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If your VPN stopped connecting immediately after a Windows update, the update itself may be responsible. Microsoft documented a Windows 11 VPN failure beginning with the April 9, 2024 update and identified the May 14, 2024 update (KB5037771) as addressing it for Windows 11 versions 22H2 and 23H2. The safest approach is to verify ordinary internet access, install all current Windows fixes, check drivers and security software, and use Network reset only after those lower-impact steps. DirectAccess users on Windows 11 version 24H2 have a separate enterprise issue that requires administrator involvement.

First, identify which failure you have

Do not assume a bad password or expired VPN account is the cause simply because the failure appeared after an update. Windows servicing can affect VPN connectivity, network adapters, filtering drivers and enterprise remote-access components.

  • Consumer or third-party VPN: the client may fail to establish a tunnel while ordinary Wi-Fi or Ethernet still works.
  • Windows built-in VPN: Windows may display a connection error even though the underlying internet connection is healthy.
  • DirectAccess on an organization-managed PC: on Windows 11 version 24H2, Microsoft documents a separate failure in which DirectAccess remains at “connecting.” The IPHTTPS status can show “Last Error Code : 0x57” and “Interface Status : failed to connect to the IPHTTPS server. Waiting to reconnect.”

Write down your Windows edition and version before changing anything. Open Settings > System > About and check Windows specifications. The version matters because Microsoft’s documented fixes differ between Windows 11 servicing branches.

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Why a Windows update can break a VPN

A VPN depends on more than the VPN application. Windows supplies the network adapter, routing stack, authentication components and virtual interfaces that carry the encrypted tunnel. Security software may also install filtering drivers. An update can therefore expose an incompatibility even when your account, subscription and VPN server are unchanged.

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Microsoft release notes for Windows 11 versions 22H2 and 23H2 state that the April 9, 2024 update or later updates could cause VPN connections to fail. Microsoft listed KB5037771, released May 14, 2024, as addressing that known issue. Windows 11 version 21H2 release notes also recorded a VPN connection failure as a version-specific known issue, so the same symptom does not identify one universal cause.

DirectAccess is different from a normal consumer VPN. Microsoft’s Windows 11 version 24H2 update history describes a separate enterprise problem after a fresh installation or an in-place upgrade. Microsoft recommends that enterprise customers who require DirectAccess evaluate Always On VPN (AOVPN) until a fix is available.

Use this troubleshooting order

The sequence below starts with checks that preserve your configuration and ends with the step that removes and rebuilds Windows network settings.

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Remedy Configuration risk Administrator access Restart Effect on VPN clients or virtual switches
Verify ordinary internet access None No No None
Install Windows updates Low Usually required to approve installation Usually yes Normally none beyond the update’s changes
Run Get Help troubleshooting Low Usually no Possibly Normally none
Temporarily test security or VPN filtering Low if controlled by policy May be required Usually no Pause only for the test, then re-enable
Update or uninstall a network adapter driver Moderate Yes Yes Adapter may disappear until Windows restarts
Network reset Highest Usually required Yes Removes adapter settings; VPN software and Hyper-V switches may need repair

1. Confirm that the underlying internet works

A VPN cannot connect if the PC has no usable path to the VPN server. First disconnect the VPN and test normal browsing or another known internet service.

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  1. On Windows 11, select the Network icon in the taskbar.
  2. Confirm that Wi-Fi or Ethernet is connected and that Settings > Network & internet does not report a disconnected state.
  3. Open a few ordinary websites without starting the VPN.
  4. If possible, test the same network with another device. If every device is offline, troubleshoot the router, modem or internet service before changing Windows VPN settings.

If ordinary internet access works but the VPN alone fails, continue with the Windows and VPN checks below. If Wi-Fi fails but a wired connection works, the problem may be limited to the wireless adapter or its driver; an Ethernet connection can be used as a diagnostic comparison, not as the documented VPN fix.

2. Install current Windows fixes and restart

Microsoft’s connectivity guidance puts updates and a restart near the beginning of troubleshooting. This is especially important when the failure began after a known servicing event.

  1. Open Settings > Windows Update.
  2. Select Check for updates.
  3. Install every applicable update, including cumulative and driver updates offered by Windows Update.
  4. Restart the PC, even if Windows does not immediately insist on a restart.
  5. After signing in, test ordinary internet access first and then test the VPN.

For Windows 11 22H2 or 23H2 systems affected by the April 2024 VPN issue, Microsoft identified KB5037771 (May 14, 2024) as the update that addressed the known failure. Do not infer that this one identifier applies to every Windows release; later cumulative updates supersede earlier ones, and Windows 11 21H2 and 24H2 have different servicing histories.

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3. Run Microsoft’s automated troubleshooting

If the problem is connected to update installation or servicing, use the Windows 11 Get Help app and start the Windows Update troubleshooter. It can check update-related conditions that are easy to miss manually.

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  1. Open Get Help from the Start menu.
  2. Search for Windows Update troubleshooter.
  3. Run the guided checks and apply any recommended repair.
  4. Restart if prompted, then test the VPN again.

This tool does not replace a VPN provider’s diagnostic process. If Windows Update is healthy and only one VPN profile fails, record the exact VPN error and contact the organization or provider that operates that profile.

4. Check VPN, firewall and security-software interactions

VPN applications and endpoint security products can install network filters. An update may leave one of those components incompatible or incorrectly bound to the adapter.

Test the VPN application itself

  • Exit the VPN client completely, including its notification-area process, and reopen it.
  • Sign out and back in if the client supports accounts.
  • Check whether the client offers a current version compatible with your Windows release.
  • Try a second VPN location or protocol only if your organization or provider documents that option. A single server outage should not be confused with a Windows networking failure.

Temporarily test security filtering

Microsoft’s update troubleshooting guidance recommends disabling a VPN temporarily while diagnosing update installation. The same principle can help isolate a filtering conflict, but pause third-party security protection only under your organization’s policy and for the shortest practical test. Disconnect from untrusted networks while protection is paused, test the VPN once, and immediately re-enable the product.

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If the VPN works only while filtering is paused, do not leave protection disabled. Record the security product version, Windows version and VPN error, then ask the security or IT administrator for an updated filter component or an approved exclusion.

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5. Repair an incompatible network adapter driver

Microsoft recognizes incompatible network drivers as a Windows Update troubleshooting path. A damaged or incompatible driver can affect both ordinary connectivity and the virtual adapter used by a VPN.

Update the adapter

  1. Right-click Start and open Device Manager.
  2. Expand Network adapters.
  3. Right-click the physical Wi-Fi or Ethernet adapter and choose Update driver.
  4. Choose Search automatically for drivers, or install an approved driver supplied by your PC or network-adapter manufacturer.
  5. Restart Windows and test the VPN.

Uninstall and let Windows redetect it

If updating does not help and Device Manager shows an incompatibility or warning icon, Microsoft recommends uninstalling the affected network adapter and restarting. Select Uninstall device from the adapter’s context menu, confirm the action, and restart. Windows will attempt to reinstall the adapter.

Before uninstalling, make sure you have a way to obtain a driver if Windows cannot redetect the device—for example, another computer, a wired connection or an approved driver package. Do not remove an adapter on a managed business system unless your administrator permits it.

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6. Use Network reset only as a last resort

Microsoft states: “Using network reset should be the last step you try.” Network reset removes installed network adapters and their settings, reinstalls the adapters after restart and restores networking defaults. That broad change can fix a corrupted configuration, but it also removes custom settings that other software depends on.

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  1. Save Wi-Fi passwords, VPN profile details, proxy settings and any special DNS or static-IP information you will need afterward.
  2. Close the VPN client and virtual-machine software.
  3. Open Settings > Network & internet > Advanced network settings > Network reset.
  4. Select Reset now and confirm.
  5. Allow Windows to restart.
  6. Reconnect to Wi-Fi or plug in Ethernet, then reinstall or reconfigure VPN software if required.

Microsoft warns that VPN client software or Hyper-V virtual switches may need to be reinstalled or configured again after a reset. Recheck those components before concluding that the reset failed.

When to involve an administrator

DirectAccess remains at “connecting” on Windows 11 24H2

This is the documented enterprise-specific case. If the device uses DirectAccess after a fresh installation or in-place upgrade and shows the IPHTTPS message “Last Error Code : 0x57” with “Interface Status : failed to connect to the IPHTTPS server. Waiting to reconnect,” stop making consumer VPN changes and contact your organization’s administrator.

Microsoft’s interim direction is for enterprise customers that require DirectAccess to evaluate Always On VPN (AOVPN) until a fix becomes available. Migration, policy deployment and certificate configuration belong to the organization’s IT team; they are not tasks that a home user can safely improvise.

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Other reasons to escalate

  • The PC is managed by your employer or school and you lack permission to install updates or drivers.
  • Several users lost VPN access at the same time after the same update.
  • The VPN requires certificates, smart cards, device tunnels or a corporate gateway.
  • Network reset removed a required virtual switch or profile and you do not have the original configuration.

Give the administrator the Windows version, update history, VPN client and version, exact error text, whether ordinary internet works, and the time the failure began. Those details distinguish a Windows servicing issue from an account, gateway or policy problem.

Should you uninstall the Windows update?

Removing an update is not the first remedy in Microsoft’s documented connectivity sequence. First install the current cumulative fixes, restart, run Get Help, check security filters and repair drivers. Uninstalling a security update can expose the PC and may not remove the underlying incompatibility if a later update is already installed.

If an organization’s administrator specifically directs a rollback, follow its change-control process and record the update identifier and rollback result. Home users should not treat update removal as a routine VPN repair, particularly when Microsoft has already published a cumulative fix for the affected Windows branch.

How to tell whether the repair worked

  1. Verify that Wi-Fi or Ethernet connects without the VPN.
  2. Restart Windows if you changed updates, drivers or network settings.
  3. Connect the VPN using the normal profile.
  4. Confirm that the VPN client reports an established tunnel rather than merely “connecting.”
  5. Open a website or internal resource that is reachable only through the VPN, if your organization provides one.
  6. Disconnect and reconnect once more to ensure the fix is repeatable.

If the VPN still fails, compare results on a different network. A successful connection elsewhere points toward the original router, firewall or ISP path; failure everywhere after the update points more strongly toward Windows, the VPN client or an enterprise policy.

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Common mistakes that make the problem worse

  • Resetting first: this can erase working adapter, proxy and virtual-switch settings before simpler causes are tested.
  • Disabling security permanently: a temporary isolation test is different from leaving protection off.
  • Updating only the VPN app: the physical adapter driver and Windows cumulative update may be the actual failing components.
  • Assuming every Windows version shares one fix: Microsoft documented different issues for 21H2, 22H2/23H2 and 24H2.
  • Ignoring the exact error: DirectAccess IPHTTPS error 0x57 is an enterprise signal that should be handled by an administrator.

Decision checklist

  • If ordinary internet does not work, repair Wi-Fi or Ethernet first.
  • If internet works and the failure began after an update, install current Windows updates and restart.
  • If update servicing is suspect, run the Windows 11 Get Help Windows Update troubleshooter.
  • If only the VPN fails, test the client and security-filter interaction under your organization’s policy.
  • If Device Manager reports an adapter problem, update or uninstall that adapter and restart.
  • If all lower-impact steps fail, use Network reset and plan to restore VPN and Hyper-V configuration.
  • If DirectAccess on Windows 11 24H2 shows IPHTTPS 0x57, involve IT and discuss Always On VPN.

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