Wifi stop working. Win10 shows only one network and it doesn't connect to WiFi

[Gorghino]

Hi guys,
since some days my wifi has stopped working.
If I click on Wifi icon it shows only ONE (max two) NETWORK, but not mine!

And I live in a building with 20+ networks, as you can see from WiFi Analyzer (I'm the red one on the right)



If I deactive/reactive Wifi with fn+f12, it goes to Airplane mode and to Wifi mode again and it eventually shows all the networks:



My Wifi is on the top. If it's saved, Windows connects to it and then it drops the connection; if it's not saved and I try to connect, it says "You're not able to connect to this network".
The fun fact is that after some seconds every network disappear and only one is showed (probably the neighbour one..I dunno).

I've already tried to HARD-RESET the notebook keeping the power button for 10/15sec with the laptop turned off.
I've already tried to follow these instructions (http://support.hp.com/us-en/document/c04649175) updating drivers (Intel 18.12.0.3, 18.12.1.2, 18.30.0.9 [Windows 10 default], 18.32.0 [Lastest drivers]) with no success. Everytime I install a new drivers, I uninstalled the previous one + Wireless software + reboot.

I tried to uncheked "Allow this computer to turn off this device to save power" on my Wifi hardware settings without success.

The HP Network support says I didn't choose a Wifi (Really? The problem is I don't see my Wifi on the list!).

This is not related to a new Windows 10 upgrade since I've installed it months ago and It's the first time I've this problem 😕 It always worked 😞

I tried different settings too:
I changed channel, I set 802.11g on my router, APSD off on the router.
I set "Magic packet off, ad hoc QoS off, U-APSD off, fat channel off,incremental throughput off, HT mode off" on the card setting without success. Nothing chaned.

The Hardware test doesn't detect any failure.

Note carefully: If I go close to the router, it shows my network with full power connection and it connects to it. Then I go back to my bedroom (probably 3/4 meters far), it KEEPS the connection for 30/40min and It drops the connection and I can't reconnect to it anymore. It always worked perfectly in my room in these months (I bought it in March 2015), so the distance is not a problem, I'm 6/7m far from the router.
In this case It shows my Network (Connected) and the neighbour network...and the other 20+ networks???

The only way I have is USB tethering with my Nexus 5.

Linux: I tried the Wifi connection on Elementary Freya (Ubuntu linux based OS) and it shows 20+ networks available on the list. It has not connection problem with my Wifi, but sometimes it stops working, the webpages stop loading and I must reboot Wifi to reconnect to it (usually after 30/40min using it).

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What's the problem? Is my Wifi card broken? Should I call italian support or you have some suggestion?

[WAWood]

Gorghino

Unfortunately, with Win10, you get driver updates installed without your permission and without your knowledge.  The Win10 forums are riddled with folks whose machines used to work but now, they do not anymore -- and when the investigation is done to determine why, more often than not, it's a new driver update from Microsoft.

This is further supported, in your case, where you tried Linux distro and it worked -- because it uses entirely different networking drivers from Windows

If you can, you should see if you can rollback the drivers that are causing the problem.  And if that fixes the problem, then consider disabling future driver updates using the information in the link:  http://www.howtogeek.com/223864/how-to-uninstall-and-block-updates-and-drivers-on-windows-10/

Good Luck

[Gorghino]

It should be due to a Windows update, but It's true that it doesn't work perfectly with Linux neither.
I tried different version of Intel Wifi drivers available, without success. I did a "Driver factory restore" too.

I should try a system restore to Windows 8.1 😕 I hope I'm not wasting my time doing it..

[WAWood]

Gorghino

Unfortunately, you may be wasting your time in more ways than one.

The Win10 GoBack function is know to be unreliable and when it fails, it can leave machines in a corrupted state. So, if you try to use that to revert back to Win8.1, you're running the risk of ending up with an unusable machine.

The Win10 Upgrade is know, in some cases, to corrupt the Recovery partition stored there by the OEM that built the original machine.  This pretty much guarantees that no HP Recovery is going to work.

What will work is restoring your machine to its original factory condition using HP Recovery Media.  This is a set of DVDs and a CD that will erase the hard drive (removing all data, settings, and applications, reinstall the original OS, drivers, and some HP Utilities. In some cases, you may be able to order a USB stick instead of disks.  You have to order these from HP; they can not be downloaded.

You can look online for Recovery Media starting with the linked paged: http://support.hp.com/us-en/drivers

Once there, input your Product name or number. On your Software and Drivers Download page, select your Operating System and and Version. Click "Update".  If HP Recovery Media is available for your machine, down near the bottom of the page, you will see an entry for Order Recovery Media-CD/DVD/USB. Click the "+" symbol to expand that entty and click on Order Media for details.

Or, if you prefer, you can do the same by contacting HP Customer Service:

If you live in the US or Canada, contact information is on this page: http://www8.hp.com/us/en/contact-hp/phone-assist.html#section1

If you live elsewhere, contact information is on this page: http://www8.hp.com/us/en/contact-hp/ww-contact-us.html

Be sure to read through the material in the linked thread BEFORE you attempt the recovery:  http://support.hp.com/us-en/document/c00707939

Good Luck

I am a volunteer and I do not work for, nor do I represent, HP.
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[Gorghino · Accepted solution]

WAWood,
I took a risk.
I did a restore factory with HP recovery (I've a dedicated drive for it) and....it worked! 🙂
I had to upgrade Win8.1 to 10, but the Wifi problem is solved! 😄

I'm still guessing which was the problem...

Now I'm running Intel drivers ver. 18.30.0.9 and all the networks are working.

In the next days I'm trying to check the linux problem (the factory reset deleted Elementary partition).