You walk from one part of the office to another. The Wi-Fi signal at your new spot is weak — the strong AP is right above your head, but your laptop is still talking to the one back at your old desk. This is a roaming problem.

Why this happens

Wi-Fi roaming is a client-side decision. Your laptop checks the signal periodically and decides whether to hand off to a stronger AP. Modern Windows and macOS are reasonable about this, but:

  • The threshold for switching is conservative (it has to be markedly better, not just slightly)
  • Some laptops cling to the original AP until signal drops dramatically
  • Drivers vary wildly in how aggressively they roam

Quick fix: manually disconnect and reconnect

Click the Wi-Fi icon → click the network name → Disconnect. Wait 5 seconds. Reconnect. Your laptop picks the strongest signal from scratch.

This is the right answer when you've moved and the network is now sluggish.

Force a reconnect via command line

Windows:<br>[unrendered]

macOS: Hold Option, click the Wi-Fi icon, choose Disassociate from Current Network.

Tweak roaming aggressiveness

For Intel Wi-Fi adapters (most laptops):

  1. Device Manager → Network adapters → right-click your Intel Wi-Fi → Properties
  2. Advanced tab → find Roaming Aggressiveness
  3. Set to High

This makes the laptop roam at a slightly stronger remaining signal — at the cost of more frequent re-associations in marginal areas.

For non-Intel adapters, look for similar settings in the Advanced tab. Names vary: "Roaming Decision", "Roaming Sensitivity", "Roaming Tendency".

See which AP you're connected to

Each AP has its own MAC address (BSSID). Windows shows the BSSID in:

netsh wlan show interfaces

Look for BSSID. Compare to the strongest AP nearby (some IT teams label APs physically — look for stickers above ceiling tiles).

Driver update

Roaming bugs are some of the most-fixed-in-driver-updates issues. Update via Intel Driver and Support Assistant if you have Intel Wi-Fi.

Network-side fix

The real fix for roaming problems is on the IT side — enabling 802.11k/v/r (fast roaming protocols) on the access points. If multiple people complain about the same problem in the same area, that's a network ticket, not a per-laptop one.

When to ticket

Raise a network ticket if:

  • Multiple people see roaming problems in the same area
  • Roaming aggressiveness changes don't help
  • A specific corner of the building has consistently weak signal — that's likely a coverage gap

Include the AP name you're stuck on and the AP name you should be roaming to (if known), plus the physical location in the building.