Ethernet Wired adapter missing

Question

So one day, my ethernet adapter randomly disappeared out of my device manager and I could no longer connect to ethernet despite the fact that the cord is connected to my motherboard and the light next to it is on, I've contacted my internet provider and they said everything shows as being fine on their end, and I've now tried to make sure everything in windows update is fine, which it is, I've reset bios, reinstall windows, download drivers off the internet, but when I do so, I get the following message: "This device is not working properly because Windows cannot load the drivers required for this device. (Code 31)

The request is not supported." And I've tried all kinds of stuff online, such as changing windows startup settings, of course, all after disabling vpn and antivirus, running network troubleshooter, having a microsoft employee look into it (Case number: REMOVE PII), restarting network services, resetting network, and even power recycling. That's all I can think of off the top of my head, though I'm sure I've done more than that. Would appreciate any possible help, thanks!

Answer 1

Welcome Hannah M,

Thanks for reaching out to the Q&A Forum and apologies for any inconvenience you've experienced. 

Based on what you described, I understand you’re experiencing an issue where your Ethernet adapter has become invisible or unrecognized by Windows, with a Code 31 error indicating that Windows cannot load the drivers properly.  

Here are a few steps workaround you can try to fix it:  

1. Check hidden device  

• Open Device Manager > View > select Hidden devices to see if the issue is resolved. 

2. Reset network configuration: use Command Prompts to reset your network settings 

• Open Command Prompt and run it as administrator. Then, copy and paste each of the following commands and press Enter after each: 

netsh int ip reset netsh winsock reset ipconfig /release ipconfig /renew 

• Restart your computer and see if the problem is solved 

3. Scan for hardware changes: This function scans and detects hardware changes on your computer. When you select this command, Windows will search for newly added hardware devices or devices with configuration changes that haven’t been detected by the system.  If there are new or changed devices, Windows will automatically install or update the appropriate drivers so the device can function properly. 

• Open Device Manager > Action > Scan for hardware changes 

Note: This function forces Windows to rescan all installed hardware and process necessary changes so the device can operate correctly. It helps resolve hardware issues such as devices disappearing or not being recognized by drivers. 

Please understand that my initial reply may not always immediately resolve the issue. I really hope that the information I gave above was helpful to you. Please feel free to reply below and let me know if you have further concern on this matter.   

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