Can’t see WiFi address

[DonnyB]

I am visiting family out of state. I have the sSid and password and I am able to log on to their WiFi network using my iPad and cell phone. However, on my pc, I am not able to see the WiFi network. I even set up a new network using the ssid and passwordbut still can’t see the network in the list of available networks. Any idea what I am doing wrong?
btw, I am able to see all the neighbors networks, just not this one.

 

[ColinTaylor]

Although unlikely it's possible the SSID is on a band or channel that your PC's network adapter doesn't support.

Looking at the WiFi details on your iPad and phone what band (2.4 or 5) and channel are you connected to?

 

[DonnyB]

It's 2.4, not sure what channel

 

[ColinTaylor]

You could download one of the free WiFi analyser apps for your phone. That would show you the channels of all the access points in the area. If the access point is operating on channels 12 or 13 that would be a problem because those channels are not allowed in the US.

Do you know the make and model of your PC's WiFi adapter? Is it very old?

 

[Tech9]

Any chance someone told this laptop to use exclusively 5GHz band or 802.11ac? This is how some people fight SmartConnect decisions.

 

[DonnyB]

I use 2.4 at home; so I know that works.
Wifi is on channel 11. It is a strong signal, but there are several others in the area using channel 11.

 

[ColinTaylor]

The only thing that comes to mind is the possibility that the access point is configured for 802.11n only and your network adapter is 802.11g. But even then you should still be able to see the SSID even if you can't connect to it. Strange.

 

[DonnyB]

Is there an app (that works on iPad) that will tell what that is? 802.11n, g, or a.
Its a new house so is probably new technology. Laptop is about 4 years old.

 

[EmeraldDeer]

Is there an app (that works on iPad) that will tell what that is? 802.11n, g, or a.
Its a new house so is probably new technology. Laptop is about 4 years old.

iOS apps are limited in what they can do regarding WiFi by Apple so there are no informative apps. I have not had an Android for years so I don't know there. By far the most informative free application is WinFi Lite which runs on Windows, availabe at https://www.helge-keck.com/
But maybe WinFi Lite won't see the SSID for the same reason that Windows is not seeing it. On the other hand, my PC has a WiFi card which only supports up to 802.11n, yet I see SSID's running 802.11ac and 802.11ax. If it does work, check whether it using 20 or 40 MHz of bandwidth as well as 802.11b, g, n or ax.

 

[degrub]

Is the ssid “hidden” as in not broadcast ?

 

[DonnyB]

EDeer, you are correct. WinFi is a really good program, however it did not see the ssid I was looking for. I got the Mac addy from My phone, so I knew which one was the one I was looking for.
WinFi also listed the hidden ones, but none matched the mac addy or channel.
I still hate this iPad, but am getting used to it. Sighhh

 

[degrub]

Is the AP mac address available under IOS settings or do you find it somewhere else on the phone ?
All i see in my phone is the mac address (real or random IOS 14) of my phone under wifi information.

 

[DonnyB]

I have an android phone and an iPad. I am using both to try and solve this. I have WiFi analyzer app on my phone that I used to get the Mac addy.
I downloaded WinFi software to my phone and copied it to my Win10 laptop, and ran it there (on my laptop).
The strange thing is that my laptop and any software on it does not see the one sSid, but does see all the others in the neighborhood. We have a few other devices here and they all see the one ssid that my laptop does not see.

 

[degrub]

Have you visited before and had wifi access across this equipment combination ?

What are the hardware specs on your laptop wifi adapter ?
Win 10 home or pro ?

Have they changed anything since last visit ?
Have you ?

It is as if there is a protocol mismatch so your wireless cannot even handshake with the AP. Or either the AP or your laptop is blocking the other.
Can they show you the AP configuration pages ? the AP MAC addresses are sometimes on a label on the AP at least with consumer gear.

 

[Tech9]

Have they changed anything since last visit ?

@DonnyB read this question as - Did you have any arguments with the owner of this house recently?

 

[DonnyB]

The owner is my son in law. He just moved in and I have never been here before. We are here taking care of our grandkids while he is on biz trip. We are on excellent terms since we lost our daughter to cancer.
My laptop uses Win 10 home.
Is it possible to get WiFi radio info with no access to internet?

 

[Tech9]

I would also try to reset, re-install or upgrade the wireless adapter drivers on this laptop.

 

[degrub]

The owner is my son in law. He just moved in and I have never been here before. We are here taking care of our grandkids while he is on biz trip. We are on excellent terms since we lost our daughter to cancer.
My laptop uses Win 10 home.
Is it possible to get WiFi radio info with no access to internet?

My condolences.

yes, it is possible to connect to a local network but not get out to the internet through a wireless access point or a wired ethernet connection if the router firewall is blocking the device or if the device has an incorrect tcp/ip address.

But your laptop has to connect to the correct AP first which i thought was the issue.
Is the laptop showing a connection to the local network but no connection to the internet on the network map ?
The laptop is set up to use DHCP and Auto to get an IP address, yes ?

 

[DonnyB]

Laptop is set to dhcp, and I just updated the driver this morning.
It has not changed. That is, my laptop does not “see” the ssid in the list of available networks. WinFi does not see it either. My iPad and android does see it and both can connect.
I do see several other neighbors networks.

 

[degrub]

Do you have any issue connecting with other public APs like at a coffee shop or hotel ?