Laptop Doesn't See Network (Resolved)

Carbo

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Aug 6, 2000
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My daughter's laptop isn't seeing the network that was just setup for her in the apartment. She's in Madrid, Spain and asked dear ol' dad for help but I'm stumped. Figured I come to ground zero for all things good and evil about networking. . .
The laptop in question is a Dell XPS 13, model 9360. Running Windows 10 Home. Wireless card is a Killer 1535. The router is a Jazztel AR-5315u. Her cellphone, an Iphone 6S, picks up the network fine, as does her roommate's MAC laptop. So it must be an issue with her laptop? The laptop sees other networks in the building and has connected successfully to networks and hotspots around the city.
Rebooted both router and laptop but that hasn't helped.
 
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sdifox

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Sep 30, 2005
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Is the ssid hidden on the router? She can try setting up manually
 

Carbo

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Tried connecting manually, but the network is still nowhere to be found. Also tried updating the driver, even though the latest driver was installed. Made no difference.
 

mxnerd

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Check whether the adapter is only in 5G band. Jazztel AR-5315u only support 802.11n 2.4G
 
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Carbo

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Just checked the card settings and they are correct. Thanks for the input.
 

mxnerd

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Move the laptop around the router and try different distances.

Maybe it's in a dead spot relative to the router.
 

Carbo

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She's moved around the apt. Nothing. Not finding the network at all. Odd thing is her Iphone picked it up immediately, as did her roommate's MAC.
 

mxnerd

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Probably the Killer 1535 WiFi is defective then.

If she can't wait, buy an USB WiFi adapter might be the fastest way to fix it.

Or use a cable instead. At the same time, contact Dell asking for a replacement card.
 
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mxnerd

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I don't think it's the card. It connects to other networks all around the city.

OK. Can't find pdf manual for the router. Don't know how to help.

See if you can ask her to change 2.4G channel for the router or set it to auto.

Maybe it's too crowded in the current channel.
 
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VirtualLarry

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Does it have the same SSID as one of the other routers in the area? That might be confusing the WiFi NIC driver, or Windows' WiFi widget.

Does her Windows Wifi widget show "Other Network" at the bottom?

Edit: If all else fails - how many ethernet ports are there on the supplied router?

I'm thinking, buy another, newer, better, wireless router, and set it up as an AP on her LAN, and then use either her laptop's Wifi (if it works), or get a USB 2.4/5.0Ghz Wifi AC adapter, like an "AUKEY AC1750" on ebay. (Those are RealTek 8814AU 3x3 USB3.0 Wifi dual-band AC dongles. I've used them, they work fine.) Or both.

Edit: Could this have to do with the "Country" settings, on both the router, and her laptop's wifi? Different countries have different channel limits / ranges.. It's possible that the router is set to a channel outside the allowed range of the laptop's Wifi settings. (Is this a laptop from the US? In the USA, only 2.4Ghz channels 1-11 are allowed, out of, I think, 13 or 14 total. It's possible that Spain allows those other channels, and the router might be set to one of those outside the range of the laptop.)

Edit: The way to "Fix" that issue, would be to set the router to use only channels 1, 6, or 11, and nothing higher.
 
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VirtualLarry

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If your cell phone is connecting to this problematic router, then it can "see" the wifi signal broadcast by the router.

So, install some wifi sniffer app with a graphical diagram of the SSID, or at least one that will show the 2.4Ghz range channel numbers, so you can visually see if the channel is set to 11 or something higher.
 

Carbo

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The company replaced the router and as soon as they did the problem was fixed. Network is visible on both laptops and both cell phones. I don't know what the problem with the original router was; but I'm happy the issue has been resolved. Thanks to all for the replies.
 
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