ASUS Laptop cannot find wifi

[CluelessCompKid]

Hi,

So my computer has been having multiple problems and it's driving me crazy. If I had the money, I would literally just get a new one and this one is only a year and a half old.

A few months ago, my laptop had this issue. I would turn it on and it would have a red "X" over the Internet Access icon on the start bar near the time. I would restart my laptop or uninstall the driver and reinstall it to fix it, which worked temporarily. Then it didn't work anymore and I had to plug in my laptop into my router to use the internet.

I went to Office Depot and they told me to just delete it and reinstall in from ASUS's website. I did and it worked but now I'm having the same issue again among others. I'm not even sure if I installed the correct driver although I made sure to research and everything before doing it and it did work back then. Now, it's doing the same issue and i don't know what to do at this point.

My laptop is an ASUS x550C (http://www.nix66.ru/images/photo/p/t/f/asus_asus_notebook_161398_2254_draft_large.jpg) running Windows 7 64 bit Professional. I'm not very good with computers in terms of all the detailed taking it apart so please don't ask me to do that. I think I'd just make it worse as I probably already have with just this.

 

[ICIT2LOL]

Ok Clueless mate sounds very much like a problem I had with my new Asus ROG gamer laptop and I found the local Service Centre (if you can find one locally to you) was so much more help than the global and "local" (call centre in the Philippines) Asus sites but that is something you will have to find for yourself.

But in the meantime these are the latest drivers for your machine and it is always best to get them from the manufacturers as personally I find the Windows update feature not really much good.
http://www.asus.com/au/Notebooks_Ultrabooks/X550CA/HelpDesk_Download/ < from these download and install the LAN and wireless ones (just open them out and download the latest - usually the top ones) the others we might need to have a look at later.

Let us know how you get on and don't worry I don't think it will involve taking anything a part.

Just two things you can do are run these to make sure the OS system is running ok
http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/1538-sfc-scannow-command-system-file-checker.html
http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/433-disk-check.html < if necessary include the /f and /r in the command line as per Option2
You can do that in safe mode if you want (power off and then power on while tapping F8)

 

[CluelessCompKid]

Ok Clueless mate sounds very much like a problem I had with my new Asus ROG gamer laptop and I found the local Service Centre (if you can find one locally to you) was so much more help than the global and "local" (call centre in the Philippines) Asus sites but that is something you will have to find for yourself.

But in the meantime these are the latest drivers for your machine and it is always best to get them from the manufacturers as personally I find the Windows update feature not really much good.
Notebooks & Ultrabooks | X550CA | ASUS Australia < from these download and install the LAN and wireless ones (just open them out and download the latest - usually the top ones) the others we might need to have a look at later.

Let us know how you get on and don't worry I don't think it will involve taking anything a part.

Just two things you can do are run these to make sure the OS system is running ok
http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/1538-sfc-scannow-command-system-file-checker.html
http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/433-disk-check.html < if necessary include the /f and /r in the command line as per Option2
You can do that in safe mode if you want (power off and then power on while tapping F8)

Thank you for your response and help. I did what you told me and the wifi seems to be working fine at the moment. I will try the scans once I'm done with my homework, haha.

Local centers? What are those?

 

[ICIT2LOL]

Well by local centres I mean in most large cities or towns depending on where you live there is usually a major manufacturer's service centre - hence me using the one based in Sydney - our largest city in Oz.

As I live in rural NSW it is my "local" centre. The companies do not tend to advertise these centres preferring you to be annoyed by off shore centres which they find VERY cheap to run because the folks who work in them do it for what I consider peanuts.

So for arguments sake if you lived fairly close to somewhere like Los Angeles or Chicago then it would be a fair bet there would be a few service centres there etc etc

Now the scans are very basic and are only going to tell you if the OS filing system is out of whack and with the chkdsk will correct any issues with that.
See this https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CHKDSK and this https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/System_File_Checker

Safe mode means just that it only uses the very basic files that are needed to run Windows https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Safe_mode

 

[2xg]

Hi there,

In addition to mate ICIT2LOL's suggestion .... if you haven't resolved your issue. It won't hurt to scan your computer for any possible virus/malware infections. What type of Security or Anti-Virus programs are you using?

 

[CluelessCompKid]

Hi there,

In addition to mate ICIT2LOL's suggestion .... if you haven't resolved your issue. It won't hurt to scan your computer for any possible virus/malware infections. What type of Security or Anti-Virus programs are you using?

Ok, I had Norton 360 first. Bought. Then the wifi issue came along and my Norton Security had expired. I now have the money to buy a new one so I'm just reading reviews on each one to make an informed decision.

I then had Kaspersky free trial which got really annoying so i took it out and put AVG. I only had it for a few days because a computer technician told me AVG is horrible. So now I have Microsoft Security Essentials just to hold the spot.

I did scan it and I found PUP's and removed an adware toolbar. I'm guessing it's a leftover from a virus I got a long time ago due to my little sister going on sites she's not supposed to be on. Don't worry, I made sure that she uses the home computer now. I learned my lesson.

 

[2xg]

Thanks for the reply. How's your connection now?

Make sure that you go through your installed programs and delete all expired and unwanted Anti-Virus and Security Programs. Malwarebytes Free or SuperAntiSpyware can also be installed and use it to scan your computer for possible malware infections.

 

[CluelessCompKid]

Thanks for the reply. How's your connection now?

Make sure that you go through your installed programs and delete all expired and unwanted Anti-Virus and Security Programs. Malwarebytes Free or SuperAntiSpyware can also be installed and use it to scan your computer for possible malware infections.

I have Malwarebytes. I will scan it again. I scanned once and want to try one more time in safe mode.

Go through every program to remove the AV? I'm not sure how to do that? I removed norton's toolbar yesterday from Google Chrome. It wasn't activated though.

 

[2xg]

Have you used a 3rd party program to uninstall unwanted programs? You may try Revouninstaller the free version, this is what I use and it's safe.

For Norton, it's best to use the removal tool. Again, just keep one Anti-Virus and one Anti-Malware programs and you'll be okay.

There are a few great Free Anti-Virus programs that you may try, no need to buy the paid versions. I like Avast, Panda and Avira - all free and provide basic protection.

 

[ICIT2LOL]

Well I am glad you got rid of AVG - just check in the registry HKEYS > Softwares to make sure it is completely gone. Shame about the Kaspersky because I have been sing it for the past five years and have had no problems apart from the off bug with new versions but if you want some links then have a look at these for alternatives to MSE as I am not a real lover of it either.
Now with Norton to make sure it is completely gone again check those HKEYs for entries for Symantec and I always just delete the whole entry.

Some alternative scans
http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/download/adwcleaner/
ADW download from bleeping computer delete any rubbish found with the malware scans
(with ADW if you are running Kaspersky it will throw it up as malware just override Kaspersky by ignoring it or disabling it for the duration of the scan)
Emsisoft Free Emergency Kit: Portable malware scanner | Free removal of Viruses, Bots, Spyware, Keyloggers and Trojans < I just use the Emergency and Command line scans

How to record Kaspersky Rescue Disk 10 to a USB device and boot a computer from it > I prefer to make a disk but a stick is ok if that is what you prefer.

This will run from power up (bootable disk) and will scan everything without involving Windows at all.

Some alternative free AV's - Free Windows Desktop Software Security List < click on realtime for starters

 

[CluelessCompKid]

My wifi disappeared again. And then it froze. I've been having this issue for a while and got a BSOD before so I have an open thread over there. My computer always freezes after the wifi disappears and my laptop says no wifi is found. I've been having this issue for about two months now but it's getting worse.

 

[ICIT2LOL]

Now I am wondering if you have all the data you want to keep because I am thinking of a reinstall now and you can do that by using the factory reset function. Now if that doesn't work I am inclined to think the machine has a hardware problem in view of the drivers having been installed yet the wifi is not coming to the party.

Just as a matter of interest did you remove the AVG and Norton as I suggested in the registry?

 

[CluelessCompKid]

Now I am wondering if you have all the data you want to keep because I am thinking of a reinstall now and you can do that by using the factory reset function. Now if that doesn't work I am inclined to think the machine has a hardware problem in view of the drivers having been installed yet the wifi is not coming to the party.

Just as a matter of interest did you remove the AVG and Norton as I suggested in the registry?

I wasn't able to when you told me because my laptop was in a computer shop. And Friday was my first time using it in a week. I will try what you said to do but I don't think there are any Norton or AVG leftovers.

I had a BSOD that said its a hardware issue so I rather send it back to have them figure it out along with suggestions. Another person on the BSOD thread said I should try plugging in the Ethernet cable and see if it freezes than. I remember I did that before successfully but still not sure because I didn't do it for a long period of time.