If you are a VPN user then you might be wondering what TAP-Windows is and is it a network driver, not supported by hardware, that allows the VPN to connect to its servers. We will regularly find the file for this driver in the Program Files folder on our computer.
Another feature of TAP-Windows is that we can find it in the Device Manager in the Network Adapters category , and although it is a fundamental tool to be able to successfully use a VPN, the truth is that many users report that they can have connectivity problems on your computer when this utility is active.
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The TAP-Windows connectivity error
You are probably running this search because TAP-Windows is giving you problems and it surely manages to enable itself after restarting the computer , if you have previously disabled it.
You will see this driver on your PC, after having installed a VPN client such as ExpressVPN, CyberGhost, NordVPN and Tunnel Bear among others. This network adapter allows you to create a private connection with the server and thus provide the privacy that the user is looking for. It is a safe tool and its task is to get the VPN network working properly, however, it can sometimes cause problems.
In principle, TAP-Windows is not designed to be manipulated by users , but the reality is that the connectivity problems that it causes force people to carry out certain actions, knowingly and without having it, to normalize things on their computer.
How to fix TAP-Windows connection problems
The first tip to solve the connection problems that TAP-Windows produces is to try a program that can solve things without so much knowledge of the subject, in this case it could be Reimage, which has the ability to check the status of the network, detect problems and solve them automatically, as long as the problem lies with the operating system.
You can also try the following procedure to troubleshoot the TAP-Windows adapter:
- Go to the search bar of the Start menu and put the phrase Control Panel.
- Then choose the option “Networks and Internet”, there click on “Center of Networks and shared resources”.
- Once there, click on the right side of the window and choose the option “Change adapter settings”.
- Right-click on the local area connection that Tap Windows is using and select “Disable (Disable) Tap-Windows”.
- Then you must wait a few seconds and repeat the same procedure, but this time click on the Enable option.
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Reinstall the TAP-Windows driver
To perform this procedure you must go to the Device Manager , look for the network adapters and then press the right button to choose the option to uninstall TAP Windows.
When you do this, you must restart your computer and run the VPN again so that the same program will take care of installing the pending driver, which in this case is again TAP-Windows.
It is not necessary to install TAP-Windows separately, since most VPN clients include the driver within their installation process since it is a mandatory tool for its operation and by itself does not provide any important feature in your operating system, as it does not influence the Internet connection directly.
In any case, the use of TAP-Windows is mandatory if you want to continue using VPN from your computer, since as mentioned at the beginning, this tool is the one that allows a direct and secure connection to be created to the server and if not If enabled, you could be exposed and the VPN just couldn’t work properly.
