Realtek RTL8191SE Wireless LAN 802.11n PCI-E NIC – Troubleshooting Notes (DriverFiles)
Most people ended up here because Wi-Fi disappeared entirely or refused to turn back on, even though the system insisted the RTL8191SE was present and working. In many cases, the behavior didn’t line up with the driver installation status. Some recoveries were temporary, some required drastic steps, and others never produced a clear explanation at all.
Problem: Wireless adapter missing, no Wi-Fi icon
What users observed: Wi-Fi could not be enabled at all. The adapter icon was missing, no networks appeared, and there was no obvious way to turn wireless back on.
What was tried: Power and adapter settings were adjusted, advanced wireless options were toggled, and network stack resets were attempted.
How this played out: No definitive resolution was confirmed. The adapter sometimes reappeared, but the behavior was inconsistent and not clearly tied to any one change.
Problem: Adapter appears but detects no networks after OS downgrade
What users observed: After downgrading from Windows 10 to Windows 7, the wireless adapter became visible again, but no networks were detected at all. Troubleshooting reported an inability to bind the IP protocol stack.
What was tried: Drivers were installed and reinstalled repeatedly, and system diagnostics were run.
What this turned out to be: An OS-level failure rather than a recoverable driver state.
Where this sometimes ended: Reinstalling the operating system restored Wi-Fi functionality. Driver changes alone never resolved the issue.
Problem: Wireless stopped working suddenly after long-term use
What users observed: After years of normal operation, the RTL8191SE abruptly stopped connecting to any wireless networks.
What was tried: Driver reinstalls, power-saving adjustments, service checks, and general network resets were suggested.
How this played out: No confirmed fix was reported. Hardware failure was suspected, but never conclusively proven.
Problem: Adapter working, but Wi-Fi cannot be turned on
What users observed: Following a battery drain while the laptop was closed, Windows 10 showed wireless capabilities as disabled. The toggle would not stay on, physical switches did nothing, and airplane mode was already off.
What was tried: Registry checks, driver verification, and system settings were reviewed.
Where this sometimes ended: Reinstalling the wireless drivers restored the ability to enable Wi-Fi. The trigger remained unclear.
Problem: Code 31 error after driver reinstall
What users observed: After uninstalling and attempting to reinstall the driver, the adapter failed to load with a Code 31 error. Wireless connectivity, which had previously been intermittent, disappeared completely.
What was tried: Updated drivers were installed, but rollback options were unavailable.
Where this sometimes ended: Installing a newer driver version resolved the error and restored wireless connectivity.
Problem: USB Realtek adapter shows no networks
What users observed: A Realtek wireless adapter appeared functional in Device Manager on multiple systems, yet no wireless networks were detected once the primary adapter was disabled.
What was tried: Manual driver installation from an included media failed to produce connectivity.
Where this sometimes ended: Allowing Windows to search online for a driver resulted in a different driver being installed, after which networks became visible, and the adapter worked.
Other network adapters showing similar behavior:
- Scans your system for missing or outdated drivers
- Downloads and installs the correct versions
- Creates a restore point before making changes