[SOLVED] Unable to connect to 5GHz network on laptop even though it is supported ?

[John2810]

I have a Lenovo ideapad gaming 3 which supports 5GHz WiFi band as I ran the netsh wlan show drivers command in the cmd and the radio types shown indicated that the device supports 5GHz network but I can't see any 5GHz networks in the networks list. Even my router is dual band with 5GHz and 2.4GHz, I can connect to the 2.4GHz fine but can't seem to find the 5GHz network listed. Please help me.
Thanks in advance!

 

[Phillip Corcoran]

Make sure 5GHz is enabled in your router's configuration utility.

 

[John2810]

Make sure 5GHz is enabled in your router's configuration utility.

Thanks for the reply!
It is enabled in the router's configuration utility as I can connect to it via other devices such as my phone. So what else can I try?
Cheers

 

[Phillip Corcoran]

You're not connecting your IdeaPad to a single-band range extender ?

 

[John2810]

You're not connecting your IdeaPad to a single-band range extender ?

ummm I don't know what a single-band range extender is. So can u please explain what do you mean by it?
sorry for the inconvenience.

 

[Phillip Corcoran]

It's a small device which sits between your router and laptop to improve the wireless range.
But since you don't already know what a range extender is, I can safely assume you're not using one, so we can scrub that question.

Have you tried rebooting your IdeaPad, then checking available networks again ?

Try rebooting the router as well, but give it time to reconnect fully before trying to use it.

 

[kanewolf]

Your router could be using a 5Ghz WIFI channel that your ideapad doesn't support. The allowed channels vary by geographic location.
You can test this by manually setting your WIFI to a channel number below 50. Those channels are universally supported.
It is also possible that you have the security settings on the router's WIFI set to a setting that your Ideapad don't support. Make sure your WIFI is set to WPA2 AES pre-shared key.

 

[gggplaya]

Make sure your 5ghz on your router is not set to 160mhz channel width either. Needs to be 80mhz or 40mhz for universal compatibility.

 

[JoeGBears]

Bumping thread, just encounter this issue in today.

Just ran into this problem with my Lenovo Ideapad Gaming 3. Suddenly 5Ghz won't connect but other devices works fine. It has no problem connecting to 2.4Ghz so it's only the 5Ghz having issue.

Troubleshooting done:

1. Rebooted Router
2. Rebooted PC
3. Uninstall/Reinstall WiFi driver
4. Changed channel to lower number (router settings)
5. Change channel width to 40mhz (router settings)
6. Change security from WPA2/WPA3 to WPA2 Personal (router settings)

What works for me? Changing security from WPA2/WPA3 to just WPA2 Personal. It connects right away. I then reset the security to WPA2/WPA3 and it connects back without trouble.
I also reset all other settings to auto and see if I encounter the issue again.

OS: Windows 11 Home Edition
WiFi driver: Intel R Wifi 6 AX201 160Mhz

 

[kanewolf]

Bumping thread, just encounter this issue in today.

Just ran into this problem with my Lenovo Ideapad Gaming 3. Suddenly 5Ghz won't connect but other devices works fine. It has no problem connecting to 2.4Ghz so it's only the 5Ghz having issue.

Troubleshooting done:

1. Rebooted Router
2. Rebooted PC
3. Uninstall/Reinstall WiFi driver
4. Changed channel to lower number (router settings)
5. Change channel width to 40mhz (router settings)
6. Change security from WPA2/WPA3 to WPA2 Personal (router settings)

What works for me? Changing security from WPA2/WPA3 to just WPA2 Personal. It connects right away. I then reset the security to WPA2/WPA3 and it connects back without trouble.
I also reset all other settings to auto and see if I encounter the issue again.

OS: Windows 11 Home Edition
WiFi driver: Intel R Wifi 6 AX201 160Mhz

First, it is rude to hijack another user's thread, if you have a problem, you should start your own thread. Second your problem may be protected management frames (PMF). WPA3 requires PMF.

 

[JoeGBears]

First, it is rude to hijack another user's thread, if you have a problem, you should start your own thread. Second your problem may be protected management frames (PMF). WPA3 requires PMF.

Whoops, sorry didn't mean to hijack the thread, but I have the similar device as the OP so I thought I put what worked for me as a possible solution.

 

[johnbl]

Whoops, sorry didn't mean to hijack the thread, but I have the similar device as the OP so I thought I put what worked for me as a possible solution.

you are ok, you posted your solution to the same problem. It gives people more things to check for.