I recently bought a Dell XPS L502X system and have been using it for around 2 weeks, until this problem suddenly came up.

First of all, the network connection was lost during a MSN chat. I tried to restart the computer, but it takes a very long, stuck at 'Logging Off' screen for more than a few minutes. So I manually turned it off (POWER button), and since the next restart, I notice the Wifi indicator on my laptop was gone, and I was never able to connect via wireless.

1) From the Intel My Wifi Technology utility, it says 'No supported Intel wireless network adapter was found'.

2) Then I run the Manual Diagnostics Tool from Intel, and it straightaway fails the first test, Hardware Test. Error message being 'Driver version does not support Intel PROSet/Wireless WiFi Software version 14.0.1.0'

Here are some of my system info:

OS Name:                   Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium
OS Version:                6.1.7601 Service Pack 1 Build 7601
OS Manufacturer:           Microsoft Corporation
System Manufacturer:       Dell Inc.         
System Model:              Dell System XPS L502X
System Type:               x64-based PC
Processor(s):              1 Processor(s) Installed.
BIOS Version:              Dell Inc.          A01, 15/02/2011

Windows IP Configuration

   Primary Dns Suffix  . . . . . . . :
   Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Hybrid
   IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
   WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : No

Ethernet adapter Bluetooth Network Connection:

   Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
   Connection-specific DNS Suffix  . :
   Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Bluetooth Device (Personal Area Network)
   DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
   Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes

Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection:

   Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
   Connection-specific DNS Suffix  . :
   Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Realtek PCIe GBE Family Controller
   DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
   Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes

Tunnel adapter Local Area Connection* 12:

   Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
   Connection-specific DNS Suffix  . :
   Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Microsoft 6to4 Adapter
   DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : No
   Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes

In the Device Manager -> Network adapters, these are the active devices

- Bluetooth Device (Personal Area Network)

- Bluetooth Device (RFCOMM Protocol TDI)

- Realtek PCIe GBE Family Controller

Does this look like a hardware problem (that I need to revert to Dell warranty), or some system settings that have been possibly corrupted?

Please advice and help.

Thank you.