Persistent issues with Bluetooth adapter disappearing from Windows 10

[BryanMyrick]

Bluetooth has disappeared from my system again. I've performed a number of rescue attempts (described below) to no avail, and searched through other posts to these forums to find a different solution. In the past when this happens, it usually occurs when updates are being pushed to Win10 or Office, and the ultimate solution is the trusted bail-out of doing a Windows reset which costs time and because time is money.

(Side note: There are a lot of questions in the forums about this exact issue. All seem to lead to the same kind of "make sure your drivers are up-to-date" support response from support techs, and all seem to also now be locked.)


I am running Windows 10 build 1803 on a Dell XPS 15 laptop.

1. This is not a case where Bluetooth has been turned off. It is a case where Bluetooth suddenly doesn't exist, despite an adapter being present.
2. In Device Manager, viewed hidden devices, uninstalled the Qualcomm adapter. Downloaded most recent driver from Dell support and reinstalled drivers... twice. Still, Windows doesn't recognize Bluetooth.
3. Scanned for hardware changes. No change.
4. In Services, started, then restarted all Bluetooth services. No change.
5. Ran Bluetooth troubleshooter in Windows 10 which reports that my device does not have Bluetooth. But it does have Bluetooth; Windows is somehow unable to find it.
6. On a lark, I had my security software run a full system scan to identify possible malware issues. Nothing popped up.
7. I also manually requested a check for updates on the Windows Update screen. Nothing.
8. The Dell system hardware check also turned up no negative indications.

This seems to happen every few months and the only resolution has been to succumb to starting over with a fresh Windows 10 install which costs time and money. It's clearly not an isolated issue.

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