How to Install Wi-Fi Drivers in Windows 8

Another very common problem experienced by people who have just installed Windows 8 is that they find that, while the operating system is generally excellent at finding and installing hardware drivers during initial setup, it very ironically hasn’t found the driver for your Wi-Fi card; of course, without it, you can’t get online to download it.

You should always keep a full copy of the hardware drivers that came with your computer, either by keeping the original driver discs in a dry, safe place or by copying them to an internal partition (which is what I do) or to an external USB hard disk.

It’s not a complete loss though; Windows might still have a compatible driver, but you’ll need to know a bit about your hardware first.

You might just have to make an educated guess. If your Wi-Fi is part of your computer’s motherboard and your computer was relatively cheap, you should look to the manufacturer of the motherboard for clues. By this I mean that if you have an Intel motherboard, you likely have an Intel Wi-Fi controller. Here’s how you can identify the manufacturer of your computer’s motherboard:

Step 1. Press Windows logo key+X to open the Administration menu.

Step 2. Click Control Panel. Ensure that you are using the large or small icons view.



Step 3. Click Administrative Tools to display a list of tools.



Step 4. Double-click System Information to open the panel presented.



The system Information panel might display the direct name of your motherboard, or you might at least find clues as to your architecture in the System Summary for your computer. Two other places to look for clues are in the Components -> Network section or more likely in Components -> Problem Devices.

If you can get online by using your smartphone, you might be able to find the make and model of your Wi-Fi chipset by searching for the specifications of your computer model on the computer manufacturer’s website.

Now you want to see if you can force Windows to install a compatible driver. Follow these steps to do so:

Step 1. Open the Start screen and then search for Device to open the Device Manager, or open it from the Control Panel. The Device Manager window opens.

Step 2. Right-click the offending driver; you will see the nonfunctioning driver highlighted with a yellow warning icon when the driver isn’t working. In the settings panel that appears, click Update Driver Software.



Step 3. In the next window, click Browse My Computer For Driver Software.



Step 4. In the window that opens, click Let Me Pick From A List Of Device Drivers On My Computer.



Step 5. Clear the check box for Show Compatible Hardware.



Step 6. In the Manufacturer list, look to see if there is a compatible driver for your hardware.



If you bought a computer that came with Windows 7 or Windows Vista, there is an excellent chance that your hardware drivers will already be on the Windows 8 installation DVD. However, if your computer includes hardware that was released after Windows 8, you should always have a copy downloaded from the manufacturer’s website.

There is no guarantee that Windows will contain a compatible hardware driver, but it might be worth a try, at least to provide a temporary driver with which you can get online.

Obviously, the best solution will always be to download the appropriate driver from the manufacturer’s website from another computer. Also, your computer might have a 3G or 4G mobile broadband connection that you can use to download the driver.