{"id":2021,"date":"2016-03-12T12:11:28","date_gmt":"2016-03-12T06:41:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/198.58.113.91\/blog\/?p=2021"},"modified":"2019-05-12T02:55:40","modified_gmt":"2019-05-12T02:55:40","slug":"recover-wifi-password-stored-key","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/recover-wifi-password-stored-key\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Recover Stored Wi-Fi Passwords (Security Key) in Windows?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Using the the built-in options in Windows 8 and Windows 10, you can view or change the password only for the active Wi-Fi connection. This post explains how to view stored passwords for all Wi-Fi profiles in the system.<\/p>\n

View Wi-Fi Password for the Active Wi-Fi Profile<\/h2>\n

To view the Wi-Fi password or security key for the active connection, open Network and Sharing Center in the Control Panel.<\/p>\n

Click the Wireless Network Connection<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Click Wireless Properties<\/b>, and click the Show characters<\/b> check box.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Note: If you’re using Windows Vista or 7, the Manage Wireless Networks option can be used to view or maintain your Wi-Fi profiles. Since this feature was removed in Windows 8 and higher, you need to use the Netsh command-line tool or a 3rd party tool to accomplish the same.<\/p>\n

Recover Stored Passwords from All Wi-Fi Profiles<\/h2>\n

If you have multiple Wi-Fi profiles, you can use one of these methods to get the Wi-Fi passwords for all the profiles.<\/p>\n

Using NirSoft’s WirelessKeyView<\/b><\/p>\n

WirelessKeyView<\/a> utility from NirSoft recovers all wireless network security keys\/passwords (WEP\/WPA) stored in your computer, and allows you to easily save all keys to text\/html\/xml file.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

You can also export your wireless keys into a file and import these keys into another computer. Key (Ascii) is the field you should be looking at, which contains the passwords in clear-text.<\/p>\n

Using Netsh Command-Line<\/b><\/p>\n

If you want to manage your Wi-Fi connections without using a 3rd party tool, use the Netsh command-line utility<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Open a Command Prompt window. In Windows 8 and 10, press WinKey + X to access the Power User menu, and click Command Prompt.<\/b><\/p>\n

Type the following command and press ENTER:<\/p>\n

netsh wlan show profiles<\/pre>\n
<\/p>\n
This shows the list of Wi-Fi profiles. To view the settings and password for the profile named "Belkin.3783" in the above example:<\/p>\n
netsh wlan show profile name="Belkin.3783" key=clear<\/pre>\n
<\/p>\n
Look for the line "Key Content" which shows the password in clear-text.<\/p>\n
Similarly run the command for every other Wi-Fi profile you want to view the stored password.<\/p>\n
Classic Shell Users<\/h2>\n
If you’re using the excellent Classic Start Menu (Classic Shell<\/a>) to replace Windows 8 & 10 Start menu, you can add Manage Wireless Networks to the Start menu and display it as a menu. Although the Manage Wireless Networks has been phased out in Windows 8 and higher, it works fine when added as a menu in Classic Start Menu.<\/p>\n
Open Classic Start Menu settings, and add a custom menu item with the following target:<\/p>\n
shell:::{1fa9085f-25a2-489b-85d4-86326eedcd87}<\/pre>\n
<\/p>\n
Configure it to Display as a menu<\/b>.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Right-click a connection and click Properties. This opens the Wireless network Properties page of that connection (ref: Fig 2).<\/p>\n
Thanks to Gaurav<\/i> for the excellent Classic Start Menu tip!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Using the the built-in options in Windows 8 and Windows 10, you can view or change the password only for the active Wi-Fi connection. This post explains how to view stored passwords for all Wi-Fi profiles in the system.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2021","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-windows"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1819,"url":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/delete-unused-duplicate-wifi-network-profiles\/","url_meta":{"origin":2021,"position":0},"title":"How to Delete Unused or Duplicate Wi-Fi Network Profiles in Windows?","author":"Ramesh","date":"March 4, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Sometimes, duplicate Wi-Fi network profiles or SSIDs may appear all of a sudden with suffix 2, 3, and so forth, in the list of available Wi-Fi networks, all pointing to the same SSID. This post tells you how to remove the redundant Wi-Fi network connections or connections that you added\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Windows"","block_context":{"text":"Windows","link":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/category\/microsoft\/windows\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/w10\/wifi-dupl-3.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":4907,"url":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/backup-wifi-profiles-restore-xml-file\/","url_meta":{"origin":2021,"position":1},"title":"Backup and Restore Wireless Network Profiles (Wi-Fi)","author":"Ramesh","date":"December 22, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Many of us, especially laptop users, have more than one Wi-Fi network profile set up on our systems. You might use a Wi-Fi network connection when at a coffee shop where you frequent, and connect to another network when at home or office. This post explains how to backup and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Windows"","block_context":{"text":"Windows","link":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/category\/microsoft\/windows\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"backup and restore Wi-Fi network profiles","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/wifi-export-netsh-2.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/wifi-export-netsh-2.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/wifi-export-netsh-2.png?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":4688,"url":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wifi-connection-priority-change-netsh\/","url_meta":{"origin":2021,"position":2},"title":"Change Wi-Fi Network Connection Priority in Windows 11\/10","author":"Ramesh","date":"November 30, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Most of us use more than one Wi-Fi network connection so that if one fails, the 2nd one is used as a fallback. With multiple Wi-Fi network sources, there comes the issue of connection priority. There are situations where you need to use a Wi-Fi connection until it reaches the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Windows 10"","block_context":{"text":"Windows 10","link":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/category\/microsoft\/windows\/windows-10\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"change wi-fi priority","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/wifi-priority-netsh-1-1.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/wifi-priority-netsh-1-1.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/wifi-priority-netsh-1-1.png?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/wifi-priority-netsh-1-1.png?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":5656,"url":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/hide-neighborhood-wifi-ssid-computer\/","url_meta":{"origin":2021,"position":3},"title":"How to Hide Wi-Fi Network (SSID) of your Neighbors on Your Computer","author":"Ramesh","date":"October 27, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"When you click on the Wi-Fi icon in the Notification area, you'll see the list of Wireless network broadcasts that are within your connection range. With high range routers available in the market, the Wi-Fi broadcast signals are powerful and cover a long range. If you're an apartment dweller, you'll\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Utilities"","block_context":{"text":"Utilities","link":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/category\/utilities\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"list of ssid wi-fi networks","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/wifi-ssid-hide-unwanted-3.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/wifi-ssid-hide-unwanted-3.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/wifi-ssid-hide-unwanted-3.png?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/wifi-ssid-hide-unwanted-3.png?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":6716,"url":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/no-wifi-ssid-access-points-found-by-windows-10\/","url_meta":{"origin":2021,"position":4},"title":"[Fix] Wi-Fi Networks (SSID) Not Visible in Windows 10\/11","author":"Ramesh","date":"November 2, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Your Windows 10 computer may not show available Wi-Fi Networks (No Wi-Fi Networks Found) sometimes after installing a feature update. Many of the users have reported that they are unable to search and discover new Wi-Fi access points after going through the Fall Creators Update. However, this issue still exists\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Windows 10"","block_context":{"text":"Windows 10","link":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/category\/microsoft\/windows\/windows-10\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"netgear ax mode router","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/netgear-enable-ax.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/netgear-enable-ax.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/netgear-enable-ax.png?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":6005,"url":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wifi-disconnection-windows-10-fall-creators-update\/","url_meta":{"origin":2021,"position":5},"title":"Fix: WiFi Disconnection Problem in Windows 10 Fall Creators Update","author":"Ramesh","date":"December 7, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"WiFi disconnection can occur due to many factors, such as incompatible device driver, incorrect settings, sleep timeout, or maybe it's a Windows 10 Fall Creators Update bug.\u00a0Some WiFi network adapters are incompatible with the recent implementation of the Microsoft Wi-Fi Direct Virtual Adapter driver. If your wireless network connection keeps\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Windows 10"","block_context":{"text":"Windows 10","link":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/category\/microsoft\/windows\/windows-10\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"microsoft wi-fi direct adapter disable disconnection","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/disable-wifi-direct-adapter.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/disable-wifi-direct-adapter.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/disable-wifi-direct-adapter.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/disable-wifi-direct-adapter.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2021","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2021"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2021\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2021"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2021"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2021"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}