Dell Inspiron 3847 , win 8.1, bluetooth gone?

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When I swipe in from the right, then search for Change Bluetooth settings (this is the only way I can access them) the settings box comes up after clicking on change Bluetooth settings in the search results.

When I check the box ”allow Bluetooth devices to find this PC” and click ”apply” I get a message saying ”an error occurred while windows was saving your settings, the Bluetooth device might be unplugged, the following settings were not saved, discoverability settings”

I cant find any settings for Bluetooth in any of the settings menus when I swipe right and click on settings.

Any Ideas?

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Not sure if this article will help http://windows.microsoft.com/en-GB/windows-8/why-isnt-windows-finding-device

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Thanks, but not really any help im afraid, its as if my Bluetooth has gone or been uninstalled.
Where abouts in device manager should I find my Bluetooth device?
All I can see in there is ”QUALCOMM Atheros Bluetooth bus” Under ”system devices”.
It states that the driver is up to date and working correctly.

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Which Bluetooth device are you using, is it switched on and did you try the Troubleshooting section ?

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On some Notebooks the Bluetooth adapter is part of the Wi-Fi adapter, turn Wi-Fi off and Bluetooth will also be off.

Before you wonder "Am I doing things right," ask "Am I doing the right things?"

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How do I find out what device I have and how do I turn it on? Its a desktop I have. Wi Fi is switched on and working, I have a wireless connection to my BT Hub.

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The Bluetooth devices are listed in Network adapters, so if the QUALCOMM is the only one listed, then that is your Bluetooth device.

Even though it’s reporting as working, perhaps downloading its driver may wake up Windows so that it’s recognised and activates the Settings – unless that isn’t a Bluetooth device and you aren’t actually using any such as a mouse or keyboard and then there wouldn’t be any settings to change.

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Its not listed in network devices,
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There is this in system devices.

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That’s what makes your computer Bluetooth enabled so that you can add Bluetooth devices but they need to be connected and switched on where they would then appear in Network adapters.

You can get different makes of Bluetooth – yours happens to be Atheros.

You’ll be able to get a driver for that HD Audio Device from Dell Support.

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When you say Bluetooth devices you mean like a dongle for instance? My PC was able to have Bluetooth devices connect to it a while back, my phone for instance used to connect to it.
I know that there is no separate Bluetooth card in the machine so I assume its part nof my wireless card?

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You can get Bluetooth wireless keyboards, mice and headphones that I know of.

I don’t think Bluetooth is part of the wireless card as they have separate drivers, although they are peculiar to the Dell wireless card version that is installed in the machine.

When you go to Dell Support for the HD Audio Device driver, have a look for the Bluetooth driver which is applicable for your Dell Wireless 1705 adapter and download it.

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I’ve had a look on the dell site and there isn’t a Bluetooth driver listed, I did download one from the atheros site but it changed nothing at all on the PC, I’m in the middle of a system refresh to see if that sorts it.

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Hope the refresh fixes it for you but if it doesn’t, is there a chipset driver listed on the Dell site?

Jerry

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I don’t see how the Refresh will do anything either.

While your computer is Bluetooth enabled, unless you have an actual Bluetooth device plugged in, there aren’t any settings to change – just as you can’t change mouse settings if you don’t have a mouse connected.

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Right then, I’m back! The refresh whipped out a lot of drivers so I had to download them again.
So , before I downloaded the drivers my blue tooth was showing in PC settings / PC and devices.
In Device Manager I had a whole section dedicated to Bluetooth.
In Device Manager / Network Adapters there was also a few Bluetooth devices showing.

So , I started to install Dells drivers, one being their chipset. After the chipset install all the Bluetooth on my computer was whipped out, all gone.
Nothing showing anywhere.

So , I downloaded the rest of the drivers then updated windows, Bluetooth came back!
I tried to search fore devices, well , I didn’t have the option , when I went to settings in the charm bar, then pc settings , then PC And Devices, then Bluetooth but when I clicked on Bluetooth it went into search mode straight away, no option to turn bluetooth on or off , no options at all, it just started to search for devices. However it could not find any , nor could my windows phone or nexus 7 find my PC.
So , I shut the PC down and went to bed.
I just got home from work and started the PC up, and guess what? All Bluetooth has gone again, nothing in pc settings , then PC And Devices, nothing in device manager. Nothing at all anywhere.

If I do a search for Bluetooth I can still access the Bluetooth settings but am still getting the original warning message when I check the make my pc discoverable box and press apply. ”an error occurred while windows was saving your settings, the Bluetooth device might be unplugged, the following settings were not saved, discoverability settings”

So, Im stumped now, is it a windows thing , a dell driver thing or both?

The Dell wireless driver includes a Bluetooth suite so I might try reinstalling that to see what happens.

Any thoughts?

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No – you lost me off 🙂

Are you actually using any Bluetooth devices ?

Can you remember which Bluetooth devices briefly displayed in Device Manager/Network adapters ?

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The ones in device manager were generic, that’s all I can remember.

Whats happened is on my PC I should be able to go into Bluetooth settings via the charm bar settings / change pc settings / pc and devices then in the list I should see Bluetooth, once clicked I can then choose to search for devices (phone etc) and switch Bluetooth on and off etc.
For some strange reason this feature no longer exists , Bluetooth is no longer listed in ”pc and devices”.

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Did you download that Bluetooth Suite ?

Not sure if creating a Bluetooth Settings shortcut would be any help, but you could try it http://www.eightforums.com/tutorials/36154-bluetooth-settings-shortcut-create-windows.html

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Do you have any Bluetooth devices connected to your computer?

Rich

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Do you have any Bluetooth devices connected to your computer?

Rich

I keep asking this :confused:

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Guys, There is nothing for a Bluetooth device to connect to, its as if my computer isn’t Bluetooth enabled.
Last night it all came back, in device manager I had all the Bluetooth drivers showing, in pc settings I also had Bluetooth showing and in the task bar the Bluetooth icon was showing.
But for some reason it wasn’t discoverable.
Dell took over my computer and they couldn’t fix it.

This morning when I started the computer everything was gone again, no settings, no icon and no drivers.

In here in pc settings there should be a Bluetooth option in the list on the left should there not?

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So I do a search for Bluetooth settings,

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The computer finds settings for Bluetooth but when I try to make the computer discoverable I get this error.

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Last night , towards the top of this list in device manager there was a section specifically for Bluetooth, it held generic Microsoft drivers, four I think from memory, today they have disappeared.
Also in network adapters there was options for Bluetooth but they have gone also.
This is all very strange, am I missing something?
None of my Bluetooth enabled devices (windows phone, nexus 7) can discover my PC.

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Another very annoying issue is when I try to use the dell online diagnostics the start button does not work.
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However it will run the quick test which doesn’t include Bluetooth.

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This is most annoying.

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How have you tried to pair the phone and did Dell techs also try any of these ? http://windows.microsoft.com/en-gb/windows7/add-a-bluetooth-or-other-wireless-or-network-device-frequently-asked-questions

http://www.eightforums.com/tutorials/37870-windows-phone-8-bluetooth-pairing-windows-8-1-a.html

And see if this article will help with your disappearing Bluetooth https://www.wiknix.com/solved-bluetooth-device-not-working-in-windows-8-1/

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How can I pair a device if my computer doesn’t have Bluetooth anymore? There is nothing to pair it to.
That first link if for windows 7 , The second link shows how to open PC settings, and click/tap on PC and devices, click/tap on Bluetooth on the left side, and make sure that Bluetooth is turned on. My Pc for some reason has lost this option, Bluetooth simply isn’t there.

To be honest I cant see this being an issue with the Dell equipment, this is an issue with windows. Once I get this sorted I am switching automatic updates off and leaving it off, its almost as if every time my computer downloads an update from Microsoft it breaks something.

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So I decided to have a play in device manager, I clicked the ”view” then ”show hidden devices” options and I was then able to see Bluetooth , however it says the hardware isn’t connected.
Whats all this then?
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What’s happened to the QUALCOMM Atheros Bluetooth and did you download the Dell Bluetooth Suite that you said you were going to try ?

Check Windows Updates to see if there are any Bluetooth drivers it wants to install.

Was the Bluetooth Support Service Started and Automatic ?

This is the first time that you’ve mentioned this started to occur after WUs ?

If you have a restore point to prior those then try that or uninstall Sept’s updates.

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The Qualcomm is gone from system devices, the dell suite came with the network driver but doesn’t seem to be doing anything.

Bluetooth support is started and set to automatic,

Im only really guessing at the updates being the problem as when I did a system refresh my system went back to basics and Bluetooth was there, after windows updated itself it was gone, then yesterday after a restart it was there, after downloading a few updates last night its gone again.

Ill look for a system restore but I doubt there will be one after the system refresh.

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Windows usually creates a restore point prior to updates, but you can uninstall the updates if not.

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Windows usually creates a restore point prior to updates, but you can uninstall the updates if not.

I’m doing a system restore as we speak. The first restore point after The system refresh. In the effected apps I did see a few windows generic Bluetooth drivers so fingers crossed.

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Right then, restored and no Bluetooth, so I downloaded all the windows updates and Bluetooth came back! It still wont connect to anything and isn’t visible, I still don’t have the option to turn it on or off. When I go to Bluetooth it just starts looking for devices, but doesn’t find any.

Also, I have lost the ability to point my mouse to the top of an app and shut it off via the red square button in the top right, it isn’t there. Now there is a hand that pulls the app down into split screen mode, I also cant shut the pc down without first signing out of my account.
All the Bluetooth things are now in device manager without looking for hidden devices and are all , or seem to be working correctly.
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Well, I’ve found how the mouse pointer changes to a hand.

Apparently if you push the pointer up the middle of the screen to the top when it changes to a hand, you double click.

I haven’t found anything definitive to change it back so I assume doing that again, it should revert to the pointer where you can double click or perhaps just by pressing ESC :confused: http://www.msoutlook.info/question/184

Sorry – I don’t have a Win 8/8.1 machine to play around with.

I think you should install that QUALCOMM Atheros driver again – the generic ones must be Windows own.

Were any of the Windows Updates for Bluetooth ?

It not being able to discover any devices could have to do with Sharing files and devices on a network, but there are other troubleshooting steps in http://windows.microsoft.com/en-GB/windows-8/why-isnt-windows-finding-device

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Try Dell Wireless 1704 WiFi + Bluetooth Driver

Bruce

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Thanks Bruce, I will try that.

I’m pretty sure I have already tried that driver though.

A few more windows updates and the red button to shut down apps etc is all back to normal.

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Right then, progress , or maybe not.
Microsoft say it isn’t a fault at their end, Dell have been on the case with remote access but no joy, so an engineer came out today to change the wireless card, still no joy.
So I am waiting for Dell to get back to me now and they say they might try a different type of card.
The thing worked fine a few months ago so I reckon Dells driver isn’t compatible with Microsoft’s updates anymore, I cant see any other reason for it to suddenly stop working.

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Can you remember what they did during the remote access ?

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They did pretty much everything I did, checked all the settings and reinstalled the network card driver.
Putting a new card in there would seem to me to signify a driver problem.

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I’ll be waiting for the next instalment to the saga and hope it works :crossfingers:

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I’ll be waiting for the next instalment to the saga and hope it works :crossfingers:

Its not good, Dell are saying its an OS problem, Microsoft are saying it isn’t.
Dell want me to reinstall the OS but I have already refreshed it before contacting them and the problem was still there.
This will be the fourth time I have had to reinstall/refresh the OS in the 6 or so months I have owned this PC, I’m really not too thrilled to be doing it again.

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When Dell are talking about reinstalling the OS, are they talking about a Refresh, Reset or a full Dell factory reset – I think I would be inclined to go for the latter and start from scratch.

Tiresome yes, but at least you would be starting from a clean sheet and as you reinstall each program (after your AV and Windows Updates), you’ll be able to tell if any have been the cause of the problem.

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When Dell are talking about reinstalling the OS, are they talking about a Refresh, Reset or a full Dell factory reset – I think I would be inclined to go for the latter and start from scratch.

Tiresome yes, but at least you would be starting from a clean sheet and as you reinstall each program (after your AV and Windows Updates), you’ll be able to tell if any have been the cause of the problem.

This was the email they sent.

Dear Mr. Rob,

Many thanks for your reply.

This mail is related to your recent interaction with Dell Technical Support reference Service Request Number: ********

I regret to know that the problem is still not fixed. It seems more like an OS related issue. Hence, advise you to please reset the system to the factory settings in order to resolve the issue. Please ensure that you have backed up the data before you follow the below steps. In case the PC reset doesn’t resolve the issue we will have to reinstall Windows as a fresh copy, please confirm if you have the Windows Media to reinstall Windows as a fresh copy.

Steps for PC reset:
http://www.dell.com/support/Article/us/en/04/608277/EN

Please visit the above link and follow the instructions to reset your system to factory settings. Observe and confirm status post PC reset.

Should you face any other issues or need further support, please revert to this email with the best time to contact you between 8 am – 4 pm GMT Monday – Friday, I will be more than happy to contact you and further support you.

Please have your service tag ******** or express service code handy.

The thing is I have already refreshed the PC and it didn’t help, also the PC was shipped with a corrupt OS and Dell sent me out a memory stick with windows 8 on it which then had to be updated to 8.1 but it doesn’t contain any Dell software what so ever and I now believe that this is the problem, I think its the OS on the memory stick that knocked out my Bluetooth.
I am now pushing for a replacement PC, this one just gives me constant trouble.

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So is it still under warranty ?

What you really need is a set of Dell OEM Recovery disks for your Service tag to properly factory reset it – push them for those and they should include all of the drivers, although you will still need to upgrade to Win 8.1 again and that there are 8.1 compatible drivers for the Bluetooth – which isn’t always the case when upgrading a Win 8.0 machine.

Those disks will be a copy of what you should have had in the Recovery Partition.

An install disk or whatever media is used doesn’t include any drivers and prior to doing a clean install with one of those, you should back up your drivers folders from Windows/System32 or wherever they are stored on a Win 8 machine, but if the OS was already screwed, the drivers may also have been corrupt.

Windows Updates can sometimes include an appropriate wireless driver but that doesn’t appear to have been the case this time.

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So is it still under warranty ?

What you really need is a set of Dell OEM Recovery disks for your Service tag to properly factory reset it – push them for those and they should include all of the drivers, although you will still need to upgrade to Win 8.1 again and that there are 8.1 compatible drivers for the Bluetooth – which isn’t always the case when upgrading a Win 8.0 machine.

Those disks will be a copy of what you should have had in the Recovery Partition.

An install disk or whatever media is used doesn’t include any drivers and prior to doing a clean install with one of those, you should back up your drivers folders from Windows/System32 or wherever they are stored on a Win 8 machine, but if the OS was already screwed, the drivers may also have been corrupt.

Windows Updates can sometimes include an appropriate wireless driver but that doesn’t appear to have been the case this time.

The computer was shipped with 8.1, the thing had a corrupt recovery partition and Dell sent me out the memory stick, I will push for the recovery discs from them. Its only 6 months old and so far I’ve reinstalled the OS twice and had two engineer visits to fix problems , surely this shouldn’t be the case with a brand new computer.

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My mistake, thought it came with Win 8.0 and you had to upgrade.

Did they fit the same make & model of Bluetooth card and were you able to see the driver they downloaded for it ?

Usually, warranties only cover hardware so any software problems are ultimately (usually) resolved through a factory reset.

When they decided you had a bad install, I would have demanded they factory re-image it and not just for myself to do a clean install of the OS, as the Recovery partition could also have been corrupt.

The OEM Recovery disks are bootable and will put all of the bloat back on so you will be working from scratch, but at least there shouldn’t be as many WUs to sit through as there are for Win 7.

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My mistake, thought it came with Win 8.0 and you had to upgrade.

Did they fit the same make & model of Bluetooth card and were you able to see the driver they downloaded for it ?

Usually, warranties only cover hardware so any software problems are ultimately (usually) resolved through a factory reset.

When they decided you had a bad install, I would have demanded they factory re-image it and not just for myself to do a clean install of the OS, as the Recovery partition could also have been corrupt.

The OEM Recovery disks are bootable and will put all of the bloat back on so you will be working from scratch, but at least there shouldn’t be as many WUs to sit through as there are for Win 7.

It was the recovery partitioin that was corrupt, I had a bleeding screen issue when I first set it up and decided to recover the OS but it told me the partition was corrupt and couldn’t complete, some files were missing.
They fitted the same card and downloaded the same Dell driver for it, the engineer said they were going to try a different card but a few days later I got an EMail from Dell saying they were glad to hear the issue had been resolved.
Its all gone quiet on Dells end, no return EMails for a while. I have requested them to call me tomorrow evening when I get home from work so they can talk me through the reset.

So what is the difference between a factory reimage and a windows reinstall? Apart from the drivers? I’m wondering if that’s the root cause of my Bluetooth not working.

This will be Dells 3rd attempt to fix this issue, if they are unable to resolve it on the third attempt as far as I am aware legally I can get a refund or replacement.

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So what is the difference between a factory reimage and a windows reinstall?

Windows reinstall is just that, only Windows. A Factory Restore [probably same as factory reimage] uses a partition on the HDD [sometimes hidden] or a set of discs [optional order or make yourself when prompted] to put the computer back to its as-shipped condition, includes the drivers and all the other stuff people refer to as “bloat-ware”.

Before you wonder "Am I doing things right," ask "Am I doing the right things?"

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Restoring with OEM Recovery disks is the same as a factory reset, except you are doing it from external disks instead of the Recovery partition.

I had to use my Toshiba Recovery disks once when the Repair your Computer option was no longer there in the Advanced Boot options.

An install disk doesn’t include any drivers so you may just have gotten Windows networking drivers.

I once tried a clean install of Win 7 on one of my laptops and I didn’t have any wireless connectivity.

I think Dell have a free phone number which you could Google for from your location, as you could be waiting until the cows come home to hear from them if they’ve decided to stick their heads in the sand on this one.

When did you tell them it had been resolved – or is that what the tech may have told them ?

Sometimes if you don’t respond or continue a complaint after a given time, they may have closed the ticket.

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Restoring with OEM Recovery disks is the same as a factory reset, except you are doing it from external disks instead of the Recovery partition.

I had to use my Toshiba Recovery disks once when the Repair your Computer option was no longer there in the Advanced Boot options.

An install disk doesn’t include any drivers so you may just have gotten Windows networking drivers.

I once tried a clean install of Win 7 on one of my laptops and I didn’t have any wireless connectivity.

I think Dell have a free phone number which you could Google for from your location, as you could be waiting until the cows come home to hear from them if they’ve decided to stick their heads in the sand on this one.

When did you tell them it had been resolved – or is that what the tech may have told them ?

Sometimes if you don’t respond or continue a complaint after a given time, they may have closed the ticket.

So if I use the windows reinstall from the memory stick dell provided me with I should be able to download every driver necessary from dells site? That’s what I have done the last time I used the stick and I believe it may have knocked out my Bluetooth.
I used Dells drivers for the network card but it looks like anything else to do with Bluetooth is all Microsoft related.

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Who is the Provider for the RFCOMM ?

I don’t have Bluetooth on here so I can’t compare what should be in there.

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It’s alright – I’ve found it http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows.devices.bluetooth.rfcomm.ASPx

There are quite a few sub links of which I’m none the wiser.

I see you no longer have that Atheros QUALCOMM driver listed.

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No that disappeared, I have downloaded it again from the Atheros site. I’m not too sure what a bus controller is or if its in this package that I just downloaded.

https://www.atheros.cz/getfile.php
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What exactly do I do with these?

This is what the zip file contained.
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A Bus Controller would normally be installed with the Chipset or Graphics drivers.

You could try the free version of Slimdrivers which will tell you if yours needs updating/reinstalling http://www.driverupdate.net/

While it doesn’t mention Win 8.1 – it may still work.

I was looking at that Czech site earlier and while they are WHQL drivers, I noticed it didn’t mention Win 8.1 which could be a problem.

In the right column of those is a btatherosinstall file but it doesn’t look like a .exe.

With the Czech drivers when you get a rake of files, you need to use the Update Driver option in Device Manager and tell it the driver is on your computer.

This one looks more promising as it’s a later version http://alldrivers.ucoz.net/news/qualcomm_atheros_drivers/1-0-4 but can you use your restore points to back when the QUALCOMM was showing as naturally installed.

Right click on it in Device Manager and select Properties – under the Details tab use the dropdown to select Hardware Ids and that will give you the VEN & DEV number or use msinfo32 – expanding Components/Network/Adapter then scrolling down until you find the QUALCOMM device.

As you’ve said Dell doesn’t have any Bluetooth drivers listed, the QUALCOMM driver shouldn’t be OEM modified, so it should be okay to download if it tallies with the applies to – which you will see when you click on Read more..

Enter the VEN No. in the top box and the 4 character DEV No. in the lower box in http://www.pcidatabase.com/ then press enter, or post the VEN & DEV No. on here.

It may list a few but check them for your exact match and then a Google may produce a viable link or confirm the one I’ve linked.

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A Bus Controller would normally be installed with the Chipset or Graphics drivers.

You could try the free version of Slimdrivers which will tell you if yours needs updating/reinstalling http://www.driverupdate.net/

While it doesn’t mention Win 8.1 – it may still work.

I was looking at that Czech site earlier and while they are WHQL drivers, I noticed it didn’t mention Win 8.1 which could be a problem.

In the right column of those is a btatherosinstall file but it doesn’t look like a .exe.

With the Czech drivers when you get a rake of files, you need to use the Update Driver option in Device Manager and tell it the driver is on your computer.

This one looks more promising as it’s a later version http://alldrivers.ucoz.net/news/qualcomm_atheros_drivers/1-0-4 but can you use your restore points to back when the QUALCOMM was showing as naturally installed.

Right click on it in Device Manager and select Properties – under the Details tab use the dropdown to select Hardware Ids and that will give you the VEN & DEV number or use msinfo32 – expanding Components/Network/Adapter then scrolling down until you find the QUALCOMM device.

As you’ve said Dell doesn’t have any Bluetooth drivers listed, the QUALCOMM driver shouldn’t be OEM modified, so it should be okay to download if it tallies with the applies to – which you will see when you click on Read more..

Enter the VEN No. in the top box and the 4 character DEV No. in the lower box in http://www.pcidatabase.com/ then press enter, or post the VEN & DEV No. on here.

It may list a few but check them for your exact match and then a Google may produce a viable link or confirm the one I’ve linked.

Thanks for that fella but Dell called last night and we reset the computer back to factory but without the Dell drivers, still no Bluetooth.
The Dell guy got everything set up and then let me finish it all up. When the system reinstalled I could see all the Bluetooth options in device manager and in PC settings but it could not connect to my Nexus or phone. I just thought this was because of the network driver not being installed. I restarted the PC and it didn’t help, so I shut it down. This morning when I started it up all the Bluetooth options had gone again so restarting doesn’t effect the BT options but shutting down does?
So tonight another call from Dell and they installed all their drivers, or at least all but one, the network driver. The connection was slow and it would have taken over an hour to download it so I opted to install it myself when it had finished.
So I’ve just done that and nothing , no BT options anywhere apart from in ”view hidden devices” in device manager. They are greyed out and when I click on them to look at the drivers I get this message,

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Windows is updating at the moment so I will see if that helps and Dell are calling back tomorrow night, I get home at 7pm and they close at 8pm so we only have a small window to work with which is why its been dragging over the last few nights.

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That sounds like a BIOS problem if it isn’t retaining the memory – ask the tech about that when he calls tomorrow night – but don’t download anything yourself.

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That sounds like a BIOS problem if it isn’t retaining the memory – ask the tech about that when he calls tomorrow night – but don’t download anything yourself.

We already tried updating the BIOS before reinstalling the OS and it didn’t help, if I update the BIOS would it retain the settings of the previous BIOS version in the new version?

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I think it would still have the ROM of the previous one but it could have been refreshed – depends what the update was for.

Not that deep into the mechanics of the BIOS except that it tells Windows what to load.

Did the tech download the Chipset or Graphics drivers as well ?

Wonder if you have a motherboard problem then ?

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I think it would still have the ROM of the previous one but it could have been refreshed – depends what the update was for.

Not that deep into the mechanics of the BIOS except that it tells Windows what to load.

Did the tech download the Chipset or Graphics drivers as well ?

Wonder if you have a motherboard problem then ?

I just had a look through the BIOS settings and there is nothing in there for Bluetooth, I did wonder about the mother board myself.

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Are the Bluetooth drivers still greyed out or have they gone missing again ?

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Are the Bluetooth drivers still greyed out or have they gone missing again ?

After several windows updates and a few restarts they are all back again and operational, I just cant get it to see or connect to anything and vice versa.
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You just seem to be going around in circles on this – mind, so do Dell but I’d leave it to them to sort out although I think the time is fast approaching when you should broach the subject of a RMA.

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you just seem to be going around in circles on this – mind, so do dell but i’d leave it to them to sort out although i think the time is fast approaching when you should broach the subject of a rma.

rma?

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RMA=Return Merchandise Authorisation under warranty.

If they agree the will supply you with a Returns Ref: No. and how to return it.

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RMA=Return Merchandise Authorisation under warranty.

If they agree the will supply you with a Returns Ref: No. and how to return it.

Ah, I didn’t get the chance, they didn’t call back.
I have EMailed them stating that after a factory reset the computers Bluetooth is still inoperable and I’ll see what they say but they have run out of options from what I can see, Its had a new network card and a factory reset, what else can they do?
The only thing that I can see it being is the OS on the Dell memory stick, that and the mother board.

When I reinstalled the OS there was no Bluetooth, then I put the Dell drivers on there and still nothing, I have updated window’s fully and still no bluetooth.

I feel like I have a part time job working for Dell.

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Factory resetting as the tech did should have included all of the relevant drivers for the installed devices but if the original factory install was corrupt to the extent that Dell sent you a USB ISO, if the tech used the on board Recovery partition to reset it, then he’s done the equivalent of using an infected restore point if the corruption extended to the Recovery partition.

I would contact them and demand a set of OEM Recovery disks and if factory resetting it with those fails to do the job, I think you should then demand a RMA as it’s more likely to be hardware related.

Are they aware of the full history of this machine ?

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Factory resetting as the tech did should have included all of the relevant drivers for the installed devices but if the original factory install was corrupt to the extent that Dell sent you a USB ISO, if the tech used the on board Recovery partition to reset it, then he’s done the equivalent of using an infected restore point if the corruption extended to the Recovery partition.

I would contact them and demand a set of OEM Recovery disks and if factory resetting it with those fails to do the job, I think you should then demand a RMA as it’s more likely to be hardware related.

Are they aware of the full history of this machine ?

They are now, I just got as call back and they tried to get in touch with a different department to find out how to proceed but that department wasn’t cooperating so they are now thinking that the machine needs another engineer visit to put a different card in there, they are unsure if he put the right one in there on his last visit.
I’m not convinced but we shall see.
I think they have pretty much ran out of options with it now.
At the same time it is puzzling as to why it isn’t working, it should after everything that has been done so far.

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They are now, I just got as call back and they tried to get in touch with a different department to find out how to proceed but that department wasn’t cooperating so they are now thinking that the machine needs another engineer visit to put a different card in there, they are unsure if he put the right one in there on his last visit.
I’m not convinced but we shall see.
I think they have pretty much ran out of options with it now.
At the same time it is puzzling as to why it isn’t working, it should after everything that has been done so far.

Call them back and ask that the tech brings a set of OEM Recovery disks with him as you need a proper factory reset as a solid base to work from and if it still doesn’t work, then that is the time to look at hardware – and I still would suspect the motherboard.

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This is getting ridiculous. Mother board has been replaced and no joy, new card (again) still no joy. The engineer is going to advise a replacement PC so I have to give Dell a call tomorrow to get them to confirm this course of action.
The only thing it can be now is the OS, it cant be anything else that I can see.

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This is getting ridiculous. Mother board has been replaced and no joy, new card (again) still no joy. The engineer is going to advise a replacement PC so I have to give Dell a call tomorrow to get them to confirm this course of action.
The only thing it can be now is the OS, it cant be anything else that I can see.

If they replaced the motherboard then they would have had to have done a fresh reinstall of the OS.

At least with a replacement pc you will be rid of this problem (hopefully), but it would have been nice if the techs could have found the cause.

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If they replaced the motherboard then they would have had to have done a fresh reinstall of the OS.

At least with a replacement pc you will be rid of this problem (hopefully), but it would have been nice if the techs could have found the cause.

I was wondering about that, the engineer left me with a product key package that says after replacing your system board activate windows with this product key.
Apparently the missus said he was only here for 30 or 40 mins but I have over 500 gb worth of audio on my PC so I don’t see how he could have backed all that up, reinstalled the os then put it all back on my PC in that time, also all my settings are the same.

Edit, I just googled the part number, its a product key for win8. My PC shipped with 8.1.

http://www.onlinesell.ro/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=89886

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I was wondering about that, the engineer left me with a product key package that says after replacing your system board activate windows with this product key.
Apparently the missus said he was only here for 30 or 40 mins but I have over 500 gb worth of audio on my PC so I don’t see how he could have backed all that up, reinstalled the os then put it all back on my PC in that time, also all my settings are the same.

Probably best to contact them again to clarify the repair and if your files are still safe before you go any further with the reinstall.

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That’s the thing, I’m not sure that he installed a new OS or reinstalled the old one, he couldn’t have. All my files are still on the computer.
I was at work and briefly spoke to him on the phone while he was trying to repair the PC. He did say he had tried a new motherboard.

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In ”charms bar” ”settings” ”PC info” the product key on the screen is different from the key printed on the card in the package he left.

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In ”charms bar” ”settings” ”PC info” the product key on the screen is different from the key printed on the card in the package he left.

Perhaps that’s why he left it to you to activate it 🙂

If you can still access all of your personal stuff, I think you should back it up and contact Dell for the RMA as the tech is recommending a replacement.

Just seen your Edit in Post #68.

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Perhaps that’s why he left it to you to activate it 🙂

If you can still access all of your personal stuff, I think you should back it up and contact Dell for the RMA as the tech is recommending a replacement.

Just seen your Edit in Post #68.

Right then, I gave dell support a call the next day after the engineer had visited and explained that I wanted a new computer. I was told that because it is a refurbished computer all I could have is either a refund or some discs to try and resolve the problem.
I said lets go with the discs first so he arranged to post them to me. Then he took control of the computer and had a play with it, as a last resort he tried a windows 7 driver but because it was taking so long to download he asked me to install it and email him with the results.
I installed it and hey presto, Bluetooth works like a charm, or at least I think it does.
Can anyone tell me if this screen should have any more features to it? It just constantly searches for devices.

38278-Screenshot-7

The discs arrived today so I have them if I need to go any further with it.

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This article looks as if it could help http://www.eightforums.com/tutorials/37870-windows-phone-8-bluetooth-pairing-windows-8-1-a.html

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Ooops, forgot about this thread, I cant turn my Bluetooth on or off like the computer in the link, there isn’t the option to do that on my PC in the Bluetooth options, it just constantly searches for devices. Its not the end of the world, at least the thing is working.

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I cant turn my Bluetooth on or off like the
computer in the link, there isn’t the option to do that on my PC in the Bluetooth
options

I’ll bet that if you turn off the Wi-Fi/Wireless adapter the Bluetooth will also be off.

Before you wonder "Am I doing things right," ask "Am I doing the right things?"

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You are probably right, but that would switch off my internet also, I can make the PC invisible in Bluetooth settings so I’m not too concerned about it.

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Don’t know what else to suggest for that :confused: but if it isn’t causing any problems….

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Its fine, it works and does its job so I’m happy with it.

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