EE Wifi 2 Router does not remain active

[HP8000Elite]

I now have a BT Mobile internet connection via EE Wifi 2 router to replace my Broadband +EE 4G Hybrid setup.

Interestingly, before I set the EE Wifi 2 up, I disconnected the broadband ie copper cable from the socket. The system then was running 4G . The Download speed increased by a factor of 5, and the upload increased by 15x.

When it came to setting up the EE WiFi 2 router, it works perfectly on my pc which i disconnected from the ethernet ie pulled the cable out, and smartphone. I managed to activate the router on my wife's computer after disconnecting the BT smarthub router and EE 4G hybrid.
However, it wouldn't remain active.
I tried moving it close to the computer but it refused to work.
The router is now approx. midway between the two computers. Mine works OK but not my wife's.
I had a problem with my wife's computer not seeing my computer until I used a Z network connection using This PC. This was when the network was using the broadband / 4G hybrid setup.

How do I stop the WiFi connection to the EE WiFi 2 from disconnecting?

 

[ChatGPT]

Hi HP8000Elite, it sounds like the EE WiFi 2 router itself is working, because your PC and phone stay connected. That points more toward an issue with your wife’s PC Wi‑Fi adapter/profile rather than the EE router being faulty.
The most likely causes are:

• Windows is still preferring/remembering the old BT Smart Hub / Hybrid network.
• The Wi‑Fi adapter is being powered down by Windows.
• The PC has a weak or unstable 2.4 GHz / 5 GHz connection.
• The adapter driver is old or not fully compatible with the EE WiFi 2 settings.
• The old network mapping/setup may still be confusing Windows networking, though that should not normally disconnect Wi‑Fi.

1. Forget the old Wi‑Fi networks​

On your wife’s computer:

1. Open Settings.
2. Go to Network & Internet.
3. Select Wi‑Fi.
4. Open Manage known networks.
5. Remove/Forget the old BT Smart Hub, EE Hybrid, and any duplicate EE/BT entries.
6. Reconnect only to the EE WiFi 2 network.
7. Enter the Wi‑Fi password again.

Expected result: Windows creates a fresh wireless profile for the new router.

2. Stop Windows turning off the Wi‑Fi adapter​

This is a common cause of Wi‑Fi dropping.

1. Right-click Start.
2. Choose Device Manager.
3. Expand Network adapters.
4. Double-click the wireless adapter.
5. Open the Power Management tab.
6. Untick:
   Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power
7. Click OK.
8. Restart the computer.

If the Power Management tab is not shown, continue with the next section.

3. Set Wi‑Fi power saving to maximum performance​

1. Open Control Panel.
2. Go to Power Options.
3. Next to your active plan, click Change plan settings.
4. Click Change advanced power settings.
5. Expand Wireless Adapter Settings.
6. Expand Power Saving Mode.
7. Set both options to:
   Maximum Performance
8. Click Apply, then OK.

4. Check whether it is a 2.4 GHz / 5 GHz problem​

Some older desktop/laptop Wi‑Fi adapters struggle with 5 GHz or with automatic band steering.
If the EE WiFi 2 router lets you split the Wi‑Fi bands:

1. Log into the EE WiFi 2 router settings.
2. Look for Wi‑Fi, Wireless, or Advanced Wi‑Fi settings.
3. If available, separate the SSIDs, for example:
   EE-WiFi-2-2.4G
EE-WiFi-2-5G
4. Connect your wife’s PC to the 2.4 GHz network first.
5. Test stability.

Expected result: 2.4 GHz is usually slower but more stable through walls and at distance.

5. Update or reinstall the Wi‑Fi driver​

On your wife’s PC:

1. Right-click Start.
2. Choose Device Manager.
3. Expand Network adapters.
4. Note the exact name of the Wi‑Fi adapter.
5. Right-click it and choose Update driver.
6. Select Search automatically for drivers.

If that does not help:

1. Right-click the Wi‑Fi adapter again.
2. Choose Uninstall device.
3. Do not tick “Delete the driver” at first.
4. Restart the PC.
5. Windows should reinstall the adapter automatically.

Before removing drivers or making bigger changes, create a restore point first.

6. Reset the network stack on your wife’s PC​

This is safe in most cases, but it will remove saved Wi‑Fi/network settings.

1. Right-click Start.
2. Choose Terminal/Admin or Command Prompt/Admin.
3. Run these commands one at a time:

netsh winsock reset
netsh int ip reset
ipconfig /flushdns

1. Restart the PC.
2. Reconnect to the EE WiFi 2.

Undo note: there is no simple “undo” for this, but Windows recreates the network settings after reboot. You may need to re-enter Wi‑Fi passwords.

7. Check whether the PC is actually disconnecting from Wi‑Fi or only losing internet​

On your wife’s PC, when the problem happens:

1. Look at the Wi‑Fi icon.
2. Check if it says Connected, no internet or fully disconnects.
3. Open Command Prompt and run:

ipconfig
Check whether the Wi‑Fi adapter still has an IPv4 address, usually something like:
192.168.x.x
Then try:
ping 192.168.1.1
or whatever the EE router’s gateway address is shown as in ipconfig.
If it can ping the router but not websites, it is an internet/DNS issue. If it cannot ping the router, it is a Wi‑Fi link issue.

8. Remove or recreate the old mapped network drive​

You mentioned using a Z: network connection. That should not normally cause Wi‑Fi to disconnect, but if it points to an old network path, Windows may keep trying to reconnect.

1. Open This PC.
2. Right-click the old Z: mapped drive.
3. Choose Disconnect.
4. Reboot.
5. Only recreate it after the EE WiFi 2 connection is stable.

Most likely fix​

I would try these first, in this order:

1. Forget old BT/EE Wi‑Fi profiles.
2. Disable Wi‑Fi adapter power saving.
3. Connect wife’s PC to 2.4 GHz if possible.
4. Update/reinstall the Wi‑Fi driver.
5. Reset the network stack.

Questions that would help narrow it down​

1. Is your wife’s computer using built-in Wi‑Fi, a USB Wi‑Fi dongle, or a PCIe Wi‑Fi card?
2. Which version of Windows is it running, Windows 10 or Windows 11?
3. When it disconnects, does it say Connected, no internet, or does it drop the Wi‑Fi connection completely?
4. Does your wife’s PC connect reliably if placed right next to the EE WiFi 2 router?
5. Do other devices stay connected in the same room as your wife’s computer?

 

[HP8000Elite]

I will investigate the fixes you have suggested.

Apart from turning the Hybrid off, should I turn off the Smarthub.? I ask because during all my attempts to get the EE WiFi 2 network running ,I effectively disabled the original network router and 4G hybrid; doing this made no difference to the problem.

Answers to questions:
1. The printer is connection is wireless. This worked perfectly well without the USB WiFi dongle, the conclusion being that there must be built-in WiFi.
After I connected the dongle, the Wifi name in settings/network & internet changed to WiFi 2.
The printer still worked with the dongle connected.
2. Windows 11 25H2
3. I'll have to check but the EE WiFi 2 router remains in the list of alternative networks.
4. When I open manage networks, the EE WiFi 2 router has the autoconnect box ticked, but I have to click on the connect button to start up.
It then asks for the EE WiFi 2 wireless network password. I have to do this several times before it responds. It tends to respond only when the router is close to the Computer.
This is strange , as the other computer is still on the EE network when the router is 3 to 4 meters from the computer.
5.The printer is on the original network, which still works via the EE 4G Hybrid operating without the Broadband copper cable connected.

I changed the network on the printer to the EE WiFi 2 so that I could print from my computer, which is at least 6m away. Needless to say printing from my wife's computer in the same space as the printer was no longer possible. I the reverted to the original network on the printer , and turned on the Hybrid and reconnected it to the Smarthub router.

 

[ChatGPT]

Hi HP8000Elite, yes — for troubleshooting I would turn off the Smart Hub and the EE 4G Hybrid, at least temporarily.
But there is an important point here: you currently appear to have two separate Wi‑Fi networks active:

• The old Smart Hub / EE 4G Hybrid network, which the printer is using.
• The new EE WiFi 2 mobile router network, which your PC is using.

Devices on one network often cannot see devices on the other, which explains why printing works from one setup but not the other.

Key point: “WiFi 2” probably means the adapter, not the router​

When you plugged in the USB Wi‑Fi dongle and Windows changed the label to WiFi 2, that usually means Windows has detected a second wireless adapter.
So your wife’s PC may now have:

• Built-in Wi‑Fi adapter
• USB Wi‑Fi dongle
• Possibly both enabled at the same time

That can cause Windows to jump between adapters or profiles, especially if one adapter sees the EE WiFi 2 router better than the other.

Should you turn off the Smart Hub?​

For testing: yes.
I suggest this:

• Turn off the Smart Hub.
• Turn off the EE 4G Hybrid.
• Leave only the EE WiFi 2 router running.
• Test your wife’s PC again.
• Do not test printing yet.
• First confirm whether the wife’s PC can stay connected to the EE WiFi 2 router.

Expected result: if the old network is removed from the situation, Windows has only one Wi‑Fi network to connect to.

Then fix the wife’s PC connection​

On your wife’s PC, I would temporarily use only one Wi‑Fi adapter.

Option A — test with the USB Wi‑Fi dongle only​

• Right-click Start.
• Open Device Manager.
• Expand Network adapters.
• Find the built-in Wi‑Fi adapter.
• Right-click it.
• Choose Disable device.
• Leave the USB Wi‑Fi dongle enabled.
• Restart the PC.
• Connect to the EE WiFi 2 network again.

Do not uninstall the adapter at this stage — just disable it. You can undo this by returning to Device Manager and choosing Enable device.

Option B — test with built-in Wi‑Fi only​

• Shut down the PC.
• Remove the USB Wi‑Fi dongle.
• Restart the PC.
• Connect to the EE WiFi 2 network using the built-in Wi‑Fi.
• Test whether it remains connected.

If one method works reliably and the other does not, we have identified the weak adapter.

Remove the saved EE WiFi 2 profile and recreate it​

The fact that Windows keeps asking for the password suggests the saved Wi‑Fi profile may not be storing correctly, or Windows is connecting through the wrong adapter.

• Open Settings.
• Go to Network & Internet.
• Select Wi‑Fi.
• Open Manage known networks.
• Click the EE WiFi 2 network.
• Select Forget.
• Also forget the old Smart Hub network for this test.
• Restart the PC.
• Connect again to the EE WiFi 2 network.
• Enter the wireless password carefully.
• Tick Connect automatically.

Expected result: Windows should stop asking for the password repeatedly.

Check that the password is being entered for the correct network​

This sounds obvious, but it matters here because there may be several EE/BT network names nearby.

• Look at the label or card supplied with the EE WiFi 2 router.
• Confirm the exact SSID/network name.
• Confirm the exact Wi‑Fi password/key.
• On your wife’s PC, select only that exact SSID.
• If possible, temporarily rename the EE WiFi 2 network to something unique, for example:

Bob-EE-WiFi2
That avoids accidentally connecting to the old router or a neighbour’s similarly named EE network.

Printer issue: put everything on one network​

For normal home printing, the simplest arrangement is:

• Your PC on EE WiFi 2
• Wife’s PC on EE WiFi 2
• Printer on EE WiFi 2
• Smart Hub and Hybrid switched off

If the printer is left on the old Smart Hub network, your EE WiFi 2-connected computers may not be able to print to it.
So once the wife’s PC is stable:

• Connect the printer to the EE WiFi 2 network.
• Restart the printer.
• Restart both PCs.
• On each PC, remove the old printer entry if necessary.
• Re-add the printer from Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Printers & scanners.

If you need to keep the old Smart Hub for the printer​

You can do that temporarily, but it is not ideal.
If the printer remains on the old Smart Hub network, then:

• Your wife’s PC may print if it is connected to the old network.
• Your PC may not print while connected to EE WiFi 2.
• File sharing and mapped drives may also behave unpredictably.

So for a clean setup, avoid running two separate home Wi‑Fi networks unless you specifically need to.

My recommended order​

• Turn off the Smart Hub and Hybrid for testing.
• On wife’s PC, use only one Wi‑Fi adapter.
• Forget and reconnect to the EE WiFi 2 network.
• Test whether internet remains connected.
• Once stable, move the printer to the EE WiFi 2 network.
• Re-add the printer on both PCs.

One thing to check next​

On your wife’s PC, please check this:

• Right-click Start.
• Click Device Manager.
• Expand Network adapters.
• Tell us the names of the Wi‑Fi adapters listed there.

That will tell us whether the PC is using the built-in Wi‑Fi, the USB dongle, or both.