How to get the Microsoft wifi Direct Virtual network adapter

Question

Hello, I recently bought the HP Omnibook 7 AI. It has Windows 11 version 24H2 64. I am trying to use this laptop to connect to my Raspberry pi through the mobile hotspot, but it only works if the Microsoft Wifi Direct Virtual network (seen in the "view network connections" part of the control panel) is available through the Microsoft wifi direct virtual adapter, but I don't have that adapter in my device manager. I've tried everything like resetting my network settings, or trying to manually install it through device manager or scanning for hardware changes and also viewing the hidden devices.

I think this is weird because my old Dell Inspiron has the network adapter and old lenovo laptop also has it, so why doesn't this newer model laptop have it? The only network adapter in my device manager is the Kernel debug one, but that is not the one I am looking for.

The website keeps glitching whenever I try to submit a screenshot so I'm not sure what screenshots I've put on this post so sorry in advance. I'm thinking that maybe this laptop may not be compatible with the wifi adapter and I may need to return it. Any help is greatly appreciated!

Answer 1

Here are the screenshots:![](https://learn-attachment.microsoft.com/api/attachments/6a6e6f04-0658-43fb-a23e-5e9e670130b3?platform=QnA

Answer 2

Hi Mike,

I'm Pau, an Independent Advisor. I see that you're having trouble locating the Microsoft Wi-Fi Direct Virtual Adapter on your new HP Omnibook 7 running Windows 11 24H2. I will walk you through the essential steps to verify compatibility, reinstall the adapter, and establish a connection with your Raspberry Pi.

Step 1 - Verify whether your Wi-Fi adapter is compatible with Wi-Fi Direct.

Navigate to > Start > Enter cmd > Right-click on Command Prompt > Execute with Administrator privileges

Enter the command: netsh wlan show drivers

If Hosted network is not supported and Wi-Fi Direct is not supported, then your hardware does not support it.

Step 2 - Reveal hidden devices and verify the adapter

Head over to > Right-click on Start, then select Device Manager, and choose View. Reveal concealed devices

Open the Network Adapters section by expanding it. Search for the Microsoft Wi-Fi Direct Virtual Adapter.

If it's listed but appears grayed out: Click the right mouse button > Select Uninstall > Reboot your computer

Step 3 - Reinstall your Wi-Fi adapter

Navigate to > Device Manager > Network Adapters > Right-click on the Wi-Fi adapter and select Uninstall device.

Reboot the computer > Windows will automatically reinstall drivers.

Next, navigate to > Start > Settings > Windows Update > Look for driver updates in the Optional Updates section.

Step 4 - Get the most recent Wi-Fi drivers from HP

Visit > https://support.hp.com > Enter HP Omnibook 7 > Get the most recent Wi-Fi and Bluetooth drivers

Disclaimer: This is a non-Microsoft website. The page appears to be providing accurate, safe information. Watch out for ads on the site that may advertise products frequently classified as a PUP (Potentially Unwanted Products). Thoroughly research any product advertised on the site before you decide to download and install it.

Step 5: Utilize Intel’s driver assistant (if you have an Intel chip)

Navigate to Device Manager, then select Network Adapter. Right-click on it and choose Properties, followed by Details. Choose Hardware Identifiers

If you have an Intel chipset, visit: https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/support...

Disclaimer: This is a non-Microsoft website. The page appears to be providing accurate, safe information. Watch out for ads on the site that may advertise products frequently classified as a PUP (Potentially Unwanted Products). Thoroughly research any product advertised on the site before you decide to download and install it.

Step 6: Utilize Mobile Hotspot without the virtual adapter

Navigate to > Settings > Network & Internet > Mobile Hotspot Choose > Share using Wi-Fi or Ethernet > Transfer via Wi-Fi > Establish name/password > Activate hotspot On

Connect your Raspberry Pi using the hotspot SSID

If Step 1 shows Wi-Fi Direct not supported, your laptop does not support the Microsoft Wi-Fi Direct Virtual Adapter due to hardware limitation. Use a USB Wi-Fi dongle that supports hosted networks or consider exchange if this is a required feature.

Kindly let me know how it goes. I’ll stay with you until we get this resolved.

Best regards,

Pau

Answer 3

Hi Pau, thank you for your help and advice. Unfortunately, the tips that you listed did not work. I tried every single one but they did not seem to work. I'll list what happened for each one.

1. In the command prompt thing after I entered the command, I saw that host network was not supported. I then went on my old computer that has the microsoft wifi direct virtual adapter to see if it supported it, but after entering the command on that computer I also saw that host network was not supported. In both computers, there was nothing in the command prompt that specifically said if wifi direct was supported. In short, both computers tested (one that has the microsoft wifi direct virtual adapter and my current one that does not have the adapter) cannot support host network and the command prompt did not confirm whether or not "Wi-Fi Direct" was supported.
2. the microsoft wifi direct virtual adapter does not appear on my device manager regardless of what I do
3. In my device manager, under the network adapters, there was nothing that specifically said "wifi adapter" (as seen in the screenshots) but I uninstalled the intel wifi and the kernel debug adapter then restarted by laptop. Only the intel one reinstalled, now my kernel debug one is gone and I also don't know how to reinstall it. I also restarted my network settings to factory settings and neither the microsoft wifi direct virtual adapter nor the kernel debug adapter appeared, so I guess we have a new problem now.
4. on the hp support website I entered both the serial number and product ID into the prompt and found my pc. When I ran the scanner to scan for new drivers in my device, it told me that the device I inputted was not the actual device I was using, even though I entered the exact serial number and product ID, so it must be a glitch with the HP website. Anyway, I manually installed the intel wifi and bluetooth drivers from that website.
5. I went to the website and scanned for new drivers and manually downloaded the latest wifi and bluetooth drivers.
6. The past steps did not work so I was not able to connect to my raspberry pi through VNC viewer.

Unfortunately, none of these solutions worked, and I haven't had any conformation that my laptop is not compatible with the microsoft wifi direct virtual network adapter as the command prompt on my new laptop and old PC were pretty much identical when reporting what each computer was compatible with and capable of doing. Because the command prompt didn't say anything about it, is there a way to specifically see if wifi direct is supported?

Answer 4

Hi Mike, Thanks for the detailed update. I'm sorry that the problem is still not fixed after all the steps. Your tests and the fact that the Microsoft Wi-Fi Direct Virtual Adapter doesn't show up suggest that the Wi-Fi card in your Omnibook doesn't support Wi-Fi Direct, even though the output from the command prompt looks like it does on older devices.

Some newer models don't let you use this feature, though, because the hardware or driver limits it. If you need Wi-Fi Direct for your setup, you should use a USB Wi-Fi adapter that works with your system or call HP support to make sure that the chipset is compatible.

I really get how frustrating this is, and thanks for waiting. If you need help picking out an adapter or have any other questions, feel free to get in touch. I'm here to help.

Many thanks,

Pau