when the local driver state is damaged.
    8. Do not change BIOS settings yet
      • There is no need from the provided guidance to start with BIOS changes.
      • The documented path is to first verify adapter presence, service state, wireless state, and manufacturer-recommended driver/firmware versions.

    Based on the described behavior, driver corruption, adapter state problems, or a failing wireless adapter are all plausible, but the supported guidance points first to verifying adapter presence, WlanSvc, and manufacturer-recommended driver/firmware versions before concluding hardware failure. The fact that Bluetooth still works does not eliminate a Wi‑Fi-specific adapter or driver fault.

    References:

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