VPN required to use wifi

[BIllboi805]

My HP 15 TS Notebook PC is about 4 years old. I have to connect it to a VPN to use any wifi network (secure or not) 

I don't get error messages when i try to connect, and it says its connected in my wifi settings, but when i try to get online, it  won't load any pages and it says i have no connections. As soon as i connect to my VPN however, it connects perfectly.

Normally, i wouldnt care. i would just leave the VPN connected, but my download speed is astronomically reduced with a VPN. PLEASE SAVE ME!!

[MKazi]

@BIllboi805

Thanks for reaching out to us on HP Support Forums. 🙂 

I understand that you have an HP 15 TouchSmart notebook and you have to connect the laptop to a VPN to any wifi network. There are no error messages and it says it is connected. However, while surfing the internet, it won't load any web pages and says it has no connections. But when you connect to your VPN, the laptop conencts perfectly fine. Due to the VPN connection, the download speed is reduced. I'll do my best to help you with this issue.

I would like to know the following information to assist you better:

• Do you other computers that connect without the VPN and work fine?
• Has the laptop remained connected to internet via VPN since the beginning when the wifi network was setup?

Meanwhile, here is a list of steps that commonly resolve issues with wireless connectivity:

First, we have a step by step guide to walk you through the troubleshooting process here: 

• Troubleshooting Your Wireless Network and Internet Connection

A second option, is to try these steps:
Powercycle the network:
1. Shut down your notebook.
2. Unplug the power to your router.
3. Unplug the power to your modem.
4. Wait at least 45 seconds.
5. Plug in the modem, and wait for it to come back online.
6. Plug in the router, and wait for it to come back online.
7. Turn on your notebook, and test your connection.

Disable the Power Off option for the adapter:
1. Open Device Manager. (Win Key+R > type devmgmt.msc > OK)
2. Expand the Network adapters.
3. Right click on the Ethernet/Wireless Adapter and click Properties.
4. Click the Power Management tab.
5. Remove the check mark beside Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power.
6. Click OK.
7. Test.

Reset the TCP/IP settings on your PC:
1. Go to your start screen/menu and type CMD.
2. Right click on the command prompt icon and chose Run as administrator.
3. In the window that opens type "netsh int ip reset resetlog.txt" without quotes, and press enter.
4. Restart your PC and test.

It may also help to reset the winsock catalogue:
1. Go to your start screen/menu and type CMD.
2. Right click on the command prompt icon and chose Run as administrator.
3. In the window that opens type "netsh winsock reset" without quotes, and press enter.
4. Restart your PC and test.

Reinstall the network adapter drivers:
1. Download the drivers from here but do not run them yet.
2. Go to your start screen/menu and type Device Manager.
3. Expand Network adapters.
4. Right click on the wireless adapter and choose Uninstall.
5. Run the downloaded drivers from step 1.
6. Restart your PC and test.

Test an ethernet connection:
Self explanatory. Test if the issue persists on a wired connection to rule out the wireless adapter hardware so troubleshooting can be directed towards the right areas.

Test another connection:
Many people rule out their home network as an issue if another device is working on the same network. Networking is not that simple. Each device interacts differently with your router or modem and it is impossible to rule out settings in that device until the notebook has been tested on another network.

If those three steps do not resolve the issue, try this document published by Microsoft for networking issues: Wired and wireless network problems. You can change the operating system with the dropdown in the upper-right corner of the document.

Hopefully this helps! Feel free to let me know how it goes. Cheers! 🙂