topic Re: One laptop wont connect to wifi in Broadband & Landline

One laptop wont connect to wifi

GaryB17 — Tue, 09 Dec 2025 16:09:20 GMT

Hi all, odd problem happened today. We have many devices successfully connected and getting great speeds, this morning when I booted up my laptop it just doesn't connect to the EE router via wifi all of a sudden.

Windows 11 built in NIC, no ethernet port. Its getting IP via DHCP and al looks fine. The router is connected to the internet as I have other devices which are fine. I can also connect to a hotspot on my phone using the wifi, and can also connect to other networks including the free EE WIFI which I'm on now.

I have tried updating NIC drivers, ipconfig /flushdns | ipconfig /releasedns | ipconfig /renewdns, reset the network card and pretty much everything else including disabling defender AV/Firewall.

At this stage I'm pretty sure its not the laptop NIC as it can connect to other networks fine and even my local networ via the phones hotspot..

Anyone have any ideas?

Re: One laptop wont connect to wifi

GaryB17 — Tue, 09 Dec 2025 16:24:34 GMT

This is the wifi settings with all correct details. Says connected, no internet which is incorrect as other devices are wrking fine.

Re: One laptop wont connect to wifi

Northerner — Tue, 09 Dec 2025 17:21:24 GMT

Hi @GaryB17

Is it an old laptop which uses the 2.4: channel only. Tried using comparability mode.

Thanks

Re: One laptop wont connect to wifi

GaryB17 — Tue, 09 Dec 2025 17:33:24 GMT

Hi, its fairly new, a Surface 5 with Intel wifi-6 ax201 NIC.

Worked perfectly until this morning. In the EE hb it says disconnected but it does have the IP assigned by DHCP.

Re: One laptop wont connect to wifi

JimM11 — Tue, 09 Dec 2025 17:41:20 GMT

@GaryB17 Have you told windows 11 to forget the wifi connection, power off the pc. When you start it up again, go back add the pc to the network and see what happens then?

Re: One laptop wont connect to wifi

GaryB17 — Tue, 09 Dec 2025 17:50:17 GMT

Yes, first thing I tried. It just seems that the network card suddenly doesn't kike this router. All other networks are fine as is connecting via hotspot to the same router.

Re: One laptop wont connect to wifi

JimM11 — Tue, 09 Dec 2025 17:55:18 GMT

@GaryB17 What EE Router are you using? Link below if you are not sure.

https://ee.co.uk/help/broadband/getting-started/compare-our-range-of-broadband-hubs

Re: One laptop wont connect to wifi

GaryB17 — Tue, 09 Dec 2025 18:02:17 GMT

Is the smart hub plus. Got 8 other devices all connected fine, TVs, phones, EE boxes etc.

Re: One laptop wont connect to wifi

JimM11 — Tue, 09 Dec 2025 18:04:53 GMT

@GaryB17 Just so you are aware EE started pushing out new FW to that EE Smarthub+ Router 5/12/2025 was the first reported so now it's on or going to these version's.... just copied the whole list for you!

FW: r2.68.11-R-1260390-PROD-83002
FW: r2.68.12-R-1270837-PROD-83002 and the gui is at App version 2.36.4. 09/01/2025
FW: r2.68.16-R-1296172-PROD-83002 and the gui is at App version 2.36.4. 31/01/2025
FW: r2.68.17-R-1303190-PROD-83002 and the gui is at App version 2.36.4. 14/02/2025
FW: r2.68.18-R-1303195-PROD-83002 and the gui is at App version 2.36.4. 11/02/2025
FW: r2.72.2-R-1302577-PROD-83002 and the gui is at App version 2.36.9. 11/04/2025
FW: r2.72.3-R-1302579-PROD-83002 and the gui is at App version 2.36.9. 11/04/2025
FW: r3.8.11-R-1414606-PROD-83002 and the gui is at App version 2.36.9. 23/06/2025
FW: r3.8.17-R-1464067-PROD-83002 and the gui is at App version 3.1.3 03/09/2025 Https:// now!
FW: r3.8.24-R-1531355-PROD-83002 and the gui is at App version 3.1.3 10/10/2025 Now https://
FW: r3.8.30-R-1627300-PROD-83002 and the gui is at App version 3.1.18 05/12/2025

Re: One laptop wont connect to wifi

GaryB17 — Tue, 09 Dec 2025 18:13:05 GMT

Thank you, my version is;

Firmware version: r3.8.24-R-1531355-PROD-83002

Firmware updated: N/A

GUI version: 3.1.3

Cant tell if that has been updated or not

Re: One laptop wont connect to wifi

JimM11 — Tue, 09 Dec 2025 18:19:13 GMT

@GaryB17 So your one version back from the latest if not having any joy you could look at this link below. Hopefully it did not try to update and it failed to do so and your EE is just off the pace, if all else fails and depending on how/what you have set on it reset may be the way but for me just not the thing to do! Glad i am no longer an EE Customer!

Solved: Wifi driver AX201 not working - Page 3 - Intel Community

Re: One laptop wont connect to wifi

JimM11 — Tue, 09 Dec 2025 18:28:45 GMT

@GaryB17 There is currently the Win11 Security update waiting, so would check that out first if it is your own laptop!

Re: One laptop wont connect to wifi

GaryB17 — Wed, 10 Dec 2025 16:40:29 GMT

Hi again. I took the Surface into the office today and it connected fine to 2 separate networks (Non EE) so I'd say its not the NIC on this occasion. I also connected it successfully to my mums BT Wifi (smartHub).

I brought another Dell laptop home to test and that connects to the EE local WIFI so it must be something that happened Monday evening between the Surface NIC and the EE router.

Very annoying, I've literally tried everything and wasted a couple of days with no success so can now only use the public EE wifi or my Pixel hotspot, not great at all.

I would reset the router but I've got so many other devices connected and cant face going through the setup again 🙂 Not convinced that would fix it either to be honest.

Re: One laptop wont connect to wifi

JimM11 — Wed, 10 Dec 2025 19:12:43 GMT

@GaryB17 Full Factory reset's are always a gamble and i have never ever found once that it was a requirement prior to EE that is, the Router is just so messed up, and that's the reason i departed EE, they stuffed the FW up mid Feb2025 on the EE Smarthub+ so bad it killed a perfectly working network overnight stone dead... That broke the camel's back and two weeks later i was gone!

Re: One laptop wont connect to wifi

GaryB17 — Thu, 11 Dec 2025 09:22:34 GMT

Fixed it, albeit by complete chance. Last night I noticed that my Kindle & 2 LG TVs were also not able to connect despite having IPs set via DHCP. I fired up the EE app to see if anything could be done, here's what happened if it helps anyone going forward.

From day 1 with EE I had been trying to get the wifi paused / parental controls stuff configured so I added some groups and devices, then paused them. As the app has never worked and wasn't working during the testing, I just left them in the paused groups as it made no difference to the end devices.

Then, Monday night, something must have happened on the router as the pause / parental controls suddenly started working, which then paused all the devices in that group on the app. So it seems, probably an update to the router triggered the app to start working how it should. I simply removed the devices from the paused group and all is back to normal.

What a waste of 3 days, but you live and learn 🙂

Re: One laptop wont connect to wifi

JimM11 — Thu, 11 Dec 2025 11:01:30 GMT

@GaryB17 Well done and good you got it going, now for the bad bit, your 2nd line i fired up the app that is very very relevant and when the app does not work limbo is the correct word for sure!