If you have a laptop running Windows 7 where the wireless card disconnects for seemingly no reason, it may be your power options settings causing the problem.

Before continuing, when I say “disconnects”, I don’t mean that the wireless card is having problems connecting. I mean that at some point after using your laptop for a while, the wireless card simply stops working altogether, requiring a reboot of the laptop to activate it again.

Most laptops with Windows 7 do have the Advanced Power Settings set in such a way where the wireless card will shut off to save power when the battery gets low enough. This is easy to disable:

1. Click the Windows logo, search for network and click Network and Sharing Center.

2. From the window that pops up, click Change adapter settings on the left sidebar.

3. Right-click your wireless connection and select Properties.

4. From the next window that pops up, click the Configure button.

5. From the next window that pops up, click the Power Management tab.

6. UNcheck Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power.

Is this a universal fix for wireless cards that randomly stop working in Windows 7?

NO. This may or may not work for you, but it’s worth a try if your card keeps randomly disconnecting.

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