How to Fix Realtek PCIe GBE Family Controller Not Working on Windows 10
When you’re having a hard time connecting your ethernet on Windows 10, your Realtek PCIe GBE Family Controller could be not working. The controller itself helps connect your personal computer to the ethernet via a cable or wire. Obviously, it isn’t ideal for your family controller to be ill-functioning or not working at all.
Luckily, there are easy ways to fix the issue with your Realtek Family Controller.
Why Your Realtek PCIe GBE Family Controller Is Not Working on Windows 10
There are a variety of things that could make your Realtek controller stop working correctly. One such cause could be the simple error of having both wi-fi and a wired connection enabled at the same time. To turn off your wi-fi, all you need to do is hover over the buttons in the bottom right of your toolbar, click on the wi-fi symbol, and disconnect from the wi-fi you’re currently connected to. Simple as that!
Sometimes, the cause is a little more serious. To obtain your Realtek PCIe GBE Family Controller, you had to download the driver from Realtek’s website. You should ensure that you’re downloading a product from the correct website. You are more likely to receive a faulty product or no product at all if you download something from a website that has no affiliation with the parent company of the product you’re searching for.
The more often you use questionable-looking websites or websites without a credible domain name, the more likely you are to receive some sort of virus or malware in exchange for your download. You could be trading the product you desire for harmful material that could infect and endanger your computer.
You can run a scan using Windows Defender to see if there are any current threats to your files. Pull up the Windows Defender Security Center, which can be found in your Settings app.
From there, you can click on “Virus and Threat Protection” to see where your files stack up.
While it is always a good idea to have some sort of supplemental virus protection in case of an accident or lapse of judgment, Windows Defender can run a basic, quick scan just to see if there are any infected files on your system.
Hopefully, your numbers will look something like this image: with a big, fat zero there above the “Threats found” caption.
If you downloaded the Realtek Family Controller from the Realtek website and you are still having this issue, there likely might be some updates pending that are crucial to your family controller running the way that it should.
How to Fix Your Realtek Family Controller
Knowing how the problem originated is helpful, especially when it comes to future mishaps, but what you really want to know is the steps you should take to solve these issues.
1. Restore Windows 10
If you’re familiar with system restore, you should know about “restore points.” When you complete a system restore, your files are left untouched and safe where they are, but any updates and drivers will be removed and reset back to the last restore point. Think of it as a checkpoint for your computer.
To access the System Restore area, you need to go to your control panel. From there, click on “Recovery.”
If you’re the administrator account on your computer, you should be able to access “Open System Restore.” From there, a pop-up wizard will walk you through restoring Windows 10 on your computer, allowing it to reset itself to the last restore point without fear of your files being deleted.
2. Check for Updates
It is possible that your Realtek PCIe GBE Family Controller is not working because your computer needs crucial updates to continue functioning. When your computer isn’t updated, it isn’t functioning to the best of its ability. You have to tackle the responsibility of keeping your computer updated so that your drivers and accessories can receive the latest updates, too.
Finding out whether your computer needs an update is incredibly simple. To begin, click the Windows Start at the bottom left of your toolbar, or press the Windows button on your keyboard. From there, all you have to do is type in the word “update,” and you should be able to pull up a window all about your latest version of Windows.
You should be operating on the newest version of Windows at all times. This post specifically deals with the Realtek Family Controller not working with Windows 10, so it’s a good idea to always have your software running on the most recent update, even if it may not be the root of the problem.
The aforementioned update window will tell you the last time you updated your computer and if essential updates are waiting for your action.
Your screen might look something like the above image. You should ensure that your computer is up to date. If it is far out of date, and the last update was so long ago that you can’t even remember what you did that day, it’s a sure sign that it’s time to update.
You can also schedule a time for an update, too, if that’s more your speed or if you cannot commit to the update right this moment for any reason. It’s possible to schedule what are called “active hours” from the same screen – that is, your computer won’t force an update during the hours that you are typically using it.
Sometimes updates are installed automatically, but setting the hours that you are active on your computer will ensure that there are no mandatory updates during that time, so you won’t have to fear losing your work.
3. Update Your Drivers
Once you know that your computer is healthy and running on the latest update, it’s time to consider another factor of your computer that may require an update – your drivers.
Drivers are complex, but they serve an incredibly important purpose – to make sure that everything is running correctly on your computer.
Drivers keep your devices running smoothly, without a hitch, behind the scenes so that you don’t typically have to interfere with devices you may not fully understand but are still essential to using your computer.
When a driver isn’t running on its most recent update, similar to your computer itself, your experience will likely suffer. Running on an outdated driver is like trying to boot up an outdated computer – it’s not so good, and the results can be frustrating as well.
The easiest way to get to your drivers is by searching for them directly. Once again, you’re going to go to the Windows Start button (or the Windows key on your keyboard). This time, though, you’re going to type in “drivers.” Your action should yield a result like the image below.
Clicking this option will pull up your device manager – that is, where all of the devices attached to your computer are listed out in nested columns for your convenience.
What you’re going to do next is click on any of these devices – obviously, if your Realtek Family Controller is your first priority, search through the list and find that. To show you how to check a device’s driver in general, what you see below is the properties of a monitor.
See that little tab that says “Driver”? That is where you’re going to go to check if your driver is up to date.
From this screen, you can see the information about your driver, such as when it was installed and if it requires an update, and you can even uninstall the device from there if that’s more your speed. Just remember that you have to be an administrator on your computer to make any changes.
Your drivers should always be updated so that they can run properly and to your highest expectations. It might be a grueling process, but it’s a rewarding one.
Updating Drivers Has Never Been So Easy
Manually checking on your drivers, while helpful, is a hassle. In order to see which drivers require an update, you have to painstakingly go through each one and hunt down those that aren’t running as smoothly as they should. It doesn’t need to be that complicated.
Driver Support exists to make your life easier when it comes to updating your outdated drivers. No longer will you have to search through each device individually to see if it requires an update. Driver Support, once installed, creates a checklist of every device that operates with a driver. Once the service is registered, Driver Support’s software will automatically update any driver when updates are available.
Give DriverSupport | ONE a try today! can save you time on crucial driver updates and keep your system operating the way it should be.
