Bluetooth^® Management and Configuration

Bluetooth Radio On and Off

When it is necessary to disable Bluetooth, there may be three possible methods available: a software switch, a hardware switch, or the Device Manager. It is strongly discouraged to mix the usage of these three methods (e.g., turn Bluetooth off with the software switch and turn it on with the Device Manager).

The software switch is the preferred method for turning the Bluetooth radio off and on; it is strongly recommended not to do so by disabling/enabling the Bluetooth device driver(s) in the Device Manager. However, the software switch may not be available on all systems. The procedures for using the software switch differ between operating systems and are outlined below.

Some systems may have a hardware switch in place of, or in addition to, a software switch. When both switches are present, avoid using them at the same time (i.e., if the Bluetooth radio is turned off with the software switch, it will remain off despite cycling the hardware switch off and on). Consult the system’s User Manual for information on the hardware switch.

In Windows 7, to switch the Bluetooth radio on and off:

1. Right-click the Bluetooth tray icon.
2. Select Turn Adapter On or Turn Adapter Off.

Alternatively, the Bluetooth radio may be turned off through the Bluetooth Settings window:

1. Right-click the Bluetooth tray icon.
2. Select Open Settings.
3. In the Options tab, check Turn off the Bluetooth adapter.

In Windows 8, to switch the Bluetooth radio on and off:

1. Open PC Settings
   • Slide out the Charm menu by moving the cursor to the bottom-right corner, select Settings, and click Change PC settings.
2. Select the Wireless node.
3. Click the Bluetooth slider to cycle Bluetooth on and off.

In Windows 8.1 and later, to switch the Bluetooth radio on and off:

1. Open PC Settings
   • Slide out the Charm menu by moving the cursor to the bottom-right corner, select Settings, and click Change PC settings.
2. Select the PC and Devices node.
3. Select the Bluetooth node.
4. Click the Bluetooth slider to cycle Bluetooth on and off.

Folder Sharing Settings

To enable or disable file sharing:

1. Right click on the Bluetooth tray icon and select Open Settings.
2. At the Bluetooth Settings window select the Shared Folder tab, and then do one of the following:
   • To enable file sharing, select the Allow remote devices to browse shared folder check box, click Browse to select the local folder to share with the Bluetooth devices, and then click OK.
   • To disable file sharing, unselect the Allow remote devices to browse shared folder check box.

To enable or disable user notifications about uploading files via FTP:

1. Right click on the Bluetooth tray icon and select Open Settings.
2. At the Bluetooth Settings window select the Shared Folder tab, and then do one of the following:
   • To enable user notification, select the Notify me when uploading files to the shared folder check box, and then click OK.
   • To disable user notification, unselect the Notify me when uploading files to the shared folder check box.