Network drivers such as Bluetooth and Wi-Fi are crucial to connect peripherals or connect to the Internet. Typically the drivers are installed along with the operating system. However, there could be scenarios where Windows entirely skipped installing any network drivers. On the flip side, you could face some issues with the drivers, and no fix seems to work for you.

Your noble steed of a machine has failed to equip itself with the necessary network drivers, and it's like Superman forgetting his cape at home! But don't fret. Whatever your reason for landing on this page, this guide will be all you need to install Intel network drivers on your computer.

Installing Intel Network Drivers

There are three major ways you can install network drivers on your computer. You can either install them from the Option Updates or uninstall the drivers manually and then force reinstall them on your computer. Otherwise, you can head to the official Intel website and download drivers.

For your ease of convenience, we are going to discuss all these methods in this guide.

1. Check for Optional Updates

If you have purchased a new PC or the driver is not present after a system reset, it is highly likely that Windows found the missing driver on Microsoft servers, and it is sitting in the 'Optional Updates' queue. Typically Windows itself manages the installation of updates. However, at times you may need to intervene to download them.

First, head to the Start Menu and click on the 'Settings' tile.

After that, click on the 'Windows Update' tab from the left sidebar.

Next, from the right section of the window, click on the 'Advanced options' tile.

Then, on the next screen, locate and click on the 'Optional Updates' tile to continue.

After that, from the list of available drivers, locate the 'Bluetooth/Wi-Fi' driver and click on the checkbox preceding it. Then, click on the 'Download & Install' button.

2. Force Reinstall Network Drivers

In case you are facing some issues with the already installed drivers, you can uninstall them and then force reinstall them on your computer.

First, head to the Start Menu and type Device Manager. Then, from the search results, click on the 'Device Manager' tile.

To uninstall Bluetooth drivers, double-click on the 'Bluetooth' category. After that, right-click on 'Intel Bluetooth Wireless' and select the 'Uninstall' option. This will open a separate window on your screen.

Now, check the 'Attempt to remove the driver for this device' option and click 'Uninstall'.

To uninstall Wi-Fi drivers, double-click on the 'Network Adapters' section. Then, right-click 'Intel Wi-Fi' and select the 'Uninstall' option.

From the separately opened window, check the 'Attempt to remove the driver for this device' and click 'Uninstall'.

Once you have successfully uninstalled both drivers, restart your PC. After restarting, head to the Start Menu and click on the 'Settings' tile.

Then, click on the 'Windows Update' tab from the left sidebar.

Next, from the right section of the window, click on 'Advanced options' to continue.

Afterward, click on the 'Optional Updates' tile.

Then, you should see Bluetooth and Wi-Fi drivers in the list. Select the drivers by clicking on the checkbox and clicking the 'Download & Install' button.

3. Download the Driver from Intel Website

In case the above two methods did not work for you, the last option is to head to the official support website of Intel and download the drivers manually.

First, head to www.intel.com/download-center using your preferred browser. Then, click on the 'Wireless' tile.

To download Wi-Fi drivers, locate and click on the 'Wi-Fi Drivers for Intel Wireless Adapters' option.

Note: Here, we are downloading the driver for Wi-Fi version 6 and Intel 9000 series adapter. If you have a different series of adapters, you can scroll down to locate the driver compatible with your device.

Next, click on the 32-Bit or 64-Bit version depending on your Windows 11 version. This will bring an overlay window to your screen.

From the overlay window, click on the 'I accept the terms in the license agreement' button. The download should start automatically after that.

Once the download is complete, head to the default downloads directory and double-click on the .EXE file to run the installer.

After that, from the installer window, click on the 'Next' window.

On the next window, check on the 'I agree to the license terms and conditions' option and click on the 'Install' button.

Once the driver is installed, restart your PC from the Start Menu. Your Wi-Fi drivers should be installed and ready to use.

To download and install the Bluetooth driver, click on the 'Wireless' tile from the main page of the website.

After that, locate and click 'Wireless Bluetooth for Windows 10 and Windows 11' to continue.

Then, select the 'Windows 11' tile to download the installer on your computer. This will bring an overlay window to your screen.

Next, click the 'I accept the terms in the license agreement' option to continue.

Once the installer has been downloaded, head to your default downloads directory and double-click on the .EXE file to run the installer.

After that, follow the on-screen instructions to install the driver on your computer, as shown earlier in this guide.

Once installed, restart your computer to let the changes take effect. Your Bluetooth driver should now be installed and work as intended.

Bluetooth and Wi-Fi not working properly can be a big issue as your computer is as good as a paperweight without the Internet, and you will not be able to connect any wireless peripherals without Bluetooth. Thankfully, this guide will help you resolve that problem in a swish and get your productivity back on track.