"My Wi-Fi keeps dropping!" 😩
It's one of the most common help desk tickets, and the usual reply is "restart the router." Sometimes that works. Often it doesn't, and the ticket comes right back.
Here's the thing: Windows already keeps a detailed log of every wireless connect and disconnect. One command turns it into a readable report. Let's use it. 🧾
🛠️ Step 1: Generate the report
Open Command Prompt or PowerShell as administrator and run:
netsh wlan show wlanreport
Windows builds an HTML report from roughly the last few days of wireless activity and saves it here:
C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\WlanReport\wlan-report-latest.html
Open it in any browser:
start C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\WlanReport\wlan-report-latest.html
🔍 Step 2: Read the chart
At the top you'll see a timeline of sessions. Red marks are errors, and gaps show where the connection dropped. Click into a session to see the disconnect reason, like the device going to sleep, the network becoming unavailable, or the user disconnecting.
Now you have when and why, not just "it drops sometimes." 🎯
⚡ Step 3: Match the pattern to a fix
- 😴 Drops when the laptop sleeps or sits idle? Open Device Manager, go to your Wi-Fi adapter's Properties, and on the Power Management tab uncheck "Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power."
- 📍 Drops only in one room or desk? Probably weak signal or interference. Check signal strength with:
netsh wlan show interfaces
Look at the Signal percentage while standing in the problem spot.
- 💻 Drops everywhere, but only on this one PC? Update the Wi-Fi driver from the laptop maker's site or Windows Update.
- 👥 Drops for everyone at the same time? Now it's worth looking at the router or access point. 📡
✅ The takeaway
Don't guess. Pull the report, find the pattern, and fix the actual cause. You'll close the ticket faster, and it won't bounce back next week.
What's your go-to first check when Wi-Fi keeps cutting out? Drop it below 👇
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