On Fri, 12 Feb 2021 15:39:13 +0000, Ralph Corderoy wrote: > So I suspect either the laptop or router have changed something > related to password access around the time it stopped > working. Given your Android tablet doesn't have problems, this > suggests the laptop's configuration.
I am inclined to agree that this seems to be a problem with the laptop itself. One test you could do is try running a live Linux distribution on the laptop and see if the WiFi works in that. If you can get the WiFi to work properly in any live distro, then you know there's most likely a problem with the software on the laptop, and not a problem with the router or a problem with the laptop's hardware. If you cannot get the WiFi to work in a live distro, then the result is less conclusive, because it could just be a problem with the live distro. Certainly if the problem is worse in the live distro than it is normally, then I would not be jumping to conclusions about the laptop. Now a couple of associations I made in my mind about this: 1. You would get these symptoms if your laptop's WiFi adapter was being blocked by a MAC address filter on the router. (That is, either the WiFi adapter's MAC address is on a list of ones to block, or it is not on a list of ones to allow.) 2. Sometimes, wires that pass through the hinges of laptops can become damaged by the hinge motion over time. WiFi coax cables usually go through the hinges, and if one of those got damaged, it might cause the symptoms of being able to see networks but not connect to any them. It probably wouldn't cause problems with just one specific network, although it might cause problems with a specific WiFi channel. I'm not saying these are likely causes. In fact, neither of them seems very likely. But they came into my mind, and maybe they remind someone of something else. Patrick -- Next meeting: Online, Jitsi, Tuesday, 2021-03-02 20:00 Check to whom you are replying Meetings, mailing list, IRC, ... http://dorset.lug.org.uk New thread, don't hijack: mailto:dorset@mailman.lug.org.uk
