Windows 11 25H2 Wireless Nightmare!

[Giblets2]

Hi All

 

Kind of hope you're not all having this but it's a warning in case you are - as well as an appeal for ideas.

 

Lots of Dell Latitude 3520 and old 3380s on my network are suddently losing the ability to connect to wireless networks.  Symptoms are:

 

1. Wireless adapters show with no errors in Device Manager

2. WWLAN or WLAN card option is definitely turned on in BIOS

3. The BIOS option to 'Control WLAN' is disabled - this apparently cuts power when an ethernet connection is made, and sometimes fails to restore it - or detectes a ghost RJ45 plug!  Anyway, it's off!

4. Main problem, the wireless adapter isn't showing up in the connection menu at all, like it wasn't there.  It just shows Bluetooth!

 

I have updated drivers, uninstalled the device (removing drivers) then installed fresh drivers either from Dell's download site or Intel's.  Nowt!

 

I have a feeling it's to do with a recent Windows Update - possibly one of KB5082417, KB5083769 or KB5066128 but when I've been able to delete these it doesn't solve the problem.

 

There is possibly a fix from MS for these issues. KB5085516, but it only installs on the very latest 25H2v2 build 26200.8039 so I can't use it without all the devices being updated - difficult without wireless!

 

I am currently deploying a PC from scratch using that W11 version so I'll update this with the outcome but on an estate of approx 250 such devices I really don't want that as my only option!

 

Any ideas greatly appreciated and, if this has been any help to you, welcome to hell!

 

Thanks

 

Giblets.
 

Edited April 28 by Giblets2
Typos

[psydii]

netcfg /d, then reboot.

 

if that doesn't work,  there's always the traditional "hail mary":

DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth 

followed by

sfc /scannow

 

(not sure when that actually started fixing things, but prior to 2020 I'd never seen sfc /scannow do anything of note, but these days I feel like I run it at least once a week to put an unhappy machine back into a serviceable state. Not that I have any particular expectation it will fix your specific problem, but its worth a shot!)

Edited April 28 by psydii

[6Foot3]

Just now, psydii said:

netcfg /d, then reboot.

 

if that doesn't work,  there always the traditional "hail mary"

DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth 

followed by

sfc /scannow

 

(not sure when that actually started fixing things, but prior to 2020 I'd never seen sfc /scannow do anything of note, but these days I feel like I run it at least once a week to put an unhappy machine back into a serviceable state. Not that I have any particular expectation it will fix your specific problem, but its worth a shot!)

Reimage at that point.

[psydii]

Basically what it does, but quicker and less work on our part. We only started to need it regularly hen we moved away from biannual feature updates (they were in effect re-installs). So from 1603-22h2 machines were  in effect re-imaged every six months by the feature update installation, but now were still Windows 11 24h2/ Windows 10 22h2 ESU) and some of them are starting to feel their age. 

It really does fix a multitude of things.  I have it as a script deployable from sccm, and a "four click fix" without even having to touch the device is dramatically less work than re-imaging.

Whether it fixes @Giblets2 problem, we shall have to wait and see.

[Giblets2]

I have narrowed the issue down to either KB5082417 (prime suspect) or KB5078674 as the wireless worked on the new image until those little m**** decided to install!

 

Removing the update doesn't undo the damage...

 

I will try sfc /scannow before I re-image again.

 

Thanks for help people.

[rossibIT]

What anti virus are you running? I have seen this with us and we are running Sophos. Whatever your running try uninstalling one one and see if they reappear. 

 

 

Regards
Ross

[psydii]

2 minutes ago, Giblets2 said:

 

 

I will try sfc /scannow before I re-image again.

 

Sorry to be pedantic, sfc /scannow needs to be run **after** the dism restore health command in order to be effective.

[Giblets2]

OK, tried the fixes and no joy.  Re-imaged machine and use wushowhide to hide KB5082417, which is definitely now identified as the problem.

 

I will report back on any more developments but I'll be busy re-imaging a few more test devices and then the whole fricking estate I guess?!!

 

Joy unbridled...

 

Thanks for help and hope others find this useful.  I'd strongly advise people to change their Windows Update settings in light of this.

 

Giblets.

[JazzFlute]

3 minutes ago, Giblets2 said:

OK, tried the fixes and no joy.  Re-imaged machine and use wushowhide to hide KB5082417, which is definitely now identified as the problem.

 

I will report back on any more developments but I'll be busy re-imaging a few more test devices and then the whole fricking estate I guess?!!

 

Joy unbridled...

 

Thanks for help and hope others find this useful.  I'd strongly advise people to change their Windows Update settings in light of this.

 

Giblets.

 

Is it the same model of Wireless adaptor on all the devices its happening to?

[Giblets2]

Same make (Intel) but these are different generations of laptops so different cards.

 

I have since found disabling just KB5082417 doesn't solve the issue so I'm trying with KB5078674 hidden too!

[robintech]

Sometimes  powercfg –restoredefaultschemes   has fixed odd issues with Wi-Fi don't know why

 

Does the netsh wlan show wlanreport  ,show anything interesting

[ZeroHour]

Intel just released new wifi & bluetooth drivers today for Windows 11 and Windows 10:

 

 

Release notes: WiFi and Bluetooth

[TheRobins]

Can confirm, I had 2 devices doing this, and the new intel drivers have fixed the issue.

 

Both were AX201's. 

[psydii]

Interesting. I had need to reanimate and old (ish) Windows  10 laptop (returning long term

absence), instead of updating to 11 automatically overnight, it stuck. Reason? “Incompatible intel wifi driver”