WiFi/Networking issue when connected to docking station

Anonymous

Hi,

I recently bought the new Surface Pro 4 (i7, 512 GB SSD) along with the new docking station. I've experienced some of the general issues that various other people have mentioned (such as the power management/sleep issue) but I'm also seeing an issue that does not yet seem reported.

When I have the new docking station connected, if it's connected to a monitor, the network connectivity sometimes drops. I have been using it without any issues for about 2 weeks, but today I had a lot of trouble connecting to the office WiFi network. The network itself was definitely working properly as it was quick and reliable for several other users, including my own phone. Nonetheless, I rebooted the router to make sure.

Windows simply would not connect to the WiFi network (even though it has always been a saved connection). Trying to connect caused it to sometimes fail and sometimes ask for the network password (and entering it correctly would still fail - but that's another long-standing Windows bug!). Connecting to alternative networks did exactly the same; it would attempt to connect to my phone's portable hotspot, connect and disconnect in a few seconds, retry, and then stop (in a disconnected state). Intermittently it would connect to the network, but sometimes with 'No Internet' and clearly lots of DNS issues in trying to resolve google.com. It sometimes took 30-60 seconds to load google.com.

Troubleshooting steps

Tried disabling and re-enabling the WiFi adapter
Tried restarting Windows 10
Tried disabling all other network adapters (the Ethernet port from the dock and two created by VirtualBox)
Tried removing dock connection
- This is the first time the connection issues were resolved and google.com was loaded (and could be reloaded) within milliseconds
Re-attached dock and tried removing Logitech unifying receiver (the only USB device plugged in)
Tried removing monitor
- Everything back to normal, was able to browse very quickly again
Tried re-attaching monitor
- Network issues again where loading google.com would take around 20 seconds and refreshing the page would also take several seconds

Clearly there is an issue with the external display. The display is a 1080p monitor which is connected via a HDMI cable and a Mini DisplayPort to HDMI adapter. The strange part is that this problem has never come up before, though in hindsight I would say that browsing at the office has been generally a little bit slower than at home.

Has anyone else experienced this issue? I might try to get an older pre-1.4 spec HDMI cable to see if this has an effect.

Locked Question. This question was migrated from the Microsoft Support Community. You can vote on whether it's helpful, but you can't add comments or replies or follow the question.

0 comments

116 answers

Anonymous

2016-05-20T08:30:42+00:00

It's working, thank you so much. :)
Was this answer helpful?

0 comments No comments
Anonymous

2016-05-20T11:39:31+00:00

I found a solution for DOCK + WiFi bug.

MS said something about SP4 incompatibility with some WiFi router...

I found that if I configure the wifi adapter to force it to the speed of 5 Ghz instead of "auto", I resolved my problem.

I can use the default option "auto" without my DOCK, but I have to force it to 5Ghz when the Dock is connected.

Of course when I leave the office, I have to set the option to "auto" because not every WiFi router support the 5Ghz band.
Was this answer helpful?

1 person found this answer helpful.

0 comments No comments
Anonymous

2016-05-22T19:34:24+00:00

I suspected the same, but I only have a 2.4Ghz router. So this is simply an interference problem, like the USB 3 interference that also bugs the SP4. No wonder Microsoft went all quiet after not being able to fix this issue after months and months of support from them....they realized it is improper hardware shielding - impossible to fix other than replace our SP's with new hardware.

Simply not good enough, but I will then need to spend even more money on this setup by getting me a new router! (Not feeling happy about MS :-(
Was this answer helpful?

0 comments No comments
Anonymous

2016-05-23T09:31:42+00:00

Excellent! My router is only 2.4GHz, so I forced the adaptor to this (obviously not 5GHz), and it works perfectly - for a few days now. Many thanks.
Was this answer helpful?

0 comments No comments
Anonymous

2016-05-29T14:25:15+00:00

I've got a Surface Pro 4 that connects to WIFI without any problem... unless I connect to the dock. This is a problem because I just moved apartment and I can no longer connect an RJ45 to the dock (but I do still want to easily hook up external monitor, keyboard, mouse and power with a single cable).

Is this a known problem? I see similar (old) issues related to the SP3. Is there a fix?
Was this answer helpful?

0 comments No comments