Broadcom 802.11n Network Adapter and WIndows 7

After changing some compatibility issues the correct adapter now installs however, when I check it through device manager, it shows exactly the same driver details as the previous driver.

Is this something to do with the driver store?

Is there a way of completely removing the driver from Windows 7 allowing installation of the correct driver?

Thanks for the reply, I had already carried out these changes.

In the interim I have determined that the driver for my network adapter is for Windows 8.

When I uninstall it and try to install the driver for Windows 7 from the Lenovo site, I get an error message saying the system is not supported and the driver will not be installed.

I then have to install the old driver from a file on the system called 'drivers' and my problems start all over again.

I do not understand how a driver for Windows 7 will not install on a Windows 7 system but a Windows 8 driver will (and cause me the issues mentioned above)

Anybody know how to get around this one?

Hi,

Thank you for posting in the Microsoft community.

From the issue description, wifi will not connect automatically to home wireless network. I will be glad to assist you on this issue.

Method 1I would suggest you to reset the network adaptor settings. Then follow the steps below

To reset the TCP/IP stack go to this article and either click on "Fix it for me" or follow the instructions to fix it yourself:

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/299357

Method 2Disable the IP Helper service:

a. Hold the Windows key and type R, enter "services.msc" (without the quotes) and press Enter

b. Scroll down to the IP Helper service, right click on it and select Properties

c. In the dropdown box that says "Automatic" or "Manual", set it to Disabled and then click on "Apply"

d. Then click on "Stop" to stop the service from running in the current session

e. Click OK to exit the dialog

Method 3

Disable the DHCP Broadcast Flag: Link:http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx/kb/928233

Important: This section, method, or task contains steps that tell you how to modify the registry. However, serious problems might occur if you modify the registry incorrectly. Therefore, make sure that you follow these steps carefully. For added protection, back up the registry before you modify it. Then, you can restore the registry if a problem occurs. For more information about how to back up and restore the registry, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/322756

(How to back up and restore the registry in Windows)

Windows Vista cannot obtain an IP address from certain routers or from certain non-Microsoft DHCP servers

To resolve this issue, disable the DHCP BROADCAST flag in Windows Vista. To do this, follow these steps:

a. Click Start, type regedit in the Start Search box, and then click regedit in the Programs list.

If you are prompted for an administrator password or for confirmation, type your password, or click Continue.

b. Locate and then click the following registry subkey:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Tcpip\Parameters\Interfaces{GUID}

c. In this registry path, click the (GUID) subkey that corresponds to the network adapter that is connected to the network.

d. On the Edit menu, point to New, and then click DWORD (32-bit) Value.

e. In the New Value #1 box, type DhcpConnEnableBcastFlagToggle, and then press ENTER.

f. Right-click DhcpConnEnableBcastFlagToggle, and then click Modify.

g. In the Value data box, type 1, and then click OK.

h. Close Registry Editor.

By setting this registry key to 1, Windows Vista will first try to obtain an IP address by using the BROADCAST flag in DHCP Discover packets. If that fails, it will try to obtain an IP address without using the BROADCAST flag in DHCP Discover packets.

I hope that this information helps. Please get back to us if you have any more questions about this issue.

Hope this helps!. Let us know if you face any difficulty or have any other question on Windows.

Hi and greetings from Australia.

I have had this problem and it was driving me MAD! I was advised by my laptop's manufacturer to uninstall Broadcom to solve a mobile phone hotspot connectivity problem. When I restarted the laptop I still couldn't connect to my mobile, but then I was not able to see any wifi networks. I tried many fixes from the internet (including this one) plus many re installs of the driver software without success. The manufacturers advice line told me to do a factory reset of my laptop to fix. 

The eventual problem was that I was using free anti virus (Avast) and firewall software (Zonealarm). Although the Broadcom driver WAS working well with these freewares, when I did the unintall/re install the security software was blocking the operation of the wifi. 

To fix my problem, I:

• uninstalled Zonealarm/Avast
• installed the Broadcom driver and made sure it was enabled (at this stage my laptop could now see my wifi networks, mobile phone etc)
• reinstalled my free security software again.....all has and is working well.

Good luck,

Dr R

Hi,

Thank you for joining us again.

I would suggest you to try the steps from the following link on how to uninstall the drivers completely from the device manager.

Using Device Manager to Uninstall Devices and Driver Packages (Windows Drivers)

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/hardware/ff553572(v=vs.85).aspx

Once you un-install the drivers from the device manager, then install Windows 7 drivers from the manufacturers website and see if that helps.

Hope this helps!