I need some help, or advise

[rufuszombot]

So my Windows 10 PC has stopped connecting to the internet (It still connects to the modem) and after days of trying to solve the issue, I haven't found a single solution.
The error I get is: One or more network protocols are missing on this computer
Alternatively, I get a different error sometimes saying something about the DNS not being able to register, or something like that.
I've tried every single 'solution' that googling my problem has to offer and it's done nothing. So I'm either looking for a way to fix this, or I just want to format the whole thing and get rid of this headache of a problem.
So, if I can't fix it and have to format, since I have a genuine Windows 10, will my 8.1 key that came with my PC do the trick when it comes to activating it? I don't want to run a pirated windows, they always cause me trouble. I've also always wanted to run a dual OS with Linux (probably Debian, but I'm not very familiar with the differences). Since I'll be starting fresh I feel like this would be the perfect time to do this, but I have no idea how to set this up, and when I tried on my laptop I ended up giving up because it wasn't working right.
TL;DR: How do I fix my internet, and if I can't what's an easy way to re-install Windows from scratch, preferable with a dual-boot option with Debian Linux?

 

[Joom]

Right click the network icon on the task tray, go to Network and Sharing center, go to Adapter Properties on the left-hand pane, right click your network adapter, and go to properties. Is the IPv4 module installed, and what are the properties set to for it?

 

[rufuszombot]

Right click the network icon on the task tray, go to Network and Sharing center, go to Adapter Properties on the left-hand pane, right click your network adapter, and go to properties. Is the IPv4 module installed, and what are the properties set to for it?

It is installed, and the properties are just set on automatic.

 

[Joom]

What network card do you have?

 

[rufuszombot]

What network card do you have?

Qualcomm Atheros AR5BWB222. I have tried to update, rollback, and even delete and reinstall the drivers, but none of that worked. I would attempt to hardwire to the modem, but that option is out of the question.

 

[Joom]

Not sure what the issue could be then. If you want to do a reinstall, download a Windows 10 ISO and use Rufus to create a bootable USB installer. And if you want Debian, reinstall Windows first, then use Rufus to make a USB for Debian, then install it. GRUB should automatically detect Windows during the install and set itself up accordingly.

 

[rufuszombot]

Not sure what the issue could be then. If you want to do a reinstall, download a Windows 10 ISO and use Rufus to create a bootable USB installer. And if you want Debian, reinstall Windows first, then use Rufus to make a USB for Debian, then install it. GRUB should automatically detect Windows during the install and set itself up accordingly.

Is there a legitimate place to download an ISO, or am i going to have to get it elsewhere?

 

[Joom]

http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/techbench

 

[rufuszombot]

http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/techbench

That seems to be exactly what I'm looking for. Thanks for all your help. I didn't want to have to reformat, but it's better than nothing, and it's not like I can't just always redownload anything I loase, it's just a hassle.

 

[Joom]

Yeah, it really is. I wish I could offer more help, but I really don't know what could be causing the issue. There's a myriad of scenarios like your drivers just being completely fubar, a third party firewall interfering, or Windows just being plain dumb.

 

[rufuszombot]

Yeah, it really is. I wish I could offer more help, but I really don't know what could be causing the issue. There's a myriad of scenarios like your drivers just being completely fubar, a third party firewall interfering, or Windows just being plain dumb.

It worked fine, and then my internet was shut off for a few months, when it got turned back on it had this problem. No telling what i did to it in the mean time.

 

[Joom]

It worked fine, and then my internet was shut off for a few months, when it got turned back on it had this problem. No telling what i did to it in the mean time.

That might be an issue with your router not being provisioned properly thus not leasing DHCP requests properly. That would make sense as to why you're getting DNS errors.

 

[rufuszombot]

That might be an issue with your router not being provisioned properly thus not leasing DHCP requests properly. That would make sense as to why you're getting DNS errors.

I tried to reset the router, but I didn't do anything. I do have a DHCP-Client error, but that led me nowhere. All of my other devices on this wifi work, and since it's my roommate's router, I can't really look around in the settings since I don't know that password.

 

[Joom]

It'd be up to the ISP to provision it properly if that is the issue. You wouldn't be able to do anything on your end.

 

[rufuszombot]

It'd be up to the ISP to provision it properly if that is the issue. You wouldn't be able to do anything on your end.

So would a reformat even fix this issue?

 

[Joom]

I mean, it might be worth a try seeing as your other devices seem to work.

 

[rufuszombot]

I mean, it might be worth a try seeing as your other devices seem to work.

Unfortunately this didn't work either. I'm going to try to do a clean install of linux, and see if that helps.
It's not working with Linux, or another clean install of Windows.

 

[rufuszombot]

I finally decided to take the wifi adapter out of an old laptop and install it in my desktop. As it stands, this has fixed my problem. Lesson learned the hard way, I suppose.