Wifi Toggle switch is greyed out

Anonymous
2012-11-04T04:04:43+00:00

Original Title: How to turn on WiFi Capability on Windows 8

Hello,

I upgraded my Laptop Toshiba L500D from Windows 7 Home Premium (x64) to Windows 8 Pro (x64) a few days ago, then I realized yesterday I could not connect to WiFi connection. I have tried search on the internet how to fix it, but no luck. Here are the following list I have tried so far:

  1. Update to latest Driver by going to "Device Manager", click right "Realtek RTL8187SE Wireless LAN PCIE Network Adapter" then click "Update Driver Software...".
  2. Go to Toshiba Website, download "Realtek Wireless Lan Driver" for Windows 7 (x64) and install it by running in Windows 7 compatibility mode.
  3. Go to BIOS, by pressing F2 before Windows 8 loaded, and enable Wireless Communication.
  4. Troubleshooting "Network Adapter (WiFi)" and it gave this advice:

           "Turn on wireless capability

Use the switch on the front or side of the computer,            or function keys if available,            to enable wireless capability on this computer."

  1. Go to Settings -> Change PC Settings -> Wireless, and I got this:

http://img694.imageshack.us/img694/2959/62721723.png

How am I suppose to switch it on, if the switch is disabled? The airplane is also off, so I suppose the Wireless switch should be enable so I can turn it on and off, but no, the wifi switch is still disabled.

Any advice will be appreciated.

Cheers,

simply.puzzle

Windows for home | Previous Windows versions | Internet and connectivity

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
Answer accepted by question author
Anonymous
2012-11-29T21:38:42+00:00

I had a similar issue.. I used the diagnostics to resolve the issue... here are the steps I took.

  1. Right Click network icon in taskbar and select "open network and sharing center"
  2. highlight wifi connection then at top click "diagnose this connection"

the troubleshooter will discover that the WiFi connection is turned off and offer a "apply fix" option click that and windows will enable the wifi connection...

I had the same issues as the OP and Geecat where the Fn switch just didn't work, so I worked through it as outlined above... Looks like with Win 8 the troubleshooter is even more necessary... Not sure how I feel about that, but it is what it is.

Was this answer helpful?

0 comments

105 additional answers

Sort by: Oldest
Most helpful Newest Oldest
  1. Anonymous
    2015-10-03T04:37:43+00:00

    i'm indonesian, please translate my answered to english :p

    saya juga mengalami hal yang sama setelah mencoba memperbaiki selama berjam-jam, tetapi hasil tetap nihil.

    lalu saya membaca sebuah artikel tentang mencabut baterai laptop ketika posisi menyala untuk solusinya. dan ternyata saya bisa kembali menyalakan wifi di laptop saya. tidak perlu juga melakukan update bios dan software lain karena sistem win 8.1 sudah terintegrasi dengan driver laptop.

    mungkin untuk PC dengan cabut kabel power

    semoga berhasil

    Bayu explained that he fixed the "grayed wifi issue" by removing his battery while the laptop was on/running without updating any driver or BIOS.  

    Thank you for sharing your experience Bayu

    Was this answer helpful?

    0 comments
  2. Anonymous
    2015-10-04T21:14:56+00:00

    Hello,

    I'm experiencing this same problem right now and have been struggling for the last hour trying to connect to the Internet. I tried following your steps, but after I opened up the network and sharing center I couldn't find a wifi connection to highlight. Am I missing something? Please let me know! And thanks for your help.

    Lydia Vejar

    Was this answer helpful?

    0 comments
  3. Anonymous
    2015-10-12T09:30:59+00:00

    Hi Simply.puzzle,

    Thanks for posting in the Microsoft Community.

    I understand that you have recently upgraded to Windows 8 pro and you are unable to access Wi-Fi. You have mentioned that you have updated the Wireless LAN driver and enabled the wireless communication in BIOS and yet you are getting an error message asking you to enable the wireless capability by turning on the switch on the front or side of your computer.

    In this case, I would suggest you to check if the Wi-Fi switch on your keyboard is turned ON. You can enable the Wi-Fi by pressing the function key and the F8 key at the same time (Fn+F8 key).

    I would also suggest you to go through this link to troubleshoot if the problem still persists:

    http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows/network-connection-problem-help#network-problems=windows-8&v1h=win8tab1&v2h=win7tab1&v3h=winvistatab1&v4h=winxptab1

    Hope this resolves the issue. If the issue persists, please get back to us and we would be happy to help you further.

    Thanks for the same.

    The first case "Enabling the Wi-Fi by pressing the function key and the F8 key at the same time (Fn+F8 key)" has been worked in my Windows 10 which was upgraded from 8.1. 

    With regards,

    Subh

    Was this answer helpful?

    0 comments
  4. Anonymous
    2015-10-19T20:20:06+00:00

    Don't work with this problem

    Was this answer helpful?

    0 comments