Is your Minecraft having trouble working on the LAN session? If you’re unable to play the game with your friends locally, or the LAN session keeps invisible to other LAN players, follow the tips below to sort it out.

  1. Check your Windows Firewall
  2. Update the network drivers
  3. Disable AP isolation
  4. Use a direct connection

Before we start troubleshooting, please restart your computer to flush the buffer. Also, it’s recommended to temporarily disable your anti-virus program, as it may prevent your Minecraft from launching. Other than that, you’ll have to make sure that all players are using the same Minecraft version, and are connecting to the same network. Then, proceed with the troubleshooting tips below.

1. Check your Windows Firewall

When Windows Firewall prevents Minecraft from having access to the network, you’ll be unable to play Minecraft on LAN. This can happen if you’ve ever clicked “Cancel” on the User Account Control prompt.

In this case, you’ll have to check the Firewall settings and make sure Minecraft is allowed through Firewall. To do so:

  1. On your keyboard, press the Windows logo key and I together to open Windows Settings.
  2. From the left sidebar, select Privacy & security. Then, click Windows Security >> Firewall and network protection.
  3. Click Allow an app through Firewall.
  4. Then, see if the following items are checked.
    javaw.exe
    Java(TM) Platform SE binary
    Minecraft
    If not, click the Change settings button then select each item and check the boxes for both Private and Public. (Please note that you may have more than one entry, just check all of them.)

See if the problem is resolved. If not, proceed with the next tip.

2. Update your network driver

When Minecraft LAN is not working, one of the first things you should do is to update your network driver, since an up-to-date network driver always ensures the best network connection and fewer bugs.

To update your network driver, here’s what you can do (please note that the following screenshots are taken on Windows 11, but the instructions work on Windows 10 as well):

  1. On your keyboard, press the Windows key and X at the same time, select Device Manager.
  2. Double-click to expand the category Network adapters. Then right-click your network driver and click Update driver (the name of the device can be different on your computer).
  3. Then click Search automatically for updated driver software.
  4. Wait for Windows to find the latest driver available for you.
  5. When the driver update is done, restart your computer for the change to take effect.
  6. Then check and see if the problem is fixed.

If Windows says that it’s already found the latest driver for you, so no newer drivers are found, then you should consider updating your network driver in a different way with the help of Driver Techie.

Its ever-growing driver database allows you to always have access to the latest device drivers that you need. More importantly, Driver Techie simplifies the driver update process, so all it takes is just 3 clicks (for Pro users), and all your drivers are updated.

To use Driver Techie to find you the latest drivers:

  1. Download and install Driver Techie, then launch it.
  2. Click Scan Now.
  3. After the scan, select all the drivers you need to update and click Update All. Then all your drivers will be updated automatically without you having to do anything else.

Please note that Update All is available for Pro subscribers only, otherwise, you can only manually update the driver one at a time. To see how to manually update the drivers one by one, please check this post.

If you’re a Pro user of Driver Techie, and need our technical support to help with the Minecraft LAN not working issue, please feel free to contact <support@drivertechie.com>.

3. Disable AP isolation

With AP isolation, connected users are isolated from each other. They can connect to the internet from the same network, but they can’t connect to each other. Although this feature is implemented to protect you, it sometimes prevents you from playing Minecraft on LAN.

To check if AP isolation is causing the issue, try these steps:

  1. On your keyboard, press the Windows logo key and R together to open the Run prompt. Type cmd and press Shift. Ctrl, and Enter at the same time to open the Command prompt.
  2. On the Command prompt, typeipconfig and press Enter. Check your IPV4 address.
  3. If all computers are on the same network, try to ping another computer.
  4. Type ping and follow with the other computer’s IPV4 address.
  5. Do the same with the other computer. If both computers can’t perform a ping test successfully, it’s most likely AP isolation.

To disable AP isolation on your router or modem, please refer to your router’s or modem’s documentation.

4. Use a direct connection

Another way to fix the Minecraft LAN not working issue is to try Direct Connection on the Multiplayer menu. In this way, you can manually establish a LAN session.

To do so, you need to get the IP address of the host computer first. Here are the steps:

  1. On your keyboard, press the Windows logo key and R together to open the Run prompt. Type cmd and press Shift. Ctrl, and Enter at the same time to open the Command prompt.
  2. On the Command prompt, typeipconfig and press Enter. Look for the IPV4 address associated with the network you’re currently using and then note it down. If you see more than one IPV4 address, make sure you choose the correct one (Wireless LAN adapter Wi-Fi or Ethernet adapter Ethernet).

Then, Launch Minecraft to get the game port. Here’s how:

  1. Launch Minecraft and start a new world. When the new world is fully loaded, click Settings and then Open to LAN. Then, set up the server preferences and click Start LAN World.
  2. Once the LAN World is opened, you’ll see the port number at the bottom of the screen (“Local game hosted on port XXXXX“). Then, note down the port number.

Now, all other players shall start to join, based on the notes taken from the host computer. Kindly navigate to Multiplayer > Direct Connect. Then, in the Server Address box, input the IP address + “:” + the port number. For example, if the IPV4 address and the port number are 192.168.0.100 and 50827, you should type 192.168.0.100:50827.

Once done, click Join server to start gaming. Hopefully, this would be the final fix and you should play Minecraft normally. By the way, sometimes a buggy mod can also cause problems like this. We recommend you remove it or install one mod at a time. If you have any questions, please feel free to comment down below.