Windows XP SP2 regularly losing connection completely

I'm running windows XP SP2 with Norton Internet Security 2005 as firewall and a cable internet connection.

I have the following problem:
whenever I'm "stressing" the internet connection (mostly because of P2P programs)
the connection regularly drops completely. I have to log off and log back on to
get the connection back. Even disabling en re-enabling the connection doesn't
help. The time period is very random. It might drop after 20 min or after 3 hours
but that it will drop is for sure.

With stressing I mean using the upload bandwith completely. I have a 4Mbit
download, 512Kbit upload connection. I should be able to set the upload to
55Kb/s without problems but the problem seems to occur very early at any
speed above 40Kb/s.

I didn't have this problem at all before SP2 and there wasn't a problem on
windows 2003 either. Since I have an integrated version of SP2 I can't
uninstall SP2.

Does anyone know of a solution?

Thanks in advance,

O. Tijhuis

 

Are you seeing Event ID 4226 in your System event logs?

 

Brain Food

The fact that it is randomly dropping out, and lets you do what you want to do at all indicates it is more likely to be a physical problem than software. If Nortons IS was set incorrectly or was blocking your traffic it would affect it instantly every time. If it was a Windows problem i would also tend to think it would be more immediate and consistent when it goes wrong.

I will simply throw a few ideas at you and see if any of it helps. I think you should consider these areas more:

-The router may overheat at certain usage levels or not handle the speed properly. Can you try another router?

-You phone line has problem intermittently or has a fault that makes it unreliable somewhere along the line. Can you try your PC and router on another line somewhere else with someone else's account set up in it if necessary. I know it sounds like a lot of work, but it will tell you a lot. Can you shorten the length of the line between the wall and the router? Phone extension leads can cause signal downgrades the longer they are.

-Your P2P software has problems. I would be curious to know if you are using P2P inside a program like Kazaa or WinMX or other free media downloading software. These types of programs from my experience cause a lot of problems with any PC they are on. Thats another thread.

-Your ISP may be having a QoS (quality of service) problem and may be worse at peak usage times, or they might downthrottle clients speeds according to them reaching a certain megabyte usage levels in a period or to allow more clients to log on at that time.

I would if possible also try a non SP2 machine on your line with your router and connection, that would be a quick way to isolate the problem. So if you can get hold of another box and set up your connection on it, you will know if it is your problem is in your PC, or external to your PC. Then you eliminate a lot of possibilities and make the problem a lot easier for you and for us to solve.

Some of these things to try sound like lots of effort, but that depends on what is available to you. I am a Computer Technician and i could do all these things in an hour or so for a client. Just some ideas.

Good Luck!

 

Re:

Angel71 -- Yes I'm seeing Event ID 4226 in the event log. I already have the patched tcpip.sys for unlimited connections, the problem still persists.

Dez -- Thanks for the tips but I can tell for sure it's not a physical problem.
I don't have a router, just the cablemodem. I've tried several network adapters
including the onboard and an usb one I have. I had to install windows xp again
because windows 2003 wouldn't run certain programs (and I can't install windows
xp without servicepacks because of certain hardware that's not supported yet).
I used the same p2p programs on windows 2003 and before on windows xp with
sp1 and the problem didn't exist. It's only with sp2 that the problem is there.


Yesterday evening I had the problem again and the uploadspeed was on 40kb/s
so it still happens at lower uploadspeeds, it just takes longer before the problem
occurs. Normally I have to log off and log back on to get the connection back.
Since windows doesn't do much besides stop the running programs I decided
to try and stop some programs and see if the connection came back. I
disabled Norton IS and suddenly I could browse again. It looks to be a
problem with the combination of windows xp sp2 and norton IS. I'm going to
try another firewall and see if the problem still persists.

 

Norton IS

Looks like the problem is the combination of Norton IS (2004 and 2005)
and windows XP SP2. I'm using McAfee Security Suite at the moment and
I haven't had the problem since, even with the uploadspeed maxed.