We are living in the Internet era and are so accustomed to using WiFi network connection in order to browse the web, stream our favorite music or movies and even access our IoT devices.

And, it is like a nightmare if we encounter any problems with our WiFi router or the Internet connection. Isn’t it?

Common WiFi Issues Faced by Most Internet Users

Since our lives are already connected with the world wide web, it is highly advised to know some WiFi troubleshooting tips to fix the router problems on your own without depending on any technician.

So, here are the most common WiFi problems and their solutions on how to fix them yourself.

What We Covered? show

1. WiFi Connected, But No Internet Access

This problem may sound weird to many but can easily be solved by using simple tips.

  • Turn off your router completely and unplug the Ethernet cable.
  • After a minute or so, try to plug in the cable and switch on the WiFi router.

In most cases, this trick of restarting the router does work.

However, if you still encounter the issue, check whether your ISP (Internet Service Provider) connection is working or not.

To do so, simply plug-in the Ethernet cable directly to your laptop or PC and see whether you’re able to access the Internet or not.

If yes, then the problem is with your router and you’ll need to do a ‘factory reset’ on your router and configure it again.

If the problem is with your ISP, then you just need to wait for the ISP problem to be resolved.

Contact your ISP and check when the outage will be fixed.

2. Limited Access WiFi or No Connectivity Errors

This particular WiFi problem can occur to many users and here are a few possible reasons why.

  • The Ethernet cable was damaged (has breaks)
  • The WiFi router was not configured properly
  • Technical glitch on the ISP side

Here are a few ways to fix the Limited Access WiFi error easily:

  1. Reboot your computer and the router to check if the issue is fixed.
  2. See if the connectivity cables like the Ethernet, LAN or Power cable are properly connected and without any damages.
  3. Check if the router admin panel is opening or not by entering the IP address of your WiFi device. If it connects, then the problem is with your ISP. Contact them to get the issue solved ASAP.
  4. If it doesn’t open, then you’ll have to reset the router to the factory settings and manually configure it again.

3. Slow Internet Speeds from Your WiFi Router

Though you have purchased a long range WiFi router and have a high-speed Internet connection, you may still encounter slow internet speeds in your house sometimes.

You can fix the slow internet issue by following the steps below.

  1. Move your router to a new location and also adjust the antennas and see.
  2. If it doesn’t work, then try resetting the router, which mostly solves the issue.
  3. However, if it doesn’t work, you’ll need to get a WiFi extender or a home mesh WiFi system (if your house is big or multi-storied).

Before trying out these solutions, you may want to check with your ISP whether there is any issue on their end.

4. WiFi Connection Drops and Then Reconnects

There are a few common reasons why your devices keep disconnecting from the WiFi frequently, such as:

i. Weak WiFi Signal:

If the distance between your WiFi router and your device (Laptop or Smartphone etc…) is too long, then there are chances of getting weaker signals.

Try to place the router in a location near to where you usually work.

If that is not possible, simply get a WiFi range extender and that will boost your wireless signals automatically.

ii. WiFi Network Overloaded:

There are some instances when a lot of people in your family or sometimes the neighbors who know your WiFi password may connect to your WiFi all at the same time.

This makes the network overloaded and that may cause frequent dropping of WiFi.

And, the only solution is to limit the use of multiple connections.

iii. Router Becomes Old:

If you’ve been using the router since a long time, then there are chances that it may work incorrectly on several occasions.

In such cases, you’ll need to get a new router for yourself.

iv. Wireless Interference:

If your neighbor is using the same frequency as yours, then there are chances of both the WiFi networks getting interfered with one another, thereby causing poor connectivity issues.

Use NetSpot for Mac or Windows and WiFi Analyzer for Android to check for all the nearby wireless networks.

You can try shifting your router to another place or if possible change the wireless channel to 5 GHz, if your router supports it.

How to Fix the WiFi Drop & Reconnect Issue?

There are a few possible solutions that can fix the problem of WiFi disconnecting and reconnecting.

  1. Forget the WiFi network and again connect it
  2. Restart everything from the router to your system and other devices that are connected to the WiFi network.
  3. Update the driver and router firmware (if available)
  4. Try to disable the power saving feature on your device and see.
  5. Switch the network profile from Public to Private on the Windows.
  6. If you’re facing the issue on an Android phone, then go to Settings > WiFi > Advanced and disable the option that says ‘Avoid Poor Connections’.

These 6 solutions work in most situations and If nothing works, then you’ll need to replace your old WiFi router with a new one.

5. Mobile Not Connecting to WiFi Router

This can happen to many, especially when you frequently shift from one WiFi network to another. Since this issue is within your mobile, you’ll need to troubleshoot your device and not the router.

  1. On your mobile, go to settings and turn off the WiFi and enable it again.
  2. If it doesn’t work, try delete or forget the WiFi network and connect it again by entering the password.
  3. Lastly, try to reboot your Smartphone and try it.

These are the most possible solutions that can fix the problem easily.

6. How to Retrieve a Forgotten WiFi Password?

There are a few ways through which you can find and recover your WiFi password easily.

Solution 1: Using Saved WiFi Networks on PC

Every computer automatically saves the WiFi password once they connect to the network successfully.

So, if you’ve previously connected your Laptop or PC to a WiFi router, then there are chances of retrieving the password.

  1. Press the Win Key + R to open the run command window.
  2. Type ncpa.cpl into the search box and hit Enter.
  3. Right click on the WiFi network that you’ve saved and choose Status > Wireless Properties.
  4. Move to the ‘Security’ tab and check Mark the option that says  ‘Show Characters’.
  5. It will reveal the WiFi password.

However, in order for this trick to work, your Laptop or PC have to be currently connected to the WiFi network.

You won’t see the options in case you’re not connected to the WiFi network in question.

Solution 2: Using Router Admin Page

Assuming that you have not changed your router’s default username and password, you can easily get back your lost WiFi password by logging into the admin panel.

  1. Type in your router’s default IP address into the browser and login using the credentials (all these can be found on your router’s box or official website).
  2. Once logged in, go to the section that says ‘Private WiFi Network Configuration’.
  3. You’ll see the network name (SSID) along with your network password.
  4. Just select the checkmark beside ‘Show Network Password’ option and you’ll know your WiFi password.

If the above two solutions didn’t work for any obvious reasons, then the last and only solution would be to do a factory reset of your router and configure it again, this time noting down your WiFi password at a safe place.

Final Word:

Well, these are the most common WiFi problems and their easy solutions that work in most cases.

If you encounter any WiFi router issues other than those mentioned here, please feel free to drop them in the comments below and I’ll try to come up with their solutions as well.