How to fix "Network discovery is turned off" on windows

Do you get a “Network discovery is turned off” error when trying to browse your network on your Windows PC? If so, you’ll need to start Network Discovery’s dependency services, allow the feature into your firewall, and enable it. We’ll walk you through the process below.

How to fix “Network discovery is turned off” on windows

In this tutorial, TheGhanaTech.com will be taking you through the steps:

Turn On Network Discovery’s Dependency Services

A common reason why you can’t use Network Discovery is that the feature’s dependency services aren’t running.

Use the Services app to start those required services.
Open the Run box using Windows+R
In the box, type services.msc and press Enter
In the right pane of the “Services” window, find the service named “Function Discovery Resource Publication.”
Right-click this service and choose “Start.”

Similarly, find and start the following required services:

SSDP Discovery
UPnP Device Host
DNS Client

When you’ve started the above services, close the Services app and move to the next step.

Allow Network Discovery Through Windows Firewall

Your Windows firewall may be blocking Network Discovery’s services, causing it to not work. In this case, whitelist the feature in your firewall.

Open Control Panel on your PC.
Select “System and Security.”
Beneath “Windows Defender Firewall,” choose “Allow an App Through Windows Firewall.”
On the page that opens, at the top, choose “Change Settings.”
In the list of apps and features, find “Network Discovery.”
To the left of “Network Discovery,” enable the checkbox. Then, to the right, enable the checkbox for “Private.”
Select “OK” to save your changes.

Enable Network Discovery on Your Windows PC

Now that the dependency services are running and the feature is whitelisted in the firewall, you can go ahead and turn on Network Discovery on your Windows PC.