connecting to home network

Question

I have been using this same computer for years and today I did a backup to an earlier date

Answer 1

Welcome William Peakes,

I understand how frustrating it can be when you restored your Windows PC to an earlier date and now cannot reconnect to your home network. 

Before we continue, I would like to clarify a couple of points: 

• Are you unable to see your Wi‑Fi network at all, or can you see it but cannot connect? 
• Are other devices able to connect to the same home network without issues? 
• What version of Windows are you using?

In addition to Q&A Assist's suggested steps, please try these extra checks to move forward:   

Option 1: Restart your network equipment  

• Power off your modem and router 
• Wait about 10 seconds, then turn them back on and let them fully start  

Option 2: Run the built‑in network troubleshooter  

• Go to Settings 
• Open Network & internet 
• Run the Network troubleshooter to automatically detect and fix issues  

Option 3: Forget and reconnect to your Wi‑Fi network (for Wi‑Fi)  

• Go to Network & internet settings 
• Select Wi‑Fi and manage known networks 
• Remove your home network and reconnect with the password 

I hope this information helps resolve your issue. If you have any further questions, please don’t hesitate to contact me again in this thread. 

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Answer 2

To reconnect this Windows home PC to the home network after restoring to an earlier date, try the following steps on the PC:

1. Verify physical/network connections
   • If using Ethernet, make sure the cable is firmly plugged into both the PC and the router.
   • If using Wi‑Fi, confirm the router is on and other devices can connect.
2. Run a network reset (last-resort step if basic checks fail)
   • Open Settings from Start.
   • Go to Network & internet.
   • On Windows 11: select Advanced network settings > Network reset.
   • On Windows 10: select Status > Network reset.
   • Select Reset now > Yes.
   • The PC will restart; after restart, reconnect to the home Wi‑Fi or Ethernet and test access to the home network and internet.
   • Note: After network reset, VPN clients or virtual switches (Hyper‑V, etc.) might need to be reinstalled/reconfigured, and network profiles may revert to Public.
3. If Ethernet still does not work, reinstall the Ethernet adapter driver
   • Open Device Manager (search for “Device Manager” from Start).
   • Expand Network adapters and locate the Ethernet adapter.
   • Right‑click it and select Uninstall device.
   • Check Attempt to remove the driver for this device and select Uninstall.
   • Restart the PC (Start > Power > Restart).
   • Windows will reinstall the adapter automatically; then test the home network connection again.

If Wi‑Fi is the issue instead of Ethernet, use the same uninstall‑and‑restart approach on the Wi‑Fi adapter from Device Manager.

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References:

• Fix Ethernet connection problems in Windows
• Fix Wi-Fi connection issues in Windows