WinXP Pro, "Limited to no Connectivity" , fails to get IP Address...

OK, last week the network died for my apartment building, it's not up and running for MOST people, but not all. I'm one that it is not running for.

When I try to repair the connection, I get "Limited to no Connectivity ", yes, I know there is a hotfix for this for SP2, but it is NOT SP2 related.

I've tried the hotfix, no go. so I uninstalled windows and did a fresh install with neither SP1 nor 2. same problem, fails to get an IP address.

Now, I know the line going to my room is good, as my friends laptop, when plugged into the same line, connects perfectly. He can also connect to the wireless service provided by the apartment complex. I've tried, and same problem, I fail to get a proper IP adress.

Funny thing is, when I run IPConfig, I have an IP addy, but no gateway is there, while on my neighbors laptop, there is.

I've manually compared every setting between his laptop and my PC, and they are identicle.

so, any ideas as to whats wrong?
I NEED the internet... and it worked last week!

Running WinXP Pro SP2
NForce 2 mobo w/built in lan


Wireless is a Blitzz brand.

 

hmm...when I entered ipconfig /renew it hung for about 30 seconds, then displayed
"Windows IP Configuration
An error occured when renewing interface Local Area Connection ; unable to contact your DHCP server. Request has timed out "

Any ideas?

 

oh! Sorry, I didn't mean to sound snappish.


Thank you very much for you help, it is really really really appreciated!

 

Make sure that there is no firewall software and the XP firewall is off while troubleshooting.

Verify that the DHCP Client service is started. To do so, follow these steps:

1. Right-click My Computer, click Manage, expand Services and Applications under Computer Management, and then click Services.
2. Verify that the DHCP Client service is running.
3. If the service is stopped, right-click DHCP Client, and then click Start.

If that doesn't work, then the tips here in the link below.

Windows XP Network Troubleshooting - Problems with Network Cards
http://www.practicallynetworked.com/sharing/troubleshoot/networkcard.htm

 

DHCP is running, to double check, I stopped and restarted it...
no change.

Then went to the website and tried what was listed there, specifying the speed, etc. again, same problem.

Again, thanks for all your help guys. I have no clue what is stopping this from working...any extra info I can give you guys that might help is diagnosing this problem?

 

You mentioned that you had an IP Address. What address is this? If it starts with 169.254 then this is not coming from any other source. If Windows is configured to use DHCP and cannot get an address from DHCP then an address starting with 169.254 will be assigned.

DRD

 

ok, my addy is 196.254.149.40

soooo....not good I take it. And assigning a static IP does nothing.

 

oooook...

This now has me very confused....my wireless adapter is just now getting a solid connection...I may never turn off my PC again...but I'm connected?!?

I'm almost afraid to plug back in the wired cable...

 

time for more confusion...

the wireless one is working fine.
The wired one? Not at all. still limited to no connectivity...no idea whats going on here.

 

Look at the possible solutions found in this webpage.

http://www.practicallynetworked.com/sharing/troubleshoot/specificbroblems.htm

 

If none if the information at the link ecross posted helps (and there is a wealth of good stuff there) then a couple of questions and a couple of thoughts.

You posted that you got an IP assigned of 196.254.... Could that have been 169.254..... instead?

When you "uninstalled" windows, exactly what process did you use?

Putting in static IP addressing information could have failed if you used data that doesn't match your apartment's setup. If your friend with the laptop has a wired NIC, could you let him connect again, copy down the IP address, subnetmask, and gateway address then from a run line, ipconfig /release, disconnect his laptop and connect your wired NIC and put the exact same information. It would be interesting to see if that would work.

 

My exact thoughts too Newt. He posted 196.254.x.x but receiving a Limited or No Connectivity means that a DHCP server was not contacted and an Automatic Private IP Addressing (APIPA) address from the range 169.254.0.0/16 was assigned.

The ip address that he posted is likely a typo. This is also explained here but this also applies to wired network connections.

Wireless LAN Enhancements in Windows XP Service Pack 2
http://www.microsoft.com/technet/community/columns/cableguy/cg0804.mspx

 

hmm...

I had already tried everything posted at that website, great resource though, thanks!

Also had already tried using my friends IP Info....although it IS possible we didn't release that address, so I'll try that one again.

Thanks guys, your help is really appreciated!

 

Similar problem solved

Just last week I was asked to install a router for a friend using RoadRunner. She was connected to the modem via USB. I installed a LAN card without a hitch under XP, but I could not get a dhcp connection to the router and kept getting a 169.254... ip address. I ipconfigged (is that a word?) until I was pulling my hair out, to no avail. So I went into the registry looking for answers. I found several IPAutoconfiguration entries setting the 169... IP address as well as a subnet mask of 255.255.0.0 -- I assumed the RR setup put these in, so I removed them. When I tried to /renew they came back.

I finally figured out that EnableDHCP had been set to 0. So I set it to 1 everyplace I could find it in the registry, and deleted the IPAutoconfiguration entries. This is what finally worked. The IP came from the router in the usual 192.168.1.xxx.

This may or may not help you, but I thought I'd put it out here just in case.

Good luck.

 

i agree with newt do the ipconfig /release then reboot machine and let the dhcp assign a valid ip and it should be okay. have come across many times and usually this works.

 

Have you tried a new nic driver? Sometimes drivers get damaged. I had a problem finding a driver that would work on RoadRunner cable after installing a new network card. The system was Windows 98se and the driver came on a floppy disk with the new card. After spending an hour trying different drivers for this system, I gambled and installed a driver for Windows 95 and it worked to perfection. It has been several weeks and it is still working.
I cannot explain why the Windows 95 driver worked and several of the latest Windows 98se drivers did not.
Just another crazy solution to a problem.

 

"OK, last week the network died for my apartment building, it's not up and running for MOST people, but not all. I'm one that it is not running for. "

I'm suprised given this statement that no one has suggested what seems obvious to me... perhaps your network card was damaged in this outage and I would suggest replacing it temporarily with a new/different card, then do a Refresh/Renew. If your NIC adapter is built in to the motherboard, go into the BIOS setup and disable it there before installing another NIC adapter. Hope this helps! BTW, many local computer stores have 10/100 NIC cards used (pulls, etc) for really cheap... $5 or less! Couldn't hurt to try...