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Home > How to fix limited or no connectivity Wi-Fi issues in Windows 8
How to fix limited or no connectivity
Wi-Fi issues in Windows 8
Posted on October 25, 2013 by vonnie 113 Comments
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What happens when Windows 8 or 8.1 shows the following arcane message whenever you try to connect
to your wireless network:
This connection has limited or no connectivity. No internet access
Or maybe youve seen this laconic message:
The connection is limited

So brief.
So rude.
So limited.
By the way, yes my Wi-Fi network is actually called friedchicken and yes I am African American but - no
- all African Americans dont like Fried Chicken but I sure do!
Anyway
The limited connectivity issue is a vexing problem partially because the error is so freggin nebulous and
also because you can easily waste an entire day trying to fix it. Whats even more confounding is that
sometimes youll see this error even though you have five bars of signal strength (just like me in the above
graphic)
Usually most people try disconnecting and reconnecting and a few audacious neophytes try uninstalling
the network adapter.
You actually dont need to go to such bold lengths
Here are four tricks that will almost certainly fix this problem:
Reset the TCP/IP stack
Disable Wi-Fi adapter napping
Enabling Metered Connection Downloads
Reset TCP/IP Autotuning
1. Use netsh.exe
There are a few things you can do to fix this problem but the easiest and most common solution is to
use netsh to reset the TCP/IP stack to its default configuration.
The NetShell utility (netsh.exe) is a highly versatile tool that lets power users manage a myriad of
computer processes right from the command line. Heres how to put the tool to work for you:
Press the Windows Key + x + a to launch the Command Prompt with administrator rights.

Now in the black window type the following command:
netsh int ip reset C:\resetlog.exe
Then reboot the computer and retry the internet connection. It should connect fine now.
2. Wake up your Wi-Fi Adapter
If this only temporarily absolves the issue then the network adapter might be going into a sleep mode to
conserve energy.
Press Windows Key + w to bring up the Settings search box and type:
network and sharing center

Click on the name of your Wi-Fi network and choose the Properties button in the lower left corner under.

In the Wi-Fi Properties window click the Configure button.

Then pick the last tab called Power Management and youll see this option:
Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power.

Uncheck it, click OK and then login to your computer again to confirm the fix.
3. Enable Download over metered
connections
If youre iPhone, Blackberry or Galaxy S4 as a mobile hotspot, turning on Download over metered
connections might just do the trick.
Press the Windows Key + w and type
metered connections
When the Devices screen flips onto the screen, toggle the knob to On then logout and login to your
computer to apply the change.

Keep in mind you should try this even if you know for sure that you arent using a metered connection. I
know that sounds inane but for some reason turning this on fixes the problem.
4. Reset TCP/IP Autotunning
No no no, Im not talking about the audio processor created by Antares
that hip hop producers use to make musical artists sound like musical
robots. Thats auto tune. Autotunning, as it applies to networks, refers to
modifying the congestion buffers to allow reliable connectivity.
If youve tried all three of the tips above but the [sic] internets [/sic] is still down then check
outfjams deft post on tipsandtricksforum.com.
Using the following three netsh commands in Windows 8 and 8.1 might fix the issue. I havent
corroborated the result so I dont know if it works but its certainly worth a shot:
netsh int tcp set heuristics disabled
netsh int tcp set global autotuninglevel=disabled
netsh int tcp set global rss=enabled

Let me explain what all this does:
The first netsh command disables the scaling window in TCP after the second re-transmission of a SYN
packet. The details are kind of abstruse so Ill spare them but the bottom line is that sometimes Windows
seems to arbitrarily change the way the TCP buffers are sized.
Executing the above netsh commands changes the TCP Window size to 65,535 and enforces the change
which precludes Windows 8 from flubbing with it again.
The Bottom Line
Whenever your Wi-Fi network shows limited access try the simple stuff first like rebooting or
reconnecting. If that doesnt work, reset the TCP/IP stack, wake up your Wi-Fi adapter, enabling metering
and reset autotunning. That should get you back online!
Have you had success using the techniques I enumerated in this article? Please let me know in the
comments! Im curious which one worked for ya.
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