Hardware Wii U WiFi suddenly can't connect to router

[jamesalfred]

Hello all,

As in the title, my Wii U suddenly cannot connect to my router, or any routers (hotspot, virtual wifi router, etc). It can see the wifi routers, but somehow it always failed when trying to connect to the router. Mind you, I do not have this problem before. This happens just this morning, when I'm trying to update my Wii U to the latest version. It suddenly disconnected while downloading, and then it didn't want to connect to it anymore. My other devices works fine with my router.

I looked around the internet, many people had the same problems. But theirs can be fixed by manually configuring the connections (static ip, dns, etc). Mine doesn't. I found several people with the exact same problem with mine. Weirdly though, they said their units eventually reconnected to the router by itself the next day. Now mine just happened today. I don't know about tomorrow.... I tried to advance the date, no dice.

Anybody has the same problem and how to fix it? Thanks.

Btw, I'm on system 5.2 right now. It is updated from my copy of SSB.

FIXED!!!

This what works for me:
1. Turn off and unplug your Wii U
2. Check on the right side of your Wii U, there should be a door with a small screw. Open it.
3. Remove the door alongside with the battery.
4. Let it sit for about 15 minutes.
5. Put back the door with the battery.
6. Plug your Wii U and turn it on. Then hope for the best

Still confused? Here's the teardown guide for the battery: https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/Nintendo+Wii+U+Console+Battery+Replacement/12589

What you just removed is the CMOS battery. In PC and Laptops, that battery is used to keep to "power" your BIOS even though it's been completely turned off. This battery is mainly used to keep the BIOS settings intact, such as date, time, boot sequence, etc. If the CMOS battery ran out, the BIOS will be reverted to default value. In my case, this somehow fixed my WiFi problem.


OTHER POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS:

- Manually configure your Wii U's WiFi configuration (There's too many guides for this already. I won't post it here)

- Unplug your Wii U, let it sit overnight.

- Remove any USB devices.

- Change the channel for your wifi router. Reported working channels are 1, 6 and 11.

 

[shinkodachi]

Just to be sure, try troubleshooting:

1. Turn off and unplug the modem. Wait for 10 seconds, and plug it back in.
2. On the Wii U, remove all connection profiles and turn off the Wii U.
3. Turn on the modem if you haven't already and wait for it to reach the internet.
4. Confirm with another device (computer, tablet, etc.) that everything works.
5. Turn on the Wii U and complete the network setup wizard again.

Does the Wii U still refuse to connect after that? It sounds to me that if you have a dynamic IP, your ISP may have issued a new IP address just at the time your Wii U was downloading, causing the Wii U to throw off the connection. At the same time, the modem may have been overworked and now fails to request a proper IP for the Wii U. Or something like that.

And whatever you do, DON'T alter the system date on the Wii U. Please reset it back to the current date and time. Or else you'll likely break many things.

 

[jamesalfred]

Thanks for the reply.

I already tried your suggestions even before posting. I even tried connecting manually. The weird thing is, my Wii U can see the surrounding wireless routers, but cannot connect to it.

Yeah, the idea of changing my system's date is a bit dumb. I thought it's probably time based, since some people who's having this problem managed to fix it the next day. In fact, I haven't tried turning on my system today. Will try it later.

 

[TeamScriptKiddies]

Thanks for the reply.

I already tried your suggestions even before posting. I even tried connecting manually. The weird thing is, my Wii U can see the surrounding wireless routers, but cannot connect to it.

Yeah, the idea of changing my system's date is a bit dumb. I thought it's probably time based, since some people who's having this problem managed to fix it the next day. In fact, I haven't tried turning on my system today. Will try it later.

Its possible that you have faulty wifi hardware in your Wii U. Evidentally its still connecting to your gamepad (which also uses wifi), but it could be on its way out, gamepad might be due to fail as well (connecting to the wii u). Is your console under warranty or is it null and void at this point

 

[jamesalfred]

I hope it's not hardware related....... Nope, it's already out of warranty........ 2 months ago.....

 

[TeamScriptKiddies]

okay. Well there are some other possible things we can try. Have you tried unplugging the Wii U from its power source for a while and plugging it back in? It could just be that the whole thing needs to be reset (all power drained from it, then it would be fine upon the next boot). There could just be something stupid going on, that a simple cold boot (from a complete power down, ie pulling the plug and leaving it for a while), that will clear itself out.

 

[jamesalfred]

Nope. No dice. Tried it again today, still cannot connect to any routers. I already unplugged it the whole night. I should probably try to factory reset my wii u?

 

[TeamScriptKiddies]

Nope. No dice. Tried it again today, still cannot connect to any routers. I already unplugged it the whole night. I should probably try to factory reset my wii u?

I doubt that will help. All that does is remove all saves, dlc, apps, channels etc from both Wii U and vWii mode, it doesn't actually wipe the system like you would think.....

If you haven't softmodded your wii u at all, it might not hurt to give nintendo a call and find out what they would charge you for the repair. Unless you know somebody who's good with stuff like that, who is willing to help you out.

 

[Sheimi]

Something similar where my wiiu disconnected for no reason. Had to reboot my wiiu. Try changing the router password. I know this seems a little stupid. But at one point, I had the Konami Code as my wifi password, stopped connecting after awhile. (I typed out the Konami Code, no special characters).

 

[jamesalfred]

Damn it. I think I should start looking for LAN Adapter..... The WLAN modue is different from the one used in laptops. For now, I removed the CMOS battery already, hoping it might do "something". There goes my holiday -.-

Btw, Merry Christmas all.

 

[TeamScriptKiddies]

Damn it. I think I should start looking for LAN Adapter..... The WLAN modue is different from the one used in laptops. For now, I removed the CMOS battery already, hoping it might do "something". There goes my holiday -.-

Btw, Merry Christmas all.

That would be a cheap workaround as well . They're dirt cheap on ebay wiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii

 

[jamesalfred]

That would be a cheap workaround as well . They're dirt cheap on ebay wiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii

Yeah. I found one for 9.5$ only. I'll make that as a last resort....

Btw, for now, for those who's having the same problem as mine, here's the solutions that might work after looking around the net:
- Unplug your Wii U, let it sit overnight. It should work the next day (not for me though....)
- Remove any USB devices. In one person's case, he removed the USB for his USBLoader, and somehow the Wifi is restored (don't have anything plugged in mine....)
- Change the channel for your wifi router. Reported working channels are 1, 6 and 11. (Already tried 1, 2, 6 and 11. Not working for me. Will try some more)
- Manually configure your Wii U's wifi configuration (Doesn't work for me, but works for most people)

 

[jamesalfred]

WTF. IT RECONNECTED!!!!! After I pulled out the CMOS battery (of course after turning off), let it sit for a while, put it back in and rebooted it, it RECONNECTS!!!! Wtf Nintendo......

THANK YOU for those who helped me

Btw, I won't stop here. Clearly something weird is happening with Wii U's Wifi. I'll keep on updating on what I found in the internet.

 

[thorasgar]

Dang it! You foiled my jamming signal.

 

[shinkodachi]

WTF. IT RECONNECTED!!!!! After I pulled out the CMOS battery (of course after turning off), let it sit for a while, put it back in and rebooted it, it RECONNECTS!!!! Wtf Nintendo......

Sounds like a normal system management controller (SMC) reset. Fairly common in computers and other devices powered by batteries. Not so much "Wtf Nintendo", but how electronics work in general. I'm glad you sorted it out.

 

[thorasgar]

My aging PC build gets screwy every once in awhile I have to pull the battery and jumper reset CMOS. All is good afterward. I should probably just make it standard practice when i open the case for deep cleaning.

 

[jamesalfred]

Sounds like a normal system management controller (SMC) reset. Fairly common in computers and other devices powered by batteries. Not so much "Wtf Nintendo", but how electronics work in general. I'm glad you sorted it out.

Yeah, thanks for the ideas though .

 

[Keylogger]

Can I remove the battery to delete the control parental pin code?

 

[TeamScriptKiddies]

I doubt it. I'm pretty sure that pin is stored on NAND, has nothing to do with CMOS. You'd have to call nintendo, they must have some sort of master pin for taking that off/resetting it when ppl forget it.

Can I remove the battery to delete the control parental pin code?

 

[Toon Link]

My Wii U's wired internet won't even work after pulling out the CMOS battery or turning it off and letting it sit for the night. Can anyone tell me what to do?
The Wireless works but... Meh.