7 Steps to Check if Your Computer Can Have a Wifi Card

A detailed guide to checking if your computer has a Wi-Fi card opening

Last Updated: April 19, 2023

All recent computers can have a wireless adapter or WiFi card. Some PCs might not have the required slots on the motherboard free anymore, in this case, you can always plug in a USB wireless adapter. Though these are less powerful, they can always be used on any Windows released after and including Windows XP. 95 98 ME and 2000 might also be able to use them but if you really want WiFi XP at least is recommended. This wikiHow article teaches you how to check if your computer can have a Wi-Fi card.

Things You Should Know

First, open your computer case and look for open PCI slots.
Make sure the Wi-Fi cards are compatible with your motherboard.
Plug in the card and you'll be able to access Wi-Fi!

Steps

Download Article

Note that opening your case may void the warranty. If you still have a warranty or you are uncertain your warranty has been voided already check this first. If you do not want to void the warranty read the tips and then skip to the bottom part of this guide.

Advertisement
There are like 6 different slots you can come across. Usually, the types are listed somewhere near the slots. The slots are the plastic bar-like looking things on the motherboard. The slots you want are PCI slots. Usually, they have a beige color though they may vary a bit. They will always be close to the back of your computer and always facing the same direction. If any of them is free this means you can install a WiFi card. (Note: If you do not want to void the warranty read the tips first then continue to read the guide).
Now you will be able to see if you have the needed PCI slot.
Anyway now you know how many PC slots you have from the image or motherboard specs, now you need to count how many cards there actually are installed, this can be fairly easily done by counting the number of horizontal lines which have ports at the back of your computer if your computer is a tower (standing up straight rather than laying on his side).
There is, of course, a chance the slots are taken, in this case, you might want to remove one of the cards to make room for the WiFi card.
Do not remove any of the cards before knowing what they do. If all else fails, go to a local IT shop or the closest IT person you can find.

Community Q&A

Search

Add New Question

Question

My Dell Latitude E5500 is not showing me the option of searching for WiFi networks; it only shows the Ethernet and VPN options. What do I need to do to connect to WiFi?

Community Answer

The Wi-Fi adapter on your Laptop might be disabled. Open Control Panel, go to Network and Sharing Center, and Change Adapter Settings. If you see the Wi-Fi adapter there, make sure it is enabled. Once the adapter is enabled, your laptop should be able to detect the available Wi-Fi networks and let you connect to them. If the Wi-Fi adapter is missing in Control Panel or the above doesn't help, you may need to reinstall the drivers for the adapter.

Thanks! We're glad this was helpful.
Thank you for your feedback.
If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow
Yes No

Not Helpful 2 Helpful 0
Question

My laptop cannot detect any LAN networks. What's going on?

Denneisk

Top Answerer

Check to see if your LAN services are running. Most laptops have a built-in LAN card. See if the LAN service is disabled.

Thanks! We're glad this was helpful.
Thank you for your feedback.
If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow
Yes No

Not Helpful 2 Helpful 0

Ask a Question

200 characters left

Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered.

Submit

Tips

If all else fails go to the store where you bought the computer or contact someone with Computer-knowledge, or consider voiding your warranty by opening the computer.

Thanks
Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0
First of all when starting up your computer you see a lot of different things. You might see a splash screen with the name of the producer of the motherboard and maybe even a type of the motherboard.

Thanks
Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0
If you have a PC bought from DELL or a company that sells pre-formatted computers like dell which all have a different type, you can try googling the type of the computer and search for motherboard specifications.

Thanks
Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0

Show More Tips

Submit a Tip

All tip submissions are carefully reviewed before being published

Name

Please provide your name and last initial

Submit

Thanks for submitting a tip for review!

Warnings

Opening your computer case voids the warranty in most cases.

Thanks
Helpful 3 Not Helpful 1
During performing these activities it's possible you damage your hardware when not being cautious. Make sure the PC is off, or even better unplugged, if you choose to open it up. Wires can be touched as long as they are isolated, it's best you do not touch anything else. Try not to be statically charged (always keep one hand on the case (if it's from metal) or any other metal object). Work on a steady surface. Do not use magnetic screwdrivers etc to poke around. Just open the case, look for what you need and close it up again.

Thanks
Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0

Log in

7 Steps to Check if Your Computer Can Have a Wifi Card

Things You Should Know

Steps

Community Q&A

Tips

Warnings

You Might Also Like

About This Article

Is this article up to date?

About This Article

Quizzes

You Might Also Like

Featured Articles

Trending Articles

Featured Articles

Featured Articles

Watch Articles

Trending Articles

Quizzes

Explore Categories