Windows 10: Can't get bluetooth driver back on my computer/show up in device manager

Hello all,


I am the very dangerous type of user where I know enough to mess around with settings under the hood, but not enough to really articulate what I've done. I'll try to be as complete as possible in describing my steps, but I'm sure it won't be sufficient.


Anyways, I recently received a pair of wireless headphones and was excited to try it out. I went to my bluetooth menu and saw that the option to turn bluetooth on or off was missing. This has been true since my wireless card died and I replaced it with an identical one, the GC-WB867D-1. That fixed my wireless problems, but at the time, I noticed that my bluetooth didn't show up as previously described. Happy to be able to continue working with deadlines looming, I basically just ignored it and moved on because my bluetooth headphones had died at about the same time.


Fast forward to last night, and I stumbled upon a thread urging me to update my bluetooth drivers through the device manager. I tried it, but it didn't work. Then I tried just uninstalling the bluetooth device, assured that when I restarted my computer, it'd automatically reinstall the driver. That didn't work. Now, no matter what I do, I can't get bluetooth back. It won't show up in the Device Manager yes, I've turned on hidden devices, or System Information, or just the settings panel. I tried reinstalling the drivers directly from the Wifi Card manufacturer's website, but all it did was reinstall the Intel drivers, which contradicts what the physical instruction booklet that came with the card shows. That manual shows a special Gigabyte installer, but it might just be out of date. In fact, when I look at my device manager, it shows I have an Intel Wifi card installed, not my Gigabyte card. I didn't know what that meant, so just to check that my wifi card was in fact installed and turned on, I switched the PCIE port. The Wifi menu showed I'm using Wifi-2 now, so I'm pretty sure that means that the card itself is plugged in correctly and turned on. I'm so confused that I don't even know what's actually wrong. I've tried reinstalling and uninstalling both the Wifi drivers and the BT drivers from the GB website yes, I used Windows 10 so many times, but nothing doing. No matter what I do, I can't get bluetooth back. Please help! I'm sure the problem with my computer is sitting right in front of it, so I apologize in advance. Thank you!

:)

 

Device Manager Un-Hiding Hidden Devices

When you connect a plug and play device, Windows Plug and Play manager detects it, finds and installs the driver. Device Manager lists the device with a solid icon.

The driver is only removed when you uninstall the device, not simply by disconnecting the device. When the device is disconnected, its driver is still installed. By default, Device Manager only displays connected devices. When you show hidden devices, note the Bluetooth icon you see is semi-transparent (not opaque). That indicates a "non-present" device. Sometimes also called a "ghost" device. The driver is still installed but the device is not currently detected (i.e. not connected).

Device can be disconnected when

• Device unplugged (e.g. removing a USB device)
• Turning a device OFF
• Disabling the device in BIOS (then windows won't detect it) or
• Device failure

So

• Check BIOS as suggested
• Check board connections
• Can b/t be turned off by a switch? or keyboard combination?

Also possible the b/t h/w failed

 

bluetooth not showing after updating driver from device manager

Hello Srini,

As you are facing issues with accessing Bluetooth option after updating the drivers, we will help you with this issue.

This issue might have occurred due to incompatibility of the Bluetooth drivers for your device.

Try the below steps to rollback the drivers to previous version and check if it helps.

Step 1: Fix the driver issues.

Press Windows + X keys from the keyboard, click on
Device Manager and on Scan for hardware changes.

Step 2: Rollback the driver.

• Press Windows + X keys from the keyboard, click on
  Device Manager.
• If you are able to find the Bluetooth drivers, expand it.
• Right click on driver, select Properties.
• Go to Drivers tab, click on Roll Back driver.

Hope it helps. Get back to us with an updated status of this issue for further assistance.

Thank you.

 

Bluetooth Driver Disappears from Device Manager and Settings/Devices

Hi,



Thank you for posting the query on Microsoft Community.

I understand your concern regarding the issue that you are facing.

I suggest you to follow the steps below and check if it helps

Method 1: Troubleshoot

Windows 10 has a built-in troubleshooter to check and fix issues with hardware and devices. I would suggest you to run this troubleshooter to check if the issue is with your Drive. Refer these steps:

• Press Windows key +X, select Control panel
• Change the view by option on the top right to Large icons
• Click on troubleshooting and click on the view all option on the left panel
• Run the Hardware and devices troubleshooter

You may follow the steps and check if it helps in resolving the issue, as the device might be hidden.

• Press Windows key + X.
• Click on Device Manager.
• Click on View.
• Click on Show Hidden Devices.
• Search for the Bluetooth device.
• Right click on the Bluetooth device and click
  uninstall.

Hope this information was helpful and do let us know if you need further assistance. We will be glad to assist