How to fix your Galaxy S7 that connects to wifi but has no internet [troubleshooting guide]

Have you found yourself in a situation where your device connects to wifi but can’t actually get the internet going? In today’s #GalaxyS7 issue, we address this issue. We know that a lot of Android users who encounter a similar situation so hopefully they’ll find this guide.

Today’s problem: Galaxy S7 connects to wifi but has no internet

I have an issue with my Samsung Galaxy S7 regarding its connection to wifi. When attempting to connect to a wifi network, it says the IP address is not found. After changing the IP to static and entering the correct addresses that are prompted, I hit save and connect to the network. The wifi reads as connected, but nothing on my phone actually loads. My browser starts to load a page and stops almost instantly, and other apps and the Google Play Store say they cannot connect. All while my phone displays my wifi as connected to the network I just changed to a static IP. — Mark

Solution: Hi Kostis. Being connected to a wifi network does not necessarily mean that there’s internet connection right away. Keep in mind that the wifi network your S7 is connected to acts like a middle man between your device and the internet. It’s possible that the phone may be connected to since you know the network name and have the network passcode but the wifi itself may be problematic as it can’t connect to the internet for some reason. Needless to say, you need to know where the problem lies first so you’ll be able to deal with it properly. Below are the exact steps that you need to do.

Do not use Static IP

Unless you know what you’re doing, it’s really not recommended that you use Static IP. By manually entering the values for a static IP setup, you run the risk of causing an issue like the one you’re having. For example, if you missed a digit or a dot when entering the IP address or Gateway, internet may not work on your device. The same is true if you enter wrong information for DNS servers. So, again, unless you are confident that you are doing the right static setup, we say you switch back to DHCP setup instead. For troubleshooting purposes, we also suggest that you try a DHCP setup to see if there’s a difference. If you’ve already tried that, then proceed to the next step.

Verify wifi is working

The next logical troubleshooting step here is to ensure that your wifi is working. This can be done easily by simply connecting another device to it to see if it can connect to the internet. If a second device connects to your wifi fine and can connect to the internet, that means that the fault is in your S7. The next set of troubleshooting steps should focus on your phone and not on your wifi network.

On the other hand, if the second device behaves exactly the same like what your S7 is doing, it’s most probably a wifi issue. This can be due to router misconfiguration, a router hardware issue, or an Internet Service Provider (ISP) problem. To isolate the causes, you want to call your ISP so they can help you troubleshoot.

Check if you have slow connection issue

Sometimes, a slow connection problem may be mistaken for total or no connection issue. By slow connection, we mean that your wifi is actually connected to the internet but it’s so slow that pages may not load, or apps may appear to be unable to download contents at all. Slow connection issue often happens when there are way too many devices sharing the same bandwidth that other devices are left being unable to connect reliably to the internet. If there are many devices connected to your wifi, consider disconnecting all of them except your S7 and see what happens. If your S7 connects to the internet fine, then you should manage how many devices should be able to use wifi so you can use your S7 when browsing. If you have a slow internet connection subscription plan, talk to your ISP so they can offer you a faster internet speed.

Boot to safe mode

If there’s nothing wrong with your wifi network after verifying that other devices can connect to the internet and there’s no slow connection issue at all, the next troubleshooting step for you is to restart the device in safe mode. This will allow you to know if a third party application is causing the problem.

Safe mode is a software environment that only runs Android with its pre-installed applications. All apps that you added after setting up your device the first time will not be allowed to run. If your wifi connection works normally when on safe mode, you have an app issue at hand.

If you’re wondering how to boot your S7 to safe mode, follow these steps:

  1. Turn your Galaxy S7 off.
  2. Press and hold the Power button.
  3. Once the ‘Samsung Galaxy S7’ logo appears, release the Power key and immediately press and hold the Volume Down button.
  4. Continue holding the button until the phone finishes rebooting.
  5. Once you see the text “Safe mode” at the bottom left corner of the screen, release the Volume Down button.
  6. Check for the problem.

If your wifi works fine on safe mode, you can bet there’s an app causing the problem. Because safe mode won’t pinpoint what app is problematic, you’ll need to spend some time identifying it. Remember, safe mode is a tool that should help you know if one of your added apps is problematic. If you think that that’s the case, then you should do trial-and-error to find what that app is. Basically, all you need to do is to uninstall apps individually and check for the problem.  Below are the specific steps that you can try:

  1. Boot your S7 to safe mode.
  2. Observe the phone and see if wifi works normally or not.
  3. If wifi works properly, then you want to go ahead and uninstall an app.
  4. Restart the phone to normal mode.
  5. Check for the problem.
  6. If the issue returns, repeat steps 1-5.

Continue doing the same cycle until you’ve identified the problematic app.

Reset network settings

Another important troubleshooting step that you can do in this case is to reset network settings. Here’s how to do it:

  1. Open Settings app.
  2. Tap General management.
  3. Tap Reset.
  4. Tap Reset settings.
  5. Tap Reset network settings.
  6. Tap RESET SETTINGS button.
  7. Restart your S9 and check for the problem.

Reset settings

One other option that you can try in this situation is to reset all settings back to their defaults without actually wiping the phone, like in factory reset. Hopefully, by resetting all software settings of your device, you’ll also be wiping out an unknown bug causing your wifi problem.

To reset the settings of your S7:

  1. Open Settings app.
  2. Tap General management.
  3. Tap Reset.
  4. Tap Reset settings.
  5. Tap RESET SETTINGS button.
  6. Restart your S9 and check for the problem.

Factory reset

Ideally, the problem should already be fixed by now but if it’s still not working after doing all our suggestions, you should consider wiping the phone by doing a factory reset.

Factory reset will delete your personal data as well so be sure to back them up before attempting this solution option.

To factory reset your S7:

  1. Turn off the device.
  2. Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Bixby key, then press and hold the Power key.
  3. When the green Android logo displays, release all keys (‘Installing system update’ will show for about 30 – 60 seconds before showing the Android system recovery menu options).
  4. Press the Volume down key several times to highlight ‘wipe data / factory reset’.
  5. Press Power button to select.
  6. Press the Volume down key until ‘Yes — delete all user data’ is highlighted.
  7. Press Power button to select and start the master reset.
  8. When the master reset is complete, ‘Reboot system now’ is highlighted.
  9. Press the Power key to restart the device.

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