So, after the latest Windows update rolled out last week, my laptop started dropping Wi-Fi connections randomly. It’s bizarre because my phone and tablet stay connected just fine on the same network, and my desktop wired connection is solid as ever.

I’ve tried rebooting the router, resetting the network adapter, and even uninstalling and reinstalling the Wi-Fi driver, but no luck. The connection will stay up for anywhere from 5 minutes to half an hour, then just disappear and reconnect after a few seconds. It’s super frustrating when I’m in the middle of video calls or downloads.

Anyone else experienced this after the recent Windows update? Any tips on what else I can try before I consider rolling back the update? Appreciate any pointers or similar stories.

On 12/14/2025 at 7:25 PM, techbloke said:

So, after the latest Windows update rolled out last week, my laptop started dropping Wi-Fi connections randomly. It’s bizarre because my phone and tablet stay connected just fine on the same network, and my desktop wired connection is solid as ever.

I’ve tried rebooting the router, resetting the network adapter, and even uninstalling and reinstalling the Wi-Fi driver, but no luck. The connection will stay up for anywhere from 5 minutes to half an hour, then just disappear and reconnect after a few seconds. It’s super frustrating when I’m in the middle of video calls or downloads.

Anyone else experienced this after the recent Windows update? Any tips on what else I can try before I consider rolling back the update? Appreciate any pointers or similar stories.

@techbloke, that sounds super annoying. Since you’ve already done the usual driver reinstall and router reboot, have you checked if the power management settings for your Wi-Fi adapter are turning off the device to save power? Sometimes Windows updates reset those to be more aggressive. You can find that in Device Manager under your Wi-Fi adapter’s properties, then the Power Management tab - make sure “Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power” is unchecked.

Also, if your laptop supports both 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands, try forcing it to connect to just one band to see if that stabilizes things. Some updates mess with how Windows handles band steering. If none of that helps, rolling back the update might be the safest bet until Microsoft patches it.

On 01/13/2026 at 12:15 AM, MellowOwl615 said:

On 12/14/2025 at 7:25 PM, techbloke said:

So, after the latest Windows update rolled out last week, my laptop started dropping Wi-Fi connections randomly. It’s bizarre because my phone and tablet stay connected just fine on the same network, and my desktop wired connection is solid as ever.

I’ve tried rebooting the router, resetting the network adapter, and even uninstalling and reinstalling the Wi-Fi driver, but no luck. The connection will stay up for anywhere from 5 minutes to half an hour, then just disappear and reconnect after a few seconds. It’s super frustrating when I’m in the middle of video calls or downloads.

Anyone else experienced this after the recent Windows update? Any tips on what else I can try before I consider rolling back the update? Appreciate any pointers or similar stories.

@techbloke, that sounds super annoying. Since you’ve already done the usual driver reinstall and router reboot, have you checked if the power management settings for your Wi-Fi adapter are turning off the device to save power? Sometimes Windows updates reset those to be more aggressive. You can find that in Device Manager under your Wi-Fi adapter’s properties, then the Power Management tab - make sure “Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power” is unchecked.

Also, if your laptop supports both 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands, try forcing it to connect to just one band to see if that stabilizes things. Some updates mess with how Windows handles band steering. If none of that helps, rolling back the update might be the safest bet until Microsoft patches it.

@techbloke, sounds like a real headache! Since you’ve already tried the usual suspects like rebooting and driver reinstalls, have you checked if the update changed any power management settings? Sometimes Windows updates tweak the “Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power” option in the Wi-Fi adapter properties, which can cause those random drops.

Also, if your laptop has any third-party VPN or security software, those can conflict after updates and mess with connectivity. Disabling them temporarily might help isolate the issue. If none of that works, rolling back the update or waiting for a patch might be the only way until Microsoft sorts it out.

On 01/13/2026 at 12:15 AM, MellowOwl615 said:

On 12/14/2025 at 7:25 PM, techbloke said:

So, after the latest Windows update rolled out last week, my laptop started dropping Wi-Fi connections randomly. It’s bizarre because my phone and tablet stay connected just fine on the same network, and my desktop wired connection is solid as ever.

I’ve tried rebooting the router, resetting the network adapter, and even uninstalling and reinstalling the Wi-Fi driver, but no luck. The connection will stay up for anywhere from 5 minutes to half an hour, then just disappear and reconnect after a few seconds. It’s super frustrating when I’m in the middle of video calls or downloads.

Anyone else experienced this after the recent Windows update? Any tips on what else I can try before I consider rolling back the update? Appreciate any pointers or similar stories.

@techbloke, that sounds super annoying. Since you’ve already done the usual driver reinstall and router reboot, have you checked if the power management settings for your Wi-Fi adapter are turning off the device to save power? Sometimes Windows updates reset those to be more aggressive. You can find that in Device Manager under your Wi-Fi adapter’s properties, then the Power Management tab - make sure “Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power” is unchecked.

Also, if your laptop supports both 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands, try forcing it to connect to just one band to see if that stabilizes things. Some updates mess with how Windows handles band steering. If none of that helps, rolling back the update might be the safest bet until Microsoft patches it.

@techbloke, sounds like a classic case of that recent Windows update messing with the Wi-Fi driver’s stability. Since you’ve already tried reinstalling the driver, have you checked if there's a newer beta or optional driver from your laptop manufacturer’s site? Sometimes the generic Windows driver lags behind on fixes.

Also, it might be worth disabling any power-saving features on your Wi-Fi adapter in Device Manager - Windows updates often reset those settings, causing the adapter to power down unexpectedly. I had a similar issue after an update, and toggling off "Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power" did the trick.

If that still doesn’t help, you could try setting a static DNS like Google’s (8.8.8.8) just to rule out any weird DNS hiccups, though your symptoms sound more driver-related. Let us know how it goes!