Latest update chaos

Hi BRIAN GASKIN,

Does the problem go away after uninstalling the last update?

Please try uninstalling it following this article: How to uninstall a Windows Update.

If you have any updated information, please feel free to let me know.

When you are in a situation where your computer is completely messed up and you don't even know where to begin to solve its problems, there is only one logical choice: show the computer to a professional. Sit with that person - don't just drop your computer off and come back later - and watch as they diagnose and fix your computer, so you'll know what went wrong and what to do in the future. That's what makes it a worthwhile cost.

If you are reluctant to do that, the next most logical thing to do is to backup your personal data, and then erase the hard drive and reinstall your software.

An illogical thing to do, in my opinion, is to try every suggestion that you hear about or read about, in the hope that something will help and not cause more trouble. You are not well-served in a community forum of volunteers, in my opinion.

Once your computer is back to good working order, I think you should do what I myself did, which is to buy a book or take a course (I did both) to learn how to use a computer well. This more than anything else is what keeps me and my computer out of trouble. Any computer is a high technology device; if you try to use one without a good grounding you will quickly run into problems, which is how my name got added to the Dell Wall of Shame.

Hi Brian,

Thanks for posting your question here. I understand your frustration, especially after already working through so many troubleshooting steps.

The device local discovery on the laptop is failing due to the recent update. This can happen when all devices are on the same network.

To fix this, please check the following on the affected laptop:

1. Please confirm the Wi-Fi connection is set to Private under Network Settings.
2. Also, ensure the Network Discovery and File and Printer Sharing are enabled in Advanced Sharing Settings

And to isolate the issue, can you try connecting the devices to a temporary mobile hotspot.

Let me know if you have more question, I'm here to help

Thanks,

Jobelle C.

Unstable connections and devices not being detected after an update are often caused by Wi‑Fi adapter/driver issues or Wi‑Fi signal/band problems rather than the firewall or the router alone. Use these focused steps on Windows 11:

1. Check Wi‑Fi basics on the PC

• Make sure any physical Wi‑Fi switch or function key on the laptop is turned on (some laptops can disable wireless at hardware level).
• Move the laptop closer to the router/access point and test again. Physical obstructions and distance can cause unstable connections even when the device appears “on the same network.”
• If the router exposes both 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz SSIDs, try the other band as a test, even if 2.4 GHz is forced on the router. Some devices behave better on one band than the other.

2. Try a different network type

• Connect the laptop to the router with a wired Ethernet cable if possible. If Ethernet works reliably while Wi‑Fi does not, the issue is almost certainly with the wireless adapter/driver or Wi‑Fi environment.
• If the device supports cellular (SIM/eSIM), connect via cellular as a test. If that is stable, again the problem is local Wi‑Fi, not general networking.

3. Verify the wireless adapter is healthy

• Open Device Manager → Network adapters.
• Confirm the Wi‑Fi adapter is listed and not disabled. If it is disabled, right‑click → Enable device.
• If the adapter is missing or shows an error, follow the “no network adapters are detected or enabled” steps:
  • In the wireless network report, find the adapter and check if a Problem number is listed; this maps to a Device Manager error code and indicates why the driver failed to load.
  • Run Windows Update to pull the latest driver, then in Device Manager → adapter Properties → Driver tab, verify Driver Version and Driver Date match the latest from the laptop manufacturer.
  • If the adapter is not listed at all, manually install the correct driver from the device manufacturer’s site.

4. Reinstall the Wi‑Fi adapter driver (post‑update repair) If instability started directly after a Windows update, the installed driver may be corrupted or incompatible. Use the supported uninstall/reinstall flow:

1. On another device (if needed), download the latest Wi‑Fi/network adapter driver from the laptop manufacturer and save it to a USB drive as a backup.
2. On the affected laptop:
   • Select Search on the taskbar, type device manager, open Device Manager.
   • Expand Network adapters, locate the Wi‑Fi adapter.
   • Right‑click → Uninstall device.
   • Check Attempt to remove the driver for this device → Uninstall.
3. Restart: Start → Power → Restart.
4. After restart, Windows will attempt to automatically reinstall the network adapter driver.
   • If it does not, install the backup driver downloaded from the manufacturer.

5. Confirm devices can see each other on the network Once the Wi‑Fi connection is stable on the laptop:

• Ensure all devices (laptop, Canon device, etc.) are connected to the same SSID (exact same network name) and same band if the device requires 2.4 GHz.
• From the laptop, test basic connectivity (for example, by using the Canon software’s device discovery or the device’s built‑in network test) after the driver reinstall.

If, after these steps, the Wi‑Fi adapter still behaves erratically or devices intermittently disappear, a full Windows “Reset this PC” with Keep my files is the next supported repair path, as it reinstalls Windows and drivers while preserving personal files.

References:

• Fix Wi-Fi connection issues in Windows
• Get connected when setting up your Windows device
• Why is my Internet connection so slow?