You should have set passwords for all kinds of accounts and your own WiFi network that are not so easy to guess for other people. Whether that is a complicated series of characters or a passphrase (that you like kale with bacon for example) you can know for yourself. But we can imagine that sometimes you forgot your wifi password. This is how you can find it out with a Windows 10 device.
You probably take your laptop everywhere. Very nice, because that way you can work well, show photos or watch a movie together. If you are with a friend or family member where you have been before, and where your laptop is already connected, you do not have to constantly ask them for the password. Your laptop can automatically connect to the network. But what if you also want to pair your smartphone and that person is busy for a while? Windows 10 makes it very easy to find out the network password.
Retrieve Wifi password with Windows 10
Windows 10 can show that very quickly, if you have already connected. To do this, open the start menu and enter the word Network status. Now open the app that will be displayed. In the picture, under Change network settings, the option Change adapter options. Now right-click on your WiFi network and choose Status.
In the new window there is a button called Wireless Network Properties. At the top of this new screen are two tabs. The right tab is called Security. When you click on that, you will see a field that contains the Network Security Key (aka: the password). It should still be hidden. Therefore, find Show characters to see the password.
What if you have not yet connected but you have saved the network? Then it gets tricky. You can use the Command Prompt for this. You open it by opening Start and typing in the letters cmd. Open the app and copy the following lines to see which networks are all stored.
netsh wlan show profile
Choose the network you want to connect to and remember that name. Now type in the following line.
netsh wlan show profile name = network name key = clear
Change “network name” above to the name of the network you want to connect to. In the information that now appears on the screen, you have to search for Key Content: this is where the password for this network is located.
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