This Article Applied to: 

All WiFi 4/5 USB network adapters

 

 

Phenomenon:

Hello! We have received some user feedback that after the Windows Update automatically pushed and installed driver version 1030.52.731.2025, the WiFi 4/5 USB adapter may exhibit the following abnormal behaviors:

• Abnormal Signal Strength Display: WiFi signal strength drops suddenly from full bars (100%) to approximately 2 bars, indicating a weak signal.
• Unstable Connection: The wireless connection becomes severely unstable, which may involve frequent disconnections, reduced throughput, or inability to connect to specific bands.

 

Typically, one of these behaviors might occur after the driver’s Auto Update.

 

 

Available Solutions:

Our relevant departments have been working on feasible long-term solutions. They have also provided some temporary solutions for the situations mentioned above. 

 

First, please follow the steps below to check the current driver version to confirm if the anomaly is caused by the Windows update:

 

1. Right-click the Start icon on the Windows taskbar and select "Device Manager".

2. Expand the "Network adapters" list.

3. Find TP-Link Wireless MU-MIMO USB Adapter (or other names like Realtek 8821CU Wireless LAN 802.11ac USB NIC), right-click it, and select "Properties".

4. Switch to the "Driver" tab and check the "Driver Version":

• If the version is 1030.52.731.2025: Confirmed as the problematic driver pushed by Windows. Please proceed with the subsequent repair steps.
• If the version is 1030.44.XXXX.XXXX or other: This is the normal driver. If you still encounter the unexpected behavior described above, other causes need to be investigated.

 

 

 

Solution 1: Roll Back Driver

If Windows has just automatically updated the driver, you can usually roll it back to the previous working version.

1. Right-click the Start icon on the Windows taskbar and select "Device Manager".

2. Expand the "Network adapters" list.

3. Find TP-Link Wireless MU-MIMO USB Adapter (or other names like Realtek 8821CU Wireless LAN 802.11ac USB NIC), right-click it, and select "Properties".

4. Switch to the Driver tab.

5. Check if the Roll Back Driver button is available (not grayed out):

• If available: Click the button, select a reason for rolling back in the pop-up dialog (e.g., "Previous version of the driver performed better"), and click "Yes". The system will automatically restore the old driver.
• If unavailable (grayed out): This means the system has not retained a backup of the old driver. Please proceed to Solution 2.

 

 

Solution 2: Manually Install the previous Driver Version

If rolling back is not possible, or if the anomaly comes back after a restart, it is recommended to manually install the driver on the website and temporarily disable automatic updates.

 

1. Go to the TP-Link official support page https://www.tp-link.com/en/support/, download and install the driver package for your specific model. If the the driver installed still exhibits instability, try an older driver.

2. Prevent Automatic Driver Update (Temporary): To prevent Windows from automatically updating the driver again after a restart, temporarily disable automatic driver updates:

 

Method 1 (Using Group Policy Editor - Available in Windows Pro/Enterprise):

• Press Win + R, type gpedit.msc, and press Enter.
• Navigate to: Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Windows Update > Manage updates offered from Windows Update.
• Double-click Do not include drivers with Windows Updates.
• Select Enabled, then click Apply and OK.

Method 2 (Using System Properties - All Windows Versions):

• Press Win + R on your keyboard, type sysdm.cpl, and press Enter.
• Go to the Hardware tab and click Device Installation Settings.
• In the pop-up window, select No (your device might not work as expected) and click Save Changes.

 

If you encounter other anomalies after automatically updating your Windows system to version 1030.52.731.2025, please provide more details. This includes, but is not limited to:

1. The specific model and hardware version, and the current adapter driver version.

2. Detailed description of the situation.

 

Any other convenient troubleshooting steps or suggestions are welcome!!