One of the most sophisticated Artificial Intelligence or AI assistants there is in the market is Cortana. However, no matter how sophisticated this AI assistant may be, there are still times when you encounter issues with it. So if your Cortana is not connecting to the internet, worry not for this post will guide you in fixing the problem.
This connection issue in Cortana might have something to do with the settings, network connectivity, or your Microsoft account. In addition, it could also be that the Firewall or antivirus program interferes with its connection. Whichever the case is, here are some possible solutions that could help you resolve the problem.
Option 1 – Try to power cycle the modem, router, and computer
- Connect the modem, router, and the PC hard-wired and then switch all of these three devices off.
- Turn on the modem and wait for 30 seconds.
- Turn on the router and wait for 30 seconds as well.
- Finally, turn on the computer and check if you can now successfully connect to the internet.
Option 2 – Check if your router or ISP is properly working
Since the basis for this issue is that Cortana is not connecting to the internet even though you are able to access websites using your browser, you might want to check your router or ISP (Internet Service Provider) and see if they’re functioning properly.
Option 3 – Try changing your internet connection
You can also try changing your internet connection and see if it fixes the problem. If you are using Ethernet, you can try connecting to a Wi-Fi connection and see if Cortana is able to connect or not.
Option 4 – Try to run the Search and Indexing troubleshooter
You might also want to run the Search and Indexing troubleshooter in Windows 10 as it checks whether the settings for Cortana are in place and automatically corrects any issues if the update or software installation has changed the settings. To run it just click on the Start button and select
Settings > Updates and Security > Troubleshoot. From there, select the Search and Indexing Troubleshooter.
Note: You can also run the Network Troubleshooter as it can also help in resolving the issue especially if the problem is in the network.
Option 5 – Try to remove Proxy
Removing the Proxy might also help you in fixing the connection issue in Cortana. Here’s how you can do it:
- Tap the Win + R keys to open the Run dialog box.
- Then type “inetcpl.cpl” in the field and hit Enter to pull up the Internet Properties.
- After that, go to the Connections tab and select the LAN settings.
- From there. Uncheck the “Use a Proxy Server” option for your LAN and then make sure that the “Automatically detect settings” option is checked.
- Now click the OK and the Apply buttons.
- Restart your PC.
Note: If you are using a third-party proxy service, you have to disable it.
Option 6 – Verify your Microsoft account
In some cases, Cortana might not be able to connect to the internet because your Microsoft account is no longer verified. This usually happens when you use a two-step authentication system with your Microsoft account. To verify it, just open Settings and click on Accounts. After that, check if you have a Verify hyperlink under your Microsoft account or not then click on Verify. Afterward, follow the next on-screen prompts to verify your Microsoft account. Once your account is verified, restart your computer.
Option 7 – Try resetting Cortana
- Open Cortana and go to the Settings section where you’ll see the “Turning off Cortana clears what Cortana knows on this device, but won’t delete anything from the Notebook. After Cortana is off, you can decide what you’d like to do with anything still stored in the cloud” option. Turn this option off.
- Restart your PC.
- After your computer boots, launch Cortana again and check.
Option 8 – Try to reinstall Cortana
If none of the options given above works, you must consider reinstalling Cortana.
- First, right-click on the Start button and click on the Windows Powershell (Admin) option from the list.
- Next, type the following command and hit Enter to execute it:
Get-AppXPackage -Name Microsoft.Windows.Cortana | Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register "$($_.InstallLocation)AppXManifest.xml"}
- Restart your computer and check if Cortana is now able to connect.
Error Causes
Microsoft starting as of today will block its Office 365 users if they are using Internet Explorer or early versions of Edge browsers.
So if you are using older non Chromium Edge versions of Microsoft browsers you can no longer access Office services until you switch. Now normally I would fully support this kind of decision since Internet explorer is a slow and vulnerable browser and the edge is similar in that regard.
The new edge browser is great and it should be used but the issue I have is that Office 365 is not free, it is a premium feature and I am wondering how Microsoft plans to deal with people that have already paid for service but suddenly cannot access it anymore. 
Windows 11 comes with glass and transparency effects by default once it is installed. The transparency effect looks really good but if in any case, you do not like them, you can easily turn them off very easily
