Network Reset Button Explained What You Lose and Keep
One click, and the network stack goes back to factory behaviour - including the settings somebody once typed in by hand. Here is what the reset really changes, item by item, and how to insure yourself in five minutes.
✍️ Technical Anshu🪟 Windows 10 / 11⏱️ 8 minute read
🎥 Full video - the 1-click fixes of the GUI WinPE, shown on a real faulty PC
"No internet" after a software mess is exactly what the network reset was invented for - and it works. But the reset does not know which of your network settings were deliberate. A static IP entered for the office printer looks exactly like corruption to a reset button. So before the click, here is the full picture of what changes, what survives, and what to write down.
Before the reset - save this page of the PC (example values)
Network adapter : Ethernet
IPv4 Address : 192.168.1.50 (entered by hand - static)
Default Gateway : 192.168.1.1
DNS Servers : 8.8.8.8, 1.1.1.1 (entered by hand)
Office VPN client : installed, 1 saved connection
Printer : network printer at 192.168.1.50 must stay reachable
If this PC is reset without notes, the static address is gone
and the office printer stops working until it is typed back.
A static IP setup like this office PC is the classic reset casualty - five minutes of notes before the reset saves an hour of detective work after it.
1
What the Reset Buttons Actually Run
There are two levels of network reset, and a good toolkit button tells you which one it runs. The classic pair of commands is:
netsh winsock reset - rebuilds the Winsock catalogue, the list of network components every program talks through. VPN filters, antivirus web shields and old software insert themselves here; when the catalogue corrupts, programs lose network access in strange, selective ways.
netsh int ip reset - returns the TCP/IP stack's settings to their defaults.
Usually followed by ipconfig /release, ipconfig /renew and ipconfig /flushdns to get a fresh address and clear the cached name lookups.
The heavier option - Windows Settings' own Network reset - goes further: it removes every network adapter and reinstalls it, wiping the configuration with it. Both levels end with a restart.
2
What You Lose - the Honest List
A static IP address, gateway and manual DNS - the Settings-level reset wipes them completely; the netsh pair can disturb them too. On an office PC, a shop billing machine or a PC hosting a shared printer, this is the difference between a fix and a new fault.
VPN connections and clients. Saved VPN profiles may be removed by the full reset, and third-party VPN software often needs a repair install afterwards because its filter driver was part of what got rebuilt.
Wi-Fi passwords - after the full Settings reset, expect to type them again. The gentler netsh pair usually leaves saved networks alone.
Extras that rode on the adapters: Hyper-V virtual switches, bridged adapters for virtual machines, custom adapter priorities and any metered-connection settings.
3
The Five-Minute Insurance - Record Before You Reset
Run ipconfig /all and photograph or save the output - it shows the current address, gateway and DNS for every adapter.
Note whether the address was automatic (DHCP) or typed by hand. Automatic means the router hands everything back after the reset - reset freely. Manual means you must have the numbers written down.
List the VPNs, virtual switches and shared printers this PC serves. If it serves anything to other machines, schedule the reset when those users can tolerate a short outage.
Then reset, restart, and re-enter the recorded values. Test the internet, the printer and the VPN - in that order.
4
When a Reset Is - and Is Not - the Answer
Reset is the right tool when networking broke after something changed the stack: a VPN or antivirus was uninstalled badly, one program can browse while another cannot, or the PC gets an address but nothing resolves. It is the wrong tool for a router that is down, an ISP outage, a Wi-Fi password that changed, or a faulty cable - the reset will happily wipe your settings while the real fault sits untouched in the next room. Thirty seconds of diagnosis - does another device on the same network work? - decides whether the reset button deserves to be clicked at all.
🔴 Bench rule: never network-reset a PC that other machines depend on - a billing PC, a file or print host - without written notes of its static settings and the owner’s agreement on timing. The reset takes one minute; reconstructing an unrecorded static setup takes an afternoon.
🎥 Watch the Repair Buttons in the Video
See the full GUI WinPE session - each fix chosen deliberately, not clicked blindly.
Will a network reset delete my saved Wi-Fi networks?
The gentler netsh commands (winsock reset, int ip reset) usually leave saved Wi-Fi networks and passwords intact. The full Network reset in Windows Settings removes and reinstalls the adapters, and after it you should expect to join Wi-Fi networks again with their passwords. If you do not know a password anymore, recover it from a connected phone or the router label before resetting.
My internet works in the browser but an app says no connection. Is reset the fix?
That selective pattern is exactly what a corrupted Winsock catalogue causes - often left behind by a VPN or security tool that was uninstalled. A winsock reset is a reasonable, targeted fix here. Take the five-minute notes first anyway: cheap insurance costs nothing when it turns out to be unnecessary.
After the reset my office printer stopped working. What happened?
Most likely the PC had a static IP address that other machines used to reach the shared printer, and the reset returned it to automatic addressing - so it now has a different address. Re-enter the original static values (from your notes, or from the router’s connected-devices list) and the printer comes back. This is the single most common reset side-effect on office PCs.
This guide is based on the Technical Anshu video on the custom GUI WinPE with 1-click fixes • Stuck on a step - ask in the video comments and the community will help 🙏