Device is connected to Internet but webpages arent loading: fixing errors

Your computer (laptop) shows that the Internet is working, but no browser can open a webpage? What to do if it's impossible to open a website?

This issue has to be solved at the earliest. We're going to take a close look at different ways of how you can fix a browser on Windows 10 or Windows 11. It doesn't matter how your computer gets access to the Internet: directly via a cable, router or Wi-Fi.

Fixing your Internet connection: basic tips

Express Method 1. First of all, if some websites won't load and modem is still online, make sure that your device is connected to the Internet. There should be no exclamation marks, red crosses or white ones on a red background in the notification bar (bottom right).

To check if your connection stable,

1. Go to the website,
2. Select file size,
3. Wait for the results.

ExpressMethod 2. Messengers (such as Skype or Viber) should accept messages. The same applies to other Internet-dependent software.

Express Method 3. Try opening different websites. Perhaps the problem is only with the one you're trying to get access to. Others may be loading in the ordinary mode. In such case, wait for technical problems to be solved on this website. We recommend figuring out the error code shown by your browser (see the chapter below).

Express Method 4. If the Internet is connected via Wi-Fi, make sure that other devices (such as phones, laptops, desktop PCs) are working smoothly as well. If this isn't the case, restart your router (by turning it off and on again).

Express Method 5. It didn't help? Insert the Internet wire directly into your laptop. Check the wire for any signs of damage. If there are none, but the problem remains, most likely, it's your provider's fault. Contact technical support.

Checking your PC for viruses via Malwarebytes

Sometimes malware can be the cause why some users are unable to access a particular website via WiFi. Some viruses make changes to the hosts system file, which prevent websites from opening, regardless of the browser you use - Chrome, Opera or Firefox.

We recommend to avoid recovering the hosts file manually – it's better to use Malwarebytes utility. After fixing the hosts file, all pages on the Internet blocked in this way will open again through any browser.

To check your computer for viruses, follow these steps:

Step 1. Download Malwarebytes

Install the program on your PC.

Step 2. Launch Malwarebytes and click the Scan button.

Step 3. Wait for the scan to complete. Malwarebytes will search your computer for viruses, worms, Trojans, and other malicious software.

Step 4. Once the scan is complete, click on View Scan Report button.

You will see a list of any malicious software that Malwarebytes has found.

Step 5. Select the items you want to remove and click the Remove Selected button. This will remove the malicious software from your computer.

Step 6. You may also be prompted to restart your computer. If so, do so to complete the removal process.

Step 7. Once your computer has restarted, you can check to make sure that the malicious software has been removed by running a scan again. After the check up, your browser should work in the ordinary mode.

After that, viruses will no longer block access to websites on the Internet and pages will load correctly in the browser.

Browser error codes

When a website can't be opened, it shows a code allowing you to find out the cause of the problem (at least its area). They can be produced by the hardware of both server and computer from which you're trying to connect to the Internet.

Basic errors list:

• 403: the page access is denied. You might have entered an incorrect webpage address.
• 404: the page isn't found: you are trying to open a nonexistent URL. It's worth checking the address and trying to access the website again. Moreover, the 404 error may indicate that the page was moved to a different address, but automatic redirect wasn't configured.
• 500: internal server error. The computer hosting the website won't open it. Try once again after a while.

You haven't found the specified error code? Check the status codes full list.

Use VPN tools

Some sites on the Internet are blocked in the country of access. This can be either blocked by your ISP or by a blacklist used by the hosting where the site is located.

You can bypass the restrictions by using a VPN program. You can install it on your PC or cell phone.

Step 1. Download and install Windscribe VPN on your device.

Step 2. Open the Windscribe VPN app and log in with your details.

Step 3. Choose the country where the website is not blocked (for example, if you are trying to access a website that is blocked in India, you would choose a country like the United States or the UK).

Step 4. Under the "Locations", choose a server in the selected country.

Step 5. You will now be connected to the VPN. Test your connection by visiting the website you want to access.

Step 6. If the website is still blocked, try connecting to another server in the same country.

Step 7. If none of the servers in the country you selected are working, try connecting to a server in another country.

With Windscribe VPN, you can easily access not loading pages and websites that are blocked in your country.

Opening the cached version of a webpage

What to do if you can't open a website, but there is an urgent need to use the information posted there?

Almost any website is cached by the search engine, so its old version should be available from the Google cache for some time.

Some remarks:

1. At the top of the page you'll find a panel stating that "This webpage version is from the Google cache".
2. If you click any link from the cached page, you will be sent to a non-cached page (i.e for each page open a separate copy stored in the cache).

Some webpages and sites may lack cache. Another variant is to use the Internet archive.

Checking for Registry errors on Windows 10

One more way which may help to fix the Internet connection if you can't access to certain websites on any browser.

Note! You need to be extremely careful when making changes to the Registry since an incorrect entry can disable Windows.

Follow our manual:

1. Open The Registry Editor: key shortcut Win + R > Run.

2. Go to Regedit > Enter; the Registry Editor window opens.

3. Find HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE in the left panel. Click on the triangular arrow and open the contents;

4. Open SOFTWARE – Micrоsoft – Windоws NT – CurrеntVersiоn – Windows; (full path – My computer – HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE – SOFTWARE – Microsoft – Windows NT – CurrentVersion – Windows) step by step.

5. The АppInit_DLLs section is the one you need. If there is anything entered in the Value bar, it should be erased.

6. Perform the same sequence of actions, but in the HKEY_CURRENT_USER branch this time.

7. Restart your PC.

8. Try opening any website via a browser again.

Checking your browser settings and extensions

If you use Google Chrome,

1. Go to Menu > Settings.

2. Go to Advanced > System.

3. Check the settings of proxy servers (Open the computer proxy server settings).

4. Go to Menu > Advanced tools > Extensions.

5. Disable or remove unneeded /suspicious extensions.
6. Restart your browser.

Unable to open a webpage due to DNS issues

The DNS server function is to translate the literal value of a URL into a digital one. If the DNS server address is damaged, your computer won't be able to connect to the desired website.

The following solution will help you to fix DNS. What to do:

1. Go to Control Panel > Network and Internet > Network connections;

2. Find the connection you use in order to connect to the Internet and select Properties from the context menu;

3. In the opened window select TCP/IPv4 and then Properties;
4. Double-click Use the following DNS server addresses
5. Specify 8 8 8 8 in the first line and 8 8 4 4 in the second;
6. Click OK and leave the system dialogue
7. Reboot your computer. Now everything should be fine.

Clearing DNS cache on Windows 10

Websites won't open? Let's try clearing the cache and rolling the network settings back to the standard ones:

1. Open Task Manager (Ctrl + Alt+Delete or Ctrl + Shift+Esc);

2. File menu > Start new task;

3. In the opened empty line specify CMD; tick that you're acting on behalf of an administrator;

4. In Create task enter the following commands and confirm each of them by pressing the Enter key:

ipconfig /registerdns
ipconfig /renew
ipconfig /release

5. After performing all of them, restart your computer.

Checking static routes

Virusware can make fake entries in your computer static routes. There are a lot of such routes, and checking them one at a time is too time-consuming. We recommend to get rid of unnecessary ones by clearing the list of static routes.

1. Open the command line via the standard command — by simultaneously pressing the Win + R > cmd keys;
2. Run the "route -f" command from the console;

3. The computer will clear the routes and you'll only have to check in any browser, whether websites can be opened now.

Resetting the TCP/IP

This is the last resort which is usually used if none of the mentioned above work out:

1. Open the command line: Win+ R > cmd;
2. Enter 2 commands in turn: "netsh winsock reset" and "netsh int ip reset";

3. Restart your PC;
4. Check the operation of your browser.

Reinstalling Windows 10

If the results of our methods don't satisfy you, reinstall your operating system. And in an hour you'll have a brand new OS ready for operation and subsequent configuration.

FAQ

I am connected to the Internet but cannot access websites

The most popular issue is virus infection. As a result of infection, the browser blocks network connections and websites are inaccessible. In order to fix the problem you need to check your device for viruses and delete them (or move them to Quarantine). For this purpose we recommend the efficient Malwarebytes app.

Laptop connected to the Internet but not loading pages. There are no viruses. What to do?

1. Restart your modem. Maybe it's a hardware error. If you don't have a modem, reboot your router. This should also help.
2. Reboot your PC.
3. Check if the network cable is connected to the PC. The modem may be working, but the connection to your PC is not, or it is unreliable.

Why won't my laptop load websites on Windows 11?

There can be many reasons for the malfunction. Most often there is a software error. We advise the following ways to fix it on a laptop with Windows 11 installed:

1. Open the site in another browser, such as Edge, Firefox or Opera.
2. Update Chrome browser to the latest version.

3. Install all Windows 11 updates.
4. Have you followed the tips above mentioned in this article?
5. Do other Internet applications work: Whatsapp, Telegram and others?

Browser does not open websites on my laptop. Everything is OK on another computer and the Internet is working

You need to check that your browser works:

1. Completely clear the cache and cookies.

2. Update your browser to the latest version.
3. Remove extensions and other add-ons.

4. Restart the browser.
5. If the browser doesn't work in standard mode, check if it works in Incognito.

All sites open, but several important pages are inaccessible

The site may have stopped working on its own. It may have happened because the site changed its address, deleted from hosting, due to various technical errors.

The second reason is a technical failure on the user's side. For example, blocking the site through a firewall or a link-blocking application. If the access to the Internet is controlled by the administrator, ask him about the issue.