Fix Cortana not connecting to the Internet in Windows 10

Cortana was a revolution of a kind. It changed the way we used Windows. However, it hasn’t been bug free. One well reported issue with Cortana is:

Cortana not connecting to the Internet

 

The first approach toward this issue should be to check whether the internet is accessible or not. Even more, check the speed for it shouldn’t be too slow. However, if the internet connection is stable, the problem could be with the AI assistant or something else.



Causes

The possible causes for this issue are as follows:

1] A proxy server could be interfering: We could access the internet with a proxy server, which is used commonly by organizations, however, we cannot do the same with Cortana.

2] Microsoft account is unverified.

3]  Microsoft account information is incomplete or violates community standards.

4] Anti-virus or Firewall preventing the connection.

It has been confirmed that the issue is only with systems logged in through Microsoft accounts, thus we know where to focus on.

Preliminary steps

1] Disable the anti-virus software and the Windows Defender Firewall temporarily. Here’s the procedure to disable Windows Defender Firewall.

2] Disable all proxies temporarily to isolate the issue.

Thereafter, proceed to the following solutions:

1} Power-cycle the modem, router, and system

2} Verify your Microsoft account

3} Check if other applications associated with the Microsoft account are working

Solution 1] Power-cycle the modem, router, and system

1] Switch OFF the modem, router, and computer.

2] Switch ON the modem and wait till all the lights are stable.

3] Now, switch ON the router. Again, wait till all the light are stable.

4] Switch ON the computer.

Solution 2] Verify your Microsoft account

After logging in to your system through your Microsoft account, proceed as follows:

1] Click on the Start button and then the gear-like symbol to open the Settings window.

2] Go to Accounts.



Verify Your Microsoft Account

 

3] On the right-pane which shows that you are logged-in to the Microsoft account.

4] If you see the Verify hyperlink on the page, click on it and Verify your account.

 

Solution 3] Check if other applications associated with the Microsoft account are working

For ease, I would choose to test this criteria with Microsoft store. Press Win + R to open the Run window and type the command ms-windows-store. Press Enter to open the Microsoft store.