Network pardox

I have an oldl home Ethernet setup with a small D-Link router. The network is fine. I can file and print share without a hitch. The primary computer is an XP machine with integrated NIC. I just built the computer last December. The two secondary machines are 1. a Win2k machine with the same motherboard as the XP machine. 2. a Powerbook G4 Mac. Both the Mac and the Win2k machines will connect to the Internet without a problem. The WinXP machine will NOT connect to the Internet. It just keeps timing out... the email works similarly... not at all.

I have recycled the cable modem while rebooting the computer and stopping the router. I've released and renewed the IPCONFIG, and checked all of my settings. I just can't seem to find the problem.

The most recent change has been that Windows Security update that came through from MS. After that, my Zonealarm has a log entry saying:
"Update install failed, Auto ". Then it had an entry saying "Process for Win32 Services was Blocked from accepting a connection from the Internet "

I'm sure the problem must be in my machine, I just don't know how to fix it. If anyone has a suggestion for this problem, I would surely appreciated the help.
Thanks,
Charles

 

You can try "system restore"

Start->programs-Accessories->System Tools->System Restore

 

Click here, http://forums.zonealarm.org/zonelabs/board/message?board.id=win_za_msgs&message.id=12302

The answer is in the first reply.

Later,

PBiZ

 

Is that "system restore" anything that would require a file and settings backup... just in case? I can do a dramatic fix, if that is necessary. I was just hoping for some registry edit or lesser settings change. When I do anything that "restores" the system, it usually involves writing zeroes to the drive in order to remove errors on it. But that's just me.

I know something unchecked my "Obtain an IP address automatically," in the TCP/IP dialogue box. I had to reset it, today, and I know it was set that way before.

If I don't get another less ominous sounding suggestion, I'll give this a try.
Thanks,
Charles

 

That sounded pretty good to me, but it didn't make any difference. Still have the same problem. ZA's TrueVector is not working, and is in fact shutting down with the usual announcement and offer to contact MS. Makes me think that it just won't work if the system isn't connecting with the Internet. That may be somewhat simplistic, but something just ain't working.
Thanks again,
Charles

 

Well, you could always uninstall ZA, if you can get on the I-net after uninstalling then you found the culprit. Also have you tried browsing into your D-link router? If you can get to that device go over every setting on it. Make sure it’s not blocking port 80 for your PC.

My son’s PC once picked some adware that wouldn’t allow him to browse the internet with IE but Firefox worked just fine. Once I remove the adware, he couldn’t use ether one and even his pings wouldn’t return. I ended up scrubbing his computer out of frustration. That fixed it and he got a lesson about clicking OK on web pages without reading what it said.

I hate the internet of toady versus just a few years ago. Today one has to run more then just an AV program to protect his PC. I run 3 myself, Site Advisor, Spybot Search and Destroy (with Tea Timer active) and Avast AV. All 3 are free though.

Good Luck,

PBiZ

 

No, but it does require your system has set "restore point ".

Of course, tring Pharo's suggestion is your first choice.

 

I am a Firefox/Thunderbird user, but IE is also Internet disabled at this time, along with all the other Internet accessing facilities I have on the machine. I'm accessing this forum from my Mac at this time. The Win2k machine belongs to my wife, and the Mac is in the same room with the ailing XP machine.

I am very cautious about clicking OK on any website. Since I started this, I have backed up all of my newest files do optical disks and will probably scrub the beast and reload, when this thing finally gets my goat. But until then, I'm still hammering away at the problem.

Jason,
Thanks for your comments, I guess I've tried the system restore when I first got XP a year ago, and although it solved my boot problems for the day, it didn't fix the core problem, so I wound up zero-ing my drive and reloading the OS, anyway.

Besides, I would love to know what the heck is going on, right now, so I can fix it, should it ever happen again... or in the event that someone might call me with the same problem. I'm old and have been plunking on computer keyboards since before 1995, so people think I know something. I don't know much... I try to know the locations of people to ask, when I have a problem.
Thanks again,
Charles

 

I tried the added >ip.txt, but it didn't do anything, so I just did all of it:

Microsoft Windows XP [Version 5.1.2600]
(C) Copyright 1985-2001 Microsoft Corp.

C:\Documents and Settings\Charles Bender>ipconfig/all

Windows IP Configuration

Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . : hometown
Primary Dns Suffix . . . . . . . :
Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Unknown
IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
DNS Suffix Search List. . . . . . : ec.rr.com

Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection 6:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix . : ec.rr.com
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Realtek RTL8168/8111 PCI-E Gigabit E
thernet NIC #2
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-50-8D-94-E6-2F
Dhcp Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
IP Address. . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.0.118
Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.0
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.0.1
DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.0.1
DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . : 24.25.5.150
24.25.5.149
Lease Obtained. . . . . . . . . . : Sunday, November 11, 2007 11:48:09 A
M
Lease Expires . . . . . . . . . . : Sunday, December 23, 2007 3:48:09 AM

 

How many network connections show up in the properties of MNP?

Later,

PBiZ

 

I have three connections. The 1394 net adapter and two LAN connectors on the back of the motherboard. One is un-populated at the moment. I keep it disabled, so it doesn't lurk like a warning in the systray.
Charles

 

Have you tried hooking up to the secons Ethernet connection? What happens if you do?

Later,

PBiZ

 

Nothing of this problem changes... just the IP address changes one digit. Been there, done that as part of the original t-shoot. I'm seeing an OS reload in my future, I think. I hate not being able to fix this. What if it happens again? I much prefer to learn from failures. Is it possible there's something in the registry that could cause this?

I once had a problem that stopped me from visiting a growing number of websites, to the point I couldn't visit the archive site of my health related mailing list. It was never resolved, either. When I wrote zeroes to the drive and reloaded the OS, it worked perfectly. But that process is a bit of a pain. My computers are not just email machines... for sure.
Thanks again,
Charles

 

Sometimes it just works that way but there are some things you can do to prevent it. But before I list them, there is one last ditch effort, delete all your network connections and the network cards from the computer. Make sure you have your XP disk handy and then reboot. As it boots, go into you CMOS and disable them. Then burn this to a cd http://www.download.com/3000-2094-881470.html Run it with the cards still disabled, then reboot and go into your CMOS and enable them.

XP should find them and rebuild them but it should ask for the XP disk if regclean did it's job.

Now to prevent this from happening in the future go here and download this http://www.download.com/Spybot-Search-Destroy/3000-8022_4-10743107.html?tag=lst-0-1

And this http://www.download.com/McAfee-SiteAdvisor-for-Internet-Explorer/3000-2144_4-10663376.html

On the Spybot S&D make sure you enable the Tea Timer option and then go into tool and enable the IE options.

Welcome to the Internet 2007.

Good luck,

PBiZ

 

I haven't done any of the additional things you say, but I have been running Spybot S&D along with Adaware, on top of my double layered firewalls and the full Zonealarm Internet Security Suite. I honestly think it had something to do with one of the recent updates, but I can't prove it. I've heard that some big name update products have been have been hacked and the resulting files can be problematic, but this is the first time I ever suspected it could have happened to my machine, since 1995.

I thought I would just answer this quickly, and then go over all of your information to prepare for further actions. I always have to do a registry scrub when I re-install my Epson 4490 scanner, but I never fail to feel a little anxious when I enter any registry editor. Good thing is, I'm prepared for an OS reload, but I never relish the experience until it's over.
Thanks again,
Charles

 

Nether do I but I resigned myself to the fact that malware writers get better everyday. We can't win everytime, sometimes the bad guys get the better of us.

I don't like to scrub computers ether and I hate poking around in the registry. These are always last ditch efforts for me.

2 other things I've done to protect my OS is;

1, never surf with my admin account. I have a limited user account I use for most of my computer tasks. I use the admin account for installs and troubleshooting only.

2, set auto updates to ask me before it installs. Then I read what it does before I update. This way, I know where to look when it goes south.

I think every OS is vulnerable; sooner or later it's going to need to be scrubbed and re-installed. I really like the song "Every computer crashes, and every OS S**ks. :-D http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d85p7JZXNy8

Later,

PBiZ

 

Wild times at my house. I evidently have a problem with the new Windows update system. To explain... I just reformatted the hard drive and reloaded the system. Everything was going along like butter when I did my Windows update... by Internet. After that, I was once again blocked from accessing the Internet. I uninstalled Zonealarm and was once again was allowed to navigate the web. I'm going to reinstall it, AFTER the updates and see if that doesn't work better. What has M$ done??? I've been using these two together for years without a problem. Have they taken a dislike to Zonelabs? After pulling nearly an all nighter to get everything back up and running, I don't take kindly to these kinds of events.

If this reinstall of ZA doesn't work... does anyone have a suggestion?
Charles

 

That went pretty fast... but it makes me wonder. I have ZA reinstalled after an uninstall followed by a quick boot. Internet is back, but for how long? Seems like every time I download something from Microsoft, my security suite shuts down my Internet access. This happened just after I updated some Windows components on Saturday morning, although I didn't quite link it up chronologically. I had done a few other things and wasn't really noticing the events and times.
I hope I don't have to reinstall ZA every time I update my computer... anybody else have a situation like this?
Charles