Help! My Newly Built PC Isn’t Recognizing the Ethernet Connection

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Hey everyone! I’m completely new to PCs and just bought one from a friend, but I’m running into a major issue. After wiping it and installing Windows 10 (yeah, I know I should’ve gone for 11), my PC isn’t detecting the Ethernet cord. The cord works perfectly fine since I can connect it to my Xbox without any problems. My friend helped me download the necessary drivers, but nothing seems to change. I’ve researched for two days looking for fixes but I’m stuck. I noticed a yellow triangle with an exclamation mark on the PCI device, which indicates that it’s missing drivers. I’ve tried downloading the drivers directly from the manufacturer’s site, but still no luck. It’s really disheartening because I was so excited to finally have a PC, and Wi-Fi isn’t an option right now as there’s no adapter included. My friend used this PC multiple times recently without any issues. I’m heading to Best Buy tomorrow to grab a Wi-Fi adapter just to get online for troubleshooting. If anyone has any suggestions or questions, I’d love your input! Thanks in advance!

3 Answers

PixelWarrior42 -

First off, what are the specs of your PC? Are you sure you downloaded the drivers from the motherboard’s product page? That’s super important!

GamerXtreme99 -

Yes, I downloaded the drivers and my motherboard is an MSI B450 Tomahawk Max (MS-7C02).

RouterRanger21 -

A lot of people have faced this issue with the B450 Tomahawk Max. There’s no one-size-fits-all fix, but here are some options folks have found helpful:
– Updating the BIOS,
– Installing the latest LAN drivers (which I see you’ve already done),
– Some had to do a full reinstall of Windows,
– Alternatively, using a USB LAN adapter might be your best bet, especially the 1 Gbps versions—they’re often cheaper than PCIe LAN adapters and won’t take up PCIe lanes.

GamerXtreme99 -

Thanks for the tips! I’ll update the BIOS later, and I was leaning towards getting a Wi-Fi adapter but maybe I’ll consider that USB LAN adapter instead.

TechGuru88 -

Have you checked if the LAN port is enabled in the BIOS? Sometimes that can be the culprit. Also, if you’re still having issues, you might want to try updating the BIOS if it’s not current.

GamerXtreme99 -

Yeah, the LAN port is enabled in the BIOS. I’ll consider updating it later today.

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