How do I fix an x200’s internet kill switch?

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Lenovo ThinkPad X200

The ThinkPad X200 was released in 2008. It leverages the new technology from the X300, including the options of a solid-state drive (SSD), an optional integrated camera, 12.1" widescreen display, optional 3G WWAN, a new 9-cell battery for extended running time up to 9.8 hours, weight as low as 1.34 kg (2.95 lb), and CPU up to 2.66 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo.

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Cosmic Sans @cosmic_sans

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Posted: Apr 24, 2020

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How do I fix an x200’s internet kill switch?

I switched turned the switch to “off,” which promptly turned my wifi/bluetooth off. However, when I push the switch to “on,” my wifi/bluetooth isn’t turning back on. How do I fix this?

Image shows the switch in the “on” position.

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Augustine @salmonjapan

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Posted: Apr 25, 2020

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There is one trick is to mask off PIN 20 in the wireless card, but this will keep wifi card always on.

I had done this for many old laptops which those airplane / kill switch went cranky after some time of usage.

https://gsid.in/using-old-mini-pcie-wlan...

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I have a new Atheros card

Apr 25, 2020 by Cosmic Sans

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jayeff @jayeff Rep: 447.9k 11 366 1.4k · Answer 1 · 2020-04-25T07:47:16-07:00

Hi @cosmic_sans ,

What OS is installed in the laptop?

Don’t know the answer but have you checked the status of the WLAN adapter in Device Manager?

If it is disabled (red cross next to WLAN adapter entry under Network Adapters) right click on the entry and check if you can enable it.

If you can enable it and the WiFi then works OK, perhaps the switch may be faulty or perhaps the switch actuator may be broken. Try operating the switch a few times and check if this affects the status of the WLAN adapter in Device Manager i.e. disabled to enabled and back again etc

Looking at the actuator part (I think it is one of these from the miscellaneous parts kit for your laptop - hover mouse over image in link for a better view) it appears that it may not be that robust.

Here’s the hardware maintenance manual for the laptop.

This details how to open the laptop so that you can find the switch etc.

If the actuator is broken the part number is 44C9556. Unfortunately it comes in a kit with all the other parts shown in the link above. If you search online using the part number only in the search term of your browser, you will get results for suppliers.