Wi-Fi that disconnects randomly mid-meeting is one of the most common tickets. Most are fixable in 10 minutes without IT involvement.

1. The 3-foot test

Stand within 3 meters of the access point. If Wi-Fi is rock-solid up close but drops elsewhere, you have a coverage or roaming problem, not a hardware fault.

The fix is usually one of:

  • The access point your laptop is connected to is too far
  • Your laptop won't "roam" cleanly to a closer access point and clings to a weak signal
  • Physical interference (microwave, baby monitor, wall-mounted display) on the 2.4 GHz band

For roaming issues, manually disconnect and reconnect when you've moved — that forces your laptop to pick the strongest AP.

2. Forget and rejoin the network

This clears cached connection state that can go stale:

  • Windows: Settings → Network & Internet → Wi-Fi → Manage known networks → click the network → Forget. Then connect again with the password.
  • macOS: System Settings → Network → Wi-Fi → Advanced → click the network → (-) to remove. Reconnect.

3. Restart the Wi-Fi adapter

Toggle Wi-Fi off in the system tray, wait 10 seconds, toggle back on. If the keyboard has a physical Wi-Fi switch or function key, use that.

For more aggressive reset on Windows:

  1. Device Manager → Network adapters
  2. Right-click your Wi-Fi adapter → Disable
  3. Wait 30 seconds → Enable

4. Update the wireless driver

Out-of-date wireless drivers cause roaming bugs and intermittent disconnects.

For Intel Wi-Fi cards (most laptops): use the Intel Driver and Support Assistant — it pulls the latest driver direct from Intel, which is months ahead of Windows Update.

5. 2.4 GHz vs 5 GHz

If your office has both bands available:

  • 5 GHz — faster, less interference, shorter range. Use this if you're near an AP.
  • 2.4 GHz — slower, more interference, longer range. Better for distant spots.

If you keep auto-connecting to 2.4 GHz when you should be on 5 GHz, "forget" the 2.4 GHz network and stay on 5 GHz only.

6. Specific to laptops with USB 3.0

USB 3.0 ports cause radio interference on the 2.4 GHz band. If you have a USB hub or external drive plugged in and 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi dies, that's why. Switch to 5 GHz or move the USB device.

7. Speed test from another device

Pull out your phone and run speedtest.net on the same Wi-Fi. If the phone is fast and the laptop is slow, it's your laptop. If both are slow, it's the network.

When to ticket

Open a network ticket if:

  • Multiple people in the same area report drops simultaneously
  • A laptop that worked yesterday is dropping today with no changes
  • Driver updates haven't helped

Include the building/floor, the AP name (visible in the Wi-Fi connection details), and what time of day the drops happen — patterns help identify infrastructure issues.