remove all Wi-Fi networks using netsh
To display or delete WLAN networks using the “netsh” command, press [Windows] and [R] simultaneously on your keyboard. A “Run” window opens at the bottom left. Type in cmd here.
To show all Wi-Fi networks stored on your computer, type the following string into cmd and confirm by pressing [Enter]:
netsh wlan show profiles
To delete a single profile, use the following command:
(Replace the xxx with the exact name of the stored Wi-Fi profile)
netsh wlan delete profile name="xxx"
To delete all Wi-Fi networks, use the following command:
Caution! As soon as you execute this command, all previously saved Wi-Fi profiles will be removed. To reconnect to a previously saved Wi-Fi network, you need to enter the password again.
netsh wlan delete profile name=*
This command does not affect the profiles of wired networks. It also does not remove Wi-Fi profiles that are enforced by group policies. The latter does not usually affect home users, but may be of interest for managed devices.
Where does Windows store Wi-Fi profiles?
Like so much other important data, Windows stores Wi-Fi profiles in the registry.
You can check if all Wi-Fi networks have been deleted by looking the registry.
To do so, press [Windows] and [R] to open the “Run” window.
In this window, type in regedit and confirm by pressing [Enter].
Then navigate to the following path: Computer\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\NetworkList\Profiles
Here you can see all saved Wi-Fi profiles. In the screenshot below, you can see the entries framed in blue. If you want to know which hive belongs to which Wi-Fi network, just click on the corresponding entry. Next to the entry “ProfileName” you will find the name – or the SSID – of every Wi-Fi network.
