Windows 10 PC has no internet connection.

[ChatGPT]

Yes — let’s pick the easiest way for you. Quick question first:
Which phone do you have: Android or iPhone?
Also: can you connect that phone to the PC with a USB cable and use “File Transfer / MTP” (Android) or do you have a USB thumb drive you can plug into the phone (OTG) or into the PC?
Tell me the answers and I’ll give one of these clear, step‑by‑step options:

• If Android + you can use USB file transfer (recommended): I’ll give a tiny 1‑step method you paste into a plain text file on the phone and copy to the PC via USB — I’ll show exactly how to save it on Android and where to paste it on the PC, then how to Run As Administrator.
• If iPhone or you don’t want to fiddle with file copying: use the short commands route (I’ll repeat 6–8 single-line commands). You can view them on your phone and type each short line on the PC (much less error prone than the big script). Then take photos of the outputs and upload them.

Which do you want? (Reply: “Android USB” or “iPhone / short commands”)

 

[11010001]

Yes — let’s pick the easiest way for you. Quick question first:
Which phone do you have: Android or iPhone?
Also: can you connect that phone to the PC with a USB cable and use “File Transfer / MTP” (Android) or do you have a USB thumb drive you can plug into the phone (OTG) or into the PC?
Tell me the answers and I’ll give one of these clear, step‑by‑step options:

• If Android + you can use USB file transfer (recommended): I’ll give a tiny 1‑step method you paste into a plain text file on the phone and copy to the PC via USB — I’ll show exactly how to save it on Android and where to paste it on the PC, then how to Run As Administrator.
• If iPhone or you don’t want to fiddle with file copying: use the short commands route (I’ll repeat 6–8 single-line commands). You can view them on your phone and type each short line on the PC (much less error prone than the big script). Then take photos of the outputs and upload them.

Which do you want? (Reply: “Android USB” or “iPhone / short commands”)

 

[ChatGPT]

Which phone do you have — Android or iPhone? Also: can you plug the phone into the PC with a USB cable and pick “File transfer / MTP” on the phone? Answer that and I’ll give the exact step‑by‑step you should follow.
If you want the quick answers now:

• Android + USB file transfer (recommended): I’ll give a tiny script file text to save as run_diag.cmd on the phone, then copy that file to the PC (Desktop or C:\Temp) via USB and run it as Administrator. No typing long commands on the PC.
• iPhone (or you can’t USB‑transfer): the easiest is the short commands route — I’ll list 6–8 one‑line commands you can view on your phone and type on the PC (much less typing than the full script). Then take photos of the results and upload.

Tell me: “Android USB” or “iPhone / short commands” and I’ll post the exact, simple steps for that option.

 

[11010001]

Which phone do you have — Android or iPhone? Also: can you plug the phone into the PC with a USB cable and pick “File transfer / MTP” on the phone? Answer that and I’ll give the exact step‑by‑step you should follow.
If you want the quick answers now:

• Android + USB file transfer (recommended): I’ll give a tiny script file text to save as run_diag.cmd on the phone, then copy that file to the PC (Desktop or C:\Temp) via USB and run it as Administrator. No typing long commands on the PC.
• iPhone (or you can’t USB‑transfer): the easiest is the short commands route — I’ll list 6–8 one‑line commands you can view on your phone and type on the PC (much less typing than the full script). Then take photos of the results and upload.

Tell me: “Android USB” or “iPhone / short commands” and I’ll post the exact, simple steps for that option.

I already figured that part out and ran it. It is asking for a parameter

 

[ChatGPT]

That prompt came from PowerShell waiting for you to supply a value for a parameter (Set‑Variable/Name). It happened because the script included PowerShell snippets that got executed in an interactive context. No problem — you can cancel it and we’ll run a few short, safe commands instead.
Step 1 — cancel the prompt

• Press Ctrl+C in that window to stop the script and return to the prompt.

Step 2 — run these short commands (one at a time) in an elevated PowerShell or Admin Command Prompt, photograph each output, and upload the photos here. Don’t try to run the big script again — these are the exact small checks I need and are easy to type.
1) DNS Client status
sc query dnscache
2) WinHTTP proxy
netsh winhttp show proxy
3) Winsock catalog (may be long — one photo of the top portion is fine)
netsh winsock show catalog
4) Adapter + DNS summary
ipconfig /all
5) Test DNS reachability (shows TcpTestSucceeded)
powershell -Command "Test-NetConnection -ComputerName 8.8.8.8 -Port 53 -InformationLevel Detailed"
6) Test TCP to Google (HTTPS port)
powershell -Command "Test-NetConnection -ComputerName 216.58.214.14 -Port 443 -InformationLevel Detailed"
7) App‑level web test (PowerShell)
powershell -Command "Try {(Invoke-WebRequest -Uri 'https://www.google.com' -UseBasicParsing -TimeoutSec 8).StatusCode} Catch { $_.Exception.Message }"
Notes on photographing:

• For ipconfig /all, capture the section that shows your active adapter (IPv4 address, Default Gateway, DNS Servers).
• For winsock catalog, a single photo of the first ~80–120 lines is enough.
• For the Invoke‑WebRequest command, photograph the entire error text (the red text) if it fails.

Step 3 — upload the photos here. Once I see those outputs I will give the exact next step (likely one of: re‑registering a service, removing a leftover VPN/TAP driver, or a targeted repair).
If you do want the single ready‑to‑run diag file instead (so you don’t have to type anything), say “I can copy via USB” and I’ll give an exact tiny file you save on your phone and copy to the PC — but only do that if you can transfer files from phone→PC via USB or a thumb drive. Which would you prefer now — run the short commands and upload photos, or use the USB file method?

 

[11010001]

That prompt came from PowerShell waiting for you to supply a value for a parameter (Set‑Variable/Name). It happened because the script included PowerShell snippets that got executed in an interactive context. No problem — you can cancel it and we’ll run a few short, safe commands instead.
Step 1 — cancel the prompt

• Press Ctrl+C in that window to stop the script and return to the prompt.

Step 2 — run these short commands (one at a time) in an elevated PowerShell or Admin Command Prompt, photograph each output, and upload the photos here. Don’t try to run the big script again — these are the exact small checks I need and are easy to type.
1) DNS Client status
sc query dnscache
2) WinHTTP proxy
netsh winhttp show proxy
3) Winsock catalog (may be long — one photo of the top portion is fine)
netsh winsock show catalog
4) Adapter + DNS summary
ipconfig /all
5) Test DNS reachability (shows TcpTestSucceeded)
powershell -Command "Test-NetConnection -ComputerName 8.8.8.8 -Port 53 -InformationLevel Detailed"
6) Test TCP to Google (HTTPS port)
powershell -Command "Test-NetConnection -ComputerName 216.58.214.14 -Port 443 -InformationLevel Detailed"
7) App‑level web test (PowerShell)
powershell -Command "Try {(Invoke-WebRequest -Uri 'https://www.google.com' -UseBasicParsing -TimeoutSec 8).StatusCode} Catch { $_.Exception.Message }"
Notes on photographing:

• For ipconfig /all, capture the section that shows your active adapter (IPv4 address, Default Gateway, DNS Servers).
• For winsock catalog, a single photo of the first ~80–120 lines is enough.
• For the Invoke‑WebRequest command, photograph the entire error text (the red text) if it fails.

Step 3 — upload the photos here. Once I see those outputs I will give the exact next step (likely one of: re‑registering a service, removing a leftover VPN/TAP driver, or a targeted repair).
If you do want the single ready‑to‑run diag file instead (so you don’t have to type anything), say “I can copy via USB” and I’ll give an exact tiny file you save on your phone and copy to the PC — but only do that if you can transfer files from phone→PC via USB or a thumb drive. Which would you prefer now — run the short commands and upload photos, or use the USB file method?

When I run "sc query dnscache" it doesn't return anything.

 

[ChatGPT]

Thanks — that screenshot explains it: PowerShell treated the short command sc as a PowerShell alias (not the sc.exe service tool) and started prompting you (you saw the Set-Variable / Name[] prompt). That’s why nothing printed.
Do this (one step at a time) — run these exact commands in an elevated PowerShell (right‑click → Run as Administrator). Photograph each result and upload the photos.
1) Cancel any current prompt (if you’re still stuck)

• Press Ctrl+C.

2) Run the real service query (explicitly call the sc.exe tool)

• sc.exe query dnscache
• sc.exe qc dnscache
  What to expect: you should see the DNS Client service state (RUNNING / STOPPED etc.) and the service configuration (Start=).

3) PowerShell alternative (easier readable output)

• Get-Service -Name Dnscache
  What to expect: Status : Running (or Stopped)

4) If the service is stopped, try to start it

• sc.exe config dnscache start= auto
• net start dnscache
  (Important: there must be a space after the equals sign in the sc config command.)

5) Check WinHTTP proxy (one line)

• netsh winhttp show proxy

6) Show which DNS the adapter is configured to use

• Get-DnsClientServerAddress -AddressFamily IPv4
  -or-
• ipconfig /all (photo the section for the active adapter)

7) Quick app‑level test (PowerShell)

• Try { (Invoke-WebRequest 'https://www.google.com' -UseBasicParsing -TimeoutSec 8 -Proxy '') .StatusCode } Catch { $_.Exception.Message }
  (If this still errors, please photo the full error text.)

Why this helps

• In PowerShell the short name sc is an alias for a different cmdlet, so you must run sc.exe (the real service controller) or use Get‑Service. The outputs above tell me whether the DNS Client service is running and whether any WinHTTP proxy or mis‑configured DNS is present — the most likely reason apps still can’t resolve names.

If any command fails or returns an error, photograph that screen and upload the image here. If the DNS Client fails to start (net start fails), photograph the error text — that’s the key clue and I’ll give the exact next command.

 

[11010001]

Thanks — that screenshot explains it: PowerShell treated the short command sc as a PowerShell alias (not the sc.exe service tool) and started prompting you (you saw the Set-Variable / Name[] prompt). That’s why nothing printed.
Do this (one step at a time) — run these exact commands in an elevated PowerShell (right‑click → Run as Administrator). Photograph each result and upload the photos.
1) Cancel any current prompt (if you’re still stuck)

• Press Ctrl+C.

2) Run the real service query (explicitly call the sc.exe tool)

• sc.exe query dnscache
• sc.exe qc dnscache
  What to expect: you should see the DNS Client service state (RUNNING / STOPPED etc.) and the service configuration (Start=).

3) PowerShell alternative (easier readable output)

• Get-Service -Name Dnscache
  What to expect: Status : Running (or Stopped)

4) If the service is stopped, try to start it

• sc.exe config dnscache start= auto
• net start dnscache
  (Important: there must be a space after the equals sign in the sc config command.)

5) Check WinHTTP proxy (one line)

• netsh winhttp show proxy

6) Show which DNS the adapter is configured to use

• Get-DnsClientServerAddress -AddressFamily IPv4
  -or-
• ipconfig /all (photo the section for the active adapter)

7) Quick app‑level test (PowerShell)

• Try { (Invoke-WebRequest 'https://www.google.com' -UseBasicParsing -TimeoutSec 8 -Proxy '') .StatusCode } Catch { $_.Exception.Message }
  (If this still errors, please photo the full error text.)

Why this helps

• In PowerShell the short name sc is an alias for a different cmdlet, so you must run sc.exe (the real service controller) or use Get‑Service. The outputs above tell me whether the DNS Client service is running and whether any WinHTTP proxy or mis‑configured DNS is present — the most likely reason apps still can’t resolve names.

If any command fails or returns an error, photograph that screen and upload the image here. If the DNS Client fails to start (net start fails), photograph the error text — that’s the key clue and I’ll give the exact next command.

Under step 7, after "-Proxy" is that one double quote or two single quotes?

 

[ChatGPT]

Use two single quotes (''), or you can use two double quotes ("") — both are fine in PowerShell for an empty string. The important points:

• Run this in an elevated PowerShell window (not cmd).
• Use plain ASCII quotes (not “smart” quotes from a phone editor).

Exact copy‑ready line to run in PowerShell (Admin):
Try { (Invoke-WebRequest 'https://www.google.com' -UseBasicParsing -TimeoutSec 8 -Proxy '') .StatusCode } Catch { $_.Exception.Message }
If that returns 200 (or another status) then the call works when explicitly bypassing a proxy. If it still errors, photograph the full error text and upload it and I’ll interpret it.

 

[11010001]

Use two single quotes (''), or you can use two double quotes ("") — both are fine in PowerShell for an empty string. The important points:

• Run this in an elevated PowerShell window (not cmd).
• Use plain ASCII quotes (not “smart” quotes from a phone editor).

Exact copy‑ready line to run in PowerShell (Admin):
Try { (Invoke-WebRequest 'https://www.google.com' -UseBasicParsing -TimeoutSec 8 -Proxy '') .StatusCode } Catch { $_.Exception.Message }
If that returns 200 (or another status) then the call works when explicitly bypassing a proxy. If it still errors, photograph the full error text and upload it and I’ll interpret it.

When I run this I get "This operation is not supported for a relative URI."

 

[ChatGPT]

Thanks — that error message is just PowerShell telling you the Invoke‑WebRequest call got a bad URI because of the way the command was entered (PowerShell was confused by the arguments). Two easy, corrected one‑line tests — run these in an elevated PowerShell window (Admin). They’re short; type them exactly, one at a time, then photograph the output and upload the photo here.
1) Test HTTP by IP (bypasses DNS):
(Invoke-WebRequest -Uri "http://216.58.214.14" -UseBasicParsing -TimeoutSec 8).StatusCode
2) Test HTTPS by name (normal name resolution):
(Invoke-WebRequest -Uri "https://www.google.com" -UseBasicParsing -TimeoutSec 8).StatusCode
3) If you still want to explicitly bypass any proxy, use $null (not an empty string):
(Invoke-WebRequest -Uri "https://www.google.com" -UseBasicParsing -TimeoutSec 8 -Proxy $null).StatusCode
Why this fixes the “relative URI” error

• The error commonly appears when PowerShell receives malformed input (unbalanced quotes/parentheses) or when a parameter that expects a full URI got something else. Using the exact lines above avoids that and uses $null if you want to tell PowerShell “no proxy” explicitly.

If those two tests both fail, also run these quick short checks and photo their outputs (they’re one line each):
4) curl (shows more detail from the native curl)
curl -v "http://216.58.214.14"
curl -v "https://www.google.com"
5) Winsock catalog (first ~screenful is enough)
netsh winsock show catalog
6) DNS client status (you’ve run this but photo it again after these tests)
sc.exe query dnscache
What to tell/upload after you run them

• A photo of the exact output for each of commands 1–3 (and 4 if you run it).
• If the IP test (1) succeeds (StatusCode 200) but the host test (2) fails with a name resolution error, that proves app‑level name resolution is still broken. If both IP and name fail, that shows app‑level outbound HTTP(S) is being blocked (filter/driver/stack issue).
• If the commands return red error text, photograph the full error — that text is the diagnostic.

Next steps I’ll recommend after those outputs

• If IP works but name fails: show me netsh winhttp show proxy and your hosts file; I’ll give the exact fix (usually reset winhttp proxy or remove a proxy env var).
• If both fail: I’ll walk you through Network Reset / NIC driver reinstall or advise a repair install depending on what the error text shows.

Run the three corrected Invoke‑WebRequest lines now and upload photos of the results. I’ll interpret them and give the precise next command.

 

[11010001]

Thanks — that error message is just PowerShell telling you the Invoke‑WebRequest call got a bad URI because of the way the command was entered (PowerShell was confused by the arguments). Two easy, corrected one‑line tests — run these in an elevated PowerShell window (Admin). They’re short; type them exactly, one at a time, then photograph the output and upload the photo here.
1) Test HTTP by IP (bypasses DNS):
(Invoke-WebRequest -Uri "http://216.58.214.14" -UseBasicParsing -TimeoutSec 8).StatusCode
2) Test HTTPS by name (normal name resolution):
(Invoke-WebRequest -Uri "https://www.google.com" -UseBasicParsing -TimeoutSec 8).StatusCode
3) If you still want to explicitly bypass any proxy, use $null (not an empty string):
(Invoke-WebRequest -Uri "https://www.google.com" -UseBasicParsing -TimeoutSec 8 -Proxy $null).StatusCode
Why this fixes the “relative URI” error

• The error commonly appears when PowerShell receives malformed input (unbalanced quotes/parentheses) or when a parameter that expects a full URI got something else. Using the exact lines above avoids that and uses $null if you want to tell PowerShell “no proxy” explicitly.

If those two tests both fail, also run these quick short checks and photo their outputs (they’re one line each):
4) curl (shows more detail from the native curl)
curl -v "http://216.58.214.14"
curl -v "https://www.google.com"
5) Winsock catalog (first ~screenful is enough)
netsh winsock show catalog
6) DNS client status (you’ve run this but photo it again after these tests)
sc.exe query dnscache
What to tell/upload after you run them

• A photo of the exact output for each of commands 1–3 (and 4 if you run it).
• If the IP test (1) succeeds (StatusCode 200) but the host test (2) fails with a name resolution error, that proves app‑level name resolution is still broken. If both IP and name fail, that shows app‑level outbound HTTP(S) is being blocked (filter/driver/stack issue).
• If the commands return red error text, photograph the full error — that text is the diagnostic.

Next steps I’ll recommend after those outputs

• If IP works but name fails: show me netsh winhttp show proxy and your hosts file; I’ll give the exact fix (usually reset winhttp proxy or remove a proxy env var).
• If both fail: I’ll walk you through Network Reset / NIC driver reinstall or advise a repair install depending on what the error text shows.

Run the three corrected Invoke‑WebRequest lines now and upload photos of the results. I’ll interpret them and give the precise next command.

 

[ChatGPT]

Thanks — the screenshot is useful.
Quick interpretation

• The red TLS error when you tried https://216.58.214.14 is expected: connecting to an IP with HTTPS often fails because the server certificate is for a hostname, not the IP. Ignore that — it’s not the root cause.
• The real problem is the second error: “The remote name could not be resolved : 'https'” when requesting Google from PowerShell. That shows app-level name resolution (the resolver used by WinINet/.NET/PowerShell and browsers) is failing even though CLI tests (ping, nslookup, Test‑NetConnection) worked earlier. Since Safe Mode with Networking also failed, this looks like a persistent system-level issue (filter/driver, DNS client / network stack corruption, or leftover VPN TAP driver).

What to try next (in order — do one step, reboot, test, then continue if not fixed)
1) Uninstall Proton VPN and remove TAP/virtual adapters (most likely culprit)

• Settings → Apps → find Proton VPN → Uninstall (do not just close it).
• Reboot.
• Open Device Manager → Network adapters → look for anything named “TAP‑”, “Proton”, “TAP‑Windows Adapter V9”, or other virtual adapters → right‑click → Uninstall device. If it offers “Delete the driver software for this device”, check that box and confirm.
• Reboot again and test browsing / PowerShell Invoke‑WebRequest.

If you want exact click steps I can walk you through them.
2) Network Reset (safe, often fixes stubborn stack issues)

• Settings → Network & Internet → Status → Network reset → Reset now → Reboot.
• After reboot, test browsing / PowerShell.

3) Full winsock + IP reset (run after uninstall + reboot)
Open Command Prompt (Admin) and run these (one block):
netsh winhttp reset proxy
netsh winsock reset
netsh int ip reset
ipconfig /flushdns
shutdown /r /t 5
After restart, test browsing / PowerShell again.
4) Reinstall the NIC driver (if Network Reset didn’t fix)

• Device Manager → Network adapters → right‑click the physical adapter (Intel/Realtek) → Uninstall device. If prompted, check “Delete the driver software for this device”.
• Reboot. Windows will reinstall drivers automatically. If it doesn't, use a manufacturer driver from USB.

5) If still no internet: Repair steps

• If you have a recent System Restore point, try that first.
• Otherwise, a Windows in-place Repair (Run setup.exe from Windows 10 ISO and choose “Keep personal files and apps”) usually fixes persistent networking corruption without losing files. I can give step-by-step for that.

Quick commands to run (if you want to check status after each step)
Run these in an elevated prompt (you can photo outputs and upload):
sc.exe query dnscache
netsh winhttp show proxy
netsh winsock show catalog
ipconfig /all
nslookup google.com 8.8.8.8
nslookup google.com
What I can do for you now

• If you want to try the uninstall steps but aren’t sure how, say “Help uninstall Proton” and I’ll give step‑by‑step clickable instructions.
• If you prefer I collect diagnostics to read (one file), I’ll give a much simpler run_diag.cmd that avoids the PowerShell interactive issues you hit. You can save that on your phone, copy it to the PC via USB, run it as admin, then copy C:\Temp\webdiag2.txt to your phone and upload the file or photos. Say “I can copy via USB” and I’ll paste the simplified script.

One more diagnostic note

• Because Safe Mode with Networking failed, it suggests either (a) a non‑Microsoft service/driver that also loads in Safe Mode (rare) or (b) a deeper Windows networking component corruption. Uninstalling Proton (and removing TAP) + Network Reset + winsock reset usually resolves the common cases I’ve seen.

Which do you want to try now — uninstall Proton VPN (I’ll give exact steps), run Network Reset, or have the simplified run_diag.cmd for USB transfer?

 

[11010001]

Thanks — the screenshot is useful.
Quick interpretation

• The red TLS error when you tried https://216.58.214.14 is expected: connecting to an IP with HTTPS often fails because the server certificate is for a hostname, not the IP. Ignore that — it’s not the root cause.
• The real problem is the second error: “The remote name could not be resolved : 'https'” when requesting Google from PowerShell. That shows app-level name resolution (the resolver used by WinINet/.NET/PowerShell and browsers) is failing even though CLI tests (ping, nslookup, Test‑NetConnection) worked earlier. Since Safe Mode with Networking also failed, this looks like a persistent system-level issue (filter/driver, DNS client / network stack corruption, or leftover VPN TAP driver).

What to try next (in order — do one step, reboot, test, then continue if not fixed)
1) Uninstall Proton VPN and remove TAP/virtual adapters (most likely culprit)

• Settings → Apps → find Proton VPN → Uninstall (do not just close it).
• Reboot.
• Open Device Manager → Network adapters → look for anything named “TAP‑”, “Proton”, “TAP‑Windows Adapter V9”, or other virtual adapters → right‑click → Uninstall device. If it offers “Delete the driver software for this device”, check that box and confirm.
• Reboot again and test browsing / PowerShell Invoke‑WebRequest.

If you want exact click steps I can walk you through them.
2) Network Reset (safe, often fixes stubborn stack issues)

• Settings → Network & Internet → Status → Network reset → Reset now → Reboot.
• After reboot, test browsing / PowerShell.

3) Full winsock + IP reset (run after uninstall + reboot)
Open Command Prompt (Admin) and run these (one block):
netsh winhttp reset proxy
netsh winsock reset
netsh int ip reset
ipconfig /flushdns
shutdown /r /t 5
After restart, test browsing / PowerShell again.
4) Reinstall the NIC driver (if Network Reset didn’t fix)

• Device Manager → Network adapters → right‑click the physical adapter (Intel/Realtek) → Uninstall device. If prompted, check “Delete the driver software for this device”.
• Reboot. Windows will reinstall drivers automatically. If it doesn't, use a manufacturer driver from USB.

5) If still no internet: Repair steps

• If you have a recent System Restore point, try that first.
• Otherwise, a Windows in-place Repair (Run setup.exe from Windows 10 ISO and choose “Keep personal files and apps”) usually fixes persistent networking corruption without losing files. I can give step-by-step for that.

Quick commands to run (if you want to check status after each step)
Run these in an elevated prompt (you can photo outputs and upload):
sc.exe query dnscache
netsh winhttp show proxy
netsh winsock show catalog
ipconfig /all
nslookup google.com 8.8.8.8
nslookup google.com
What I can do for you now

• If you want to try the uninstall steps but aren’t sure how, say “Help uninstall Proton” and I’ll give step‑by‑step clickable instructions.
• If you prefer I collect diagnostics to read (one file), I’ll give a much simpler run_diag.cmd that avoids the PowerShell interactive issues you hit. You can save that on your phone, copy it to the PC via USB, run it as admin, then copy C:\Temp\webdiag2.txt to your phone and upload the file or photos. Say “I can copy via USB” and I’ll paste the simplified script.

One more diagnostic note

• Because Safe Mode with Networking failed, it suggests either (a) a non‑Microsoft service/driver that also loads in Safe Mode (rare) or (b) a deeper Windows networking component corruption. Uninstalling Proton (and removing TAP) + Network Reset + winsock reset usually resolves the common cases I’ve seen.

Which do you want to try now — uninstall Proton VPN (I’ll give exact steps), run Network Reset, or have the simplified run_diag.cmd for USB transfer?

That did it. It was the vpn. Thnx.

 

[ChatGPT]

Great — glad you found it. Thanks for the update!
A few quick follow‑ups you may find helpful now that it’s fixed:

• If you simply uninstalled Proton to test, you can reinstall it — but download the latest Proton VPN client from their site and install it fresh. Older versions or leftover TAP drivers are often the cause; when reinstalling, choose the latest TAP/driver bundle if prompted.
• After reinstalling any VPN/security tool, retest browsing. If the problem returns, uninstall again and report the Proton version so we can troubleshoot that driver specifically.
• Optional cleanup steps (safe):
  • Run the winsock reset sequence once more just to ensure the stack is clean:
    netsh winsock reset
    netsh int ip reset
    ipconfig /flushdns
    reboot
  • Remove any unused virtual adapters in Device Manager (TAP, Hamachi, etc.).
• Before you upgrade to Windows 11:
  • Make a full backup or create a System Restore point.
  • Run the PC Health Check app to confirm TPM, Secure Boot, CPU, and storage meet Win11 requirements.
  • Keep drivers (network, storage, chipset) up to date before upgrading.
• If you want, I can:
  • Walk you step‑by‑step to reinstall Proton safely or remove any leftover TAP drivers, or
  • Check your PC for Windows 11 compatibility and list the exact steps to upgrade.

Anything else you want help with now (reinstalling Proton, preparing for Win11, or verifying everything’s clean)?