Wi-Fi disconnects in Windows 11 Pro when the Lenovo ideapad goes to sleep

[Eric_DK]

When my Lenovo Ideapad 5i Pro goes to sleep to save energy the Intel(R) Wi-Fi 6 AX201 160MHz drops the wi-fi connection effectively preventing background activity.

Many posts describe an energy saving  tab on the configuration for the driver but that tab isn't present on my computer.

How can I prevent the Wi-Fi connection from dropping?

Best regards,

Eric

[JedG_Intel]

Hello Eric_DK,

Thank you for posting on Intel Community Forum.

Regarding your initial post, I concur that the Wi-Fi disconnects when the laptop enters sleep mode. This can occur as the system attempts to conserve energy, as you mentioned. To address this issue appropriately, please provide the following information.

1. Did you notice this issue from the start of acquiring the laptop?

2. Is this the original adapter that came pre-installed in your system, or have you changed/installed a new adapter recently?

3. Have you reached out to Microsoft for a possible Windows setting configuration?

Additionally, to have a better understanding of your system configuration and components please generate System Support Utility (SSU) report. Please follow instructions here and send the report - How to get the Intel® System Support Utility Logs on Windows*

I hope to hear from you soon.

Best regards,

Jed G.

Intel Customer Support Technician

[Eric_DK]

Hello again Jed G,

First I'll answer your questions:

1. I didn't notice the issue right away but it became apparent because I noticed that open documents saved on my NAS couldn't be saved after modification if the laptop had gone to sleep while I was away from the desk for a few minutes.

Likewise, if I have an open File Explorer window on a subdirectory on the NAS, the File Explorer reverts to This Computer after the laptop has reawakened after a sleep period.

2. The laptop is a Lenovo Ideapad 5i Pro with the original built-in Wi-Fi adapter.

3. I have reached out to Micorsoft support and searched a number of other sources about how to solve this problem.

Most sources refer to a tab on the properties sheet for the Intel (R) Wi-Fi 6 AX201 160 MHz which would enable/disable energy saving when the laptop goes to sleep. Regrettably that tab isn't present here. I have recently upgraded the driver for the Wi-Fi card but that didn't add the tab for energy saving.

I have read the enclosed file:SSU.txt created by installing and running the SSU.msi file.

There are some traces of Danish in the file since my Windows 11 Pro is configured to use Danish as I live in Denmark.

There are a lot of fields with "Not Available". I wonder if they are part of the problem.

Nevertheless, I hope you can advise me about how I can get this laptop to behave like my old Asus N56V when it went to sleep.

Best regards,

Eric

[JedG_Intel]

Hello Eric_DK,

Thank you for sharing all this information.

For further troubleshooting, please try to follow the recommended Wi-Fi settings here - Recommended Settings for 802.11ax Connectivity. If the same issue is observed, please let me know.

I have also reviewed the issue you are encountering, and it appears that several users have reported this problem to Microsoft. Have you had the opportunity to inform them about this on going thread when you contacted their support team? For your reference, here is the link.

I look forward to your response.

Best regards,

Jed G.

Intel Customer Support Technician

[Eric_DK]

Hello again Jed,

I have checked the settings in device manager and they are as advised.

I'm enclosing a copy of the wi-fi settings from my Netgear R8000P Nighthawk router.

Apparently the router doesn't support W-Fi 6 but I still don't understand why the tab Energy Saving tab is missing.

If that tab had been present, I would have been able to prevent the computer from disabling the network connection.

Microsoft's community has similar challenges with a Realtek adapter where the same tab is missing.

Best regards,

Eric

[JedG_Intel]

Hello Eric_DK,

I greatly appreciate your effort. I will be conducting an investigation and will provide you with an update at the earliest opportunity.

Best regards,

Jed G.

Intel Customer Support Technician

[JedG_Intel]

Hello Eric_DK,

I am writing to provide you with additional recommendations that you may try to see if they improve the situation.

1. Kindly visit our article, "Intel® Wireless Adapter Keeps Disconnecting from the Network," and follow the outlined steps.

2. Update the wireless driver using the OEM driver, specifically version 22.160.0.4.

3. If the problem persists, kindly consult the Lenovo website for guidance on "Wireless disconnects when the PC resumes from hibernation or sleep - ideapad, ThinkPad."

You may also use this link for the OEM driver - https://pcsupport.lenovo.com/us/en/products/laptops-and-netbooks/5-series/ideapad-5-pro-16ihu6/downloads/driver-list/

If the issue remains unresolved, we highly recommend contacting Lenovo for further assistance since the product you are reporting is an OEM original equipment manufacturer device. Kindly take into consideration that our support may be limited since we are not familiar with the technology, settings and customizations that the OEM has designed on your system.

If you have further questions, please let me know.

Best regards,

Jed G.

Intel Customer Support Technician

[JedG_Intel]

Hello Eric_DK,

I wanted to check if you had the chance to review and try the recommendation I shared. Please let me know at your earliest convenience so that we can determine the best course of action to resolve this matter.

Best regards,

Jed G.

Intel Customer Support Technician

[JedG_Intel]

Hello Eric_DK,

I have not heard back from you so I will close this inquiry now. If you need further assistance, please submit a new question as this thread will no longer be monitored.

Best regards,

Jed G.

Intel Customer Support Technician

[Eric_DK]

Hello again,

Due to health issues, I have not followed up on your latest recommendations until today.

I had installed the latest Intel driver for the Wi-Fi network card without achieving the intended goal of retaining the network connection when the computer goes to sleep.

So, today I followed your "recipe" from April 24, 2025. The link to Intel's Knowledge Base about "Wireless Adapter Keeps Disconnecting from the Network". After performing all the steps there, I couldn't see any improvement.

Then, I downloaded Lenovo's OEM driver version 22.160.0.4 and removed Intel's latest driver, restarted the computer and installed the Lenovo driver I had downloaded. Still no joy, so I proceeded to consult Lenovo's website for guidance via your link. 

The link apppears to be obsolete but brought me to a Microsoft page: https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/fix-wi-fi-connection-issues-in-windows-9424a1f7-6a3b-65a6-4d78-7f07eee84d2c#id0ebh=windows_11

There, I found an interesting piece of advice as seen below:

This advice would solve my problem if only there was a Power Mangement tab on the adapter's properties page.

Regrettably, this tab is not present in Lenovo's driver and the Intel driver.

I have also been in touch with Lenovo support. So far without a viable solution.

As far as I can see, the problem is due to the missing Power Management tab.

Are you able to find out why that tab is not present for this network adapter?

How else can I disable power saving for Wi-Fi adapter?

Best regards,

Eric